Simulated Cardio: Infrared Saunas and How They Help Burn Calories
There isn’t one way to lose weight, or a magic pill that melts pounds. If you want to shed that extra weight, you can do it by combining different methods to get the most satisfying results in a healthy manner.
Based on the data for 2015–2016 by the National Center for Health Statistics, 71.6% of adults aged 20 or older are overweight. The same numbers include adult people with obesity, which amount to 39.9% for the same period. Then came the data for 2017–2018, which showed a rise in obesity among US adults to 42.4%, with the most affected group being those aged 40–59. Even those aged 20–39 believed to be more active didn’t show promising results, with a staggering 40.3% of obese in both genders [1].
Excess weight and obesity can be responsible for various health issues, some of which are life-threatening and debilitating. Increased weight may impair your movement, put strain on the musculoskeletal system, and affect mental health by causing depression, social anxiety and eating disorders. This is why it's imperative to use healthy and scientifically effective ways to burn calories, and infrared saunas can be a valuable tool to help with that.
What Are The Risks Of Being Overweight And Obese?
We can’t discuss the importance of infrared saunas without talking about the risks of being overweight and obese. In 2013, the American Medical Association (AMA) declared obesity a chronic disease, requiring medical attention and serious measures to mitigate its detrimental effects on public health. For the first time publicly, obesity was perceived as a medical condition with biological, genetic and environmental factors leading to its onset. Until then, many saw obesity as a merely cosmetic and aesthetic problem — a consequence of personal choices [2].
Every extra pound can increase the risks of some serious diseases, such as Type 2 Diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, heart conditions and cancer. And that’s not all. An obese person may experience musculoskeletal deformities from the weight, like osteoarthritis. Being overweight in pregnancy can also cause problems for both the mother and child. Another negative impact of being overweight and obesity pertains to mental health. Persons with extra pounds tend to suffer from social insecurities, low self-esteem, anxiety, depression and consequently develop eating disorders.
The Connection Between Infrared Therapy And Weight Loss
It’s important to understand that infrared saunas are not a replacement for a cardio workout. You can experience similar symptoms when exposed to infrared light as you would exhibit during exercise. For example, both an infrared sauna and physical activity can lead to an increase in blood flow by raising your heartbeat. In the case of infrared saunas, this can happen because of the heat they emit to the body, which in turn, elevates your heart rate, simulating as though you’re working out [3].
Brazilian researchers conducted a study with 64 obese women belonging to the 20–40 age group. They divided the subjects into two groups. One group was asked to exercise while being exposed to infrared therapy. The other group served as the control, and the subjects in that group only exercised. The conclusion was that the combination of infrared light and exercise led to higher fat reduction and an increase in muscle mass[4]. Simply put, using infrared therapy with your exercise regime can enhance weight loss and help burn calories.
Burning Calories The Healthy Way
To gain the most benefits from your weight loss program, you need to change your lifestyle and adopt healthy habits. This is not easy since any type of deviation from what you are used to doing every day is hard. The best approach is to use all the means available to reach the end result: burn calories the healthy way. Introducing infrared saunas into your weight loss schedule can help you see improvements faster and without big changes to your everyday life.
Infrared therapy can also speed up the recovery of your muscles from the physical strain of exercise and strength training. It’s normal to feel sore after working out and 15 minutes in the infrared sauna can decrease inflammation and build up your endurance [5]. In a way, owning a personal infrared sauna in your home can lead to better and more pronounced results both for your health and appearance. If you add to that a professionally prescribed diet and stay away from refined carbs, saturated fats and other bad food groups, you may create the ultimate regime to simulate cardio and burn calories.
Where To Start
Before you start doing cardio and modifying your diet, take a moment to define your weight loss strategy. JHN Lifestyles has a wide range of personal infrared saunas that can help you stick to your new lifestyle and even boost your desired results. This may be as important as choosing the right running shoes or the correct diet to go with your workout plan.
While new habits may take some getting used to, you are also in danger of giving up. Infrared therapy can help you stay on course by revealing benefits faster than you would experience without it. This can empower you not to cheat or quit your weight loss program, and as a result, lead a higher quality life.
Resources:
[1] Hales, Craig M, et al. (2020). “Prevalence of Obesity and Severe Obesity Among Adults: the United States, 2017–2018.” cdc.gov, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, February 2020, https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db360-h.pdf.
[2] Kyle, T. K, et al. (2016). “Regarding Obesity as a Disease: Evolving Policies and Their Implications.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, The National Center for Biotechnology Information, September 2016, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4988332/.
[3] Hussain, J and Cohen, M. (2018). “Clinical Effects of Regular Dry Sauna Bathing: A Systematic Review.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, The National Center for Biotechnology Information, April 2018, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5941775/.
[4] Sene-Fiorese, M, et al. (2015). “The potential of phototherapy to reduce body fat, insulin resistance and “metabolic inflexibility” related to obesity in women undergoing weight loss treatment.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, The National Center for Biotechnology Information, October 2015, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26220050.
[5] Mero, Anitti, et al. (2015). “Effects of far-infrared sauna bathing on recovery from strength and endurance training sessions in men.” ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, The National Center for Biotechnology Information, July 2015, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4493260/.