Full show notes: https://bengreenfieldlife.com/saunapodcast In this episode with Luke Chapman and Owen Buchanan, founders of Western Sol, you'll hear the story behind the custom sauna I recently had built in my backyard in Idaho, and the story behind the company itself, which started when a mold exposure in Hawaii sent Luke into daily sauna use. You'll gain insights into the actual science of heat shock proteins and dynorphins (the opioid peptides your body releases under heat stress), why most sauna wood is loaded with VOCs, and how thermally pressed aspen and spruce sourced from Estonia solves that problem entirely. We'll also touch on how Western Sol engineers oxygen-rich air recirculation, Himalayan salt therapy, and even full electrical grounding directly into the sauna floor, and you'll get a full walkthrough of what it costs to get a custom or prefabricated sauna built. Luke Chapman and Owen Buchanan are the founders of Western Sol, a custom and prefabricated sauna company based in Idaho. Both grew up around custom home construction in their family businesses before turning their focus toward building non-toxic, low-VOC saunas designed to support healing of the mind, body, and soul. They travel throughout Europe to source materials and study traditional sauna culture at its origin. You can find out more about Western Sol and schedule a free consultation here: https://www.westernsolhealing.com/pages/ben-greenfield Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 02:28 How mold exposure led Luke and Owen to found Western Sol 07:41 Why cedar wood warps and how thermally pressed aspen and spruce solve it 10:35 Why most infrared saunas use glued, VOC-heavy construction 12:30 What heat shock proteins do at a cellular level 16:25 Why dynorphins, not endorphins, drive the post-sauna high 18:28 How the Saunum heater recirculates fresh air from ground level 20:41 The Himalayan salt wall system built into the heater and cabin 23:10 The traditional Finnish concept of loyly 27:49 How Luke and Owen grounded the sauna floor with copper wire 29:37 Tempered glass, wood-framed construction, and the barrel and cube shapes 33:08 What it costs to get a custom or prefabricated Western Sol sauna 38:31 Luke and Owen's own daily sauna protocols 43:06 Ben's own sauna and cold plunge protocol Shop My Curated Marketplace of Vetted Products! - https://shoplifemarket.com Sign up for a FREE Coaching Call! - https://jointriumphcoaching.com Check out my FREE newsletter! - https://bengreenfieldlife.com/newsletter/ 🔗My Website: https://bengreenfieldlife.com/ 🔗My Podcast: https://bengreenfieldlife.com/podcast/ 🔗My Books: https://shopbengreenfieldlife.com/collections/books Connect with me: ⬇️ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/bengreenfieldfitness/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/BGFitness X https://twitter.com/bengreenfield TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@bengreenfield