I'm going to try Bikram yoga tomorrow

[fairybasslet]

I tried the Bikram because of my friend. I went again last night and did much better than on Sat. I didn't get a headache like last time, nor feel nauseous. I ate some yogurt 2 hours before this class so I think that was better than the egg, toast and bacon I had for breakfast on Sat.

I have to say, though, that when I took yoga at my Recreation dept., the instructor concentrated on breath control more. I don't know if it was because I had trouble understanding the instructor at the Bikram class (I think she is Korean) but I remember breathing into the stretches more in my other class.

You have to make sure you are well-hydrated before walking into the room because you sweat right away. The place I went to was so clean. It didn't smell at all. I was very impressed by how clean it was.

After my class on Sat. I went to the movies, came home and chilled out on the couch. I had to do laundry, and then I couldn't stand the mess on my desk so I shredded stuff and filed other stuff. Then I couldn't stand my stepping on stray kitty litter anymore so I vacuumed, and my kitchen floor was dirty so I cleaned that. I don't know where all that energy came from.
That night, I slept the best I have slept in years. I fell asleep around 12 and if my cat hadn't jumped on and off my bed at 5:30 [little bastard] I probably would have slept until 8. Right through without even getting up to pee.

 

[merxlin]

Thats great. I didn't mean to minimize the class or its impact. What i have heard about it has been as much negative as positive, but then I am exposed to a lot more Yoga than most people. My wife teaches as do a few of her friends and my trainer's wife. What I hear may be a bit biased.

I'm glad you are getting good results and if so hope you stay with it. You are right to drink plenty of water in advance, and not to eat a couple hours before the class, and if you do make it light. The digestive tract does not like all the twisting poses if it is full!

 

[scubagal28]

I've been doing Yoga for over 10 years now. Its amazing how good your body feels and how it can relax your mind. I'm so glad you decided to get back into it. It seems you are already getting the benefits back.

 

[divingyogini]

Bikram seems to be a love it or hate it style. There are some things I like about it, mainly the heat, but I'm a heat fanatic.

However, there are some things I find missing in the 26-pose sequence, primarily leg inversions. It's very therapeutic to have your feet in the air in poses like legs up the wall, or full inversions like handstand. I also find the Bikram style does not do enough upper body strengthening for my taste. They say you get the strength through all the pulling you do with your hands, but that's not the same as doing a plank pose (which works the triceps instead of the biceps that you use doing the pulling). There are some poses I find too risky for the joints as well--such as rabbit, which I find too risky for the cervical spine.

Bikram seems to be great for people who like the heat and are pretty low change, as it's the same exact poses with the same exact words used for instruction every time. Personally, I think people should balance it with some other styles of yoga to get a balanced experience in terms of strength and flexibility, upper and lower body.

 

[fairybasslet]

I definitely agree with you about the lack of inverted poses. I can't do a head stand, but there also wasn't a shoulder stand in the routine. Also, my old yogi used to have us breath into our stretches and I found that missing too.

I didn't go back after my introductory classes. I really can't afford it and I do think I hurt my leg by over stretching in class. I found the instructor kind of pushing me to go beyond what I felt comfortable doing, which can be good sometimes, but I also try to respect my limits.

I had a love/hate relationship with the heat.