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The Sauna Hub
What the research actually says, which setups are worth your money, and how to start without cooking yourself. Tested firsthand, graded honestly.
By Brent Wallace, longevity health coach, IIN certified Updated
For heart health, the research looks good, but most of it comes from Finnish men using traditional saunas around 170°F, 4 to 7 times a week. It shows a link, not proof. For detox and fat loss, it's hype. Start with 10 minutes, build to about 20, drink water and skip the alcohol.
The evidence meter
Filled segments show how strong the evidence is for the claim on the card.
Heat pushes your heart rate up and opens your blood vessels, much like a brisk walk. That part is well documented.
Source: Laukkanen et al., Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 2018 review (opens in a new tab)
Finnish men who used a sauna 4 to 7 times a week had lower rates of fatal heart disease and death from any cause than once-a-week users. It's one long study showing a link, not proof.
Source: Laukkanen et al., JAMA Internal Medicine, 2015 (2,315 men) (opens in a new tab)
In the same group of Finnish men, frequent sauna users were less likely to develop high blood pressure.
Source: Zaccardi et al., American Journal of Hypertension, 2017 (opens in a new tab)
Men in the same Finnish study who used a sauna 4 to 7 times a week had lower rates of dementia. Again, a link, not proof.
Source: Laukkanen et al., Age and Ageing, 2017 (opens in a new tab)
One small trial found a single session of whole-body heat eased depression for weeks. It used a medical heating device, not a sauna.
Source: Janssen et al., JAMA Psychiatry, 2016 (opens in a new tab)
Six runners who sat in a sauna after training for three weeks lasted longer in a run-to-exhaustion test. Six people is very little to go on.
Source: Scoon et al., Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 2007 (6 men) (opens in a new tab)
Infrared research is small, mostly heart failure patients in a 140°F far-infrared sauna, called Waon therapy. The big Finnish studies used traditional saunas.
Source: Kihara et al., Journal of Cardiology, 2009 (opens in a new tab)
Sweat is mostly water and salt. Your liver and kidneys do the cleaning.
The pound you lose in a session is water. It comes back when you drink.
Two 15-minute sessions a week for three months lowered sperm counts in a small study. Counts recovered about six months after stopping.
Source: Garolla et al., Human Reproduction, 2013 (10 men) (opens in a new tab)
Drinking and sauna don't mix. Alcohol shows up in many sauna deaths.
Source: Kenttämies and Karkola, Journal of Forensic Sciences, 2008 (opens in a new tab)
Start here
How hot should a sauna be to start? Warm, not brutal. Short and steady beats long and miserable.
Infrared runs cooler, about 120 to 150°F, so sessions run longer, 20 to 30 minutes.
I'm a longevity health coach, not a doctor.
If you feel dizzy, sick, get a headache, or your heart races or your chest feels off. Never sauna after drinking, and stand up slowly when you're done.
Is an infrared sauna as good as a traditional one? Nobody knows yet. The big studies used traditional saunas around 170°F. Infrared has far less research.
| Option | Cost | Heat | Time needed | Research | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional dry sauna Tested by Brent | A gym pass, or a few thousand dollars and up at home | 160 to 195°F air | 15 to 20 min, plus heat-up at home | Most studied | The benefits the big studies found |
| Infrared sauna Tested by Brent | About $1,800 and up | 120 to 150°F | 20 to 30 min | Small studies, mostly heart patients | Lower heat, quick to heat up at home |
| Sauna blanket Tested by Brent | A few hundred dollars | Wraps you in heat, lying down | 30 min or more | Almost none | Small spaces and tight budgets |
| Steam room | A gym or spa pass | 110 to 120°F, wet heat | 10 to 15 min | Limited | Gym days, if dry heat is too much |
Tested by Brent
Start with what you can get to. The research used traditional saunas around 170°F, so heat matters more than the brand. My favorite way to sit in one: about 20 minutes of meditation or an audiobook.
Comes with a gym membership
Where I sauna the most. No setup and no power bill. The catch: you have to get there.
Borrowed from a friend
A cheap way to get heat at home, and I liked it for that. The hassle: cleaning my sweat out of it after every session. There's almost no research on blankets, so treat it as a way to enjoy heat, not as the studied option.
About $1,800
I bought it at Costco and kept it in the house. Easy to use, and it was great. But the research is on dry saunas at 170°F and up, so I sold it.
Friends and neighbors
Traditional dry heat, the kind the research used. My neighbor had one, and friends nearby have barrel saunas we use regularly. I'd like to test one of my own at some point.
I'm always testing new gear and protocols. Join the Insiders and you'll hear about the next one first.
Put in your own numbers. The examples are just a starting point.
A day pass costs about $325 a month
Owning costs about $15 a month
Owning pays for itself in about 17 months.
Two things that matter more than the brand.
Most traditional sauna heaters need their own 240-volt circuit. Many smaller infrared saunas plug into a regular outlet. Check the manual, and get a licensed electrician for any new wiring.
A traditional sauna can take 30 to 60 minutes to get hot. Infrared is closer to 10 to 20. Start it before you need it, or you'll talk yourself out of going.
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Pair it with cold
Most people who sauna end up pairing it with a cold plunge. See every cold setup I've tested, from free to $10,000+.
Traditional dry saunas usually run 160 to 195°F. The big Finnish studies averaged about 174°F. Infrared runs cooler, about 120 to 150°F.
Start with 10 minutes. Most of the research used sessions around 15 to 20. Get out if you feel dizzy or sick.
Two to four times a week is a solid start. The best results in the Finnish studies came from 4 to 7 sessions a week.
Traditional has the research. Infrared is easier at home and runs cooler. If you can take the heat, traditional is the better-backed bet.
After is the common choice, and the small runner study used post-workout sessions. Drink water either way.
Many people go hot, then cold, and repeat. The cold step is a cold plunge, and the whole routine is called contrast therapy.
Yes. You can sweat out a lot in 20 minutes. Drink before and after, and skip the alcohol.
I'm always testing new gear and protocols. Tell me what you've got.
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