Loras College study showed that participants saw improved recovery using a Clearlight infrared sauna after aerobic exercise sessions.
January 7, 2026
A Loras College study showed that participants saw significantly improved recovery and clearance of lactate when using a Clearlight infrared sauna after maximal aerobic exercise sessions.
This study looked at whether using an infrared sauna after an all-out workout could help the body recover faster than just resting. College-aged participants completed intense treadmill tests designed to push them to exhaustion, then either sat and rested or spent 30 minutes in an infrared sauna. Researchers measured blood lactate—a byproduct that builds up during hard exercise and is linked to muscle fatigue—before exercise, right after, and again after the recovery period.
The results were pretty clear: blood lactate levels dropped significantly more after the infrared sauna session than after seated rest. This suggests the sauna helped the body clear exercise byproducts faster, likely because infrared heat increases blood flow to tired muscles. In simple terms, the study found that an infrared sauna can meaningfully speed up recovery after intense workouts, making it a useful recovery tool for active, healthy individuals.
