Bath procedures are not only physically healing, but also mentally. It is so nice to sit on a bench in the dressing room after a steam room and a massage with a broom and chat with friends at a set table...
But what should be on this table? What food is acceptable for consumption after a sauna, and what can only harm the body?
In the sauna, metabolism speeds up, blood vessels expand, and it is very important that food is light, quickly digested and does not create discomfort in the stomach.
It is better to give up fatty meat and fish immediately, as well as salted, smoked, and fried semi-finished products.
Although there has long been a tradition of refreshing yourself with a glass of foamy beer after a steam bath, it is also advisable to forget about alcohol: it puts stress on blood vessels and can provoke pressure surges and heart problems.
So, the menu must be made up, having previously excluded everything that is not healthy. What remains? Light, lean meat (chicken, lean beef, turkey), vegetables, fruits (both fresh and dried), herbal teas.
It is acceptable to take sliced or diced tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, and carrots with you to the bathhouse.
If you intend to prepare a vegetable salad for a get-together in the dressing room, do not use heavy and fatty sauces for dressing it.
If the bathhouse is located on a summer cottage plot and there is a barbecue nearby, it is also not forbidden to take chicken "parts" or beef in a container and then fry them on the coals.
Fruits that are good to eat after a sauna include watermelons, melons, grapes, apples, pears, bananas, and peaches. It is convenient to take dried fruits with you: dried apricots, raisins, prunes, dried apple slices, and dried cherries.
For those who love nuts, you can take a mixture of cashews, almonds, unsalted peanuts and walnuts to the bathhouse.
Is it acceptable to eat bread after a steam bath? Of course, if it is whole grain: a slice of such bread and a piece of the same chicken fried on coals, supplemented with a leaf of green salad, will make a hearty and tasty sandwich.
In the bathhouse, people sweat a lot, and along with the liquid, a lot of useful electrolytes "leave" the body. The same fresh and dried fruits will help partially replenish their deficiency (bananas will give magnesium, dried apricots - potassium). But to restore the normal level of hydration, it is necessary to drink more liquid after the steam room. And here herbal teas with chamomile, lemon balm, mint, thyme will be very useful.
Homemade cranberry or lingonberry juice will also come in handy: they quench thirst well and supply the body with useful vitamins. Sweet juices and soda are prohibited, especially for those who visit the bathhouse for detox and weight loss.
Interestingly, you can't drink kvass after a bath either, because of the albeit insignificant, but still alcohol percentage in it. The best thing, according to doctors, is to drink plain clean water during get-togethers after the main bath procedures.
Should you eat before going to a sauna or bathhouse? No: let your body rest from digestive processes, then it will be more active in excreting all unnecessary substances through the skin.
And it is advisable to start eating no earlier than an hour after the steam room and the massage with a broom. And it is important not to overeat the food you took, but just have a small snack to satisfy your hunger after the bath.
Earlier we reported on the benefits of aspic .
Expert: Elena Gutyro
