For the last decade, hot yoga classes have been increasing in popularity, with some filling up as soon as they are announced. In rooms kept at a temperature that can vary between 80 degrees F and 105 degrees F, for an hour or more, students stretch and hold poses.
Yoga is taught in a broad range of disciplines and styles. Most feature the same poses, or asanas, which are performed while standing, sitting or lying down. Some instruction focuses on both the spiritual and physical aspects of yoga, but for the most part, the popularity of the discipline can be attributed to the physical benefits that students who practice the exercises enjoy.
The heat of hot yoga classes has three major benefits. First, it allows the muscles to warm up quickly. Second, warmed muscles stretch more easily, and third, bodies perspire heavily in the heat. Perspiration releases the impurities that are absorbed during regular activity, including harmful substances like lead and mercury. According to a study conducted by Eberhard-Karls University in Germany, sweat kills bacteria found on the skin as well. The weight loss attained through perspiration is mostly water. It is the exercises themselves that aid in permanent weight loss.
The heated exercises also raise the heart rate and increase stamina. Aside from the benefits that a raised temperature adds, yoga as exercise helps to keep the body strong, balanced, lean and flexible. The discipline can be extremely beneficial with weight loss. While hot yoga can be very strenuous, its benefits to weight loss come not only through burning calories, but by making participants more conscious of their overall health. An inward focus often leads to improved concentration, self-discipline and self-acceptance. These improvements can lead to positive attitudes and approaches to weight loss.
While every teacher is different, most instructors work to ensure that stretches are done correctly and that poses are held properly. Exercises can involve intense stretching, and a good instructor will supervise students carefully to ensure against overexertion. Experienced teachers will offer suggestions on how to perform poses at the student's level of ability.
Classes typically follow an established routine of poses. The poses are named after the shapes, objects or animals that they resemble, such as the cobra, the triangle, crouching dog, the bow or the plank. The final pose may be the corpse pose, or Shavasana, when students lie on their backs for moments of reflection and relaxation.
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