I’m Torn: Bikram Yoga

June 15, 2009     Posted in Reality

I’m always looking for a new, interesting way to work out and keep me coming back for more. That being said, I’m also pretty picky. I don’t want to invest in something if I’m not sure that I’ll like it, and in the summer, I need something to help keep me accountable.


By Liza

There have been so many times that I’ve said, “Oh, I can skip going to the gym today – I’m going to go on a run! And then go swimming!” But what really happens is…. I go to the air-conditioned mall. And eat Panda Express.

So, when one of my girls suggested we take a Bikram yoga class together, I was super excited. Having each other to go with make things fun, and we’d have to pay for the classes, so we’d stay accountable. Sounds like exactly what I’m looking for. Or it did before I actually took a class. Now, I’m just torn.

Love it:

- Weight loss. After a class, you’ve already sweated off some inches. A lot of inches. If those few dehydration-induced losses aren’t enough, the body supposedly burns fat more effectively when it’s warm. The extreme heat increases your metabolic rate, helps to detoxify, and supposedly helps you to stretch more than you would be able to in a normal climate.

- Easy to learn. There are only 26 easy-to-learn asanas. In my class, each pose was done twice and held for 30 seconds each, which was especially nice for me, because I’d never done yoga before with the exception of “Yoga Booty Ballet.” It was easy to follow and I didn’t get lost, but I have a feeling that since it was so easy and monotonous, it could get boring after awhile.

- Hot bod. Since Bikram is more oriented toward weight loss and muscle toning than meditation and mental health, it may be a faster way to get that hot yoga body, which, after looking around the room, is officially my life goal. Everyone in the class was long, lean and totally toned. Clearly, this exercise works… or the heat is making me hallucinate.

- The post yoga high. The best part about Bikram has to be the endorphins and rejuvenation at the conclusion of the session. After this workout, you feel fantastic. It’s amazing to step out of the hot room and let your body readjust to normal temperatures as you mentally absorb what you were just able to do. Your head is clear, your body is restored, and you feel energized, yet calm.

Loathe it:

Obviously Bikram yoga is hot. Extreme heat leads to dehydration. And dehydration leads to death.

Why would we willingly put ourselves in a room specifically heated to a high temperature (usually around 100°) and then exercise? Doesn’t that seem kind of counter intuitive to you? Even the founder of hot yoga, Choduhury Bikram himself, refers to his studio as the “torture chamber.” Excellent…

Not only is the room hot, it’s also humid. 15 minutes into the class I’m wondering why I’m wearing Under Armour outfit instead of a bikini. Or just one giant super absorbent towel. I was dripping so much my hands and feet kept slipping on my mat. Pair that with my dizziness from being so hot and in downward dog for so long and I swear I almost broke my nose and face at least 4 times over the course of this class.

But my biggest Bikram issue was the lack of sincerity involved. Since this type of yoga is more fitness oriented and lacks a focus on mantras and breathing, it felt a little empty. For me, this isn’t a huge problem as it helps to think of the class as more of a physical fitness experience rather than something with a mind-body connection. But if you’re already used to a different style of yoga such as Vinyassa, Bikram might feel almost wrong.

So, now that I’m home, showered and cooled off (thanks to a trip to Jamba Juice), I’m torn on this one. I’ve already paid for 6 more classes, so I’ll definitely be going, but I don’t know if I’m going to be liking! Maybe a little present from Lululemon or Lucy would help…

Have any of you tried Bikram or any other forms of yoga? What did you think? Let us know in the comments!

16 Comments on "I’m Torn: Bikram Yoga"

  1. rach says:
    Mon, 15th Jun 20098:28 am 

    i LOVE bikram yoga. i wish there was studio closer to where i live now. i think if you stick with it for the next few classes you will get used to it. dont quit! make sure you eat a little snack about 30 mins before you go and bring a Nalgene sized water bottle with you full of ice (it will all melt by the end of class). the sincerity issue you mentioned might just be the specific studio. where i went we spent a lot of time on breathing correctly and making sure everyone knew what to do. if it continues i would definitely talk to the instructor.

  2. Cat says:
    Mon, 15th Jun 200910:51 am 

    I have been doing vinyasa and ashtanga yoga for 6 years, but I only tried bikram once last year.

    I don't mind the heat so much. I hated it because the poses don't flow well together and the attitude is off-putting.

    In other yoga practices, you flow from one pose into another and the poses vary from class to class, but in bikram, there's a rigid set of poses that you just repeatedly do, and there's no connection between each pose. It's more, pose #1, done, now pose # 2.

    Also, I don't know if it's just studio that I went to, but the instructor was YELLING at the students like a military commander. "PUSH HARDER! FURTHER!" This is not only totally rude, and not peaceful at all, but also really dangerous, because when you're in that hot of an environment, you don't think as clearly and because your body is so warm, you can very easily push too far of your limits and hurt yourself.

    This is not just my personal opinion, either. I've talked to a few yoga instructors who share the same thoughts.

    If it's just regular yoga but in a warm room, I'm all for it.

  3. Kay says:
    Mon, 15th Jun 20098:34 pm 

    I've been to a ton of yoga classes… and i recently found that there is a bikram yoga studio in my town, and have been wanting to go. But it makes me nervous… An hour is long time to be in a room that hot if the yoga just feels "insincere". I think I will probably try it just because I have heard so many people rave about it.

  4. sam says:
    Tue, 16th Jun 20094:40 am 

    Bikram is a genius Hatha and Raja Yoga teacher. In other words, not only physical but mental yoga. Most people recognize only the physical aspects of Bikram yoga but on the contrary, it requires you to focus completely 100 %, it is an moving meditation. Bikram teaches that you cannot control your mind if you cannot control your body, if your body is not healthy how can you concentrate? Meditate? You start with your body and the rest will come. Genius.

  5. sam says:
    Tue, 16th Jun 20094:42 am 

    Oh, and anyone who says they can "teach" you to meditate, they are not one to listen to. Meditation comes from experience. That is why Bikram does not talk about it. You LEARN it. BKS Iyengar says the same thing.

  6. princess says:
    Fri, 26th Jun 20098:44 pm 

    I love bikram yoga, at 51 I'm in the best shape and you do find the meditation and the breathing, then you are doing yoga.

    It takes time, and I have one angry mind, it tames the wild beast in me

  7. dalee says:
    Fri, 24th Jul 20099:43 am 

    I have been practicing bikram yoga for 9 years and am amazed at the instant tranformation of my mind and body. It just keeps getting better!

    I do agree that depending on the studio you can either have a very nice experience or more hard core. I have learned over the years to ignore the yelling and just concentrate on my yoga. and then when I have a more sprirtual teacher to listen up.

    I find that I can combine being peaceful with Bikram though. it's really a matter of letting go of thoughts while practicing. The heat helps me with that because sometimes I am too hot to think. I like that althought I am sure it isn't everyone's thing. When I do other yogas like ashtanga or vinyasa I never get that incredible peaceful feeling like I do with Bikram. so I am a fan, a die hard, a regular, and in 20 or so years maybe an old timer.

  8. Danielle says:
    Fri, 31st Jul 20091:52 pm 

    "Pair that with my dizziness from being so hot and in downward dog for so long"

    ummm…There is no downward dog in Bikram yoga.

    And the reasons the postures don't flow together is because its not Vinyasa yoga, where you "flow" from one posture into the next. Bikram yoga is a form of Hatha yoga, where its one posture at a time.

  9. hilary says:
    Sun, 7th Feb 20103:07 am 

    Thanks Danielle for pointing that out about downward dog. I can see how downward dog would be a potentially dangerous posture for a Bikram yoga class, which doesn't incorporate many inverted postures for just that reason, you might break your nose and face.

    I have been practicing Bikram yoga for five years and teaching for four. I feel Bikram yoga was a fantastic introduction into the world of yoga which I am just beginning to explore beyond the Bikram circle. As I find other yogas that I hope to incorporate into my life in addition to my Bikram practice, I understand what I like (and dislike) about Bikram.

    One yoga teacher I went to, on finding out my experience in yoga was with Bikram yoga (I didn't mention it was my career and life) criticized practitioners of Bikram yoga for doing yoga like a sport, but being too naive and unprepared to understand real yoga.

    This is where I realized in defending Bikram yoga, Bikram yoga is accessible to everyone so we can begin our yoga practice now and time will inevitably reveal to us what it means. If we never begin yoga, how can we discover its deeper meaning to us?

    Bikram yoga students, your teachers are students also. I began learning when I began teaching. I am shorter than most of the Western population so when I started, I was on a power trip, yelling and watching how a room full of people did what I told them. Over the years, I'm learning what works better but most of all, what kind of teacher I would like to have and trying to be that teacher. When you take a teachers class, remember, they don't know everything yet, though sometimes they think they do, and they'll learn from each class taught.

  10. Marty says:
    Sun, 7th Feb 20107:37 am 

    You are torn because your mind wants one thing (get the heck out of this hot room) and the body wants another (finally, you are giving me what I need to function properly, not just be pretty on the beach). Yoga means "union", once you figure out how to have a happy marriage between the mind and body, your soul will come home and you will be truly happy (the kind of happiness you can't find at lululemon).

    By now you are either a convert or have floated away from Birkam. Just know, that when you are ready for/need it, the yoga will still be there for you.

    Perhaps you should stop viewing the world as what you like and don't like, but as what it really is, then you will find peace

    -paraphrased from The Mentalist

  11. ohmybikram says:
    Sun, 7th Feb 20103:47 pm 

    Its great to see people talking about the practice. There are so many immeasurable benefits to a regular Bikram practice.

    As a teacher, when I get asked why people should practice Bikram Yoga instead of , or as well as, going to the gym I tell them its simple.

    Unlike other exercises which focus on exercising the muscular and skeletal systems, Bikram offers you very specific benefits for what others miss: the endocrine, digestive, respiratory, circulatory, nervous and renal systems. While other yogas do postures that benefit these systems as well, a Bikram Yoga class will make sure that you activate, invigorate and stimulate these systems completely each time. While it may not be everyone's preferred style of yoga, it is a great class to add to your routine to heal your body inside out.

    If you are curious for more information check out Toronto's Bikram Yoga Blog:

    ohmybikram.wordpress.com

  12. Tamara says:
    Mon, 8th Feb 20102:21 am 

    I'm a swasthya yoga girl, but yoga rocks in any time and form! I have a really big scoliosis, and it's great to keep my back in shape and not hurting. Not to mention increasing flexibility…my boyfriend is happy as hell.

  13. Alex says:
    Mon, 8th Feb 20105:09 pm 

    I second EVERYTHING that Sam said above. If you think Bikram yoga lacks sincerity mind-body connection and focus on breathing, you should RUN don't walk to attend your next 6 classes. And then sign up for 20 more. Then you will begin to see…hear…feel…smell…taste the mind-body connection.

  14. Roy says:
    Wed, 10th Feb 20107:47 pm 

    Downward dog is not in the series. The room is usually 105 F. Apparently, despite the fact that you had not been adaquately prepared for the room you seem to have survived. I hope you try another class.

  15. Dia says:
    Fri, 16th Apr 201012:08 pm 

    This is the second review of Bikram where it mentioned downward dog. There is no downward dog in the Bikram series!!! That said, even though you are physically fit, Bikram takes some getting used to. It's not peaceful, but it can still help you achieve peace. I love the workout, and I've learned to relax better outside of class because of it. I've suffered from insomnia for over 20 years, and my sleep has gotten so much better in the year I've been practicing Bikram,and i've completely gone off my asthma medication.

    It can get a little monotonous, but I have been doing yoga for years and still do other kinds of yoga in addition to the Bikram. That said – everyone has their own thing – enjoy the rest of your classes, and if it doesn't end up being your cup of tea – more power to you.

  16. yoga says:
    Tue, 15th May 20124:14 pm 

    Usually I don’t learn post on blogs, but I would like to say that this write-up very compelled me to try and do so! Your writing style has been amazed me. Thank you, very nice article.

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