E32. The Sauna Way: Heat, Healing and Human Connection with Cara Redpath

In this episode, I’m joined by Cara Redpath, nutritional therapist, women’s health specialist and self-confessed sauna enthusiast.Today we’re stepping into the heat with Cara Redpath, a nutritional therapist whose love of sauna has become both a personal practice and a professional calling. Cara shares the evidence behind sauna’s powerful effects on our nervous system and cardiovascular health, and the quiet revolution of wild, wood-fired saunas popping up across Scotland.What began as curiosity has become essential, a grounding practice that restored her nervous system, reshaped her work and connects her with community and the elements.Together we explore:The difference between gym saunas and wild, wood-fired saunas and why it matters.The science of heat shock proteins and how sauna supports cardiovascular, mental and cellular health.The interplay of heat and cold, and why women’s bodies respond differently.The power of community and conversation inside the sauna — a rare space without phones or roles, where everyone is simply human.How sauna culture across Scotland is offering warmth, rest and connection in the darker months.Cara also shares why she sees sauna as part of a preventative wellbeing toolkit — not a luxury, but a non-negotiable for living well.If you’re curious to explore this growing culture yourself, I’ve linked a few of the Scottish saunas Cara mentions from Wild Bathing in Oban to West Coast Wellness and Wild Ember Bothy at Loch Tay, each a small pocket of warmth in the dark months.