Sauna and Weight Loss: Can a Sauna Help You Lose Weight?

When you ask, can a sauna help you lose weight, the answer is that it takes weight off through sweat, and that weight comes back as soon as you drink. Studies weighing people before and after measured this temporary loss, with one finding about a pound and a half lost over an hour of sessions, all of it water. Your heart works harder in the dry heat, and your body temperature rises. No study in this post shows a sauna taking off body fat on its own.

What the scale shows after a sauna, and why it comes back

In one study, 45 overweight, sedentary men aged about 21 completed four 10 minute dry sauna sessions at about 195 degrees Fahrenheit. Over the hour, they lost 0.65 kilograms, about a pound and a half. Heart rate, energy use, blood pressure and weight lost were most strongly tied to body size. Podstawski et al., 2019, BioMed Research International.

Another study measured sweat-related weight loss in 674 sedentary students aged 19 to 20, including 326 women and 348 men. They lay in a dry sauna for two 10 minute sessions with a five minute break. Podstawski et al., 2014, The Scientific World Journal.

Sweat is about 99 percent water. The liver and kidneys do most of the body’s cleansing. Cleveland Clinic, Sweat. Sweat plays only a minor part in clearing harmful substances compared with the kidneys and gut. Baker, 2019, Temperature.

That is sauna weight loss in a sentence: you lose water weight, which returns when you drink, so stay hydrated. You should replace that water. You can lose weight in a sauna without losing body fat, and no study here found fat loss from sitting in the heat.

Calories: the heart works, the body sits still

A small study of 19 healthy adults measured heart rate and blood pressure during a 25 minute sauna session at 93 degrees Celsius. Both rose to levels matching moderate exercise, an exercise workload of about 60 to 100 watts. Blood pressure rose during the session; it did not fall. Ketelhut and Ketelhut, 2019, Complementary Therapies in Medicine.

That comparison describes the heart’s workload, not a calorie count for fat loss. The paper measured heart rate and blood pressure, not fat. If you ask, does a sauna help you lose weight, a faster heartbeat alone does not establish that it does.

A sauna is not a substitute for exercise or a change in what you eat. The interest lies in the relaxation of a sauna and in recovery, a sauna after a workout rather than instead of one. Our sauna benefits post looks at the wider health benefits people ask about.

What regular sauna use is linked to

The best known research on regular sauna bathing and heart health is an observational study that followed 2,315 Finnish men for about 20 years. Sauna use four to seven times a week was linked to lower risks of sudden cardiac death, fatal heart disease, fatal cardiovascular disease and death from any cause compared with once a week. This was an association, not proof of cause. Laukkanen et al., 2015, JAMA Internal Medicine.

A review of the evidence linked regular sauna bathing to lower risks of high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease, the cardiovascular health finding most often quoted. It attributed those links to better blood vessel function, less stiff arteries and effects on the nervous system. Laukkanen, Laukkanen and Kunutsor, 2018, Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

A systematic review covered 40 studies with 3,855 participants. Most studies reported benefits from regular dry sauna bathing. One small study reported a reversible drop in sperm production. Hussain and Cohen, 2018, Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

In a survey of 482 regular users, 83.5 percent reported better sleep. These were people’s own reports. Hussain, Greaves and Cohen, 2019, Complementary Therapies in Medicine. Regular sauna use can sit alongside exercise and diet as part of a wellness routine, not in place of them.

Traditional or infrared for weight loss

The type of sauna changes the heat, not the science. The weighing studies above used dry traditional saunas at about 195 degrees Fahrenheit. Our traditional saunas run hot too. The Golden Designs stove rooms reach 170 to 185 degrees, with a 190 degree ceiling. The Finnmark stove takes its room to 190 degrees.

An infrared sauna warms your body at a lower air temperature. The Golden Designs rooms run at 118 to 132 degrees Fahrenheit in infrared mode. Their manual says not to go past 140, so plan on 118 to 140 degrees. The Finnmark infrared rooms reach up to 170 degrees. Many people find the lower air temperature easier to sit in for a full session.

Among our infrared saunas, the Finnmark FD-1 is a one person room that uses infrared heaters and plugs into a wall outlet. A hybrid has both types of heat, as with the Golden Designs Nora 2 Person Hybrid Outdoor Sauna. Our hybrid sauna guide explains that choice.

No study in this post compares the different types of saunas for weight loss. When choosing a sauna for weight loss, pick heat you will use week after week. Read our infrared and traditional sauna comparison and our discussion of infrared sauna benefits for more context.

How to use a sauna if weight is your goal

Keep sessions short at first and build up. The Golden Designs manual limits each session to 40 minutes, with a cool-down before returning. It also requires an hour off after four hours of continuous use. That is an operating limit, not a suggested session length; use the sauna for as long as feels comfortable inside it.

Hydrate before and after, since the weight you lose is water. Treat the sauna as recovery after a walk or workout. Our guides cover how long to stay in a sauna and sauna temperature.

If you like the contrast, explore our cold plunges and read about pairing a sauna with a cold plunge.

Do not drink alcohol in the sauna. It raises the risk of low blood pressure, irregular heartbeat and sudden death. Sauna bathing is well tolerated by most healthy adults and children. Hannuksela and Ellahham, 2001, The American Journal of Medicine. Anyone who is pregnant or has a heart condition, low blood pressure or another underlying health condition should talk to their doctor before using a sauna.

Questions people ask

Is a sauna good for losing belly fat?

No study here found a sauna taking fat off anywhere, including the belly. Sweat takes off water, which returns when you drink. Ketelhut and Ketelhut measured the heart working in heat, not fat loss. Belly fat comes off through eating less than you burn over time.

What will 20 minutes in the sauna do?

You sweat off some water, as the students in the 2014 study did in two 10 minute sessions. The 25 minute study above found heart rate and blood pressure rose to moderate exercise levels, so expect the same in 20. Most regular users in the 2019 survey reported feeling relaxed afterward and sleeping better. Drink water after.

Do saunas really sweat out toxins?

Sweat is about 99 percent water, according to Cleveland Clinic. The 2019 review in Temperature describes its role in clearing harmful substances as minor compared with the kidneys and gut. Your liver and kidneys do most of the cleansing. Treat the sauna as heat, rest and a good sweat, rather than a cleansing treatment.

When you ask, will a sauna help you lose weight, keep temporary water loss separate from body fat loss. Browse our sauna collection or outdoor saunas, then call or chat with us at My Cozy Outdoors for help choosing a room you will use week after week. If you have an underlying health condition, talk to your doctor before using a sauna.