Hot Yoga and YOU!

Bikram Yoga and how it has changed my life on every level! by David Delmar

Practicing Bikram Yoga is something I’ve been doing for almost a decade. And I can’t express enough how it’s transformed my life. Thanks goes out to my wife Kelley for getting me to go!

First, I want to describe the difference between Bikram Yoga and other forms of yoga. Bikram yoga is the “original” hot yoga. It’s 26-posture series is practiced in a heated room making it distinct from other forms of yoga.

The first days starting a hot yoga practice can be challenging as was the case for me. It’s during this time I noticed a real transformation begin. They say in Bikram yoga to jump into the fire while in the studio so you don’t have to in the real world. It’s sure nice to have when you need it.

What I’ve gained in the studio has had a direct relationship with how I handle tough situations in real life. Anything that works often times doesn’t come easy. However, in my opinion it’s well worth it because there’s no substitute for putting in the effort.

What I’ve really enjoyed is the way this type of yoga improves my mood. Plus, I’m eating healthier with less food and spiritually I’m more centered. I think of the soul as important as any organ in the body. It may not show up on an x-ray, but without it we are hollow inside.

If you’re interested in getting yourself ready for summer, then the benefits are great! I’m much more likely to go to the beach or a pool party because I feel good and look good too. Nothing should ever get in the way of celebrating life and all it has to offer.

I’d like to take a moment to give a quick plug to Bikram Yoga Arizona (now, The Foundry) where I practice. They are really phenomenal people and business owners who care about the community. I’m very grateful for the ability to practice there.

Their goal is to “provide a challenging workout for all levels while providing a healing place for all walks of life.” “Their attentive yoga instructors are dedicated to helping you achieve your goals; whatever they might be!” They help everyone equally which is really awesome.

What experiences have you had with Bikram yoga? Leave a comment about your yoga practice or what happened after trying hot yoga out? We learn through each other and I’m always looking to learn new ways to do the things I love. After all, finding the right people who support you is a proven formula for success!

Bikram Yoga on the Road

By Jessica Frent

Monday I flew to New York’s JFK airport, Tuesday I flew from New York to Chicago and Thursday back to Scottsdale. Each day I had the joy of practicing at a new studio, with instructors I hadn’t experienced before. Although it’s the same dialogue and postures, it’s never the same. I hear the dialogue differently each time, learn something new, and experience new challenges. If you’re like me and your work keeps you frequently away from home, you know how challenging it can be to maintain a regular practice. Travel time and meetings might leave little room in your schedule for a 90 minute class but I have found a little dedication and planning can help you keep up your practice when you're traveling.

Whether you are traveling for work or on holiday most major cities across the globe offer Bikram Yoga and I make it a habit to always take a class after long flights to minimize jet lag. When you schedule your next trip, go to the Bikram Yoga class finder to find a studio near where you are staying.

Visiting Phoenix or Scottsdale, Arizona? We'd love to have you in our studios for your Bikram Yoga class "on the road"! We offer great drop-in rates, as well as an Out-of-Towner package (includes 5 consecutive days of yoga AND a mat and towel on each visit for just $50!). Click here to see our locations and class times.

Perfection is a Direction, Not a Destination

By Jessica Frent

Before the holidays I had surgery and was forced to take a break from our beloved “hot room”. For almost two months I wasn’t able to practice and with every passing day I worried that my postures, which I had worked so hard to “perfect” wouldn’t look the same. I worried that my back bends wouldn’t be as deep, my balance would be lost, and my strength to hold triangle would be less than it once was. My first practice back, I was so concerned with how others may perceive my imperfections I went to the 5:30am, practiced in the back of the room, and hoped no one would notice me. I realized quickly I was the only one critiquing my postures with such precision and that perfection is a direction, not a destination. You can always go deeper, hold longer, or achieve a more graceful strength. It has been almost six weeks since that 1st day back while my practice isn’t the same it’s in some ways stronger than it was before. The “perfection” I was so worried about losing wasn’t lost it just shifted.

For those of you perfections out there like me, remember what the wise words we have all heard before "bikram yoga is a practice, not a perfect" and if you want to receive the full benefits it’s important to allow yourself to be vulnerable, learn something new each day, and not let your own ego make you afraid to step into the room after a break.

What Yoga Has Taught Me About Writing

By Chris Schmidt

For almost a year now, I’ve been an avid student of Bikram Yoga—a system of yoga that Bikram Choudhury developed from traditional hatha yoga techniques, including 26 postures and two breathing exercises in a room preset to 105 degrees and 40 percent humidity.  Four walls, a mat, a towel and my flawed reflection for 90 minutes of moving meditation.

Although Bikram’s studios are often referred to as torture chambers, the hot room has become my own restorative chamber of sorts.  Physically and mentally, it’s done more for me than any doctor I’ve seen or medication I’ve been prescribed to date. Both spiritually and emotionally, I’ve found a deeper level of peace.  And, practically, it’s taught me a few things about writing.

Here’s what I’ve learned so far:

• Show up.  This is the hardest part about writing.  If I do that, the rest is easy.
• Stay present in the room.  This is the second hardest part, in my opinion.  Every time I remain in the room when I’m uncomfortable—my humanness exposed—I’m training my mind to adapt to situations beyond my control.
• Focus on the breath.  When, not if, the fight-or-flight response kicks in, I try to remember to breathe in and breathe out.  Additionally, meditation—repeating a mantra or imagining my Someday beach home—helps me to avoid potentially missing out on that epiphany I’ve been waiting for.
• Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.  Although it’s nothing new, the grass is greener where I water it.  It’s called research.  As the famous doctor (Seuss) once said: “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” —even if it’s simply on paper.
• No one can steal your peace.  Make your writing space conducive—to writing.
• Mind over the matter.  There’s no such thing as a true writer’s block.  Just saying.
• Remove expectations.  Each time I show up at my pad and paper or laptop, I’m a different person.  I may be surviving on little sleep, worried about a situation outside of my power or I’m in total rock-star, can’t-do-anything-wrong mode.  No matter who I am in the moment, I receive 100 percent benefit as long as I expend 100 percent effort.
• Eliminate excuses.  I’m responsible for my own writing.  I can’t blame other people or external circumstances for something completely within my control.
• Every day is a practice, not a perfect.  Realizing this simple truth eliminates the pressure to perform and allows me to push the edge, risk failing and try again.  And again.
• Eventually—Someday—I’ll achieve final expression.  For me, this means seeing my first novel in print.  And living the [writer’s] life I dream of.

The practice of Bikram Yoga is the only [physical] activity that can be improved upon as we age.  According to Bikram, “You’re never too old, never too bad, never too late and never too sick to start from scratch once again.”  In my book, this goes for writing, too.

Bikram also says that in life you only have to travel six inches—the distance [or journey] from your mind to your heart.  My definition of writing is a marriage between the heart and mind.  And despite where I am in my writing journey, it is a lifelong commitment that continues to grow stronger every time I show up, stay in the room and give it my all.

CHRIS SCHMIDT

Chris Maday Schmidt is an undergraduate from ASU with a BA in Literature, Writing & Film. She is co-founder and member of Scribes @ ASU, a creative writing club promoting the social, cultural and academic interests of students enrolled at Arizona State University. Chris works as an assistant at a magazine publishing firm in Scottsdale, Ariz., and is a former intern with Superstition Review and beauty editor for In With Skin magazine. She has also contributed articles and blogs to online and print publications, including Kalliope, Superstition Review, In With Skin and Construction Superintendent, and is currently experimenting with both fiction and non-fiction pieces while continuing to dream of Someday.

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