The health benefits of saunas have been well documented. They improve circulation, keep the skin soft and supple, and promote relaxation: all key to a healthy lifestyle.

Are there any drawbacks? Yes -- they arent accessible enough! Until recently, you either had to go to a spa or health club to use a sauna, or have 1 installed in your home.

Now there's an alternative. You can take a portable sauna almost anywhere you go: home, business trips, vacations, even to your office.

Portable saunas come in 2 basic styles. The first, which is truly portable, is a folding box-like structure that 1 person can sit in. The second type is the pre-built, which is portable only in the sense that your desk is portable -- you can take it when you move, but you wouldn't take it for a weekend trip.

The Folding Sauna

The folding sauna is both economical and practical. It collapses quickly into a compact package that can be carried anywhere. It sets up easily, and doesn't need any special plumbing or electrical connections. Just plug it into a normal wall socket.

You sit in the sauna with your head and hands protruding from the unit. It fits snugly around your neck and has slits for your hands. You can sit in the sauna and read, watch TV, or talk on the phone: all things you couldnt do with a regular sauna.

Heated by Invisible light

this sauna uses Far Infrared (FIR) as its heat source. FIR is different from other heat sources because it heats people and objects without warming the air in between. Infrared is part of the natural spectrum of light, but its outside the visible range. this is the type of radiation that provides most of the warmth from the sun.

FIR heat passes deep into the body tissues where it can promote increased blood circulation and metabolism. Many proponents of FIR claim that it allows the body to break down toxins and promote healing. Whether or not this is true, FIR offers an efficient heat source that is ideal for portable saunas.

Pre-Builts

There's no doubt about the convenience of portable saunas. But if you want a "real" sauna experience, you don't have to go through the hassle of permanently installing a spa-grade sauna in your home. Pre-built saunas are 2- or 3-piece units that can be assembled in less than half an hour, and can fit almost anywhere. They have the look and feel of a traditional sauna, right down to the wooden benches. They simply plug into a regular wall outlet to supply electricity for the heaters and the lights.

Like portable saunas, these pre-builts usually use Far Infrared (FIR) heaters as their heat source. Pre-builts are available in sizes for 1 person or up to 5 people.

Have Sauna, Will travel

The advantages of portable saunas are obvious -- you can take a sauna wherever you go. When used at home, a portable sauna is a big space-saver because you can fold it up and store it under the bed.

Pre-built saunas also have their advantages. Even though they are less portable than true portable saunas, they still offer the possibility to take the sauna with you if you move.

Disadvantages? The portable sauna can't approach the heat level of a regular sauna. The thin walls dont provide the insulation to support this level of heat build-up. Pre-built saunas provide heat build-up similar to regular saunas, but the box-like structure, particularly the 1-person units, make some people feel claustrophobic.

Still, if you don't want the expense and hassle of installing a permanent sauna in your home, portables and pre-built saunas allow you to get all the sauna benefits with very few drawbacks.

Visit Sauna to learn more. Copyright 2005 Ron King. Ron King is a full-time researcher, writer, and web developer. this article may be reprinted if the resource box is left intact.

Do you have one golf hole that always gets you?

Jim is a 12 handicap golfer. He absolutely loves the game and can't seem to get enough. He buys a new set of equipment about every 2 years or so and watches golf on TV whenever he can. He really enjoys following the pro tours and trying to guess who will win on any given sunday.

Jim's club tournament is coming up soon. He can't wait. His game has been steadily improving over the season and he feels he's ready for this. A couple weeks ago he shot his best score ever on his home course, a 3 over 75! He knows he's got it in him and maybe even lower since he had a double bogey on one in that round of 75.

As tournament weekend approaches, Jim begins to psyche himself up. He's very excited and even antsy. He has kept himself in great shape and followed a prescribed practice routine by his teaching pro for the last 2 weeks without missing a single day.

This tournament is his! He can feel it.

He walks up to the first tee of the tournament and he stripes it right down the middle. He finishes the first hole with a par and a great relief comes over him as he prepares to settle down and get serious. He plays well over the next 10 holes until he comes to hole number 12.

Hole number 12 is a very narrow long par 4. On one side of the fairway is a lake and the other is out of bounds. It's a tough hole and Jim has this thing about hole 12. It always seems to get the best of him. He hates it! This is the hole that he double-bogeyed on when he had his career round. He thinks it has his number.

Sure enough, Jim plays hole 12 like he always does and chokes on it this day as well.

He finishes the tournament in second place by 2 strokes. He looks back on it and wonders why, why he just can't get past that hole 12...

Does this story sound familiar to you? Do you have a golf hole or maybe two golf holes on your favorite course that always seems to get the best of you? Do you walk up to that tee and immediately feel a shudder run through your body? A tenseness or tightness?

Well, I want to tell you that this is good news! What, are you kidding me? How the heck can this be good news?

Because it says that you have the automatic mechanism! That is, your body responds automatically to certain situations. You can use this in your favor instead of being a victim to it like Jim.

Is consistency important in golf? Duh, of course! It's the holy grail of scoring! Well, if you automatically have a reaction to a certain hole and seem to play it bad every time, well then, guess what - you are showing consistency. This is a resource that you have and you've used it before and it's served you well and sometimes it hasn't.

You see, the mechanics of what is happening inside your mind and body are exactly the same when you go up to a hole that you hate and when you perform your preshot routine to a perfect consistency resulting in the shots you know how to do.

The only difference is in how you have chosen to think about each of the situations.

Begin to think right now how many times you've been automatically consistent in your golf game, good, bad, or otherwise. You see, your body and unconscious mind don't make judgements as to whether something is good or bad. It just does it. Your awake, conscious mind has that job. It also has the job of deciding whether or not this resource you possess called "consistency" is something you have to wait around for luck to happen...or you can choose it .

I think you know the answer to that one...don't you?

greens and fairways,

Craig Sigl, the Golf Anti-practice expert, is a master and trainer of Hypnosis, NLP and Timeline techniques. He plays to a 5 handicap and teaches his methods worldwide. Visit Golf Instruction Tip to receive a free digitized golf book and ezine "Golf legends and Gurus"