What to bring, how to move through the club, and simple starting points for training, sauna, red light, and recovery.
View the scheduleA little preparation makes the entire visit easier. Book your session, pack for movement and heat, and give yourself time to settle in.
Reserve sauna and Red Light Pod sessions before you arrive. Open Gym does not require a reservation.
Arrive early enough to check in, change, fill your water bottle, and settle in before the session begins.
Keep a towel between your body and the sauna bench, and leave shared spaces ready for the next person.
Wipe down gym equipment after use and return weights and accessories to their proper place.
Keep phones quiet and conversations considerate. Community is part of the experience; so is everyone’s ability to recover.
Listen to your body. Step out, cool down, and hydrate whenever you need to.
These are practical starting points—not a challenge, diagnosis, or prescription. Your tolerance can change with sleep, hydration, training load, illness, medication, and experience.
Start on a lower bench if you are newer to high heat. Step out between rounds, cool down, drink water, and return only when you feel ready. You may add water to the rocks, but check with the room before increasing the steam.
Infrared heats the body differently than a traditional sauna and may feel more approachable at first. Begin conservatively, especially if you are new to heat, and treat the full 45 minutes as available session time—not a requirement to stay in continuously.
Strength and conditioning require quality effort. Complete the main work while you are fresh, then use the sauna to downshift. A brief warm-up in the sauna can feel good, but avoid a long heat exposure before heavy or technical training.
There is no single evidence-based frequency for every red light device, goal, or person. Start consistently, follow staff guidance for the Sauna Strong Pod, and adjust rather than assuming more is automatically better.
A solid baseline is at least two full-body strength days each week, supported by regular aerobic movement. Grip strength and cardiorespiratory fitness are associated with healthy aging because they reflect broader function—not because one test tells the whole story. Build them through loaded carries, hangs, pulling, walking, intervals, controlled breathing, and consistent training.
Minneapolis winters bring shorter days and less time outside in nature. Staying active and breaking a sweat all year can help you keep a routine and connect with others. Regular exercise may ease the stress and low mood that can come with seasonal affective disorder (SAD). Seek daylight when you can. Sauna is not a treatment for SAD.
Mayo Clinic on SAD and physical activityContact Sauna Strong before booking for anyone under 18. Age, supervision, the planned experience, and heat tolerance all matter, so the team will confirm what is appropriate before your visit.
No. Open Gym does not require a reservation, and every sauna booking includes Open Gym access before or after your reserved session.
For most strength-focused visits, train first and sauna afterward. This keeps your main work crisp and lets heat become the transition into recovery. If you use heat before training, keep it brief and easy.
Use the session as a container, not a test. Traditional sauna often works well as two or three 12–15-minute rounds. Infrared often works well as one or two 15–30-minute rounds. Cool down between rounds and stop sooner if your body asks you to.
Adults should generally include muscle-strengthening work for all major muscle groups on at least two days each week. Sauna Strong’s weekly classes can help create that rhythm; your exact plan should reflect your training history, recovery, and goals.
Grip strength and cardiorespiratory fitness are useful markers of how well the body is functioning, but they are not guarantees or standalone longevity hacks. Loaded carries, hangs, pulling, full-body strength work, aerobic training, and intentional breathing all support capacities worth maintaining as you age.
Winter makes consistency more valuable. Sauna, training, recovery, and community give you a warm place to move and reset when cold, darkness, and disrupted routines make it easier to stay home. Red light therapy is not a substitute for daylight, vitamin D, sleep, or medical care.
Leave the heat immediately, sit or lie down safely, cool off, hydrate, and tell a staff member. Do not use sauna after drinking alcohol. If you are pregnant, take medications that affect heat tolerance, or manage a cardiovascular or other medical condition, ask your healthcare provider before starting a heat practice.
Wellness guidance is educational and should be adjusted to your experience and health. Sauna Strong protocols are paired with general guidance from public-health and medical sources.
