A few days ago, we came across a very interesting post on Reddit:
“Sauna is not a health hack or some marketed product you should endure”
Written by a Finnish Reddit user, it sparked a lively discussion.
Original Reddit post:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Sauna/comments/1syp9i0/sauna_is_not_a_health_hack_or_some_marketed/
With a mixture of humour and bewilderment, the author describes how more and more people view sauna as a “health hack”: something to complete in order to optimise their health.
How many minutes?
What is my pulse?
How much have I sweated?
How many calories have I burned?
Then into cold water.
And afterwards, measure recovery too.
Apparently, some people even sit in the sauna fully clothed and with their phones.
In his description, this approach sounds almost like taking a vitamin tablet:
today, I have done something for my health.
We both laughed when we read it.
But then we talked about it for quite a long time.
Suddenly, three different perspectives were sitting around an imaginary table: a Finn, a German and a Chinese woman who has lived in Germany for many years and experienced sauna in China, Germany and Finland.
Alongside some differences, we discovered a surprising number of similarities.
My first encounter with sauna was probably in Beijing
I grew up in China.
When I was young, Beijing already had many thermal baths and large wellness and leisure centres. Some thermal pools were outdoors, and as I have always loved water, spending a day there with friends was simply a lovely thing to do.
We bathed in the hot springs, enjoyed the water and went to the sauna afterwards.
After sauna, we girls would sit together, talk, apply face masks or enjoy other little beauty rituals.
When we were hungry, we ate.
After dinner, we could carry on relaxing.
Sometimes I stayed overnight, slept for a few hours, had breakfast the next morning and then went straight to work.
Back then, I knew nothing about “Finnish sauna culture”.
Looking back, I never asked myself:
“How many minutes should I spend in the sauna today?”
“What is my pulse?”
“How many calories have I burned?”
“Will this make me live longer?”
We went because it was fun.
Because it felt good.
Because we liked spending time together.
Sauna was simply a natural part of that lovely shared time.
Later, I discovered sauna all over again in Germany
Here, I became properly aware for the first time that sauna could be a whole culture of its own.
When we lived in Berlin, my husband and I particularly enjoyed going to Vabali.
If I had to describe that feeling, I would never say:
“Today, we are doing a health programme.”
I would say:
“Today, we are treating ourselves to a lovely day.”
As soon as you walk in, your phone practically disappears from your life.
Clothes, bags and other things are put away. You need very little.
A towel or two.
Perhaps a book.
And the day can begin.
Saunas at different temperatures.
Different kinds of Aufguss.
Indoors and outdoors.
Swimming, sauna, warm pools and relaxation areas.
Fire.
Music.
Food.
Reading.
Or simply doing nothing.
With a partner, with friends or with a good book.
You can spend several hours there. Sometimes a whole day.
So when I read about people sitting in the sauna with their phones, my first thought really was:
what do you do with a phone in there?
In the German sauna complexes I know, there is hardly any reason to carry one.
Then my German husband said something interesting
After reading the post, he said:
the Finnish author has a point.
Although Germany has a strong sauna culture, we Germans sometimes turn sauna into a bit of a task too.
The best example?
The sauna clock.
German saunas very often have a sand timer or some other way to keep track of time.
Suddenly you know exactly how long you have been sitting there.
Many people even have a number in mind:
15 minutes.
Time is up.
Sauna round completed.
My husband said this way of thinking plays a much smaller role in Finland.
Then he said something I particularly liked:
“The clock is the enemy of the sauna.”
Of course, that does not mean every German constantly watches the clock or that no clock exists anywhere in Finland.
It describes a different attitude.
Why do I need to know how many minutes I have been sitting here?
If I feel too hot, I go out.
If I have recovered and want to go back in, I do.
If it feels good, I stay.
If it no longer feels good, I leave.
Your body can tell you a surprising amount.
Where does Germany fit in?
My husband laughed:
if you follow the logic of this Reddit post, perhaps Germany sits somewhere between Finland and America.
We certainly know how to enjoy sauna.
We can spend a whole day there.
We rest, read, eat and simply lie quietly.
But we also love rules.
When is the next Aufguss?
How hot is the sauna?
How many minutes?
How long should the break be?
We remain a little German after all. 🙂
Then we talked about Finland
For several years, we have returned to Finland again and again.
Only there did I slowly begin to understand why sauna means so much to many Finns.
I used to wonder whether Finnish sauna was special because it was more traditional.
Now I think there is more to it.
What moves me most is something else:
the sauna exists for the person.
How the room is built.
Where the heater stands.
How the stones are heated.
How water is poured onto them.
Where you can sit afterwards.
Whether there is a lake outside.
Whether you can step out in winter and feel the cold air.
Where you can rest.
All these things seem to share one purpose:
creating a place where a person can truly settle.
Finnish sauna therefore does not give me the feeling that I must complete it in the “correct” way.
Quite the opposite.
The setting is there.
What you make of it is up to you.
You can talk.
You can be quiet.
You can go into the lake.
You do not have to.
You can stay longer.
You can leave after a short time.
You do not have to prove to anyone that you are especially good at sauna.
The sauna is not in charge.
The person is.
So is sauna a health hack?
Interestingly, there is genuine scientific research into sauna’s health effects.
Finland in particular has produced many studies on sauna, the cardiovascular system and other health associations.
There is nothing wrong with being interested in sauna’s potential health effects.
Perhaps the problem begins elsewhere:
as soon as we discover that something pleasant might be healthy, we immediately want to optimise it.
How many minutes are ideal?
What temperature is optimal?
How often each week?
How many calories do I burn?
What should my pulse be?
How long must I stay in cold water?
How do I get the greatest possible health benefit?
Gradually, something intended for relaxation becomes another task we want to perform perfectly.
Perhaps the more interesting question is not:
“How healthy is sauna?”
But:
“Why do we now want to optimise even our relaxation?”
China, Germany and Finland
Looking back, I have experienced sauna in three very different settings.
For my younger self, sauna and thermal bathing in Beijing meant food, water, friends, beauty rituals and an evening when nobody necessarily had to go home.
A German sauna complex means giving a whole day to rest and enjoyment.
Finnish sauna slowly showed me something else:
a good setting is not there to dictate what a person should do.
It is there to give them the freedom to feel at ease.
These are, of course, three different sauna cultures.
But in my own experience, they share something remarkable:
I never went to the sauna to “optimise” myself.
I went because I enjoyed being there.
Perhaps health is one of the gifts sauna can offer.
But it need not be the reason we go in.
After reading the Finnish Reddit user’s post and talking for a long time, we were left with a surprisingly simple thought:
sauna can be healthy.
But it does not have to feel like a health programme.
Perhaps a good sauna is simply this:
go in.
Get warm.
Be quiet for a while.
Talk.
Listen to music.
Feel the fresh air outside.
Have a drink.
And when you want to go back in, go back in.
You do not have to achieve anything.
Enjoy your time.
Starting point and sources
Reddit / r/Sauna — “Sauna is not a health hack or some marketed product you should endure”. A Finnish Reddit user’s post that inspired this article and our conversation:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Sauna/comments/1syp9i0/sauna_is_not_a_health_hack_or_some_marketed/
Finnish Sauna Society / Suomen Saunaseura — information on Finnish sauna culture and the health and physiological effects of sauna bathing.
University of Eastern Finland — research on sauna and possible health associations, particularly cardiovascular health.
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