The other night, my neighbor sent me a text message asking if I would be interested in joining her for a 90-min Bikram Yoga session. I found that I got excited about the chance to try something new, and then a sense of fear took over. If you have followed this blog for a while, you know I have a phobia or group workouts. I loathe working out around people so the thought of not only leaving my comfort zone, but doing it in a 105 degree F room scared me....big time!
So what is Bikram Yoga?
- It’s done in a 105 F room with 40% humidity.
- It consists of 26 “asanas” or postures and two breathing exercises that are done twice in a row.
- It’s 90 minutes long.
- The combination of heat and postures are supposed to be good for blood circulation, delivering more oxygen to joints, muscles and organs.
- Sweating is supposed to be detoxifying.
Upon arriving at the studio, we signed in, quickly changed and entered the room. I knew it would be hot in there, but I wasn't prepared for the wall of heat that smacked me. We found the last two spots in the back of the room (of course mine was under the pipe that fed the steam into the room), settled in and began to stretch.
The instructor was really nice and I was grateful that I had experience with YogaX so I knew some of the poses. I was also happy many of them were balance poses as those are the ones I like the best.
There were a few times the heat started to get to me, but I wiped the sweat off my brow, took a little water and got back in it.
Class was split into a standing a segment and a floor segment. I was very relieved when we switched to floor work because it gave my head a chance to rest from the lightheadedness that was beginning to take over.
Ultimately, it was an amazing workout. I had a great experience, felt a ton of stress melt off of me and I look forward to two more weeks of it, since we purchased a 3-class pack for only $25!
If you are interested in what kind of poses we did, here is a graphic I found that has all 26.
If you have ever contemplated trying Bikram Yoga, I say go for it! I'm so happy I stepped out of my comfort zone and gave it a try!
It's nice to see that you had a good time with a new workout. I had seen Bikram Yoga advertised a few places, but I learned from a recent episode of the Ben Greenfield Fitness podcast (below) that it was named after someone named Bikram. I thought it was some yoga term, but I guess it works out nicely if you want to become famous as a yoga instructor.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bengreenfieldfitness.com/2012/02/episode-181-why-your-back-hurts/
I also thought it was funny that you are uncomfortable with group workouts, and yet that is where we did (or did not) meet, at a Tony Horton workout/book signing. :-) Actually, the big difference between my wife and me is that she has found a group activity she loves (karate), but I am just as happy in the basement with my workout DVDs.
Maybe you could dig up "Sweatin' to the Oldies"... Best of both worlds? ;-)
[...] ← A Night of Bikram Yoga February 28, 2012 · 8:14 AM ↓ Jump to [...]
ReplyDelete[…] early and headed straight for the room to “claim” our spots for class. During our first class we were a little late and were stuck in a back corner with little room to move and we were right […]
ReplyDelete[…] and I at least had my husband and good friend with me. Outside of that, I’ve done three Bikram Yoga classes (I hid in the back during all of them) and some 5k’s, which I dont’ mind at […]
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