How to beat the winter doldrums

Now this is pretty amazing. In a randomized, double-blind study conducted between February 2013 and May 2015, researchers at a university-based medical center found that a single session of whole-body hyperthermia (WBH) reduced depressive symptoms. Hyperthermia is just a fancy way of saying the body achieves a higher temperature than normal, in this case from participating in a sauna session. The conclusion was that "whole-body hyperthermia holds promise as a safe, rapid-acting, antidepressant modality with a prolonged therapeutic benefit."

So as we're heading into those long, cold, darks months, grab a sauna to fight those winter doldrums.

What Would Tony Robbins Do?

I'm sure you've seen clickbait all over the internet about the habits of highly successful people. We're all interested in the routines of the rich and famous, primarily because they can act as a template for success. Many of the habits involve waking up early, eating right, exercising, all the things you would expect.

Enter Tony Robbins, author, entrepreneur, philanthropist and life coach. This is a man who works 16+ hours a day solely to help other people improve their lives.

As you might have guessed, part of Tony's morning routine to help jumpstart his day is to take a really hot 5-minute sauna followed by a dip into a cold plunge pool.

Hey, if Tony's doing it then it must be good for ya!

Saunas may be good for blood pressure?!?

Just a couple of days ago, a New York Times article reports that Finnish study suggests that regular sauna visits can reduce the risk for high blood pressure. Here's what they found:

"Compared to those who reported one sauna session a week or less, those who took two to three sessions were 24 percent less likely to have hypertension, and four to seven visits a week reduced the risk by 46 percent." 

Wait... so saunas feel great and are good for you, too? [Drops computer, fires up the wood sauna]