About Author Anna Svensson and the Purpose of Sauna Edge
Hi and welcome to Sauna Edge!
My name is Anna Svensson and on this site I’ll share everything I’ve learned over the years about saunas and sauna bathing.
Being from Scandinavia, I’ve been growing up with saunas since I was a little kid. I used to go to my best friend across the street to use her sauna after school. (I was very jealous of her for having a sauna installed in their basement…). As a young adult I moved around a lot, and I developed a habit of signing up to various gyms, pools and spas just to get my regular sauna fixes!
I’ve also tried various small-scale sauna equipment, from portable saunas ordered at Amazon, to sauna blankets and various infra-red devices. For the last ten years, I’ve been lucky enough to have a whole little spa in the basement of our apartment complex, including a traditional sauna, a steam sauna and a little Jacuzzi. Nowadays, I use the traditional sauna almost every day (except for those times of the month).
A few years back however, I instead did a lot of Bikram Yoga, which is kind of like doing cooler sauna with exercise (in 41 degrees Celsius [105 Fahrenheit] and 40% humidity). During those periods I did not do the normal sauna sessions. (That would have been too much!)
As I paused the Bikram Yoga for a while during the 2020/21-isolation period, I rediscovered the joy of real saunaing, and now I cannot be without it again! However, I do combine my sauna bathing with a lot of stretching.
When I have a lot of time, my program is usually this: I start with a sauna session (pouring some extra water on the stones to make it really hot). Then, when it gets unbearably hot, I take a break outside (and sometimes an extra shower). Then, I usually do a very light, condensed version of a Bikram Yoga session. During this session I spend about half (or perhaps a quarter) of the time inside the sauna, and about half (or possibly 3 fourths) of the time outside of it. Then, after relaxing and drinking a lot of water outside of the sauna, I usually do one more session of just sitting in the sauna. (I usually pour a bit more water on the stones to make it really hot again.) If I’m in a hurry, I just do parts of this program. I always finish off with a shower that is not too hot, because that makes me energetic again, so I can continue doing things during the day.
As I’ve been rather obsessed with saunas for a long time, I thought it would be a good idea to share all the little hacks and tricks that I have discovered over time, and the knowledge I’ve gained about saunas in general.
I am also a bit of a nerd (with my research background), and have read everything I’ve come across about saunas over the years, so hopefully this fixation of mine will also yield some added insights for the readers out there!
I hope you will enjoy!
Anna
