When it comes to wellness, I’m almost always game to try a new product or experience. Sitting in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber? Sure. Cryotherapy? I’ve dabbled. But the luxury wellness experience that I have been obsessed with since the very first time I tried it in 2017 is infrared sauna. There’s just one small snag: I live in a studio apartment, so I can neither afford to have a full wooden spa buildout, nor to spend hundreds of dollars a month going to the spa. Back in 2020, I found myself missing my favorite wellness splurge as the seasons began to change when going to a spa was not possible, but I did know that HigherDose had a nifty at-home solution: the Infrared Sauna Blanket.
I have owned the product for many years now, and I can honestly say that this sleeping bag with far infrared rays has been my most used wellness item. The daily routine of getting into a pair of sweats and slipping in for 45 minutes almost every day of the week during the peak dreary months of early 2021 saved me from going a little bit batty. And the heat? At the highest setting it warms up to a toasty 158 degrees, raising my internal body temperature, boosting circulation, and kicking my sweat output into high gear.
It’s the perfect—and most relaxing—complement to a brisk walk and an at-home workout. On Sundays, it makes for a great way to unwind and hit re-set for the week ahead. When I do it on a regular basis, I find that it seriously helps with aches and pains, and it’s said to help with muscle recovery; and because it gets your heart rate up, you burn some extra calories. Also, I can highly suggest hopping in to the sauna blanket in the morning. You emerge revitalized, wide awake, and oh-so relaxed. No caffeine necessary!
These days, I’m still using my sweat burrito, as I lovingly call it, on regular basis, and even though they’ve released an updated version (linked here) since I got mine, with a zipper closure that surely is easier to use, I honestly wouldn’t change a thing about this wellness essential. It makes me feel amazing to stop and take a meditative moment to myself. Better still, HigherDose has released a line of body care to use in tandem with the sauna blanket, and I have seriously taken to the Get Salty Spray, which is a blend of Zechstein magnesium and water. Not only does it help replenish the electrolytes that I sweat out, but it also gives me a vital boost of magnesium, which is necessary for calming the nervous system, helping with muscle tension, and even inducing restorative sleep.
Dare I say it, with this little ritual … I feel like Gwyneth Paltrow. It’s a luxe experience within the comfort of my home. And did I mention? It gives me the most unreal glow. When I’m done, I simply let it cool down, clean it, and then fold it to be stored underneath my bed, easy as that.
All in all, it’s a routine that I won’t be letting go of anytime soon.
Roxanne Adamiyatt is the senior editor at Town & Country, where she writes about lifestyle, fashion, travel, and beauty.