Did you know that using heat for healing is old-school? Far from being a fad, heat therapy has been used in many cultures (as far back as ancient Egypt) as a medical treatment for a variety of aches and pains? Makes sense if you think about it, since an increase in temperature to an area of the body promotes circulation and blood flow there. And blood is how each part of your amazing body receives the nutrients it craves, and removes the waste it needs gone What heat does:
Heat relaxes tense muscles and (by improving circulation) helps heal damaged tissue, ease soreness and relieve joint pain caused by arthritis or just being a stiff dude. Heat therapy can be "dry heat" like using a heating pad or sitting in a sauna, or "moist heat" like soaking in a hot spring or applying steamed towels. At 105 degrees and 40% humidity (your clothes basically become steamed towels!) our hot room environment here at Home is kind of... both. Heat has even been found to be an effective treatment for depression! This area of research is relatively new, but already this study has even looked specifically at using heated yoga to treat depression and anxiety and (surprise surprise!) it works. Bonus: no crummy side effects like other anti-depressants. There's lots of evidence exposure to warm temperatures can elevate your mood. Scientists have observed that brain areas which process pleasant stimulation activate when the skin is warmed. Activity in the medial orbitofrontal cortex for example is low in depression, but it’s increased by warm stimulation. While being in the heat helps us feel happier, doing yoga poses in the heat also provides an added challenge to the mind, and through that challenge hot yogis cultivate the oh-so-practical mental qualities of Faith, Self Discipline, Concentration, Determination and Patience! Athletes use heat training for improved endurance. A rapid increase in the volume of blood's plasma when it's hot seems to boost performance in athletes! It does so by helping move excess heat out to the skin and cool you off, among other things. The jury's still out on whether heat training helps improve endurance in regular temperatures, but... concentration and determination definitely do. Heat may also keep you saf(er) Check out this blog post here for what science has found about the effects of heat and humidity on COVID-19 transmission rates. (Hint: it's good news for Bikram yogis!) Bottom line: A blacksmith doesn't try to take a piece of iron and change its shape by just pounding away at it cold. You have to heat it up first! In the same way, we're trying to change (improve!) both both body and mind when we practice yoga. Keeping toasty helps you do it! Ready to try? Book your next heat therapy- I mean, hot yoga- sesh here.
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Our psychic powers tell us you may be wondering: is wearing a mask in hot yoga even safe? Depends. Are you prepared to take excellent care of yourself during class? That means breathe through your nose, and rest when necessary (Hint: if you find it hard to keep breathing through your nose, you need a rest: When you first return Home, you will probably need to take more breaks than you are accustomed to. It's true that a mask will be in the way of air headed into your nose, but also don't forget that you haven't been in a hot room for 7 months!
Everyone is going to be out of "hot yoga shape" at Homecoming, masks or no masks. We all get to re-acclimate together. If you think about it, that's kind of awesome. Never in the history of the studio have we ever had a class where everyone was still getting used to the heat! What a gift that we all get to support and inspire each other in this way. Look, if you have any concern (and especially if you have any respiratory issues) you should definitely ask your doctor if wearing a mask in hot yoga is for you. Having said that, there may even be some benefit to exercising while wearing a mask! For years, athletes have used "elevation training masks" which decrease levels of oxygen to simulate working out at high elevations. The idea is training the lungs to perform with less oxygen, will make performing with normal oxygen levels that much easier. It's important to note that wearing a regular (non-ETM) mask does not actually decrease oxygen levels (though it may feel like it sometimes) Bottom line: athletes have been training in masks for years. The word "training" is the key: it's a practice. Like yoga. Doing your yoga in a mask is going to take practice. So are you prepared? If you're prepared to try- mindfully and patiently, practicing in a mask will be way less lame. By the way, just like trying ONE class in a mask is not really enough. Because, imagine if you only tried Standing Bow Pulling pose ONCE, and then decided you couldn't do it?? You've got to give this (and yourself!) an honest chance. Just like when you first began practicing in the heat: 2 or 3 classes in your first week will help you adjust the quickest. Who knows, your respiratory system may actually get stronger from the experience! Your ability to tune in to your body's signals and manage intensity accordingly definitely will. And that's a bonus worth training for! Check out this post for more thoughts and tips on wearing masks in class. Bikram Yoga in a face mask: #36482 on the list of things I’ve done in 2020 which I never imagined I would do! You know what though? It ain’t so bad. Yogis have been asking for recommendations, so... Here are a few things I’ve discovered:
But the #1 thing you need to do when practicing Bikram Yoga in a mask (or even not in a mask) is simple and costs $0: Give yourself permission to take radical good care of yourself during class. That means breathe through your nose, and rest when necessary (Hint: if you find it hard to keep breathing through your nose, you need a rest:) Good news is, you already practice that every time you do Bikram Yoga- right? When you first return Home, you will probably need to take more breaks than you are accustomed to. It's true that a mask will be in the way of air headed into your nose, but also don't forget that you haven't been in a hot room for 7 months! Like Standing Head to Knee pose, doing your yoga in a mask is going to take practice. If you're prepared to try- mindfully and patiently (and with the right supplies!) hot yoga in a mask may not be your favorite, but it won't totally suck. You might even forget it's there. Plus, think of how bada** that is! "I do Bikram Yoga in a face mask" said no lame person EVER. ;) Check out this post for more thoughts on masks! NEW! Take our Home, to your home.We understand that keeping up your practice away from the studio can be challenging! That's why you can now access yoga online with your favorite HHY teachers… ANYTIME, ANYWHERE. Strength, flexibility, transformation and accessing your true potential is now possible, To Go! You'll find a variety of options ranging in length from a 5-minute guided savasana to 90-minute Bikram Yoga classes and more, now easily accessed right here from our website. Have you ever struggled to find 90 minutes to yourself for a home practice?We get it.Look, we have 2 kids under 5 and run a small business! We know that finding time for yoga at your place can be TOUGH. So while we believe whole-heartedly that the 90-minute Bikram Yoga class is the most effective yoga around (so effective that it's the only class we offer in the heated studio!) we also know that some days ya just can't fit that in. The truth is that some yoga is always better than no yoga! Which is why HHY To Go includes a whole page of "Quickies." Quickies range from 5 to 60 minutes and include a variety of options for a shorter home practice when 90 minutes just ain't happening. HHY To Go includes:Interactive Zoom classes On-demand classes Options from 5-90 minutes Posture tutorials And more! Add HHYTG on to your current in-studio membership! Current HHY members, please note that HHY To Go is a separate membership on a completely different platform than the one we use for in-studio classes. Questions? Check out our FAQ about HHYTG here.
If you have a current membership with us and wish to switch completely to HHY To Go, you'll need to EMAIL US to make that change. If you sign up for HHYTG but don't email us, you'll enjoy a subscription to both our virtual and in-person offerings: yay! Today is International Yoga Day! (Of course, every day is “yoga day” around here.) Too many people see yoga as a luxury item -- something to be disposed of when finances or schedules are tight. If there’s one thing I want you to know today, it’s this: Practicing some form of yoga is not only essential to having a meaningful life, it’s absolutely necessary for a large number of us to practice if we’re going to create and maintain a peaceful, just society. Practicing yoga is not like other forms of “self care” it tends to get lumped in with. Yoga is not like getting your nails done, taking a bubble bath or even having a massage (though I’m not knocking those things!) Yoga is not about yoga postures. When you practice yoga (raja yoga, bhakti yoga, jnana yoga, karma yoga, mantra yoga and hatha yoga-- which Bikram Yoga is one style of-- are the 6 main types of yoga) you cultivate Faith, Self-disicipline, Determination, Concentration and Patience within yourself.
If you’re doing hatha yoga, you’ll get pain relief, increased flexibility and strength and a litany of other physical health benefits too. You’ll improve the quality of your life. Which is amazing! But that’s not all you do. The ultimate goal of any yoga practice is Self-Realization. That’s Self with a capital “S.” Your highest Self, the greatest version of who you are. The word realize (v.) means "bring into existence," from French réaliser "make real" (16c.), from Middle French real "actual.") Self-Realization means then, bringing your highest Self into existence. When you practice yoga, you become able to pull the BEST version of yourself out of your pocket when you need it most:
If you keep practicing yoga, that Best Version of You appears more and more frequently. Eventually, the way you live begins to align itself with your full potential. You behave like your Self more often than not. Your Self is the part of you most in tune with nature. It’s the part of you which is connected to all other parts of you, which feels connected to all of humanity and even all of the cosmos. Yoga comes from the word “yuj” meaning “to yoke together.” When you access a place inside yourself where everything is united: mind, body and the rest of the world, that is Self. Because you become aware of the connection between you and all of humanity, Self is where your compassion for others lives. If you still think that yoga is something to do:
Ask yourself: How would this Father’s Day have been different for George Floyd’s family, if Derek Chauvin had been able to access the Best Version of himself for 8 minutes? Yoga is not about yoga postures. When you step on your mat today-- remember that the important work you are doing inside yourself has the power to change the world.
When you practice at a studio, you benefit from the watchful eye of a trained instructor. But when you use a recorded class to practice, it’s up to you to make your own corrections and look out for any less-than-helpful habits. Here are several common mistakes to avoid when practicing on your own: Mistake: Tweaking your neck to see the screen
Why you do it: If you take an online class with video, especially if you are a visual learner, you’ll be tempted to look up at your screen. That might be to check your alignment, check out that cute puppy crawling on your yoga buddy’s savasana, or see if your technology is working correctly. Solution:
Mistake: Pushing too hard Why you do it: Overexerting yourself during a home Bikram Yoga routine is something to watch out for, especially if you’re an experienced student. If you’re used to being strong and flexible in the hot room, you may tend to push yourself at home. Remember that your intensity needs to account for the fact that you’re not as warm. Take it easy. Solution:
Mistake: Getting kinda lazy Why it happens: It can be challenging to stay motivated when you practice on your own. There are so many more distractions at your house than at the studio! And you don’t have the heat to demand that you focus on the present moment. You may find yourself “going through the motions” or even skipping the poses you don’t really enjoy. The problem with that is, the poses you dread the most are likely the ones you need the most! Bikram Yoga is a balanced full-body physical practice, and skipping the same poses repeatedly may aggravate asymmetries, tightness or injury. Solution:
Mistake: Allowing Interruptions Why you do it: If you don’t architect an environment that supports your yoga practice, distractions will abound: kids, phone calls, Facebook notifications, pets, the list is endless! Without a reserved time and space for yoga, there is always something vying for your attention. Solution:
Mistake: Inconsistency Why you do it: When you’re not joining others in-person, it can be challenging to hold yourself accountable. Solution:
Your exercise routine has most likely been turned on its head in the last few weeks. Gyms and yoga studios around the world have shut their doors indefinitely, and even many parks and trails are closed. So, is it time to collapse on the couch with a bag of Cheesy Poofs and mope about not having an ab-roller? Nah. It's time to do yoga.Starting a yoga routine at this time will not only help you stay in shape-- it will also help you cope better with stress and keep your anxiety levels under control. The best part is, there's no equipment required for yoga! You can do it at home. All you need is a spine and your breath. (Some expert instruction is highly recommended though!) In a recent American Psychiatric Association poll, 36% of Americans said the current pandemic has already had a serious impact on their mental health. The rate of coronavirus infection is still much lower than 36% of us, and we're taking that pretty seriously now. We need to take our mental health seriously, too. It is not going to get better on its own, and social distancing itself poses a threat to your mental health. Look. Keeping your physical body healthy is important for sure. But taking care of your emotional stability and mental clarity is often put on the back burner during times of crisis-- which is actually when we need to keep our wits about us, the most! Here are 4 major reasons you need yoga now more than ever:CLICK HERE FOR ONLINE YOGA CLASSESWhen you practice yoga, you:
There is no time like today to start creating benefits like these for your mind and body. And thanks to technology, accessing yoga instruction from the comfort of your home is easy. There are many options out there, many levels and many styles. Home Hot Yoga's online classes are open to everyone, no experience necessary. Heat is not even necessary (though it helps!) Are you ready to start a yoga practice? Join any of our online classes here.No level of experience, strength or flexibility are required to safely attempt a Bikram yoga class! However, online classes are a bit of a tricky way to start, especially if you are a visual learner, mostly because it's difficult to see the other students. Our friends at Wellness Hot Yoga made this video to help new yogis have a better understanding of the postures, so you can feel better during and after your class! Thanks, WHY!! We hope this tutorial was helpful for you.
For more tutorials about specific poses, search the blog post archives for the name of the pose and click! Here are a few we especially recommend for beginners: The sit-up. It's not officially a yoga pose, but more of a transition move to get you from savasana to your next posture. Official yoga pose or not, correct sit-up technique can make a big difference, especially if you have back pain (or if you want to have amazingly strong abs!) From savasana:
Try it in class today. Book your next class!Big change is coming.At BYSJ, our mission is to get the most people feeling the best by providing a joyful, inclusive environment for the practice of yoga. We named our yoga school "Bikram Yoga St. Johns" because we believed it was helping us achieve our mission. Bikram Yoga is the style of yoga we teach. It is a highly impactful, even lifesaving, yoga system. We chose (and kept) our name for the last 4 years, because we wanted anybody seeking Bikram Yoga to be able to find us easily.Bikram Choudhury is the man who popularized this yoga system in the West and worldwide. He has also been accused of some abhorrent behavior. We do not condone or support any of this behavior. We are sad beyond words at what has happened, and we hope that everyone involved finds peace and a healing path forward. We want you to know that BYSJ is and always has been independently owned and operated, by us. Like most, if not all, yoga schools who teach Bikram Yoga, we have never and do not pay any affiliation or franchise fees to Bikram Choudhury or any other person or entity. This is a fact which has been misrepresented in the media for years. There is no worldwide Bikram Yoga franchise as many poorly fact-checked articles have reported. Perpetuating the myth that Bikram yoga studios pay fees to Bikram Choudhury does not right any wrongs and does not bring justice to any wrong-doers. In fact, it only harms two groups of people: (1) small business owners, many of them women and mothers, and (2) the yoga students they serve. To us, Bikram the yoga and Bikram the man have always been separate and distinct. We now realize that, seeing multiple studios worldwide with the name "Bikram Yoga" on their doors, it can be easy to assume that we are part of a chain. (We're not, but that doesn't matter unless it can be communicated.) We understand if people don't want their money to go to Bikram Choudhury, and we can see how, because of this, the name "Bikram Yoga St. Johns" may prevent them from coming to our yoga classes. (And most people really need this yoga!) It has become clear to us that our name is now getting in the way of our mission.So, like anything that gets in the way of us helping people, we are letting it go. Our hope is that our new name will communicate to the public that we are a locally owned, independent business, and also convey a sense of what we stand for as a business and a community. We are changing our business name. We are not changing our values, our mission- or our personalities.You can help us spread the truth about who we are by sharing this video, but even better, you can help by sharing your own positive experiences with the yoga and with us. We are not changing the yoga. Bikram Yoga is still the most powerful, most inclusive, and most joyful system of yoga that we've ever encountered, and we intend to continue practicing and teaching it as long as we possibly can. We are looking forward to offering this impactful wellness technology to everyone, under a new banner that communicates what we believe in: Integrity Courage Inclusivity Hospitality We think we've found the perfect name, and we look forward to sharing it with you! Stay tuned for the big name-reveal coming soon... |
AuthorHHY Founder, Yoga Business Coach, yoga-doer and life-lover, Kay Afif! Categories
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