Health Benefits of Steam Sauna

Last night I had the privilege to experience for the first time, the thing called "Steam Sauna." I bought this portable steam sauna from Lazada the other day. I am so eager to loose weight and to have a better-looking complexion without using beauty products containing harmful chemicals. I want to loose weight and have smooth skin, the natural way. 

Portable Steam Sauna

I can say that buying this portable steam sauna is a wise decision. And thanks to my sister Debbie who shared half of the steam sauna's price. So last night, as soon as I get home I ask my father's assistance to set up this portable sauna. After it was all set and done, i stripped all my clothes, stepped in and sit comfortably inside. Since this sauna kit doesn't include the chair as shown in the kit CD manual, i used a regular mono block chair. My brother Daniel, took some photos of me while I'm having moments with my steam sauna, but the photos are not of good quality so I decide not to post it for now. Maybe I will post it later when I get a clear photo of me on my next sauna session.

Let's imagine the girl in this photo is me. Hehe. Well, ganito naman talaga ang peg ko last night in my steam sauna.

Loosing weight is just one among the many benefits of steam sauna. And my main goal actually why I bought this useful aid. I do a little research because I want to learn more on the health advantages  I will be getting from this. According to naturalnews.com  sauna works on the principle of generating abundant sweat to detoxify the body and relax the mind. Last night's experience was great. After the 45-minutes sauna steaming at home, lots of sweats came out of my body. I'm dripping wet! If I could measure it, I can say that my body generated one glass of sweats! I never sweat so much like that before. When I came out of the sauna, I feel light like a feather tossed by the wind  and my skin seemed to breathe comfortably as if I had just unloaded some invisible baggage in my body. Dirt on the surface of my skin caused by dust and smoke were removed even without scraping it. It flows with sweat dribbled from my skin. 

This cool experience I had from using this portable steam sauna is so satisfying that I want to share it with you my dear readers. Here are few among the many health benefits of steam sauna:

1. DETOXIFICATION

One of the many ways of flushing out toxins from the body is by expelling sweat. For  you to generate lots of sweat, you need to do physical activities. If you are not fond of exercise and other physical activities that will cause you to sweat (though exercise is good and recommended) steam sauna can be your option. Nowadays, with the not so good condition of our surroundings, we are susceptible to harmful factors that can damage our health. Various products we regularly use contains toxins that may damage our body in the long run. Being exposed to chemicals is part of our living whether we admit or not. The smoke coming out from vehicles swirled around us as we breathe. These harmful factors destroy our body, weakened our immune system. Seating in steam sauna long enough to sweat, is a good way to get rid of harmful toxins.

2. IMPROVING CIRCULATION

When heat comes in contact with muscle fibers, it increased blood flow to the muscles. Better circulation of the blood means more oxygen will reach the tissues. The body uses oxygen to help push toxins out of deeper areas of the muscles. Optimal circulation is important for good vascular health. Increased circulation also helps the body create more energy. A person with more energy and less muscular toxins will feel refreshed after stepping out of a sauna.

3. STRONGER IMMUNE SYSTEM

The heat emitted from steam sauna causes the body to create more white blood cells. These cells are responsible for attacking infections and diseases that infiltrate the body. A person with a higher count of white blood cells will stay healthier and heal faster from illnesses.

4. WEIGHT LOSS

This is my favorite part. Haha! When a person exercises it burns calories same effect from the heat produced by the sauna. But of course diet and exercise are still important components in loosing weight. The heat increases a person's basal metabolic rate by a considerable amount, which helps the body burn calories better throughout the day.

5. SKIN CLEANSING

Saunas cause the pores to open up. When the sweat starts coming out, it will flush out oil, bacteria, dirt,make up or any other residue that has collected in the pores. Regular flush out of pores result to improved complexion. Regular use of sauna reduces cellulite. Cellulite comes from subcutaneous fat erupting through fibrous connective tissue which gives the skin a dimple appearance. Since fat becomes water soluble at 110 degrees Fahrenheit, some reports show that some of it may pass through the skin through sweat.

These are few among the health benefits of sauna steaming. Other benefits include stress relief, better sleep, pain relief and feeling revitalized. I'm happy with what it does in my body. I am determined to soak myself on the aromatic steam produced by the sauna. It's aromatic because I put few drops of essential aromatherapy oils on the water before turning on the steamer.

Sagada Getaway

I only knew Sagada from the vivid tales my friends have told me and from the articles/blogs of people who went there and got fresh and authentic experiences of this mountain-top civilization. Because of these enticing stories, I myself got interested and want to experience Sagada one day. Actually I wrote Sagada Tour on my prayer notebook as one of my 2014 prayer items. By God's grace, it became an answered prayer this year. 

Muntik nang hindi matuloy ang Sagada summer outing ng Dgroup ko for this month. By the way, Dgroup means Discipleship Group sa church ko sa Christ Commission Fellowship or CCF. We are six girls all set and ready for Sagada tour on March 20-22, 2015 but because of the pretty tight work schedule and tons of workload nang ibang Dgroup members, we postponed the actual departure date which was 9pm of March 19, 2015. Some of the Dgroup ladies were bit disappointed for the sudden change of trip itinerary. By God's grace, we were able to proceed with this trip pa rin and left Manila for Sagada on Friday night (March 20, 2015). The 3D and 2N Sagada Tour with Baguio side-trip became 2D-1N nalang. For me it's no big deal. Ang importante natuloy ang trip. 

It was a long travel by land. Thank God the road isn't bumpy just zig-zaggy. We left at night and reach Banaue early morning. You know you're in Mt.Province already when you started to feel the air getting colder and colder. And the roads getting steeper and steeper. 

First in our Sagada Itinerary

Ang lamig pala dito! Good thing I wore a long-sleeved dress. Wala pa kami breakfast when the photo above was taken. I'm kinda hungry na but all-smiles pa rin for photo's sake. Hahaha! From Banaue, few more hours pa before you reach Sagada. Puro rice terraces at kabundukan ang nasilayan ng aking mga mata on our way to Sagada. Some of the mountains are not greenish in color (kalbo na kumbaga) while other still look greenish. We had a stop over at Banaue Rice Terraces Viewpoint. After witnessing the breathtaking view of the Rice Terraces, kumain na kami ng breakfast.

Sa wakas narating din namin ang Sagada. Thank God for the safe and sound travel. Nadaanan pala namin yung area kung saan nahulog yung bus na sinasakyan ni Tado. Grabe, ang taas at himala nalang kung mabubuhay ka pa after mo mahulog sa bangin na yun. Nagpahinga kami ng konte sa Sagada Home Stay (our accommodation for one night) then nag lunch. Nagbihis. Then ready na ulit for Sumaguing Cave. Nakakapagod ang bumaba sa malalim na kweba. Madilim ito at maraming paniki sa itaas. You will know it's paniki dahil sa huni nito at dahil na rin sa amoy nito. May mga tumutulong tubig na parehong malamig at mainit. Yung malamig malamang some kind of mineral na tumutulo from the cave walls at yung mainit naman, baka ano na yun ng paniki. Haha! The cave is dark so tour guides used traditional gas lamp called Petromax. May ganong ilaw kami noong bata pa ako at nakatira pa sa Sibuyan Island, Romblon. Nakalakihan ko yung ganong ilawan. Kaya nung makita ko na dala ng tour guide bigla kong na miss yung previous life in the province. Simple. Tahimik. Panatag. Masaya,

Umabot din ng 2-3 oras yung cave exploration namin. Malamig yung bato at tubig sa bottom nung cave. Some of the girls in our group ay bumaba pa hanggang dun sa may tubig na part ng cave. But I stayed sa isang area na pwede ako makaupo. My leg muscles are already stretch out like a rubber band. At dahil icy-cold ang tubig, nag decide ako na wag na lumusong dahil for sure sasakit kinagabihan ang mga paa ko kasi malalamigan ito. Hingal mode ang peg ko pag akyat pabalik sa entrance ng kweba. Pero mas mabilis ang move namin pabalik/paakyat kesa yung pababa palang kami ng Sumaguing Cave. On the surface of the cave, is a wild fire na three days burning na. Malawak na ang nakain ng apoy. Kusa lang naman daw ito namamatay pag naubos na ang mga tuyong damo. Kung paano nagsimula ang apoy, hindi ito masagot ng mga locals.

After Sumaguing Cave, we went to Lumiang/Burial Cave. Sorry hindi ko na picturan hehe. Na-focus kasi ako dun sa mga wood coffins na around 400 years old na daw as per our tour guide. Humanga ako sa effort nang mga tao naglagay nung mga wood coffins at the top of the cave. Hindi kasi ito madaling akyatin at konting pagkakamali lang mahuhulog ka sa mala-bottomless pit na hukay. Madilim ito and no one knows what awaits you at the bottom of the pit. Scaryyyy...

After Burial cave, we proceed to the Hanging Coffins and Echo Valley. Dito nakapag picture ako. Hahaha! Dumaan kami sa sementeryo on our way to Echo Valley and Hanging Coffins. There lies one of the SAF's Fallen 44. Siya yung may pinaka magandang graveyard landscape.Refreshing ang area facing the Echo Valley. Since I'm tired already, hindi ko na na-keri ang bumaba pa para marating ang Hanging Coffins. Pero makikita naman ito sa view deck.

Tired but happy

After Echo Valley and Hanging Coffins we went back to the town for dinner and to buy some pasalubongs. I bought red and black rice, mountain tea and Sagada t-shirts. We ate at Salt and Pepper Restaurant then have some honey yoghurt at the Yoghurt House. These are famous in Sagada---a must try. While shopping at one of the souvenir shop, nag brown-out so we stayed there for awhile. Nung hindi agad bumalik ang kuryente, we decided to walk nalang back to hotel. My feet is super tired na. Thanks to Alaxan FR at nawala agad ang muscle pains na dulot na nakakapagod na whole day activities. Since malamig ang weather, nakatulog ako agad by 8pm. I woke up at 3:30am to take a bath.May water heater kaya keribels ang maligo ng super aga.

We checked out from the homestay around 5am for Kiltepan Sunrise viewing then proceed na sa Baguio side trip. Unfortunately, cloudy ang weather when we reached Kiltepan point. So no sunrise to watch. Nagdecide nalang ang tour guide na mag proceed sa biyahe. We stopped at the Highest Point.

Swaggy and Foggy

First time ko maka experience at maka kita ng fog. Parang usok pala ito. On some of the areas na dinaanan namin, makakapal yung mga fog. Delikado ang pagda-drive. Thank God that he guided our driver para hindi magkamali sa pagmamaneho. After few more hours, nakarating din kami ng Baguio. First stop at La Trinidad's Strawberry Farm. I bough fresh strawberries for my family and some strawberry preserves (ordered by my officemates). For the first time, ngayon lang ako nakatikim ng authentic strawberry ice cream. Real na real ang lasa. Hahaha. Yung picture nasa phone ko. Naka upload na rin sa FB account ko.

Nag lunch kami sa Good Taste. Affordable ang  food pero masarap. After lunch, nag window shopping kami sa mga Ukay-Ukay stores. Ang gaganda ng mga items pero may kamahalan. So wala kong nabili. hehe. We did some strolling at Burnham Park then sumakaya na ng van dahil gusto na namin umuwi ng Manila. Some of us have work on Monday so we need to be in Manila before 9pm. By God's grace, we made it smoothly and safely.

All in all, I can tell na nag enjoy ako sa Sagada Tour na ito. Daming pagod pero okay lang, part ng trip yun. If you'll ask if babalik ako ng Sagada? Hmmm mukhang hindi na. Pero Baguio? Oo. May gusto pa akong puntahan at bilhin. hehe.

Should you wish to see and experience Sagada and Baguio. Just contact our tour provider:

N.E.C. Tours and Van Rental

09175872705, Globe

09989982705, Smart

09328907005, Sun

nec@touristas.com.ph

inquiry@touristas.com.ph

reservation@touristas.com.ph

http://www.touristas.com.ph/about.html