Hot Bikram Yoga
23-03-2009
Bikram Yoga was developed by Bikram Choudhury who was born in Calcutta in 1946.
Bikram began practicing yoga when he was 4 and by the age of 13 he won the National India Yoga contest.
At 17 Bikram sustained a serious injury to his knee during a weight-lifting accident and with the guidance of Guru Bishnu Ghosh used the healing powers of yoga to rehabilitate himself to full health.
In a United Nations sponsored research project at Tokyo University, Bikram helped doctors demonstrate that yoga can regenerate tissues and alleviate chronic ailments.
Bikram, realising the remedial potential of yoga combined Eastern discipline and Western medicine to develop his 26 posture yoga series.
Bikram arrived in the United States in 1973 at the invitation of President Nixon and soon after celebrities, athletes, and others began to practice Bikram Yoga.
"NEVER TOO OLD, NEVER TOO LATE, NEVER TOO SICK, NEVER TO BAD TO START FROM SCRATCH AND BEGIN AGAIN"
Bikram Choudhury
The studio is kept at a temperature of approximately 105°F (40°C). The heat warms up your body allowing you to stretch into the postures (asanas) in a safer environment. The heat also promotes sweating which in turn flushes toxins from the body.
Whatever your fitness level you will find Bikram Yoga challenging (that's why so many people come back for more). The postures (asanas) combine strength, flexibility and balance to give you a total body workout. As with other forms of cardiovascular exercise, regular practice will also aid weight loss.
Bikram Yoga:
- Provides total body workout
- Helps sport (and other) injuries
- Improves posture
- Eases back pain
- Increases flexibility and strength
- Reduces stiffening of joints
- Boosts energy levels
- Detoxes and cleanses
- Relieves tension
- Relaxes the body and mind
The class had about 30 people in all at different levels so no matter how experienced you are there is no need to feel intimidated as some exercise classes can do! You work at your own pace and if you need to take a moment to simply sit there it is perfectly acceptable. Having never even done yoga myself this was a completely new experience but I can honestly say it was totally exhilarating and after just one session you can immediately feel the benefits. I will definitely be going back for more and maybe one day I can join those front row yoga bunnies and have my ankles wrapped round my ears!
If you want to try it out they have a special 10 day offer where you pay £10 then you can do as many classes as you want in the next 10 days. After this period it costs £13 for each session and is worth every penny!
Hot Bikram Yoga Fulham
Ground Floor Studio,
25 Heathmans Road
London
SW6 4TJ
020 7384 4454
Hot Bikram Yoga Balham
Hildreth Street Mews
London
SW12 9RZ
020 8673 8980
Jenni Sutton
