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Should You Sauna Before or After a Workout?

Saunas have been a staple in the health and fitness community for decades – but should you sauna before or after a workout? Just like I did in my cold plunge article, I wanted to dig into the research to better understand the benefits, potential drawbacks and whether adding the sauna to my fitness routine could truly support performance and recovery.   

Lately, it feels like everyone in the fitness world is talking about sauna bathing. From professional athletes to everyday gym-goers, more people are adding traditional saunas and infrared saunas to their fitness routines in hopes of improving muscle recovery, supporting cardiovascular health and boosting exercise performance. If you’ve ever wondered whether you should use a sauna before or after your workout, you’re definitely not alone.

As someone who tries to make every workout count, I wanted to know if sauna use actually lives up to the hype or if it’s simply another wellness trend. Can a pre-workout sauna improve blood flow and prepare your body for exercise? Does a post-workout sauna reduce muscle soreness, support performance and recovery? What about hydration, dehydration and overheating? These are all important questions if you’re trying to build a functionally fit lifestyle.

After digging into the research, I found that the answer isn’t as simple as “before” or “after.” The timing, session length, overall health, hydration level and even whether you’re using an infrared or traditional sauna can all influence the potential benefits.

So, let’s break it down and weigh up the pros and cons to find out which is most beneficial!

Using the Sauna Before a Workout

Using a sauna pre-workout has some potential benefits like increasing blood flow, raising your core body temperature and prepping your body for movement. At the same time, starting your workout already exposed to heat may increase your risk of dehydration, fatigue or overheating if you’re not careful. 

May Help Warm Up Your Muscles

Heat therapy from a sauna may temporarily improve blood circulation and flexibility, helping your muscles feel less stiff before a workout. However, research suggests it’s most effective when paired with an active warm-up rather than used as a replacement. 

Could Improve Mobility 

Using a sauna before a workout may temporarily improve mobility by increasing your core body temperature and blood flow, allowing your muscles and connective tissues to move more freely.

While this can help you feel less stiff, it’s most effective when paired with a dynamic warm-up that prepares your body for exercise. 

Could Enhance Focus

Some research suggests a short sauna session before your workout may help you feel calmer and more mentally prepared by promoting relaxation and reducing stress. 

While research doesn’t show that a sauna directly improves focus, starting your workout in a more relaxed state can be especially beneficial at the end of the day, when stress is likely to be higher. It may help you feel more present, intentional and ready to tackle your workout.  

Potential Drawbacks 

• Dehydration: Using a sauna pre-exercise increases fluid and electrolyte loss by making you sweat before your workout even begins. 
• Dizziness or lightheadedness: The heat from a sauna can lower blood pressure and cause your blood vessels to widen. This can make some people feel dizzy or lightheaded.
• Increased fatigue: Spending too much time in a sauna before a workout can leave you feeling tired instead of energized, leading to a shorter time to exhaustion.
• Increased risk of overheating: Beginning your workout with an elevated core body temperature can make it more difficult to regulate heat, especially during hot or humid weather.
• Pre-endurance events: Sauna use immediately before a long run, bike ride or other endurance workout may contribute to dehydration and heat stress.
• Not for everyone: If you have heart disease, low blood pressure or a medical condition that is affected by heat, talk with your healthcare provider before adding a pre-workout sauna to your fitness routine.

Using the Sauna After a Workout

This is where the Sauna can become a game-changer. Research suggests post-workout sauna-bathing, whether traditional or infrared, may support muscle recovery, promote relaxation,  improve heat tolerance and support cardiovascular health. Studies also suggest it may increase heat shock proteins, reduce delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) and support flexibility and performance.

May Improve Circulation

Blood vessels widen as the body heats up, increasing blood flow and improving circulation throughout the body. Sauna bathing post-workout extends the time your body stays at an elevated heat level. 

This helps maintain increased blood flow for a longer period, which can help deliver oxygen and nutrients to recovering muscles – all while supporting the removal of metabolic byproducts produced during exercise. 

Could Help Reduce Muscle Soreness

Since sauna use can increase blood flow, it may help reduce things like DOMS and promote muscle relaxation. Heat shock proteins are stimulated by heat exposure. Heat shock proteins serve the body’s natural recovery process. 

While research isn’t conclusive, many people who incorporate regular sauna sessions into their recovery routine report feeling less stiff and sore. 

Can Help With Recovery

Recovery is about more than being less sore. It’s about helping your body prepare for the rest of your busy day, nighttime routine and your next workout. 

Creating an environment that fosters relaxation, supports circulation and encourages your body’s natural recovery processes can help maintain consistency in your life as well as your fitness journey. 

May Support Long-Term Cardiovascular Health

Evidence shows sauna bathing has been associated with improved long-term cardiovascular health when used consistently. The sauna places mild stress on the cardiovascular system and over time, repeated heat exposure can support healthy blood vessels, improve circulation and contribute to lower blood pressure. 

There’s a Caveat: Rehydrate and Cool Down First

With all of these potential benefits, the temptation to jump straight into the sauna post-workout can be pretty appealing. However, before stepping into a sauna, be sure to take a few minutes for an active cool-down and rehydrate.

Because your heart rate, core body temperature and fluid loss are elevated post-workout, the risk of dehydration, dizziness and heat-related illness are, too. So make sure to drink water and replace electrolytes before your sauna session so you can recover more safely and get the most out of the potential benefits.

Which Is Best?

So the big question: Which one is best? Officially, the research is mixed on some things, but most suggest that post-workout is the most beneficial way to incorporate a sauna into your routine. When used as a recovery tool, the potential benefits physically and mentally outweigh the potential benefits of adding sauna use pre-workout. 

Whether you’re training for a marathon or simply keeping up with the demands of everyday life, post-workout sauna use can be a valuable recovery tool when paired with proper hydration and smart recovery habits. 

Sauna Safety and Considerations

• Stay hydrated: Drink water before and after your sauna session to replace lost fluids. Consider an electrolyte replacement if using a sauna post-workout.
• Short sessions: Aim for 10-20 minutes if you’re new to sauna bathing. More is not necessarily better and may increase your risk of dehydration or overheating.
• Cool down: Allow your heart rate and breathing to return to normal before entering the sauna. This helps your body transition safely from exercise to heat exposure.
• When to leave: Leave the sauna immediately if you start to feel dizzy, lightheaded, nauseous or overly fatigued.
• Avoid alcohol: Alcohol and saunas don’t mix. Alcohol can increase your risk of dehydration and impair your body’s ability to regulate its core temperature, putting you at an increased risk of heat-related illness.
• When to skip: If you are sick, dehydrated or just feeling unwell, skip the sauna. The temptation may be to “sweat it out,” but heat places additional stress on the body, so it’s best to wait until you’re properly hydrated and feeling well before using a sauna.
• Listen to your body: Everyone responds differently to heat. Start with shorter sessions and gradually increase your time as your body adapts and your heat tolerance improves.

FAQs

Final Thoughts

So, are they worth the hype? Yes! If you have a sauna readily available, it can support everything from performance and recovery to improved mental and cardiovascular health. When used safely and with proper hydration, saunas are a great low-impact and low-risk tool to complement your fitness journey.  

While there are some pre-workout benefits, using the sauna as a post-workout recovery tool has the most benefits. So if you want to get the most out of your time spent in the “hot-box,” then adding regular use to your personal recovery routine is the best way forward. 

At the end of the day, the best recovery tool is the one you’ll actually use consistently. If a post-workout sauna helps you recover well, feel your best and show up for your next workout, it may be worth making it part of your routine.

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