How Each Sauna Works
Traditional Sauna (Finnish-Style)
A traditional sauna heats the air around you using a stove, either wood-fired, electric, or gas. Temperatures typically run 150–195°F, with lower humidity (10–20%) unless you pour water on heated rocks (kiuas) to create steam, which can push humidity temporarily higher.
Your body absorbs heat primarily through convection (hot air) and radiation from the stove and walls. Core temperature rises, you sweat heavily, and the cardiovascular stress mimics moderate-intensity exercise.
Infrared Sauna
An infrared sauna heats your body directly using infrared light waves, rather than heating the surrounding air. Temperatures typically run 120–150°F, much lower than traditional, but infrared energy penetrates 1–2 inches below the skin surface, heating tissue directly.
Because the air stays cooler, many people find infrared saunas more tolerable, especially beginners or those sensitive to intense heat.
Head-to-Head Comparison
- Temperature: Traditional runs 150–195°F; infrared runs 120–150°F.
- Humidity: Traditional is low but can add steam; infrared is very low.
- Heat source: Traditional uses hot air and radiation; infrared uses light waves.
- Sweat output: Traditional is very high; infrared is moderate to high.
- Session length: Traditional runs 10–20 minutes per round; infrared runs 30–45 minutes.
- Cardiovascular stress: Traditional is high (mimics exercise); infrared is moderate.
- Beginner tolerance: Traditional is lower; infrared is higher.
- Research base: Traditional has decades of extensive study; infrared is growing but more limited.
Health Benefits: Where They Overlap and Where They Diverge
Benefits Both Share
- Elevated core body temperature triggers heat shock protein production
- Increased cardiovascular output and heart rate
- Heavy sweating and perceived relaxation
- Improved circulation and temporary blood pressure reduction
Where Traditional Sauna Has the Edge
The research on traditional sauna is significantly more robust. Finnish population studies spanning decades have linked regular traditional sauna use to:
- Reduced cardiovascular disease risk: men who used a sauna 4–7x per week had a 50% lower risk of cardiovascular death (Laukkanen et al., 2018)
- Reduced all-cause mortality: a dose-dependent relationship with frequency of use
- Improved blood pressure and arterial compliance
- Contrast therapy compatibility: traditional sauna's intense heat creates a stronger physiological "swing" when paired with cold plunge
The acute cardiovascular stress of a traditional sauna session, heart rate elevation to 100–150 bpm, is part of what drives these long-term benefits. You cannot get that at 130°F.
Where Infrared Sauna Has the Edge
- Accessibility: lower temperatures and longer sessions suit beginners, elderly users, or those with heat sensitivity
- Joint and muscle penetration: infrared heat reaches deeper tissue, which some users find more beneficial for chronic pain or stiffness
- Easier installation: lower electrical requirements, no need for a stove or water
- Comfort for longer sessions: the cooler air makes extended sessions more tolerable
Which Is Better for Contrast Therapy?
If you are pairing your sauna with a cold plunge, which is the optimal way to use either, traditional sauna creates a stronger contrast effect. The higher core temperature you build in a traditional session means the physiological "swing" when you enter cold water is more pronounced: greater catecholamine release, stronger vasoconstriction and vasodilation cycles, and a more powerful nervous system response.
Infrared sauna can still pair well with cold plunge, but at lower temperatures, the contrast intensity is reduced.
So Which Should You Choose?
- Choose traditional sauna if: you want the strongest cardiovascular benefits, you plan to pair it with cold plunge, and you are comfortable with intense heat.
- Choose infrared sauna if: you are a beginner, have heat sensitivity, prefer longer gentler sessions, or are targeting joint and soft tissue specifically.
- Use both if possible: many practitioners rotate between the two depending on the session goal.
At Plunsana, we offer both traditional and infrared options so you can find what works best for your body, and pair either with our outdoor cold plunge for the full contrast therapy experience.