Bikram Hot Yoga

What Is Bikram Hot Yoga?

As yoga grows in popularity through the world and becomes more recognizable, yoga classes themselves are starting to specialize into different kinds of yoga. Of the different ways of performing yoga, Bikram Yoga is one that was invented in the United States, rather than in India, where yoga originated. Let’s look at what makes Bikram Yoga different from traditional yoga.

A Hot Environment

One of the key features of Bikram Yoga is the environment that it’s practiced in: a room that is heated to about 105 degrees Fahrenheit and with air that’s about at 50% humidity. This is key to the philosophy of this form of yoga, which not only will improve the body’s breathing and flexibility, but the body’s circulation as well, according to Bikram Choudhury, the creator of Bikram Hot Yoga. The higher temperature helps to get the blood flowing in our body.

The Poses

Though there are many different poses in yoga, Bikram Yoga is concerned with a series of 26 poses as well as two specific breathing exercises. These poses are so key to this particular form of yoga that the creator has copyrighted the specific order of these poses. This has become an important issue, as Bikram has had his copyright for these poses challenged in court, due to claims that you can’t copyright a series of poses that comes from traditional yoga poses.

Finding An Instructor

As the creator of Bikram Yoga recommends, your best bet is to find someone that has been certified as a Bikram Yoga instructor. In order to control the quality of Bikram Yoga instruction, Bikram Choudhury does not allow this form of yoga to be taught without a license from his company, he attempts to enforce this standard through his copyrights.

Beyond legal reasoning, it makes sense to find someone certified in Bikram Yoga to teach you since they have been through the training for teaching this form of yoga. This means that they can adequately explain safety concerns when practicing Bikram Yoga and are well-versed in the 26 poses and the correct way to perform them. The health benefits you’ll get from this form of yoga are greater flexibility, a strong circulatory system, and more controlled breathing. Given that, if you’re willing to brave the heat, then trying Bikram Hot Yoga might be a good idea for you.