A warm foot bath before and after the sauna promotes sweating
Foot baths before and after sauna. A foot bath in the sauna, how useful is it? Should it be cold or warm, or rather lukewarm? This article explains how foot baths are sensibly applied. Afterward, we will take a brief look at alternating baths.
One thing in advance: foot baths are of course not carried out in the sauna cabin itself. In most public sauna facilities, there is a specially designated area. Mostly, these are small foot basins embedded in the floor. Sometimes there are also wooden tubs. Those who sauna at home simply use a foot tub or other large vessel. Preferably, one made of wood. The natural material enhances the wellness effect associated with sauna bathing. If necessary, the whole thing works even in the bathtub.
Warm foot baths before sauna sessions
Experts recommend preparing the body for the high temperatures in the sauna cabin. Warm foot baths fulfill this purpose beneficially. They can be done before each sauna session. The foot baths activate the sweat glands. This makes it easier for us to sweat. The warm water dilates blood vessels and stimulates blood circulation in the feet. It should be warm, but not hot. About 40 degrees Celsius is ideal.
To try out for those who generally do not sweat much: Bathe your feet in warm water for a few minutes before taking a sauna. Then enter the sauna chamber with pleasantly preheated feet. You will see, sweating will be easier for you.
Helpful for cooling down in between
Perhaps you know the problem after a hot bath: the circulation is over strained, dizziness occurs. This is due to the so-called orthostasis effect. The heat in the sauna also causes the vessels to dilate and the blood to sink into the legs. Many people react to this with discomfort and even circulatory collapse. A gentle cooling down after the sauna session counteracts the orthostasis effect. In each resting phase between sauna sessions, the internal body temperature must be lowered to normal. Lukewarm foot baths help with this. This may seem paradoxical at first glance. But warm to lukewarm water actually helps. How can this be?
The basic prerequisite is thorough cooling down after the sauna. This can be done by a cold shower or by immersion in a cold pool. The skin is cooled down in the process, but the internal body temperature is still elevated. This is because the blood vessels contract during the cold shock. This makes it more difficult to transport the cold to the inside of the body. To cool the body down completely to normal temperature, a slight warming stimulus helps. This is where the lukewarm foot bath comes into play. It dilates the blood vessels again. This allows the cool blood to be pumped more quickly from the surface of the skin to the internal organs.
Finally, a lukewarm foot bath
Probably all of us have experienced it at some point: when getting dressed after a sauna bath, sweat is on your forehead. This happens when you have not cooled down properly. Because the body has charged up like a battery in the sauna. In principle, this is desirable. However, cooling down afterward is just as important. At the end of the sauna visit, a lukewarm foot bath is therefore particularly recommended.
If you don’t do this, you run the risk of sweating and catching a cold. The lukewarm footpath helps the body to regulate the body temperature back to normal. It is also very relaxing. Use the time to replenish your fluid needs. The drink should be at room temperature so as not to overtax the circulation. In this way, the organism is optimally prepared for the journey home.
Alternating baths harden
In the popular alternating foot baths, you dip your feet alternately in warm and cold water. The successive cold and warm stimuli are extremely beneficial for the immune system. The blood vessels are exercised by the hot and cold stimuli. This improves blood circulation. For an alternating bath, set up two-foot buckets or foot tubs. Fill one vessel with 35 to 38 degree warm water, the other with maximum 15 degree cold water. First put the feet in the warm water for 5 minutes. Then put them in the cold water for 10 seconds. Then switch back to the warm water. Change two to four times. Finish with warm water.
Conclusion: Never go to the sauna with cold feet. Warm foot baths are very beneficial. Before going to the sauna, they encourage sweat production. Treat yourself to ankle-deep, lukewarm foot baths between sauna sessions. This helps the body to cool down and acclimatize. An alternating foot bath additionally hardens and strengthens the blood circulation.
Purchase recommendation: Everything for the feet
With a warm or cold foot bath, feet and body are relaxed and health is promoted. It is used in various areas, such as pedicure, against cold and discomfort, for relaxation and to warm up or cool down cold or hot feet. In thermal baths and saunas, foot tubs are mainly used as alternating baths, which should be used before or after a sauna session. For home use, we have compiled here a range of beautiful foot tubs made of wood.
