How long should you stay in the sauna?

Novice or experienced sauna-goer? If you are a novice, it’s best to start with short 5- to 10-minute bursts and to gradually build up your time in the sauna. Regular sauna-goer? We still advise you not to spend too long in the sauna, but to limit yourself to maximum 15 to 20 minutes at a time. Any longer really doesn’t give you better results.

You also have to take into account that there are different conditions in the various saunas: you can spend a bit longer in a lower-temperature sauna than in a higher-temperature one. And, it’s hotter on the top benches than on the lower ones. Whether you are sitting or lying down also makes a difference. Here’s a good tip if you like to lie down in the sauna: sit up for a couple of minutes before you are going to leave the sauna. That way, you avoid feeling dizzy when you stand up.

It also depends on whether you are planning to do one sauna round or spend a whole day trying out several saunas of course. If you are doing just one round, you can obviously stay a bit longer in the sauna than if you want to do four or five sauna rounds.

When should you leave the sauna? When ...

• you are starting to feel unwell,
• it’s getting too hot for you,
• you are starting to feel dizzy,
• you are seeing black dots in your vision,
• your heart rate has become too fast,
• you are starting to feel short of breath,
• you are getting a headache.

And, we leave you with these pearls of wisdom: drink enough water, avoid alcohol, cool down properly and take long enough breaks in between two sauna rounds. That way, you can enjoy a nice long sauna session!