Mostly practiced by new entrants in the world of yoga, the Bikram yoga is also known as Hot yoga or fire yoga. The Bikram yoga, which is a variation of hatha yoga, pose is developed by a California based yoga practitioner and instructor Bikram Choudhary in the year 1970.
The Bikram yoga classes consist of 26 postures along with two breathing exercises and are for duration of 90 minutes each. Before preaching the Bikram yoga to others, Choudhary first practiced it on himself. The different postures and techniques of this yoga helped him to treat his crippled self. Later on he collated these techniques into 26 Yoga asana and poses.
In order to practice Bikram yoga, you require a room heated to 105°F or 40.5°C. Not only this, the room should also be adequately humid having a humidity of 40%. Also, the room where Bikram yoga is practiced is decorated to bring it closer to the nature by adding objects such as butterflies, a frog hopping on a tree, and other objects closer to the nature. However, the routine followed by practitioners of Bikram yoga is rigid in itself. The positions of the participants, the postures they practice and the dialogues accompanying these exercises are rigid in nature and do not change easily.
Bikram Chaudhury has designed these sessions to provide a tourniquet effect to the body. In these postures practiced in the 90 minutes the body is moving and bending in a manner that constricts the blood flow and creates adequate blood pressure. After some time, when the practitioners unwind and the pressure is released, blood rushes out of the veins and arteries making them feel fresh. Not only this, you experience a feeling of rejuvenation.
However, the people practicing this yoga must drink a total of 9-10 glasses of water on any workout day to keep your body cool and hydrated. This is due to the climatic conditions under which this yoga is practiced. Also, don’t worry if you feel dizzy and nauseous during your first or second class. This is quiet normal and can be experienced by almost anyone as your body takes some time before it adjusts to the heat and the stretching effect that these postures give. Also, body aches and stiffness that the body experiences while cleansing itself will disappear on its own after a few sessions. Therefore, it is advised that you get water, a wet cloth and a towel or two the class.
Not only this, always dress in comfortable clothes. Men should ideally be dressed in shorts only when practicing Bikram yoga, while the women can wear an exercising bra and shorts. If you don’t feel comfortable though, you can dress yourself in a tank top which is made of light weight cloth. Also, remember to practice this posture empty stomach. You should not eat anything at least 1 to 3 hours before practicing Bikram yoga.
Some benefits of Bikram yoga are – Weight Loss, Detoxification of your Body, Better mobility of joints, Improves immune system and Strengthened Cardiovascular system. List of benefits of Bikram Yoga is endless.
A word of caution for diabetic, hypo or hyperglycemia patients. They should always consult their doctor before practicing Bikram yoga. A lot of information about Bikram yoga along with the locations of the classes where they are practiced can be found out over the Internet.
The most common foods for detox diets are foods like fish, fruit (juiced), vegetables (both solid and juiced), plenty of water, herbal teas such as green tea. Banned foods include caffine based drinks (coffee, etc), alcohol, red meats, fried foods, etc. Basically, all foods on the detox diet range mostly between fruit and vegetables and plenty of water.
The post is really informative. There is one type of yoga known as Bikram yoga. It is regarded as most intensive. This kind of yoga yoga involves 26 different postures and 2 peathing exercises in 90 minutes. The exceptionality of Bikram yoga is that it is practiced in extreme heat.