Monthly Archives: January 2015

There are countless amenities to outfit the modern bath.  From shower rooms to saunas, the only limitations are your imagination and your budget.

Saunas in particular are making their way into master bathroom suites – not just for the luxury aspect, but also for the myriad health benefits including:

• Improved blood circulation

• Natural detoxification of the body’s tissues

• Relaxation for the body and mind

While an installed home sauna may not suit the space you have to work with, an outdoor sauna can instead prove a very viable alternative.

Our favorite things about installing a backyard sauna?

1. The first one is the most obvious: you can enjoy a refreshing sauna day or evening without leaving the comfort of your home.

2. During the cooler (or depending on where you live!) the snowy months, there’s nothing like relishing the great outdoors from the comfort of a cozy sauna.

3. As the perfect companion to your pool – you can enjoy a refreshing sauna and then swim your laps for an invigorating start to your day, or to wind down from a stressful one.

4. You can take it with you! Outdoor saunas are typically portable so if you move to another home or decide to re-landscape or re-design your yard – the sauna can sit wherever it makes sense in relation to your house or your pool.

5. They’re decorative. Today’s saunas are not simply a big, ugly box that could easily be mistaken for a storage shed. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes (including custom) with optional features for the interior as well as decorative doors.

With an outdoor sauna you will have the ability to indulge in the benefits of a sauna and make it an essential part of your wellness and fitness regimen.

As a rule, “sweat” tends to have a bad connotation. Perhaps that’s because we take so many measures against it. We use deodorant, blast air conditioners to keep from perspiring, pat our bodies dry with thick terrycloth towels, and even don active wear that wicks sweat away from our skin.

But an “intentional” sweat is a key part of a healthy regimen. Incorporating a good sauna session will provide numerous benefits.

Our Top Five Favorite Things About Saunas:

1. They offer a very effective means of eliminating toxins from the body. We are exposed to more toxins than any of us are aware. (If we focused too much on them we would likely never leave the house!) However, because the skin is porous, it affords the perfect “medium” to literally transport toxins.

2. In the same way the human body naturally develops a fever to increase metabolism in an effort to ward off viruses; similarly, a sauna session can improve blood circulation and help bring oxygen to tissues. It also helps to clear nasal passages and drain clogged sinuses.

3. Infrared saunas in particular are especially effective at removing toxins from the body. Their dry and warming energy heats deep tissues and enhances the metabolic processes.

4. Drinking plenty of water to replenish lost fluids is part of a healthy regime, but a great “side effect” of incorporating consistent sauna sessions is embracing the importance of water throughout the day.

5. There are also reported benefits for those suffering from arthritis and muscle strain.

If you’ve never tried a sauna before, you will likely find it an activity you’ll wish to incorporate into a consistent regimen. Similar to the feeling of a runner’s high or the tranquility and “destressification” realized after a nice, long swim….the relaxation and detoxification you’ll feel will have you wanting to find more time to fit additional sauna sessions into your week.