For quite some time now home saunas have gained massive popularity across the United States. A tradition first followed by the Finns about a thousand years back, the benefits of saunas have caught on in the United States with a lot of acclaim and acceptance.

What is a sauna?

In general, a sauna is a wooden paneled room heated to about 80? C. It has been proven scientifically that occasional visits to the sauna eliminate harmful toxins from the body through perspiration, rejuvenate you physically, relieve mental stress, and leave you feeling fresh and relaxed. Bathing in a sauna can be a very soothing experience.

Steps to a refreshing sauna experience

One can go to the sauna nude or wearing simple bathing attire. There is no reason to feel uncomfortable about your modesty because the whole ambience about sauna bathing is getting in tune with nature, refreshing your body and replenishing your energies.

Sauna Bathing - Basic Steps

First of all take a nice shower. This will help prepare your body to get the most out of the sauna bath.

Enter the sauna and sit on a bench covered with a towel. Let the heat pervade your body and open the pores of your skin. Let the steam run through your body and make you sweat. Feel the perspiration pouring out and the harmful toxins being released from your system.

Once you're finished you can go to a changing room, wipe yourself off and head to the shower.

You may want to apply a moisturizing lotion to make your skin feel supple and toned.

Many bathers have always made it a point to apply moisturizing lotion after their sauna bath because they have found out that saunas tend to dry your skin. So a moisturizing lotion can work wonders. The effect is so soothing that you feel refreshed and totally invigorated. And there's no better way to end the exciting feeling than with a nice round of fruit juice and a quiet rest.

Saunas and health benefits

Some people are concerned about whether or not saunas could have repercussions to their health. If you are fairly healthy, you can use the sauna bath without any problems at all. Those with muscle sprains and arthritis will find a sauna bath easy on their nerves and quite relaxing. It is a boon to asthmatic patients as it helps facilitate the breathing process. For recovery from the common cold, saunas alleviate chest congestion and ensure a speedy recovery. The best thing is that it stops the likely occurrence of colds. On a cosmetic level, the skin tends to have a natural radiance and glow. This is primarily because a sauna bath flushes the toxins out of the body through the natural process of perspiration, while removing all the dead cells and grime and making your skin look elegant and wonderful. The heart also gets a work out as the heart pumps faster and harder for the heat exchange. The infrared heater has really been in vogue these days. Far infrared saunas are cooler than the conventional ones. They use "solar energy" without harmful UV rays, are quite safe and boost the immune system while detoxifying the body. Today saunas have become a sort of fitness requirement for an American lifestyle. An abundance of saunas have found their way into many homes in the US.

Things to avoid when using a sauna

Avoid going to the sauna bath with a full stomach. If you enter the sauna after eating a big meal, you will find it a bit uneasy because the digestion process stops the heat exchange ability as the blood is needed for the gastro intestinal area. Also, if you enter the sauna with a lot of alcohol in your system, you will feel drowsy and lazy as the heat exchange ability of the blood and vascular system is disturbed.

Buying your sauna kit - Facts and considerations

The perfect sauna cabin will have about four rooms like the changing room; the relaxation room, stove room, and the cooling tank. From the outside the sauna looks like a wooden box with a heater but the 'inside story' is quite different. The sauna heater is the main, and most crucial part of the sauna. The choice of the sauna heater depends on the energy it will utilize and the size of the sauna you require.

You can build a sauna in your apartment too. There are kits available that can help you set one up in your bathroom with the perfect sauna ambience. If you are thinking of purchasing a sauna kit online there are a lot of handy tips which will help you get the right kind of configuration. The first criterion is to choose a good quality wood. Check to see if there is a heater guard included. There are other things you may want to look into, like whether or not the package includes air grills and exterior paneling. Contact your online sauna manufacturer for the right size and which will meet the demands of your personal sauna requirements. Also, you will want to make sure you choose the right kind of heater. You can browse online brochures for many sauna kits and see examples of people who have already installed saunas in their apartments and bathrooms for a wiser decision.

Alan Sims is a successful author and publisher of http://www.sauna-hot-tubs.com/ who enjoys providing informative tips and guides to consumers when shopping for a home sauna.

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Copyright 2005, Alan Sims, Netrev Publishing, LLC.