The Hot Yoga Doctor – Free Bikram and Hot Yoga Resources › Hot Yoga Doctor Forum › General Hot Yoga Discussion › Weight Loss and Hot Yoga › Gaining Weight
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I’m a bikram newbie. I’ve gone to about 6 classes total. I’ve gained about 4 pounds since starting. :bug: Is this normal? It’s really disappointing. I’m eating clean- 1200-1400 calories a day, so its not that. I’m going to keep going because i love the way i feel after class, but i hope i don’t continue to gain! Can anyone tell me if this has happened to them?
I know I should care about the scale, but I do.
Thanks in advance 🙂
Hi there 🙂
The weight gain is very likely from the muscle you’ve gained, as muscle weighs more than fat. I’ve been practicing for a year, have shrunk 2 dress sizes but gained about 1kg in weight. Perfectly normal, as my mum [who’s 54 this year] has also reported about ‘the damn scale being whacked’
And don’t restrict your calorific intake! Eat what your body feels like, as what you crave is more often what your body needs nutritionally [mmm peanut butter cravings for me 🙂 ]
Namaste
I have been doing Bikram since last May and have found that the more often I go to class, the more I don’t lose weight. However, I have gotten thinner. I can tell by looking that I have less fat and more muscle. I can wear clothes that fit me when I am almost 10 pounds lighter than I am now.
It took me awhile to figure out that I should just forget about the scale. It is hard to let go, but life is happier without it.
I can relate. I was addicted to the scale and let it dictate how I would feel about myself on a given day. This in spite of practicing yoga every day and experiencing how strong I have become, seeing my body change in the mirror and in the way my clothes fit me. I realize that I need to work through a lack of respect and gratitude for my body, which for its own part has done everything I have asked it to do and has proven stronger than I ever imagined.
Only when the scale’s display malfunctioned a few weeks ago (serendipitously?) did I really face this. I have not bought a new one.
It is still hard at times to live without knowing that number, which let me know in concrete terms how I was doing in this battle against my body. My practice, which consists of 6-7 Bikram classes, one Baptiste class and now one Advanced Bikram class per week, is part of the battle at times and that is something I’m still working to change. Abandoning the scale (in my case, not by choice) has been a step in that direction and I really recommend it. You will know where you’re at by how your clothes fit and how your body feels. You will count calories and restrict less as you learn to respond to your body’s true needs. It is hard to let go, but there is an element of faith here, of trust in the process.
For the record, in spite of the scale not moving much, or slightly upward at times, I am leaner than before I started Bikram. You’ll hear this time and again from those who practice.
If you are eating plenty of water rich foods (fruit & veg) and trying to stay away from processed foods, eliminating white flours, and also doing some cardio,(10,000,00 steps a day or treadmill) THEN IGNORE THE SCALE. You need to start to trust and admire yourself for doing the best for yourself. Practice alot, and admire the strength you gain.
Ahhh the scale! Remember the scale is not the whole. How is your breathing? How is your posture? Are you smiling more? Are you sleeping better? Balance is so much more than that number. Show up, move and breath, have some fun, and just leave that scale in the dust. Namaste. Practicing eight years, now at 56 I feel younger and stronger than when I was 26.
Thank you all for your responses. You are right. I might have gained some weight, but my legs are so strong now, and for one in my life, I’m flexible! I feel so balanced and happy. I guess that’s more important than the scale right 🙂
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