The Performance Stack: Why Sauna After Exercise Is a Game-Changer

Most of us know that going to the gym is good for us. But emerging research suggests that a specific combination — finishing your workout with a sauna session — produces measurably better outcomes than exercise alone across multiple health markers.

This finding comes from the lab of Dr. Jari Laukkanen, the Finnish physician and researcher whose long-running studies on sauna use have become the most cited body of evidence in the field — and it's a finding that Dr. Rhonda Patrick has been highlighting prominently in her recent work.

What the research actually shows

Participants who performed aerobic exercise followed by 15 minutes of sauna use three times per week were compared against those who exercised alone. After eight weeks, the sauna-plus-exercise group showed significantly greater improvements: larger gains in VO2 max (the key predictor of longevity and fitness), bigger reductions in blood pressure, and improved total cholesterol — which didn't improve at all in the exercise-only group.

"Combining exercise with sauna sessions enhances cardiorespiratory fitness, a key indicator of longevity, more effectively than exercise alone." — Dr. Rhonda Patrick

Why the combination is synergistic

Patrick explains that during exercise, your body is already producing growth hormone, increasing blood flow and triggering protein synthesis. The sauna then amplifies these signals: it further elevates growth hormone, extends cardiovascular loading, protects against free-radical damage from intense training, and helps flush lactate from the muscles to reduce post-exercise soreness.

Growth hormone: the underrated benefit

Research consistently shows that sauna use elevates growth hormone (GH) significantly — with some studies showing increases of two to five times above baseline after a single session. GH plays a central role in muscle repair, fat metabolism and cellular renewal. For active people using Suelta post-training, this makes the sauna a genuine recovery and performance tool — not just a relaxation add-on.

Timing it at Suelta

Aim to arrive within two hours of finishing exercise, hydrate thoroughly, and use 2–3 sauna rounds of 10–15 minutes each, with cold plunges between rounds to maximise the contrast effect and hormonal response. The Sweat & Chill format at Suelta is built perfectly for this.

One important caveat: avoid ice bath immersion immediately after resistance training if your main goal is muscle growth, as cold can temporarily suppress the hypertrophy response. Save the cold plunge for between sauna rounds, not immediately post-weights.

Sources & Further Reading

→ Rhonda Patrick — FoundMyFitness: https://www.foundmyfitness.com/topics/sauna

→ Laukkanen Lab — Exercise + Sauna Study: https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/ajpregu.00076.2022