First Time

Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class will build up your strength and flexibility. The heat in the yoga room will help relax your muscles and ligaments, making it easier to stretch and bend. If you are very stiff, this type of yoga will be particularly beneficial. In the words of one senior teacher: "Saying you're too stiff to go to yoga is like saying you're too dirty to take a bath."

The yoga room is a carefully controlled environment, where we keep and even and constant temperature of 40c and we keep the humidity at 40%. Often when we perceive a temperature as being "vey hot" it is not just because of the high temperature, but because of the high humidity. In fact, the average outdoor humidity for Leeds is around 70%. Because we maintain the humidity level of the yoga room relatively low at 40%, most people do not perceive the heat to be "unbearable". And most people do not go into the yoga room fully clothed, but instead choose to wear light, skin-tight clothing similar to swimwear. When your body is not covered in clothes, the sweat your body produces will act as a natural cooling system, helping you to cool down as it evaporates. This is why you should not wipe the sweat off when you practice, as that will just counter-act the ability pf your body to cool itself down.

You don't need to be fit to start practicing yoga, practicing will MAKE you fit! It IS a tough workout, but we utilize a gentle range of motion, which means that even if you are elderly or recovering from an injury you will be able to join in with most of the postures. We sometimes say that "it never gets easy if you're doing it right", which means that as you improve your technique you will be able to go deeper into the postures. That means that the experienced partitioner who has been doing this for ten years will find the series of postures to be as much of a challenge as the beginner does.

On the contrary. The heat will dilute the blood vessels, which in turn will lower the blood pressure, making it easier for the heart to pump fresh oxygenated blood around the body. The exercises will help strengthen the heart and the heat will improve circulation.

It is very common to feel nauseous or dizzy during your first few classes, or to get a headache during or after class. This yoga is like a litmus test of the shape your mind and body are in at the moment. You may find that you need to start taking better care of yourself by drinking more water, changing your diet or rearranging your life to reduce stress. If you practice more than three times per week you might find that you need to increase your intake of kalcium, potassium, salt and magnesium. As you start taking better care of yourself, and as you start to be more mentally present in the yoga room you will find that you start to actually enjoy the heat. You may still have the occasional class where you feel dizzy or nauseous, and when that happens just stand still, take a break, if needed sit down on your knees, and when the feeling has passed join in with the class again.

Yes. Hot yoga strengthens the immune system and helps keep us healthy. Many viruses, bacteria and fungi are sensitive to heat, and prefer a temperature of 37c. The heat in the yoga room creates a hostile environment for these pathogens, inhibiting their ability to grow and reproduce. These pathogens also need to metabolize nutrients, but as your body utilizes more water during class, the pathogens are starved of water. The most important thing to do if you have an infection is to listen to your body. If you have a fever you may find the heat too overwhelming, and you may need to wait a few days before you practice again. If your sinuses are very blocked you could try just doing the standing series, and to just rest in Savasana during the floor series. Stay in the room. The relaxation and the heat will help you recover. Take extra care keeping your hands clean when you have an infection, and avoid touching your mouth, nose and eyes with your hands, to avoid spreading it around.

That depends... how good do you want to feel? Most people who practice regulary typically visit the studio 2-5 times per week. If you are only able to practice once a week then that's preferable to not practicing at all. However most people find with time that practicing 3-4 times per week will keep their health and fitness at the desired level. The best way to achieve noticeable changes is to try practicing every day for 1-2 months. Because the stretch is built into the postures, and the training is not high impact, it is not necessary to take rest days.

Emmy Cleaves, now in her late eighties, has been practicing and teaching this yoga since 1973. This is the answer she gives: "People ask me if I ever get tired of doing the same posture flow. My answer is that the practice is never the same because I am continuously being changed by the practice. The daily practice challenges you on many levels. Concentration and attention are quickly sharpened. Character issues of patience and perseverance come up each time. The practice offers a chance to explore deeper levels of Self and develop awareness of the emotions and thoughts that the postures evoke."