Should I go to the sauna after fitness? How long to sit in the hammam in front of the pool? Will my muscles hurt less if I spend half an hour in a steam room? Members of clubs often ask such questions. We turned to Elena Svetkina, Head of Rehabilitation Fitness and Elite Trainer of Body Nutrition Uk Sport, to tell us the basic rules for visiting the sauna and hammam for fitness activists. Read our new FitBlog and… enjoy your bath!
Why go to sauna/hammam?
The traditional visit to the steam room is an integral part of the culture of many nations. This is not just a place for washing and healing. Here it is customary to meet with relatives, friends and spend time for pleasant communication. Do you agree? Then I will surprise you: visiting a sauna or a hammam in a fitness club is significantly different from a trip!
Undoubtedly, a bath is one of the best ways to harden. The positive effect of visiting the steam room stimulates the strengthening of immunity and ensures the prevention of many diseases, namely:
Affects blood circulation, improving the microcirculation of deep vessels, vessels of the distal extremities;
Provides exfoliation of dead skin particles;
- Normalizes the secretion of the sebaceous glands of the scalp;
- Accelerates metabolism;
- Relieves inflammation in the nasopharynx;
- Improves the functioning of the respiratory system;
- It is an excellent prevention of diseases of the musculoskeletal system;
- Promotes psycho-emotional balance;
- And helps to achieve certain fitness goals.
Contraindications for visiting the steam room
Speaking about the benefits, I am obliged to warn members of the club with possible contraindications to visiting the sauna or hammam. Please take care of your health and consult your doctor before thermal procedures if you have any of the following.
Angina pectoris, IHD (ischemic heart disease), hypertension
- Increased body temperature (above 37.50)
- Oncological pathologies
- Open wounds, inflammatory skin diseases
- The period of exacerbation of existing diseases of internal organs
- Acute infectious processes
- Varicose veins, the presence of blood clots, thromboembolism
- Epilepsy
- mental illness
- Early postoperative period
- Pregnancy and during menstruation
Who needs a steam room in a fitness club ?
Sometimes I recommend to my clients who want to increase mobility in the joints after an injury, I recommend visiting the hammam sauna before each jack3d Pre workout to passively warm up the muscles, prepare for myofascial or manual massage and more gently develop the affected joint (if there is no severe pain).
Those who want to lose weight and adjust their figure should not go to the steam room after intense physical activity. Since after such a workout the body is dehydrated, blood pressure rises and the pulse quickens, a visit to the sauna can lead to vasospasm and the corresponding consequences (the most dangerous are stroke and heart attack). Why put extra stress on your heart? Remember – everything needs a measure and common sense.
For those who work out to maintain physical fitness and strive to increase physical activity, I would recommend one short visit to the steam room after non-intense physical activity. This is a good opportunity to quickly and effectively restore trained muscles, accelerate the removal of decay products, relieve fatigue, etc.
Members of clubs that have a goal of gaining muscle mass should avoid going to the sauna or hammam after a workout, as these visits can reduce the rate of muscle growth. During training, you spend time and energy to work out the muscles, “catch up” with blood to them, and in the steam room there is an outflow of blood to the skin. And the desired effect is lost.
In all cases, I recommend monitoring blood pressure before and after visiting the steam room. And if you have any questions, be sure to contact your coach, curator, doctor.
I always advise you to allocate for going to the sauna, hammam or bath one day a week. It is important that there is no training or other serious load on this day. Then the positive effect of the thermal procedure will not harm health.
