A Sauna Isn’t a Substitute for Exercise

Spending time in a sauna can feel good, but it can also cause a bit of suffering; after all, if the weather outside was the same as the temperature in a sauna, you’d probably want to hide in the air conditioning all day. There’s something about unpleasant bodily experiences that makes us think they must be good for us, somehow, and that’s why the sauna has gained a wholesome reputation that it doesn’t entirely deserve. Here’s a look at what a sauna can and can’t do for you.

Saunas do not burn fat

It’s technically true that you can lose weight by sitting in a sauna, but it’s not because your body is burning fat; that’s because you sweat, and sweat is made of water, and water weighs something. As soon as you rehydrate – which is necessary – the scale will return to where it was at the beginning. After all, as I explained in the context of exercise, sweating doesn’t mean you had a good workout or burned calories. That just means you were hot.

People who sell saunas and sauna services like to tout their calorie-burning benefits, but there’s no evidence that you burn significantly more calories sitting in a hot room than if you were sitting on your couch at home. Some more skeptical websites cite a modest figure of 1.5 to 2 times more calories than you would burn sitting at room temperature, but without citation. If true, it’s about the same difference between sitting and standing: so you can skip that trip to the sauna and just spend half an hour standing.

So why does your fitness tracker say you burned a ton of calories in the sauna? First of all, don’t bring your phone to the sauna, it’s bad for the battery. But since you did it anyway, I’ll explain. Your watch’s calorie burning algorithms are designed to estimate your calorie burn from your heart rate assuming you exercise. If your heart rate increases but you are not exercise, the calculations are not correct. Caloric expenditure during exercise comes from the muscles throughout your body contracting over and over again. That’s just not what happens when you sit in the sauna.

Saunas do not “detoxify” you

It’s 2026 and we as a society should forget about this concept of “detox”, which has been debunked time and time again. Ordinary discomforts like fatigue are sometimes not due to secret toxins that constantly poison you, and even if you TO DO If you have health problems due to toxins, you should consult a doctor and not expect smoothies or saunas to cure you.

Saunas are not a substitute for exercise

Saunas and exercise warm up your body and make you sweat, but there aren’t many similarities other than that. Remember, exercise makes us stronger and improves our cardiovascular endurance (giving us a higher VO2max, for example). Sweating in a hot room doesn’t do that.

Even this summary from an exercise science researcher, whose title draws a parallel between running and sitting in a sauna, includes the following disclaimer: “Before you consider canceling your gym membership and investing your savings in a Jacuzzi, know that regular saunas or baths are not able to replicate all of the health benefits of exercise training, such as fat loss and increased muscle mass. Using Hot baths or saunas should not be considered a substitute for exercise.”

Saunas May Be Good for Your Blood Vessels

What is this researcher do What I’m pointing out, after the disclaimer, is that there are some lesser-known benefits of exercise that seem to be related to increased body heat and heart rate, rather than the more obvious strain on our lungs or muscles.

When your body temperature rises, the blood vessels near the surface of your skin dilate (widen), and this process can promote cell growth and repair. In other words, simply increasing body temperature can be good for your blood vessels. It’s not something we usually think about, but healthy blood vessels are part of a healthy cardiovascular system.

Relaxation is real

If you find saunas relaxing – and many of us do – this may be a health benefit in itself. However, this is not as concrete an advantage as is sometimes claimed. You’re not going to cure your depression or reverse your heart disease just by relaxing in a sauna every once in a while. But if you enjoy your sauna sessions, they could definitely help reduce your stress levels and improve your mental health. Pro tip: If you don’t have access to a sauna, a hot bath can also have many of these effects.

Heat has its advantages and disadvantages

For other medical conditions and sports uses, the pros and cons of a sauna boil down to the pros and cons of the heat itself. If you have muscle pain, the heat is often pleasant, which is why athletes often enjoy sauna sessions.

Some skin conditions respond well to the dry air of a sauna, while others may be exacerbated by dry air but might feel better with the humid air of a steam room. Use common sense and check with your doctor if you want to use a sauna to manage a health problem.

Saunas also carry risks

If we’re talking about health benefits, it’s only fair to also discuss the risks. Saunas are reasonably safe, but people with health problems are often advised to stay away or speak to a doctor before deciding to spend time in a sauna. This may include you if you are pregnant, have unusually high or low blood pressure, have epilepsy, or are taking stimulants, tranquilizers, or psychotropic medications. Spending time in a sauna has also been linked to a temporary drop in fertility, as the heat impairs sperm production.

The main danger of a sauna is that you could overheat or become dehydrated; Serious heat illness and dehydration can both be life-threatening, and people have died in saunas. Alcohol makes you more vulnerable; According to a Finnish study, half of the people who died in saunas were under the influence of alcohol. (The authors argue that the greatest danger is not the alcohol itself, but allowing a drunk person to be alone in a sauna.) So if you choose to spend time in a sauna, be smart. Hydrate well, don’t go alone, and don’t expect the sauna to do things that saunas can’t do.