The Hot Yoga Doctor – Free Bikram and Hot Yoga Resources › Hot Yoga Doctor Forum › Busting Some Big-A$$ Hot Yoga Myths
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in reply to: How much does everyone sweat? #4362
When I move my hands over my head sweat flies off them.
My shorts are soaked and dripping and the towel on my mat is soaked.I’ve become very careful with my hand movements to avoid spraying those around me with sweat!!
I’ve had the same experience. My observation is that it depends almost entirely on humidity. I’ve had dry classes at 106 deg and barely left an outline of my body on the towel. OTOH there have been cooler (~95 deg) high humidity classes that had sweat pouring off and soaked my towel. In either case I seem to lose about 4 pounds of water so I think it is more a case of how much can evaporate into the air.BTW 4 pounds is about a 1/2 gallon. I use that as a guide as to how much I need to replace.
Take Care,
Leein reply to: What are the benefits of a 30-day challenge #4156You’ll get a T-shirt? I can’t get my studio to participate in a challenge at all. The owner says she loses too many people after 30 days. Although I’ve been at the same studio for eight years and have never seen any challenges going at any time. Real bummer.
Why not quietly do your own personal challenge? I’ve done challenges both as part of the group at the studio and also just picked a day to start and done it myself. Benefits and differences to each.Take Care,
Leein reply to: A little bit of inspiration badly needed. #4082Don’t worry about “Challenges” as such too much. Just do what you can when you can. Remember you get 100% benefit with 100% effort. What represents 100% effort for you will vary from day to day and sometimes moment to moment.
If you can’t get to a studio try doing a few poses at home as you have time. A little yoga is better than none and not all of it happens on the mat.
Lee
in reply to: Can't get hands under heels #3956I’ve been practicing just over two years and still can’t get the grip from behind. I think the problem in my case is simply excess bulk getting in the way. I do grab as under the heels from the side and far back as possible with the elbows back as much as I can. I’d love to get this but suspect it is a matter of patience until my waist shrinks more.
Take Care,
Leein reply to: first timer – not so good #3879I struggled a lot with back bends when I started. Just tipping my head back in Camel would make the whole room spin. Now I love them. A lot of it is not so much about going back as letting go and relaxing the front.
Lee
in reply to: Lower back pain do not heal and I am strange… #3797Michal Harris recommended “Healing Back Pain” and “The Divided Mind” both by Dr. John Sarno during a local workshop. I read the latter and found it very helpful. I see Dr. Sarno also now has a website up, http://www.healingbackpain.com/index.html
Hope This Helps,
Leein reply to: I am quite overweight and doing hot yoga #3437I think I know somewhat how you feel. When I started it was literally painful to lay on my belly. I would lay on it during the poses but then had to roll slightly to one side between them just to breathe. Just recently I noticed that I’ve started occasionally sleeping flat on my stomach and it feels really good.
I don’t know if there is any “should” for how your body will slim down with Bikram yoga. In fact most of my preconceptions and expectations have proven wrong, so now I just try to be observant, recognize and accept the changes as they happen. I’d even go a bit beyond accepting and say celebrate the changes. After all this hot yoga IS hard work and there’s nothing wrong feeling good about the results. I suspect every body is different and will respond somewhat differently. The one thing I am sure of is that it will respond.
Take Care,
Leein reply to: anyone go to the bikram seminar yesterday? #3435Bikram is coming to Florida in November so I’m very glad to read about your experiences at his seminar. It makes me look forward to it even more.
Thanks,
Leein reply to: practicing bikram yoga at home??? #3343I practice at home when I can’t get to the studio. I did try heating up a room but it took too long to heat up and even longer to cool back down. I usually go outside on the patio which here in Florida in the afternoon can be 90 degrees. I use the Bikram CDs which are nice because that way you also get the instructions and timing. I also have them on my MP3 player for traveling.
Take Care,
Leein reply to: I cant lock my arms #3271I had the same problem. It has taken nearly 20 months for my shoulders, sides and probably other things as well to open up enough to get my arms straight and palms together. Some days things are tighter and I notice a small gap opening up again. Keeping working at it and it will come. One thing that really helped me was a teacher who really emphasized “reaching up”. They say it in every class but it was when I finally really heard it and started doing it that things started to change.
Take Care,
Leein reply to: first timer – not so good #3222My first suggestion is make sure you are breathing during the poses. During the standing series if I need to catch my breath I try to stand still and upright (think lifting the chest slightly) and breath slow and deep in and out through the nose. It was several months before I made it through an entire 90 minute class doing every set of every pose. Now, eighteen months later, there are still times when I have to just stop and breathe.
Stick with it. For me it has been both the best and hardest thing I’ve ever done for myself.
Take Care,
Leein reply to: my studio is SMELLY! #3211Placing the towel across your mat (BEWARE: contentious idea – that really works 😉 )
We started to position the towel across the mat in a ‘T’ or a ‘t’ formation. When students arrive they place their towel across the mat and just before they get to the 2 min Savasana the towel is picked up and placed lengthwise on the mat.What this means is that any sweat that drips from you is collected by the towel. All Warrior poses where you straddle the mat still have you positioned over your towel. Now 99% of your sweat drips onto your own towel. YOU get to take it home and take responsibility for your sweat. The studio stays cleaner and smells more fresh.
The studio owners and teachers still have to work to keep the studio smelling clean and fresh. The biggest determinant I have found in keeping a fresh hygienic studio (once dripping sweat onto carpet is no longer happening) is to have the studio well ventilated and aired after every single class. Every night when we left the space, the doors would be left wide open. And yes, you can use incense and essential oils, but not to mask the smells and hoodwink people into believing the space is clean.
Some people get really turned off by the smells in the studio.
Very interesting. I practiced once in an ‘unofficial’ Bikram class where they had hardwood floors. Their solution was to turn sideways for the separate leg postures so that you were stepping the length of the mat. Stepping off the mat was a sure way to end up somewhere else.I agree completely about fresh air. For me incense and oils are just additional smells with which to contend.
Take Care,
Leein reply to: Cannot reach my heels in Rabbit Pose #3172I too have a gap, maybe 3-4 inches, between my legs in this pose so I’ll be very interested in what others have to say about that. Our teachers also discourage using props but do recognize that sometimes they are needed for a period of time. I was encouraged to give it a try at least once a week without the prop. It always surprised me when I was able to finally start reaching my heel, knee or whatever for the first time.
in reply to: Heart Condition (Hot Yoga) #3165I have spoken to my doctor, but as you all may know if you are on the alternative path of tring to find out more about your body rather then listen to doctors to some extent. She says no but I feel that It should be ok.
I’m not an expert but I have noticed that many people, doctors included, are quite comfortable giving advice based on what they think they know. I suggest asking the doctor if there is a problem with participating in low-impact aerobic activities and stretching. If you are taking any medications, you might also check with your pharmacist to see if there is any concern regarding heat. Beyond that, as Gabrielle said, listen to what your body is telling you.Take Care,
Leein reply to: I am quite overweight and doing hot yoga #3067Hi Donna,
My only suggestion is practice regularly, trust the process and celebrate every sign of progress. One of the greatest things I love about this practice is just what you mentioned, everyone focused on their own efforts and not judging mine.
For me the struggle right now is to stay focused on all the positive changes that are happening and not obsess about the scales not moving so fast anymore. The attached picture shows some of the physical results after one year (last November). I was squeezing into those pants and almost ready to go up to the next size. The day I could again buy off the rack at normal stores instead of the “Big & Tall” shop was fantastic.
Take Care,
Leein reply to: Recommended DVD's #3029It’s not a DVD but I purchased the 2 CD set of Bikram teaching a class. For travelling, I’ve got it on my cell phone/mp3 player.
Hope this helps.
Lee
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