I was first introduced to Bikram Yoga about 2 years ago by my bestie and I almost immediately noticed the benefits of Bikram, including a trimmer waistline, clearer skin and being able to fall asleep easier at night.
The benefits of Bikram Yoga are many and endless. Bikram Yoga has lots of mind and body benefits both in the short-term and the long. In the short term you will sleep better, feel happier, and have a more energetic and toned body. And in the long term, you will have overall improved physical and mental health.
Bikram Yoga, is a form of Hatha Yoga which takes place in a room heated to 40 degrees Celsius with around 40 percent humidity - so expect to sweat a lot! The 90 minute class consists of a series of 26 postures, which focus on keeping you completely still in both mind and body.
I've tried all different types of yoga, from traditional Hatha, to Ashtanga and Vinyasa. I'm a lover of all yoga's - not just Bikram - and I encourage everyone to try any type of yoga and see what works best for them. Personally, I just noticed the benefits of Bikram Yoga as soon as I tried it and just stuck with it.
Yoga in general is not something to be achieved - it is something to be experienced. But I believe that you can't truly appreciate yoga by just doing a class once in a blue moon. You really need to stick with it and try and do a class at least 3 times per week (5 is ideal). And if you can continue with it for about ten weeks you will be on your way to developing what I call a 'Yoga Mind and Body' - a literal life transformation of both the shape of your body and you conscious awareness.
'Yoga Mind and Body' is about using yoga: as a meditative tool to help your mind create positive health habits that can dramatically improve the quality of your life on all levels; and to help your body change from the inside out, as Bikram would say 'from bones to skin and from fingertips to toes'.
As for the heat, people often ask me why the room needs to be so hot. I understand many people are often hesitant to even try Bikram because of this. The reason it's hot is because a warm body is a flexible body. Yoga literally changes the construction of your body, but before you change it, you have to heat it up to soften it - then you can reshape your body any way you want.
And it's so good for you to sweat on a regular basis. Heavy sweating helps flush away the toxins of all the glands and organs of your body. It provides a natural irrigation of the body through the circulatory system, with the help of the respiratory system. It brings nourishment's to every cell of your body so that each one can perform its function and keep your body healthy. And also don't forget - when you sweat, you're burning calories! Basically, the idea is to embrace the heat, not fight it.
People around the world have used healing by heat for thousands of years, and I can tell you from experience that after about three sessions you should acclimatise to the heat and really start to both see and feel the benefits of Bikram.
If you are looking for a major change and want a 'Yoga Mind and Body', I recommend you try Bikram Yoga. You can search their website here for your local certified studio. My tip is to do at least 5 days of classes before you make the decision on if it's for you.
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