Elements Float Wellness Centre
How to Dry Brush Before an Infrared Sauna: A Step-by-Step Guide
The Elements Pre / During / Post Infrared Sauna Pack is designed to make your sauna ritual simple: dry brush before, wipe and refresh during, then rinse and rehydrate after.
The most important rule is gentle, mindful and consistent. Dry brushing should stimulate the skin without scratching or causing irritation.
Allow about 5 minutes for dry brushing before your sauna. Use long, gentle strokes on dry skin. Follow the directional guide toward the major lymphatic regions shown below. During the sauna, use your bamboo cloth to gently wipe away perspiration as needed.
BEFORE: Dry brush on dry skin
Dry brushing is most effective before your sauna while the skin and brush are dry. Once the skin becomes sweaty, the brush does not glide or exfoliate as easily.
- Begin with dry skin and a clean, dry natural-bristle brush.
- Use light to medium pressure. The skin may look lightly pink, but brushing should never hurt, sting or leave scratches.
- Use 5-10 very light circular taps around the main lymphatic drainage regions – behind the knees, groin, inner elbows, underarms, above the collarbones and sides of the neck.
- Use approximately 10 overlapping strokes per area, working slowly and mindfully.
- Allow around 5-10 minutes for the full body rather than brushing harder or longer.
Dry brushing directions
- Feet: sweep the soles, tops and sides of the feet toward the ankles.
- Lower legs: use long upward strokes toward the area behind the knees.
- Thighs: continue upward toward the groin.
- Hands and arms: brush from the hands toward the elbows, then toward the underarms.
- Lower abdomen: soften the pressure and brush toward the groin.
- Upper torso: use light strokes toward the underarms.
- Back: work the lower area toward the groin/hips and the upper back toward the underarms.
- Shoulders and neck: use especially gentle strokes toward the collarbone and neck regions shown in the guide.
DRY BRUSHING DIRECTION GUIDE
Use the visual as a directional wellness guide. Keep pressure gentle, especially around sensitive areas and major lymph-node regions.
DURING: Sweat + gently wipe
Once you enter the infrared sauna, allow your body to warm and begin sweating naturally. As perspiration builds, use the bamboo cloth to gently pat or wipe away sweat from the skin.
- Focus on comfort rather than vigorous rubbing.
- Use the cloth around the neck, chest, underarms, arms, abdomen, legs and other areas where perspiration collects.
- Wiping removes sweat, salts and surface residue from the skin.
- It also helps remove loosened dead skin and excess surface oil, helping the skin and pores feel clean and fresh.
- Refold the cloth to a fresh section as needed during the session.
Sweat can contain measurable trace elements and other compounds [1,2]. Wiping does not replace the body’s liver and kidney detoxification systems, but it does physically remove the perspiration and residue that has reached the skin surface – which is exactly why the cloth works so well as the “during” step of the ritual.
For best results
- Keep the brush dry between uses and clean it regularly according to the product-care instructions.
- Wash the bamboo cloth after use and allow it to dry fully.
- Avoid aggressive brushing – the goal is stimulation and exfoliation, not redness or soreness.
- Hydrate before and after your sauna.
- Consistency matters more than intensity.
When to skip dry brushing
- Broken or irritated skin, cuts or sunburn
- Active rashes, skin infection or an eczema/dermatitis flare
- Freshly shaved, waxed or recently treated skin
- Areas that feel tender, inflamed or unusually sensitive
If you have diagnosed lymphoedema, have had lymph nodes removed, have recently undergone surgery or cancer treatment, or have been given individual lymphatic-drainage instructions, follow the advice of your treating healthcare professional rather than a general wellness brushing guide.
BRUSH → SWEAT → WIPE → RINSE → REHYDRATE
Research referenced
- Genuis SJ, Birkholz D, Rodushkin I, Beesoon S. Blood, Urine, and Sweat (BUS) Study: Monitoring and Elimination of Bioaccumulated Toxic Elements. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology. 2011;61(2):344-357. View study
- Kuan WH, Chen YL, Liu CL. Excretion of Ni, Pb, Cu, As, and Hg in Sweat under Two Sweating Conditions. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022;19(7):4323. View study
- Tan IC, Maus EA, Rasmussen JC, et al. Assessment of lymphatic contractile function after manual lymphatic drainage using near-infrared fluorescence imaging. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. 2011;92(5):756-764.e1. View study
Wellness note: This article is for general wellness education and is not intended to diagnose, treat or replace medical advice.
