When aches and pains build up and threaten to disrupt your daily life, a trip to the local sauna can do you a lot of good.
Unfortunately, it’s not everyone who can make the trip regularly due to a busy schedule, distance, or other factors. For others, the lack of privacy in a public sauna is a turn off.
When investing in a home sauna is the only option and a larger unit isn’t a good fit for your home, you should consider a sauna blanket. A sauna blanket allows you to enjoy the benefits of a full infrared sauna without the additional space and cost implications.
Infrared sauna blankets have the same working principle as the classic infrared sauna. They resemble blankets and can be set up on the bed, couch, or any other flat surface.
These sauna blankets have a host of benefits from portability to scientifically demonstrated sauna benefits.
Keep reading to find out more about sauna blankets, how they work, the various types available in the market, their pros and cons and how they compare to stationary saunas.
Why get a Sauna Blanket?
Investing in a home sauna is a great way to upgrade your home wellness routine. Unfortunately, many people cannot afford to set up a sauna room due to space or financial constraints.
Sauna blankets solve this problem by being smaller, cheaper, and portable.
A sauna blanket is basically a portable infrared sauna that you wrap around your body like a blanket or sleeping bag. It is also referred to as a sauna wrap or sauna sleeping bag.
The blanket uses infrared waves to warm your body directly without heating up the surrounding area.
How A Sauna Blanket Works
Sauna blankets heat up your body using far infrared rays (FIR). Far infrared is part of the light spectrum produced naturally by the sun.
A carbon fiber unit emits the infrared heatwaves when the sauna blanket is plugged in.
The infrared waves penetrate the body and heat it up from the inside. Since the blanket wraps around the body from the neck down, the whole-body benefits from the therapeutic effects of gentle heating.
The temperature generated by the infrared waves typically ranges between 80° and 140° Fahrenheit.
Sauna blankets are made of different material depending on the brand. Common materials include cotton and waterproof polyurethane which provide comfort and safety.
The sauna blanket should be made of heat resistant, waterproof, and non-toxic material. Since they use electricity to generate infrared heatwaves, sauna blankets can emit electromagnetic fields (EMF). A well-designed sauna blanket that is safe to use should have low-to-zero EMF emission.
How to use a sauna blanket
Setting up for a sauna session in your sauna blanket is pretty straightforward. Here are the steps to follow:
- Remove the sauna from its bag and unfold it onto a flat, heat-proof surface like your couch or bed.
- Attach the controller pad and proceed to plug in the sauna.
- Turn on the sauna and set your preferred temperature.
- Allow the blanket to pre-heat for a few minutes until it reaches the set temperature.
- When it is ready for use, climb in and lie back.
What Should you Wear?
Unlike regular room saunas, stripping down or wearing minimal clothes like a towel, swimsuit or robe is not recommended.
The blanket literally wraps around your body, and you need to protect your skin from the surface temperature since the blanket can get pretty hot.
As such, you should be fully clothed while using the blanket sauna.
Moisture-wicking clothes like a long-sleeved shirt, long pants, and socks are recommended. Loose-fitting and breathable clothes tend to be more comfortable than tight-fitting ones when you start sweating.
Such clothes soak up your sweat and makes cleanup of the sauna blanket much easier.
Avoid wearing synthetic workout attire and metal jewelry in the blanket sauna. The synthetic attire could be damaged by the heat, while the jewelry could heat up and burn your skin.
Also, remember to wash off any lotions from your skin as they may clog your pores and prevent beneficial sweat production.
How Long Should You Use the Sauna Blanket?
Just like a regular infrared sauna, the conditions inside a banket sauna aren’t as hostile as in a steam sauna. The temperatures are much lower and there is no steam to choke you.
Despite this, there are time and temperature limits that you should observe for safety reasons.
If you are a new sauna user, it is recommended that you start slow and work your way up in temperature and time. Start out at the lowest temperature setting and stay in for only 10 to 15 minutes.
You can do this a few times a week before gradually increasing the temperature and time over the course of multiple weeks.
However long you use your sauna blanket, you need to listen to your body and hydrate. Make sure to drink plenty of water before you get into the blanket sauna, while you are inside and when you get out.
Dehydration can easily sneak up on you because of the heavy sweating. Although using your blanket sauna every day of the week is not a problem, spending a few days without using it to allow your body to fully recover is highly recommended.
Different Types of Sauna Blankets
There are many different types of sauna blankets in the market today. You can get easily confused if you are new to the technology. Sauna blankets can be broadly classified according to the number of heating zones they have. These are:
- Single heating zone
- Two heating zones
- Three heating zones
These heating zones allow you to target specific areas of your body that you want to heat whether it’s the shoulders, hips, or feet.
The temperatures in the different hating zones can be adjusted using the navigation system or control system that comes with the sauna blanket.
How Blanket Saunas Compare to Room-Style Saunas
For the past few years, sauna blankets have been touted as a better alternative to the regular sauna by many health aficionados.
More people are embracing them for what they have to offer beyond the benefits of a regular sauna.
It can be difficult to separate fact from fiction amid all the marketing noise. To get an idea of what to expect when you buy a sauna blanket, you should look at how it compares to other home sauna types.
Here is how blanket saunas compare to regular room-style saunas:
- Low-Cost: Purchasing a sauna blanket cost significantly less compared to installing a room-style infrared or steam sauna. Even the most advanced sauna blanket is less expensive than a full sauna.
- Saves space: With a sauna blanket, you don’t have to dedicate a significant chunk of square footage in your home. You can set it up on the couch or bed and fold it up after use for storage in the closet.
- Portability: Their small size and light weight allows you to take your sauna experience with you to any location. You can set up your sauna on the couch and enjoy a movie as you sweat out toxins from your body.
- Energy cost savings: Since they only have to heat a small area, blanket saunas use less energy compared to their counterparts which have to heat up an entire room.
- Privacy: A blanket sauna allows you to enjoy the sauna experience privately within the confines of your home.
- The biggest difference is that like most portable saunas, your head is outside of the sauna. Therefore you are not receiving an even heating head to toe, unlike a traditional or full size unit. The experience is still enjoyable, but is fundamentally different in nature.
Drawbacks of Blanket Saunas
Like any other product, sauna blankets also have some drawbacks. These include:
- Limited mobility within the sauna
- The privacy you get comes at the cost of social interaction which is a key component of traditional room-style saunas.
- Being forced to lay down for the full experience unlike other options.
FAQs
Question: Are sauna blankets dangerous?
Answer: Sauna blankets are generally completely safe to use. However, it is important to take precautions such as drinking plenty of water to avoid dehydration and wearing the recommended clothing while using the blanket.
Question: Do sauna blankets burn calories?
Answer: Using an infrared sauna blanket helps your body burn calories, absorb nutrients and stay energized.
Question: Can you use a blanket sauna every day?
Answer: You can use your blanket sauna every day, but it is advisable to give your body time to recover between sessions. Using the blanket two to three times a week should be enough to improve your health.
Question: How to clean a sauna blanket?
Answer: Wiping the interior surface using an anti-bacterial wipe or a cloth and warm water after every use is recommended. You can also use a homemade solution comprising vinegar with tea tree, thyme essential oil and lavender.
Final Thoughts
If you are on a budget or have space constraints but still want to enjoy the benefits of a home sauna, a sauna blanket is perfect for you. You can use a sauna blanket in the comfort and privacy of your home without exposing yourself to contagious illnesses in crowded public saunas.
Even if you are a fan of public saunas, sauna blankets provide an excellent at-home supplement. Portability of the blanket sauna is also a huge benefit as it allows you to enjoy the sauna experience anywhere you like.
