How Many Calories Do You Burn In A Sauna?

December 22, 2022
Fitness exercise
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You’ve probably heard that spending time in a sauna is one of the best ways to burn calories and lose weight. How many calories do you burn in a sauna? Which things do you notice while trying to lose weight in the sauna? Liftyolife (liftyolife.com) helps you answer all these questions in this post.

1. What Is The Sauna And How Does It Work?

Before discussing “How many calories do you burn in the sauna?”, you should know how the sauna works.

The sauna is a cabin heated to temperatures between about 90 and 194oF (from 32 to 90oC). The temperature depends on the kind of sauna you use. Typically, all of them affect the human body the same way, although the humidity levels vary and temperatures.

Here are some popular types of sauna:

  • Wood burning sauna – the traditional sauna: The wood-burning stove heats the rocks when reaching high temperatures. The level of humidity is very low inside.
  • Electrically heated sauna: This type of sauna uses an electric heater put on the floor or wall to heat the cabin. An electrically heated sauna offers high temperatures with a low level of humidity.
  • Steam room (Turkish bathhouse): This place provides almost 100% of air humidity while the temperatures are low.
  • Infrared sauna: This type of sauna working depends on using light waves to heat the human body without heating the cabin.

2. How Many Calories Do You Burn In A Sauna?

How many calories does a sauna burn? How many calories do I burn in a sauna? Some sources evaluate that a person can burn more than 600 calories in one hour sauna set, while others say it is as low as 50. However, it will vary from person to person; you can use a heart rate monitor to track your calories burned in the day and during your sauna set.

3. How Does A Sauna Help You Lose Weight?

Here are three specific ways to relax in a sauna to help you lose weight.

3.1. Increasing Metabolic Rate

Sitting in an infrared sauna has a familiar effect on the body to a high-energy exercise. By warming up your body, this sauna boosts your core temperature, which leads your body to dilate your veins to adjust that temperature increase. This process increases your heart rate to bring more oxygen and run the blood through your body more efficiently. A faster heart rate can boost your metabolism by more than 30%, and this will help you burn more calories than when you often take a rest.

Increasing Metabolic Rate

Increasing Metabolic Rate

3.2. Detox

Our bodies are exposed to toxins, chemicals, and heavy metals from our make-up, food, pollution, skin care items, and even the water we drink. It is crucial to help our bodies address these toxins efficiently, and one of the best methods is sweating.

Working out in the gym is an excellent way to break a sweat; however, you can also spend a half hour enjoying the sauna for the same effect. A third choice would be to mix the two by doing hot yoga in your at-home sauna to increase the sweating and strengthen your muscles and joints at the same time.

To lose weight, you can detoxify your body by:

  • Boost your energy levels.
  • Help your body burn more fat.
  • Eliminate your lymphatic system.
  • Reduce inflammation.

3.3. Water Weight

If you are seeking methods to lose a few pounds quickly for a weigh-in or to fit into an outfit in the short term, losing some water weight can be a temporary solution. Breaking a sweat in an infrared sauna will lead you to drop some of your body’s hydration, and you can drop more than 5lbs of fluid in a set if your body is well-hydrated.

Note that if you go back to drinking normal amounts of water, or more, after your set, the weight will come back quickly. This trick is only helpful in particular situations because you are not dropping body fat or actual weight – just some water in your body. Individuals who do this are often:

  • Sportsmen and athletes must weigh a specific amount for a competition or match (fighters, jockeys, bodybuilders, and powerlifters).
  • People who need to drop a little weight for a claim or insurance application.
  • People who desire to fit into a tight outfit for an event.
  • Dancers, actors, performers, and models want a thinner appearance temporarily.

4. How To Calculate How Many Calories Does A Sauna Burn?

It is not hard to accurately determine the number of calories you can lose while going to the sauna. Here are some calorie-burn calculators you can refer to:

The figure for calories burned while sitting in the sauna for 30 minutes = The figure for calories you can burn while sitting 30 minutes x 1.5.

The result will differ depending on the temperature in the sauna and your body weight. That is an average calorie burned you can lose; however, it can be higher. If you want to know the higher number of calories you may burn in the session, you should multiply the number of burned calories at the same time by two.

The figure for calories you can burn while sitting in the sauna for 30 minutes = The figure for burned calories while sitting in 30 minutes x 2.

Yet, the numbers you receive represent a typical range of the number of calories burned in the sauna. The figure for calories you can burn in this period depends on your gender, weight, height, and age.

For instance, an average 30 year-old-woman weighing 150 pounds (68kg), 5 feet, 5 inches (165cm) tall has a BMR of 1,492 calories, about 31 calories for half an hour.

Using the BMR calculator, you will witness this female burn 46.5 to 62 calories while sitting in the sauna in 30 minutes.

5. Be Careful While Trying To Lose Weight In The Sauna

The sauna method is harmless and beneficial if you follow the usage regulations and care for yourself. The most serious issue is that people who start using the sauna may experience dehydration.

As novices usually want to get benefits and drop weight as soon as possible, they may put their bodies in danger. Regularly remember that extreme heat leads to sweating a lot, which means losing much fluid.

If water loss is higher than intake, you may be dehydrated. Thus, you drink enough water before going into the sauna and during and after the set.

If you experience one of these signs of dehydration below, you should ask for medical support:

  • Headache.
  • Dizziness in the mouth.
  • Very thirst.
  • Dryness in the mouth.
  • Reduce frequency of urination.

Be careful while using the sauna if you are childbearing or experience chronic conditions such as:

  • Kidney disease.
  • Cardiovascular diseases.
  • Diabetes.

These conditions may speed up the appearance of dehydration.

How many calories do you burn in a sauna? Several resources evaluate that an individual can burn up to 600 calories in one hour, while others claim it is as low as 50. However, the number of calories burned depends on your age, gender, weight, and height. Using the sauna, followed by the rule, and taking care of yourself helps you boost your metabolic rate and burn calories efficiently. Liftyolife (liftyolife.com) hopes this article gives you some helpful knowledge that you are looking for.

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