A long relaxing steam bath session is just what you need to pamper yourself. To sit back, let your thoughts take wings and make the troubles fade away – isn’t it luxurious? If I said it would help weight loss too, would you rush to take one immediately?

Whoa! Hold your horses, because we need to discuss how it works for weight loss. Have a read and then we can consider whether you should pack a towel soon.

The Short-Cut Dieter:

Trends change from time to time. Most modern men and women sit at their workplaces. Then they take the lift to a waiting cab, sit in it, return home and sit again. That is sedentary with a capital ‘S’.

Since sitting is a favorite activity, standing to lose weight is not an appealing prospect. Are you looking for any excuse to run the other way from cardio? Hey! That’s exercise too.

Diet pills seem to be the latest fad offered by overzealous businessmen. Pop one funny looking pill and lose weight, no efforts involved. Are you falling for it?

No, the other option left for the short-cut dieter is, eat less. Let’s face it; healthy food tastes like salad. Only junk food can give you that satisfying feeling, and you’re only left with the option of eating less.

So, what can a short-cut dieter do to control appetite and lose weight while sitting the entire time? Have a steam bath of course!

Yes, Steam Bath Can Reduce Your Weight:

Happy to hear that, aren’t we? A steam bath does manage to reduce a few pounds from your body (1). But, (unfortunately there is a but), the effect is temporary.

• A steam room is heated to a temperature of about 110 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Sitting in the room makes you sweat copiously.
• Water lost through sweating contributes to the weight loss.
• You have effectively lost water weight and not fat.
• Steam bath for a duration of 30-45 minutes is said to decrease up to 5 pounds.
• People with excess water retention in their bodies will have lost more weight from the resultant water loss.
• Water loss through steam also results in dehydration.
• So, drinking water after a session is mandatory.

Sadly, replenishing the water puts the weight back right where it belongs.

To simplify further, the steam bath does not burn or zap the calories like exercise does. It removes water. In contrast, sweat from exercise is a direct result of busted calories.

Are you still not a fan of cardio? No sweat! I will reveal exactly how you can make a steam bath work for you.

How Steam Bath Actually Benefits You:

Typically one would picture sitting in a steam bath facility and imagine the weight melting away with the sweat. Since we have established that losing water will make you lose weight temporarily without making you ‘look thin’, we need to understand the benefits of steam bath better.

1. Sweat Toxins Out Of Your System:

Steam baths are great detoxifiers, if you didn’t know that already. Steam opens up your pores and enhances your body’s potential to eliminate toxins through the skin (2). Do the steam bath routine three times each week to maximize the benefits of this natural detoxifying system.

You heard right, that’s thrice a week. It is only then our body excretes toxins that could be contributing to bad metabolism and weight gain. Regular steam baths can actually benefit weight loss through detoxification.

2. Calms Your Arteries Enough to Let The Blood Through:

Steam baths are so relaxing, they loosen up your muscles and arteries. It has a positive effect on the circulatory system, wherein blood flow is improved. Steam baths also calm our nervous system, thereby reducing the stress.

This is important because, in the long-term, it makes you active. Good blood circulation is invigorating to the body. Regular steam baths can improve your metabolism and drive the body to burn fat. Even if you regain water weight initially, you would still begin to lose 300 calories on an average once your metabolism kick-starts.

3. Lifestyle Diseases Making You Fat? Who Cares?:

Steam baths let you do the relaxing, while the lifestyle diseases can stress themselves out. Many times, heart diseases (hardened arteries, blocked arteries) and diabetes from unhealthy eating can lead to indirect weight gain.

A regular visit to the steam cabin stabilizes your body in more ways than one. The de-stressing nature of the steam bath improves circulation, removing cholesterol and other toxins. It could have some positive effects on diabetics too. It is clear that hypertension and other lifestyle diseases are controlled with this method.

4. All That Food Don’t Make You Hungry No More:

Here’s where we come back to discussing the ‘eat less’ option. Sarcasm aside, portion control is not so bad.

By working on appetite control, you can eat small portions of food at regular intervals. Such choices keep your blood sugar steady and the metabolism roaring.

Immediately after a steam bath, your appetite is lowered. Besides, having large quantities of water to replenish lost fluids fills your stomach. All of these will combine to help you lose weight.

Now, Pack Your Towel:

Fortunately, it is possible to sit and lose weight. The only catch is, you need to wrap yourself in a towel and spend 30 minutes in a steam bath cabin at least twice a week.

Apparently, there are personal steam bath cabins specially designed and available to place at home.

1. Before the bath, drink one glass of lukewarm water
2. Take a steam bath on an empty stomach
3. During the bath, you’re advised to be wrapped in a cool towel
4. Allow the steam to make you sweat as much as possible
5. Later, take a cold shower
6. Hydrate yourself immediately as the body loses electrolytes along with the water

Pregnant women, those with chronic health conditions, or those on medications are advised not to take steam baths (3). Vasodilation and dehydration can have serious setbacks in individuals with heart problems and epilepsy. Older people might feel dizzy and can faint from the excessive heat.

Steam Bath Works Best In A Combination:

 

When other weight loss methods are complimented with steam baths, they work well together. Having a massage is an excellent idea, but there are better ideas.

At the cost of sounding clichéd, I must remind you that fat loss is best achieved through exercise. Combine this with a steam bath and watch the magic happen. And did I mention? Steam baths are wonderful for your skin.

Did you find what you were looking for? Please share your thoughts. Leave me a comment below.

The post How Just A FEW Minutes Of Steam Bath Can Help You Lose Weight appeared first on STYLECRAZE.

by Sruthi Chowdhry via STYLECRAZE