“Embrace the heat” comes quite literally when it comes to hot yoga. Yoga has always focused on comprehensive health from muscle strength, flexibility to mindfulness. Hot yoga provides much more to health without defying the basics of yoga.
Hot yoga is a vigorous form of yoga. The basic principle is to mimic the temperature and humidity of the Indian subcontinent where yoga was originated. In this form heat of the studio is increased from 27 to 36 degrees Celsius. The heat warms up the muscle and increases endurance during yoga.
How is it different from Bikram Yoga?
Bikram Yoga though used interchangeably with hot yoga is a bit different. It is more intense than hot yoga. The temperature is set around 41 degrees in an environment having 40% humidity. It consists of 26 poses and 2 breathing exercises. On the other hand, hot yoga is vague and what exercises you will perform varies from instructor to instructor.
Heat is not for everybody. You should definitely bail out if you:
- Have a history of heart disease
- Have problems of dehydration and electrolyte imbalance
- Have a history of stroke or other related illness
- Are pregnant
But, if you think you are not fit for this type of yoga, you can sit for the Meditation. It is a good idea to learn about benefits of meditation for motivation.
Benefits of Hot Yoga
I get it getting all sweaty and itchy is not your scene. But you should make an exception this time because the benefits outweigh the hassle. Some of them are
1. Increases flexibility
Muscles need to be stretched before any exercise to improve blood flow and avoid cramps. Here heat improves circulation and makes yoga poses easier and more effective. It also improves the range of motion in our major muscle group like hamstrings, calves, and makes us more flexible.
2. Burns excess calories
On average doing yoga for 1 hour burns 183 calories. When one raises the temperature of our heart, lungs, muscles overwork to compensate the heat of the environment thus burning way more calories in a short time.
3. Detoxification
Sweat is an effective way for our body to get rid of toxins. Sweating makes our skin look healthy and gets rid of toxins in the blood as well.
4. Maintains cardiovascular health
Our heart tends to work more to supply blood to our body rapidly to provide energy and maintain the normal temperature of the body. It is thus a great exercise for your heart. Hot yoga is proven to decrease the risk of atherosclerosis, heart attack, and provide long term heart health.
5. Reduces blood glucose
Hot yoga burns calories and thus decreases blood glucose levels. It is seen as highly effective for individuals who are at high risk for type 2 diabetes. If someone from your family has diabetes it’s a smart choice to include hot yoga in your exercise regimen.
6. Healthy and glowing skin
With increasing temperature blood circulation to our skin increases making it glowing and healthy. It makes your skin looks fresh and avoids those nasty pimples and acne to a large extent. A healthy skin boosts confidence and makes you fresh all the time.
7. Mindfulness
Yoga has always been aimed at comprehensive health. While you may strongly despise itchy, sweaty skin and wonder how it may help you at all surprisingly it does. Mindfulness focuses on the feeling of being present and experiencing the moment without judgment and purpose. That steam and heat force you to do so. You can’t forget the heat. You may not like it to begin with but mindfulness grows with time and you will start to embrace the heat.
8. Builds bone
Yoga is a great form of exercise for everyone. In postmenopausal women and old individuals bone density decreases more rapidly than others. Hot yoga improves bone density in those individuals and regains the lost bone mass as well. It increases the strength of our bones and muscles as well eventually making us stronger.
9. Eases depression
The practice of meditation and mindfulness has shown significant improvement in individuals in various studies and experiments. Hot yoga stimulates the release of those happy hormones from your brain thus helping to fight depression. It is especially beneficial for women with postpartum depression and post-traumatic depression.
10. Weight loss
Hot yoga is indeed an intense form of yoga. It burns way more calories than normal yoga. It helps to lose weight if done on a regular basis. Though it is not healthy to rely on a single exercise for weight loss hot yoga is a very effective regimen to add to your weight loss exercise routine.
How to get started?
Now when you know some of the many benefits of hot yoga it’s time to get started. Here are a few things you should keep in mind while preparing:
- Wear breathable cotton clothes. Make sure your clothes soak the sweat and allow free flow of air.
- Don’t forget to take cotton towels. When you are soaked in sweat you would not like it getting in your eyes and making your yoga mat slippery. So, take an extra towel to get rid of excess sweat.
- Take your water in an insulated water bottle. It helps to keep your water cool despite the heat.
Keep in mind: Hot yoga is not for everybody. It requires a lot of strength and will power. If you feel like it’s too much or you can’t do it, feel no shame to bail out, it’s way better than heat damaging your muscles and skin. See a doctor if you feel dizziness or nausea after.