Hot Yoga -- Sweat and Lose Weight!

by Lee Anne
(Toronto, Canada)

Yogo in a hot room

I'm not exactly out of shape since I walk a lot instead of driving everywhere, yet I wanted to start excising in a more formal setting again. And I found the perfect workout, suitable for all levels: hot yoga.

There are different kinds of hot yoga. For instance, you may have heard of Bikram Yoga. I signed up for Moksha Yoga, which is fairly similar. Moksha Yoga is a series of posture (called "asanas") practiced in a heated room. All you need to get started is a yoga mat, comfortable clothes, a towel and a bottle of water.

Breathing, balance and flexibility

Be ready to sweat a lot. Classes invariably start with the "corpse pose", which is basically lying down on your mat. It helps you getting use to the heat.

The various postures performed after that focus on proper breathing, balance, strengthening the spine and the core muscles and flexibility.

Good for all levels of ability

What I like best with yoga is that we all have different abilities and it really shows in the class.

For instance, some people are really flexible and will have no problem bending and touching their feet with their hands, while other like me have good balance and can stay the full five minutes standing on one leg. This is actually quite motivating because even beginners don't feel left behind.

There is no right way or wrong way to do yoga, instructors often say. Just listen to your body and it will get easier.

Better tone and no back pain

And it does get easier. I've been doing yoga for a couple of months now and I can see the difference. My back doesn't hurt anymore. My legs are firmer and my arms are toned. I sleep better too.

During hot yoga sessions, you also sweat a lot, which is great to get rid of all the toxins accumulated in your body.

I definitely recommend hot yoga to those who want to start exercising, as it's not competitive and can benefit everyone.