When researching for a home sauna one of the most popular options you will find is a portable sauna Many websites state that these devices are effective at detoxing your body and making you sweat, but do portable saunas really work?
Since this is a common question that has been asked many times we had to write an article on the topic. Down below we discuss what portable saunas are, how they work, and if you should buy one yourself.
Do Portable Saunas Really Work?
To give you a quick answer, yes, portable infrared saunas do work. While their low price and cheesy photos online might make you feel suspicious, they actually do produce heat and make people sweat.
With that being said not all portable saunas are built equal and there are a lot of cheap brands online.
In addition to that portable saunas use infrared technology to create heat which means they run at much lower temperatures than most public saunas. For these reasons, you should outweigh the pros and cons of portable saunas.
What Are Portable Saunas?
Portable saunas are exactly what they sound like, portable saunas. These devices use infrared technology to heat your body and make you sweat.
The most unique aspect about these saunas is that they use light and portable materials for easy transportation and storage. This design makes them ideal for people who have limited room in their home, but still want the benefits from a home sauna.
How Portable Saunas Work
As mentioned above portable saunas use infrared sauna technology to generate heat and make you sweat. This avenue of generating heat is very different from traditional electric saunas (the type of saunas most gyms/spas use) and thus produce a much different sauna bathing experience.
Traditional saunas use electric heating elements to heat up the sauna stones. These sauna stones, through convection, then promote enough warmth to heat the whole sauna. If properly installed these saunas can reach up to a temperature of 194 degrees F.
Infrared saunas on the other hand use infrared light to produce radiant heat that is absorbed by the surface of the skin. This infrared light penetrates deep into your skin and allows you to sweat profusely at a much lower temperature than traditional saunas.
Most infrared saunas only operate at a temperature of 140-150 degrees. While this is a much lower temperature, they are still very effective at making your sweat because of the light penetration.
Benefits of Portable Saunas
Portable saunas have most of the same health benefits that traditional saunas have. These health benefits include:
- Mentally Relaxing (They allow you a moment to just sit in relax. You can add meditation to enhance your efforts.)
- Relax Your Muscles (The warmth that saunas promote increases blood flow and relaxes your muscles.)
- Increase Muscle Growth (Multiple studies conducted show saunas can literally increase muscle growth after a workout.)
- Strengthen Your Heart (Saunas have a great effect on your cardiovascular system.)
- Lower Your Blood Pressure (The heat from the saunas relaxes your blood vessels which increases blood flow.)
- Help Your Respiratory System ( The steam from the sauna can aid asthma symptoms and bronchitis.)
- Boost Your Immune System (With increased white blood cells and other health effects, saunas help boost your immune system.)
- Promote Weight Loss (Your body burns more calories while in the sauna, which can enhance weight loss. In addition, they increase muscle mass, which helps you burn more calories over time.)
- Cleanse Your Skin (Saunas help get rid of excess minerals, dead skin cells, and toxins within your skin.)
- Promote Better Sleep (Saunas put your body in sleep mode by relaxing your muscles and improving chronic pain.)
- etc.
Other than health benefits portable saunas are great for anyone who wants a home sauna but doesn’t have the space for a whole sauna room. Their light and portable design is perfect for quick sauna sessions and then quickly putting the device away.
In addition to being very portable, these devices are simply much cheaper than any other sauna option. Most portable saunas range from $100-$500. Infrared sauna kits can cost anywhere from $1,000-$4,000 and building a sauna room costs anywhere from $2,000-$8,000.
Cons of Portable Saunas
One of the biggest cons of portable saunas is that run at lower temperatures than traditional saunas. Most people are used to the extreme heat that traditional saunas promote so the heat from portable saunas might feel lackluster. They still get very hot, but not as extreme as other saunas.
The next con of portable saunas is that they don’t have ALL the benefits that traditional saunas have. With portable saunas, you lose the respiratory benefits as your head is not in the sauna. This means you can breathe the hot air or steam that traditional saunas have.
Another con of portable saunas is that they don’t offer as many features as sauna kits. Most sauna kits come with built-in speakers, lights, aromatherapy, ozonetherapy, and etc. These are all features that a portable sauna will never have due to the design.
Conclusion
In the end, portable saunas are a great option for anyone looking to dip their toe into home saunas. Their portable design and low price make them an ideal option for most sauna newbies.
With that being said don’t expect the same exact experience as a gym sauna. If you want a more authentic sauna experience then you should consider building a sauna room or purchasing a traditional sauna kit.
