Can a Sauna Help With Weight Loss?

A sauna is an advanced heating system designed to induce intense sweating. As of now, there are two major types of saunas, infrared and traditional. A traditional sauna produces heat by pouring water on some heated stones to heat up the air and generate steam.

On the other hand, an infrared sauna uses carbon heaters in order to transmit infrared light waves to heat and penetrate the body. Both these saunas make you burn calories through sweating. Hence, there is a popular belief that consistent use of saunas leads to fat loss. But, is it true? Here is a detailed guide to whether or not a sauna can help you with weight loss. 

Sauna and Weight Loss - Are They Connected?

It is essential to know whether there is a connection between saunas and weight loss. Here is what you need to know:

Sweat Out Weight

The heat generated by the saunas can increase your body temperature, and hence it speeds u- circulation and enhances sweating as a way to cool down your body. Studies have found that on average, you can lose 1% of your body weight after a half an hour sauna session, based on how much you sweat.

But, the weight you lose during that session is generally water weight. Therefore, while you may have a minimum amount of weight loss after a sauna session, it may return as you hydrate after using a sauna. 

Enhance Calorie Burn

As the temperature of your body rises, your heart rate also rises, just like exercise. As per a study, a half an hour infrared sauna session can burn around 600 calories and around 1 pound of sweat. 

However, another study found that four sessions of saunas for about 10 minutes each results in positive changes in terms of energy expenditure and heart rate. Those who had such sauna sessions experienced greater post- exercise oxygen consumption, and hence they burned more calories after sauna sessions. 

Better Cholesterol Levels

LDL or low density lipoprotein is sometimes called bad cholesterol because of greater amounts causing plaque in the arteries that lead to several serious wellbeing and health problems affecting the brain, heart, legs and arms. But, the regular use of sauna is linked to seriously decreasing cholesterol levels in a similar way achieved through moderate exercise.

Reduced Stress

The soothing, warm heat generated by an infrared sauna has been shown to help with stress and relaxation. It also improves your mood. Stress often contributes to obesity and weight gain by enhancing the hormones connected with hunger and disturbing the cognitive process related to self-regulation. 

Hence leading to lessened activity and energy levels, and overeating. By lessening the levels of stress through consistent sessions of sauna, you can end up reducing your body’s physiological response to stress that causes weight gain.  

Burn Calories With Infrared Saunas

While consistent infrared sauna sessions are not a mere replacement for exercise and diet, they can provide serious benefits to your long term weight loss. Also, they can help you sweat out excessive water, reduce stress, burn calories, and accelerate weight loss. So, this can be a great maintenance plan. 

Can a Sauna Burn Fat?

Does a sauna really burn fat? Well, yes, it can. Several studies have revealed that subjecting the body to intense heat can increase the metabolism, hence causing fat loss. Here is how it works. 

Being humans, we mainly get our energy from the drinks and food we consume. Metabolism is a process in which our body transforms food into energy and then uses it to maintain our body’s normal functioning. These energy sources used by the body to power itself are from fat, carbohydrates, and protein. Protein and carbohydrates are the main sources of energy as they are easily transformed into glucose, the primary energy sources for a body. 

When we eat more, we often get excessive energy which is stored in the body as fat. Studies have found that more than 80% of a healthy body’s energy is stored as fat. But, how does heat affect a body’s metabolism?

Simply putting it, the heat generated by the saunas serves as an environmental stressor to your body. It protects itself by using up more energy or fats, in order to maintain normal body functioning. This causes quicker fat and calorie burn. In addition, several studies have shown that consistent sauna sessions enhance the metabolic rate of a body by 30%, hence causing fat burn. 

Other Ways Sauna Causes Weight Loss

Apart from enhancing calorie and fat burn, a sauna helps weight loss by:

Regulating Hormones

Detoxification through intense sweating enables the elimination of toxins through the largest body organ, the skin. Research has found that between three body fluids, including blood, sweat and urine used by the body to excrete waste, a greater amount of heavy metals like lead, aluminum and cadmium were present in sweat than in urine.

Such heavy metals are often linked to causing an imbalance in adrenal gland, which regulates production of hormones. Such an adrenal imbalance can also lead to excess cortisol, which is a stress hormone that causes retention and weight gain. 

Reducing Water Weight

Water weight gain takes place when excessive water is stored in the blood vessel and tissue, making your body appear and feel bloated. It happens for numerous reasons, such as consumption of food with greater salt/sodium content, kidney dysfunction, and hormonal imbalance. Using a sauna regularly opens the sweat glands and helps your body get rid of excess water in an effective manner. 

How to Safely Use a Sauna for Weight Loss?

The healthiest and safest way of losing weight is always in a more holistic manner. Wellness and health is considered a lifestyle. Hence, it needs to be practiced with balance and consistency. In order to enjoy the comprehensive benefits of weight loss through your infrared or traditional saunas, you need to make sure that you stick to a healthy diet, proper mental and physical rest, and routine exercise into your weight loss journey!