I’ll be 59 in March and I want to continue snow skiing and climbing mountains for as long as possible. With that in mind, I know from personal experience the best way to keep the action going is to practice infrared training for fitness. Physically, I feel as good as I did in my 20’s, but it takes work to maintain. I incorporate infrared HIIT with cycle or rowing after weight training Monday through Friday, and I add in 2 isometric infrared sessions as well during the week.
Infrared training can extend longevity for activity, no matter your age, young or old and no matter the activity. For me, snow skiing is my go to. I can say that I am skiing now better than ever and I’ve been skiing for 26 years, since I first took a ski lesson at Snowmass in Aspen, CO at the age of 32. When I started training inside of a HOTWORX sauna I immediately began to notice better performance on the slopes.
What is the magic that makes infrared training work so well?
Largely, it is the penetration of non-ionizing infrared radiation into the body while you workout that makes the difference, but the heat generated and the air quality of the infrared environment enhances the training results as well. I write about this extensively in my book, HOT EXERCISE, which is available on Amazon or at your local HOTWORX studio. Here is an excerpt to note:
WORKOUTS IN A hot environment created by infrared heaters yield many benefits beyond the typical hot yoga studio environment, including greatly accelerated workout recovery and detox, along with improved metabolic efficiency. Additionally, the air is much more comfortable to breathe during workouts in infrared heat.
On the other side, away from the UV radiation (to the right of the visible spectrum as depicted by the diagram), the longer infrared light waves fall just outside the visible spectrum. We know that the wavelength of infrared is non-ionizing and therefore does not damage human DNA. In fact, infrared wavelengths can penetrate the skin up to 1.5 inches or more and can provide many positive benefits to the human body. Some of these benefits include:
Detoxification
Improved blood circulation
Lowered blood pressure
Suppressed sunburn cell formation
Treatment for arteriovenous fistula
Improved sleep
Reduced pain and stiffness
Lowered side effects of diabetes
Improved mood
Inhibited growth of some types of cancer cells
Improved motor functions
Lowered nasal inflammation (allergic rhinitis)
Increased rate of caloric burn
Accelerated injury recovery
Improved immunity functions
Lowered stress (1)
I’m not a big fan of the term biohacking, but when you consider the benefits of placing your body in the environment of an infrared sauna for training, then, based on the results, it is easy to see why many fitness professionals describe infrared training as a bio hack. Don’t misinterpret though, this is not an easy way out. Infrared training is a way to get way more fitness results in less time due to a change of environment using technology with the right workout type.
You still gotta do the work!
But, adding infrared to your fitness war chest will increase your longevity for activities. I am living proof.
👊🔥
