EDITORS NOTE: Guest post from Emet, a sauna lover as you'll read below. Emit's unique position as a Minnesota student in Texas, is often as a lone soldier preaching the goodness of sauna to the unconverted. Who knows, perhaps we can wheel up an authentic wood burning sauna to campus and rally around his efforts. Enter Emet: Getting started with sauna as a youth The first time I ever stepped foot in a sauna was in 6th grade at YMCA Camp Warren in Eveleth, Minnesota. It was an old-school wood-fired sauna that could fit up to 20 people. This sauna was no joke; it reached over 200 degrees and I couldn’t last longer than 10 minutes before jumping into the lake to cool off. Sadly, the sauna burned down a couple years ago and is dearly missed. I was an infrequent sauna user for most of my childhood. I enjoyed using the sauna but did not consider it an integral part of my life. Saunas at the gym Things changed for me as I entered my teen years and began going to the gym more … [Read more...]
Four Utah college disciples discover their sauna routine which includes rapture, serenity, peace, and nirvana
Saunatimes interview series continues. Kevin, Tyler, Chris, and Doug share with us their sauna routine through this interview and their video production. Welcome to saunatimes. First off, where are you located? Where is the sauna located that is featured in the film? We are located in Utah. The sauna we go to is located in the men's faculty locker room on our university's campus --which we would like to remain anonymous (Even though there are clues in the video as to which university it is, haha). You outline your sauna routine as 3 sessions, or rounds, I'm interested in learning how you came up with that number. It seems "three's the charm" for a lot of people in a lot of cultures. We settled on the 3 sessions for several reasons. First, we often try to sauna for around an hour and we find that 3 sessions that last 15 minutes each is the optimal time in-sauna for heating up. We also find that it leaves us some 3-4 minutes between sessions for an ice cold shower to cool us off to … [Read more...]
Another hotel sauna thrown under the bus.
8' ceiling. No upper bench. I was revved up for a salesman-on-the-road hotel sauna, but luckily I followed hotel sauna procedure and checked out the sauna before going to my hotel room. Instead of this lame ass sauna, I went to bed dreaming of my own authentic backyard sauna awaiting me back home. Is this how Yoga instructors feel when they walk by a class and see people standing on their heads straining themselves? "If only they could experience authentic Yoga!" … [Read more...]
Top 5 reasons why your own sauna is better than a deadbeat health club sauna.
5. Temperature: At home, you control it. At a health club sauna, it's all a subject for chatter. 4. Congestion. Some health club saunas are as busy as the bathrooms at O'hare airport. Your own sauna is as tranquil as canoeing in the Boundary Waters. And you get to pick who you want to come along for the ride. 3. Sounds. Some prefer quiet in sauna, others prefer positive musical vibrations. With your own sauna, you control it. And you can control the conversation - no politics. Is it just me or do all strangers in health club saunas suffer from post nasal drip? "Hey dude, stop your hacking." 2. Loyly: Steam from water being tossed on sauna rocks. Without it , it's akin to trying to enjoy biking when all you do is ride around in circles in your garage. You may get a sweat going, but you're missing the full experience. Wet sauna? Dry sauna? there is no such thing. All sauna stoves are made to take water. 1. Outdoor Chill Out. Fresh air is part of being healthy. … [Read more...]
“Sauna’s too hot”, “turn up the heat!”: One simple suggestion for a health club manager.
Are you a member of a health club? I bit the bullet and joined one. This health club sauna is as bright as a hospital room: walls tiled floor to ceiling, and there's the imposing rules and regulations sign, including the buzz kill: "do not toss or spit water on sauna rocks." Post workout yesterday, cautiously, I enter the sauna joining a guy fully clothed wearing headphones bobbing along to Lady Gaga or similar: more buzz kill. A third guy enters. An old school guy who'se developed the art of taking a swig of water and spitting it like a hose out his mouth onto the sauna rocks. I'm debated whether to whistle the guy out, but a little Loyly is welcome, albeit mixed with his saliva. Next comes the ranting: "This sauna's too cold. They have a suggestion box, you know. If enough people complain.." It's 175f. I decide to argue the point with him, explaining that if they crank it up, others will complain that it's too hot. He resigns himself to:"can't please everybody, I … [Read more...]