Breathing - The Essence Of Yoga
But before you dive in, it is important to be more informed. Because when people say Bikram is a hot yoga, they do not only mean it's well-liked and in style. They also mean it literally. A session in Bikram yoga means exposure to elevated temperatures-105 degrees and about 40% humidity-for 90 minutes. It will make you sweat buckets.
Believe it or not hot yoga is a type of exercise people are practicing on such a high scale that it is becoming a craze. Hot yoga is a combination of different poses carried out in a special heated room of which the temperature is normally between 95-100 degrees.
Many Christians see yoga as an obstruction to Christianity. I see it as an enhancement. Like meditation, Christ-centered yoga (and other various forms) acts as a chasm or tunnel that ushers me to enter into the deeper chambers (the presence) of God. It does this by helping me to clear away the weights, worries, and the negative mindsets that so easily latch onto me as I go through the day and then to release them to Christ. Colossians 3 tells us to put off the old man. Through subduing of the body and controlling the breath the choreography of yoga can calm the restless beast in each of us allowing us to open our hearts more fully to pilates memphis our Creator.
Yoga works on many levels. Its strengthens the mind, body and spirit. In the long run, after regular sessions of hot yoga, the benefits will slowly seep into your conscious. There are some instant benefits too that will make you feel relaxed, energized and completely destressed.
A lot of people want to go for the thinnest mat that gives them the most padding. I strongly suggest going for a thicker pilates mat for your hot yoga class. Many of the positions will be really strenuous on your joints, having the extra cushioning will do you wonders. I have even seen people have two yoga mat's in their Bikram yoga class, they will switch out for the thicker mat when doing these positions. I personally think that's a little excessive, but whatever you prefer!
One of the best natural fabrics for yoga pants is Bamboo. Bamboo is very eco friendly to produce. It requires no chemical or irrigation. Bamboo is a very comfortable fabric. It is breathable and acts as a thermal regulator as well. It will keep you warmer when it is cold and cooler when you are hot yoga. This makes it great for active wear and yoga pants. Bamboo also is absorbent and will help keep you dry during your workout. Another wonderful thing about Bamboo is that is has antimicrobial properties. This means that it naturally is resistant to bacteria growth which can cause body odor. This is definitely a plus in work out clothing.
I bought the Power Yoga book and got to work. It was tough. In fact, I couldn't do much of it at all - both the flexibility moves nor many of the strength moves. I figured there must be something to the yoga.