Sauna before or after a workout?

If your gym has a sauna, you've probably wondered whether to use it before you train or after. The short version is that after usually wins. Here's why, what the research says about heat and fitness, and when to skip it altogether.

Why after is usually better

• You don't drain yourself. A hot sauna raises your heart rate and makes you sweat. Doing that before exercise leaves you with less in the tank.
• Your muscles are already warm. A post-workout sauna feels good on tired muscles and many people find it eases stiffness the next day.
• It helps you switch off. After training, the heat and quiet help your body and mind settle.
• It may help with fitness. Repeated heat after training may help your body adapt, as the small running study below suggests.

Sauna and endurance

In a 2007 study in New Zealand, six competitive male runners added about 30 minutes in a sauna after their normal training, several times a week for three weeks. Compared with three weeks of training without the sauna, they could run 32% longer before reaching exhaustion on a treadmill. The researchers estimated this was like improving a race time by about 2%, and linked it to a rise in blood volume.

Six people is a tiny study, so treat it as promising rather than proven. It fits a wider body of research on heat training, which athletes use to prepare for racing in hot weather.

Sauna and strength training

There's much less research on saunas and lifting, and no sign so far that a sauna after strength training harms your gains. Many people like it for loosening up. That's different from cold: sitting in an ice bath straight after lifting may reduce muscle growth. Our guide to cold plunge benefits explains that study.

A study at a Finnish university tested a far-infrared sauna after both kinds of training. It seemed to help muscles recover after an endurance session but made no difference after a strength session. See infrared sauna benefits for more.

When before can work

A few minutes of gentle heat before training can feel nice on a cold morning, especially before stretching or yoga. If you do it:

• keep it short, around 5 minutes, and don't sit on the top bench
• drink a glass of water before you start training
• still do a proper warm-up, since a sauna warms your skin but doesn't prepare your muscles and joints for movement

Avoid a long sauna before heavy lifting, sprinting or a race. You'll be more tired and less steady, and dehydration makes cramps more likely.

A simple post-workout routine

1. Cool down first. Walk or stretch for 5–10 minutes so your heart rate comes down.
2. Drink water and have a quick shower.
3. Sauna for 10–15 minutes. Shorter if you're new or the session was very hard. See how long to stay in a sauna.
4. Cool off with a shower, then rest. Do a second round only if you feel good.
5. Drink again and eat something within the next hour or so.

Adding a cold plunge

Hot and cold after training is a popular routine. After endurance sessions, a cold plunge can reduce soreness. After strength sessions, keep the cold for later or another day. A sauna on its own is a safe choice after any kind of workout.

When to skip the sauna

• You feel dizzy, sick or unusually exhausted after training.
• You trained in the heat and are already dehydrated.
• You haven't eaten for a long time.
• You've been drinking alcohol.
• You're ill, pregnant or have a heart condition and haven't checked with a doctor.

Hoping the sauna will help with weight loss? Read does a sauna help you lose weight? first.

This guide is general information, not medical advice.

Saunas to try after training

HIVE Sauna

Manchester · Wood-fired sauna

Arc Canary Wharf

London · Sauna and recovery

Red Rock Sauna

Denver · Outdoor sauna

Frequently asked questions