The Hot Yoga Doctor – Free Bikram and Hot Yoga Resources › Hot Yoga Doctor Forum › General Hot Yoga Discussion › The Heat › Heat Versus Form Question
The Hot Yoga Doctor – Free Bikram and Hot Yoga Resources › Hot Yoga Doctor Forum › General Hot Yoga Discussion › The Heat › Heat Versus Form Question
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Hello!
My first post, however I am a 7 year Bikram Yoga beginner,
and a lifetime practitioner.I’m a 53 year old career artist with an extensive athletic background.
I take class at Headquarters here in Santa Monica.I am a heat FANATIC and always go to the hottest part of the room,
no matter what. That said, the heat has improved here (Headquarters) immensely, lately, and this has created an entirely new experience for me.I found that for 2 days in a row, it was so hot that I had to sit out a couple of the poses. I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve had to do this, and I’m fine with it. My concern is that because of the precise (and as far as I can see perfect) nature of the sequence, would it be better to go to a slightly cooler part of the room and maintain the integrity of the sequence, or should I stay with the heat and pursue my practice there.
My ostensible plan for tomorrow is to stay with the heat. Do each pose briefly, and then go back to the ordained resting position (stand, for the standing series/savasanah, for the floor series) to catch my breath.
I will emphasize at this point, that we’re talking 115 degrees with high humidity – as an example. LOVE IT!
Ian
Hello Ian and welcome to the forum and thanks for your post!
You’re probably part of a minority who love extreme high heat and humidity – and a word of warning too – be careful, if the heat index (the combined effect of humidity and temperature) rises too high, then there are health risks.
If you’ve been perfectly fine for 7 years and this is sudden, then it is a sign of re-acclimatization – but could also be heat-exhaustion related (and hence the health warning).
I would advocate moving to the cooler area; re-acclimatizing and gradually moving back into the hotter area if it still suits.
If you breath is difficult at any point or if you start showing signs of other heat exhaustion such as excess sweating; cessation of sweating then I would advise not pushing through the heat.
So focus on the yoga and not the heat would be my take.
Gabrielle will pitch in once she gets some availability – she is travelling in Europe right now with restricted internet availability!
😀
Thank-you for the Reply.
The heat changed in March.
And I thrived on it until the last two classes.I try to keep to a vegan diet,
but lately I’ve been eating organic ground beef after class,
and that has really given me renewed strength.What you say makes sense, and I’m going to try it today.
One of my concerns was the fact that, if I’m having to modify every pose because of the heat, then I’m not really honoring the class as it was intended.Ian
PS I’m certainly not alone:
Now that the heat is so high, the classes look like a triage!
With people lying all over the place and leaving at all times. LOLHi Ian
I am back! Does the class still look like a triage? If people have been dropping like flies, what have the teachers been saying or doing?
When the temperature rises (with a commensurately high amount of humidity) there comes a point where the challenge of the heat is replaced by the risk of heat exhaustion. Robert mentioned some of the risks. The challenge usually creates a good type of work and optimum benefits where the conditions that are likely to cause heat exhaustion, just defeat the purpose of the challenge. There is no benefit if you have to consciously monitor your wellbeing at every moment, wondering whether you’ll make it through on a physical level. This is not football or tennis or another competitive sport where you must overcome obstacles and push through pain and injury. This is yoga where being present with your challenges, being mindful of obstacles, working WITH the body and the prevailing conditions is the order of the day.
I am absolutely positive that conditions in any hot yoga room can be hot, effective and safe. It seems that what you describe goes beyond what the reasonable (hot yogi) man would deem safe.
So, if the conditions are still triage-like then either vote with your feet and go to another studio, or approach the studio and you could say that you would appreciate a review of their heating conditions (as you don’t like your life put at risk; that the number of people who are not participating is surely a sign that it’s not just a mental issue; and other reasons that you deem appropriate for the situation at the time!).
I would love to know what has been going on. I can appreciate that over the last 3 weeks there may have been many developments to the situation! Please let me know!
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂I’m interpreting this as my journey at this time.
Since I first posted, I’ve been eating a meal with ground beef after class,
and this has given me a whole new lease on life.As I’ve posted on another thread, I’ve been a vegan most of my life,
and was diagnosed as anemic about nine months ago.
I tried to treat the anemia with pills but I wasn’t making much progress.So I’ll keep with the meat for now and see if I can find some vegan solutions.
In the meantime, the class is still as hot as it ever was,
and I’m gaining more strength during the class.Here’s a permalink to my other post:
https://www.hotyogadoctor.com/index.php/site/forum/viewthread/177/P15/#8136The last class that was triage like was packed thus raising the heat.
It was the Sunday after teacher training had ended,
and all the new teachers were in attendance.
Also, Bikram’s daughter was teaching which added to the popularity.Right or wrong, the one thing I have been using as a technique is to crouch like a ski jumper when I get overwhelmed rather than sit.
I’ve found that if I sit, the effort of getting back to my feet can create more overwhelm. Whereas from a crouching position I am closer to being fully upright.The consideration that negates heat exhaustion is that by the time I leave the studio I feel great! Like a millions bucks. And the hotter the room the better I feel afterward.
So that’s my story.
Appreciate the input,
and greatly appreciate this site!Ian
Hi Ian
Any updates! I hope you’re still feeling like a million bucks!
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂Yes!
Thank-you for enquiring.I take 3 1.5 liter bottles of water,
and 1 liter of coconut water.
I get to the studio about 1 hour early,
and between the drive to the studio, a little steam before class,
and the time in the room before class I drink 1.5 liters.
This seems to work pretty good.By the time class has started I’m dripping!
So, long story short:
I’ve been putting two of the bottle in the fridge,
and one in the freezer.
This has worked out well.
I trade off between the chilled water and the ice water,
and this has given me a strong regulatory tool.
If I’m feeling robust, I stick to the refrigerated water.
But if I’m finding I’m losing strength I take a hit of the ice water,
and that brings me back.While this method is a bit involved,
it has allowed me to stay right at the edge of my ability,
and therefore allows me to get deep into the poses.The room can vary between around 106 to 118 Fahrenheit.
That’s quite a spread, so this gives me some resources.I’m staying with the ground beef,
and that has dealt with the anemia symptoms,
so I think I’m cruising! (until the next challenge, of course)Ian
Wow Ian. That heat is very high. 118 degrees plus high humidity would actually make for potentially dangerous outcomes for many. No wonder you would at times feel depleted.
When I was at certification I needed iced water. Now I couldn’t do that. I actually prefer my ambient water. Have also been known to drink warm to very warm herbal tea.
Whatever works, eh?
Thanks for coming back to list all of that.
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂Hello!
Things have been going well.
The heat has stabilized to between 106 and 112.And my body has adapted so that when it’s toward 112,
I can still do all of the poses.I take ambient water, and that has been working fine.
It would seem that I was going through an adjustment period.Now I’m trying to reduce the busy work in my life so I can get to class more! LOL
Ian
Hello All,
Happy Monday.
I thought I’d give an update.The heat here has been the same: very hot.
But I discovered I have Pernicious Anemia.
Probably due to the vegan diet and exertion.However, I’ve done some research and discovered some very powerful solutions.
http://www.seekinghealth.com/active-b12-with-l-5-mthf-lozenge.html
http://www.gaiaherbs.com/products/detail/755/PlantForce-Liquid-IronI was losing strength in my knees.
Both in the joints and the quads.
I suspected that B12 might be the answer and found a very comprehensive testimonial on Amazon.
I started taking these pills, and they produced an absolutely miraculous result.
Within 5 days, the strength started to return to both my knees and the muscles surrounding.The second concern I was having was migraines.
They were triggered by exertion and they were bad.
I found that eating a full pound of ground beef after yoga prevented them,
but I didn’t want to be eating that much meat.
I’ve had iron pills, but I never found them to be very effective,
and they messed up my digestion.
But this liquid iron has been a God send.
I feel the effect of it right away and I’ve haven’t had any headaches since.I’ve never been a big believer in micro nutrition,
but I am now.
I always thought that if you had your diet approximately right,
the body would simply adapt.
However, I think in my case I was probably deficient in B12 and Iron for a long time,
which produced the anemia.Ian
Thank you Ian :cheese:
Welcome back. It’s great to hear from you.
That is really useful information. I would also add that the very high temperatures are probably depleting your resources more than they would in a ‘normal’ situation.
That’s a great result and thank you very much for the recommendations. Very much appreciated.
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂 -
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