Saturday, June 12, 2010

Bikram

I've found a new obsession: Bikram Yoga.  Ever heard of it?  How about "hot" yoga?  Same thing.
(Well, sort of, actually.  There are hot yogas that aren't of the Bikram persuasion.)  Anyways.  I've been practicing yoga for years, and I love it.  I am of the belief that yoga heals the body of its ailments through breathing exercises and inversion poses.  In my opinion, everybody can benefit and should practice yoga, even children.

As for me, I have scar tissue in my neck that, if ignored, along with stress, creates golf ball sized knots in my neck that spread down my back.  It makes for some serious pain and headaches.   However, yoga helps me manage it, along with providing relaxation, and feeling good.

So, I've been hearing a lot of good things about this "hot" yoga.  Bikram, specifically, is a series of 26 yoga poses each one twice, and in the exact same order every time.  It takes 90 minutes and is carried out in a room heated to 105 degrees with 40% humidity.  The idea is that your muscles are more apt to do what you need/want them to, PLUS you sweat out all your toxins.

The boyfriend and I tried it out Monday.  It was basically 90 minutes of torture.  I kid you not.  When the instructor finally said that the class was over, I literally cried.  Tears.  But then I stopped b/c I didn't want to embarrass myself.  I kind of want to say that I hated it.  I was so HOT and uncomfortable and SOAKING wet.  I might as well have jumped in the bathtub with my clothes on.  That's how wet I (everybody) was.  My heart was beating in protest the entire time, and I was exhausted. 

I was back in 2 days.  And the day after that.  And I'm going again in an hour.

I like to torture myself.

3 comments:

julie said...

wow. That sounds truly awful. I can't even handle sitting in a sauna for 5 minutes.


hahaha, I just thought about what that room must smell like after class.

Stacy Hutchinson said...

No thanks, I'll pass...........out that is. Yoga is my #1 choice for exercise, but I like to feel relaxed and in the end I've actually fallen asleep before. That style would not be enjoyable. I wonder what the Tibetans think of his theory.

Dixie said...

Like Julie, all I can think of is how bad the room must smell after all those bodies excrete their 'toxins'. That would be enough torture by itself!

You go girl! Get yo stank on!!