Bikram yoga

[JAlvy]

Has anybody had any experience with this? For those who don't know about it, it's basically the yoga done in a heated room. I'm sure it's deeper than that, but that is the jist. I saw it once on Celebrity Fit Club (fluff, I know, but that was... 15 pounds ago), and they seemed to enjoy it.

There's a studio in my town, and they have an offer for a month unlimited for $30. It seems as though the yoga mat might be the dealbreaker, if there would be any.

Just wanted to hear any thoughts or opinions, to see if this would be a worthwhile experience. After a session of bikram, are you too tired to go for a run, or lift weights? I have a gym membership also, and just wondering if I should wait until that runs out, or if it would be conceivable to have both. About how much does a good yoga mat cost?



P.S.: If you're looking for sporting goods online... don't go to dicks.com... it's something totally different. LOL

[Cron]

Write down on paper what your health goals are.

Yoga will do things for you that the gym can't. The gym will do things for you that yoga can't.

Bikram yoga is nothing special. Bikram patented the order he leads his classes through the postures in. Beyond that the only thing different from what every other yoga teacher on the planet does is that he turns the heat up high in the room.

If you want to burn fat, build up a lot strength, or build muscle yoga is not the best choice.

If you want to improve your flexibility, improve your balance, and learn to relax yoga is king.

[elainevdw]

I think that $30 a month unlimited for yoga is a total steal, and if you're interested in yoga, you should definitely give it a try, for a month or two at least!

That said, I'm not a fan of Bikram on a number of levels. Even though I haven't tried it, I have a strong feeling I wouldn't care for it at all.

One, I don't particularly like rigidly scheduled yoga routines. Ashtanga is another one of those types of yoga that's a particular set of poses in a particular order, and after doing that for a month or two I almost lost all interest in yoga because it was both boring and frustrating.

While the easily memorized routine makes it easy to get the most out of a class when you're switching studios or teachers on a regular basis, I think it's more beneficial to find one or more teachers you really mesh with, who create intuitive routines, and stick with their classes as long as they benefit you.

However, those kinds of teachers are usually more expensive. And there's also something to be said for the meditative aspects of yoga when you can do the entire routine with your eyes closed because you've gone through it so many times.

The other reason I don't like Bikram is because not too long ago, he went through this thing of sueing yoga instructors who took his training class and didn't buy into his franchise. I'm sorry, but you can't copyright fitness poses that have been around for thousands of years.

[elainevdw]

Originally Posted by JAlvy

Just wanted to hear any thoughts or opinions, to see if this would be a worthwhile experience. After a session of bikram, are you too tired to go for a run, or lift weights? I have a gym membership also, and just wondering if I should wait until that runs out, or if it would be conceivable to have both. About how much does a good yoga mat cost?

PS, I always found that weight lifting improved my yoga dramatically! When you're not struggling so much to support your body weight, it's easier to really sink into the poses and get the most out of 'em. It is difficult to go from weights directly into yoga or yoga directly into weights, but if you pair yoga days with cardio days, it's not bad at all.

My yoga mat cost $30, but you can get basic mats cheaper than that. They last for a pretty long time, too. I'd suggest getting one this thickness or a little thicker, though -- it makes yoga more comfortable. When they wear out, you can "recycle" them by cutting and using them as a no-slip surface to put a rug or doormat on, or potted plants on, or as a drawer liner in the kitchen, etc. Very versitile stuff.

[Cron]

Originally Posted by elainevdw

The other reason I don't like Bikram is because not too long ago, he went through this thing of sueing yoga instructors who took his training class and didn't buy into his franchise. I'm sorry, but you can't copyright fitness poses that have been around for thousands of years.

Hey, didn't you know that quizos invented toast? :-)

[KLmasina]

Hey,

I've done Bikram yoga, and teach power yoga in Queenstown, New Zealand. Yoga comes in many styles, and every teacher is different too. The only way to find out if a class is for you is to take it - and try a couple of different teachers within the style too.
Everyone has a different experience at different times too. Sometimes, after Bikram, I was so exhausted and drained it was all I could do to climb into the bath and chill out. But other times I felt energized and could easily have gone for a run.
Ultimately, yoga is a path to self-discovery that just happens to have physical benefits. If it's a good workout you're after, you can get that from yoga (I haven't done weights in years but have more tone than I did back then), but it will have side-benefits too - like mental clarity and emotional stability... and even a feeling of Oneness, or enlightenment.
I hope you took up the $30/month unlimited offer - it doesn't get much better than that!
Namaste,