bikram yoga
Replies
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Wow I didn't realise you burn so many cals, I have wanted to try for a while too, think I will asap now... I have also been slightly intimidated. Hope it goes well for you!
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I'm trying bikram (hot) yoga for the first time this afternoon. A calculator on everydayhealth.com says I'll burn 885 calories in 90 minutes...is this for real? Anybody know of any other good ways to calculate calories burned, since MFP doesn't have a category for this?
I'm kind of intimidated by the thought of doing yoga for 90 minutes in a heated room, but everybody I know who has tried it says it's awesome. Any tips for first-timers?
I'm skeptical of the calorie burns I see claimed for yoga. An hour of power yoga (pretty intense) for me burns about 200, but I've seen claims that it can burn up to 600 calories for 60 minutes.
Yoga is fantastic, but it isn't a major calorie burn.
Also, make sure you're actually doing BIKRAM. That is a very specific set of poses. There are hot yoga classes that are not Bikram and that can make a difference in calories.0 -
I love Bikram yoga! I only do it about once a week, but it's been incredibly helpful in losing weight. I still don't have a good idea of what the calorie burn should be-- the lowest number I've seen for someone of my size is 789 calories, so that's what I log. But I still think that's too high, so I never eat back all the exercise calories from it.0
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I used a HRM when I was practising Bikram, and I was burning between 400 & 600 calories a session. Many factors influenced that number though, including the heat of the room and my energy levels on the day. Obviously each person would be different, depending on fitness level, weight etc.....
(I'm 169cm, and was around 90kg back then, to give you an idea if you may be similar!)
Enjoy! (You may feel you wanna die sometimes, but it gets better, and easier, so stick it out)
And you'll feel amazing at the end 0 -
If you really want to know how many calories you're burning, I suggest investing in a good HRM 0
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You don't. You may sweat more, but that's to heat not to the actual process of thermogenisis.Wow I didn't realise you burn so many cals, I have wanted to try for a while too, think I will asap now... I have also been slightly intimidated. Hope it goes well for you!
A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
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Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
Am I the only one who is NOT thrilled about bikram yoga? I love regular yoga (ashtanga, sometimes hatha, or Jillian Michael's cardio-yoga-hybrid), so I was intrigued when I heard about this particular version. So I talked to two trainers to get more information, and what they told me made me decide to stick with my previous yoga courses after all.
Unfortunately, I can't supply any scientific sources supporting what I'm about to pass on. They didn't give me any and I don't have time to search right now. But what they said did make sense...
First, Bikram yoga does NOT burn any more calories than regular yoga. A lot of people feel like it's more strenuous because they sweat like crazy, and usually sweating like crazy is associated with very vigorous exercise. The extreme heat just increases the strain of the practice on your body, and the risk of becoming dehydrated is very high if you're not very careful about drinking enough.
Secondly, the risk of injury is higher in bikram than other forms of yoga because the extreme heat coaxes you into deeper and more extreme positions than you would otherwise be able to do. It's an artificial, external heating of your body, instead of heating through exercise. The latter makes blood flow to your muscles and opens up tiny blood vessels. The first just makes you feel really hot and you attempt intense stretches actually being in the right condition for it.
I guess if you are very careful to re-hydrate and if you don't go too crazy with your stretches, and if the heat makes you feel GOOD, then there's no reason why you shouldn't go ahead with it... If it's an exercise you enjoy and that makes you come back to the gym.
Unless you're pregnant. In that case you should absolutely stay away from bikram yoga, because the risk of injury is EVEN higher then, and the heat may damage the fetus.0 -
HRM's aren't accurate for ANY strength training exercise. Remember it reads heart rate. So even if you sat and watched a "thriller" or "scary" movie that got your heart rate up, the HRM can't tell it's NOT exercise but a jump in BPM's.I used a HRM when I was practising Bikram, and I was burning between 400 & 600 calories a session. Many factors influenced that number though, including the heat of the room and my energy levels on the day. Obviously each person would be different, depending on fitness level, weight etc.....
(I'm 169cm, and was around 90kg back then, to give you an idea if you may be similar!)
Enjoy! (You may feel you wanna die sometimes, but it gets better, and easier, so stick it out) And you'll feel amazing at the end
Since yoga is more anaerobic than aerobic, it would be on the same category as strength training and even a good session of strength training is about 300-450 calories an hour.
A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
Mid -- No, you are not the only one. I sweat enough doing yoga in my air-conditioned living room with a ceiling fan going. Yoga to me isn't about sweating to death, but instead increasing flexibility, balance and strength. I don't need 105 degrees and humidity to do that.
And if I wanted that, I'd just do it outside in the summer. I live in Florida, after all! lol0 -
Funny you brought this up, but much of what you said is true. In any exercise, it's NOT recommended to stretch any muscle STATICALLY (stretching while holding it the stretch) when it's cold. This could lead to injury of the muscle. You warm up a muscle doing DYNAMIC stretching (stretching the muscle with small movements) and this increases blood flow to the muscle cells.Am I the only one who is NOT thrilled about bikram yoga? I love regular yoga (ashtanga, sometimes hatha, or Jillian Michael's cardio-yoga-hybrid), so I was intrigued when I heard about this particular version. So I talked to two trainers to get more information, and what they told me made me decide to stick with my previous yoga courses after all.
Unfortunately, I can't supply any scientific sources supporting what I'm about to pass on. They didn't give me any and I don't have time to search right now. But what they said did make sense...
First, Bikram yoga does NOT burn any more calories than regular yoga. A lot of people feel like it's more strenuous because they sweat like crazy, and usually sweating like crazy is associated with very vigorous exercise. The extreme heat just increases the strain of the practice on your body, and the risk of becoming dehydrated is very high if you're not very careful about drinking enough.
Secondly, the risk of injury is higher in bikram than other forms of yoga because the extreme heat coaxes you into deeper and more extreme positions than you would otherwise be able to do. It's an artificial, external heating of your body, instead of heating through exercise. The latter makes blood flow to your muscles and opens up tiny blood vessels. The first just makes you feel really hot and you attempt intense stretches actually being in the right condition for it.
I guess if you are very careful to re-hydrate and if you don't go too crazy with your stretches, and if the heat makes you feel GOOD, then there's no reason why you shouldn't go ahead with it... If it's an exercise you enjoy and that makes you come back to the gym.
Unless you're pregnant. In that case you should absolutely stay away from bikram yoga, because the risk of injury is EVEN higher then, and the heat may damage the fetus.
Now while most people who do yoga probably have decent flexibility, a static stretch may not affect them too much, but a beginner can definitely be over enthusiastic and end up pushing themselves beyond what their actual flexibility is.
Even before doing any yoga, it's a good idea just to get some blood flow to the muscle by a quick walk or warm up of 5-10 minutes. Better safe than sorry.
A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
Mid -- No, you are not the only one. I sweat enough doing yoga in my air-conditioned living room with a ceiling fan going. Yoga to me isn't about sweating to death, but instead increasing flexibility, balance and strength. I don't need 105 degrees and humidity to do that.
And if I wanted that, I'd just do it outside in the summer. I live in Florida, after all! lol
thats really not how it is and you paint a false negative picture of bikram yoga. obviously you have never tried it. there is no sweating to death. If anyone is interested they should try it or take advice from someone who has. I love it but now it isnt available nearby.0 -
Funny you brought this up, but much of what you said is true. In any exercise, it's NOT recommended to stretch any muscle STATICALLY (stretching while holding it the stretch) when it's cold. This could lead to injury of the muscle. You warm up a muscle doing DYNAMIC stretching (stretching the muscle with small movements) and this increases blood flow to the muscle cells.Am I the only one who is NOT thrilled about bikram yoga? I love regular yoga (ashtanga, sometimes hatha, or Jillian Michael's cardio-yoga-hybrid), so I was intrigued when I heard about this particular version. So I talked to two trainers to get more information, and what they told me made me decide to stick with my previous yoga courses after all.
Unfortunately, I can't supply any scientific sources supporting what I'm about to pass on. They didn't give me any and I don't have time to search right now. But what they said did make sense...
First, Bikram yoga does NOT burn any more calories than regular yoga. A lot of people feel like it's more strenuous because they sweat like crazy, and usually sweating like crazy is associated with very vigorous exercise. The extreme heat just increases the strain of the practice on your body, and the risk of becoming dehydrated is very high if you're not very careful about drinking enough.
Secondly, the risk of injury is higher in bikram than other forms of yoga because the extreme heat coaxes you into deeper and more extreme positions than you would otherwise be able to do. It's an artificial, external heating of your body, instead of heating through exercise. The latter makes blood flow to your muscles and opens up tiny blood vessels. The first just makes you feel really hot and you attempt intense stretches actually being in the right condition for it.
I guess if you are very careful to re-hydrate and if you don't go too crazy with your stretches, and if the heat makes you feel GOOD, then there's no reason why you shouldn't go ahead with it... If it's an exercise you enjoy and that makes you come back to the gym.
Unless you're pregnant. In that case you should absolutely stay away from bikram yoga, because the risk of injury is EVEN higher then, and the heat may damage the fetus.
Now while most people who do yoga probably have decent flexibility, a static stretch may not affect them too much, but a beginner can definitely be over enthusiastic and end up pushing themselves beyond what their actual flexibility is.
Even before doing any yoga, it's a good idea just to get some blood flow to the muscle by a quick walk or warm up of 5-10 minutes. Better safe than sorry.
A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
I think this is why most people recommend that people take a class rather than just work from a DVD. A good class includes a warm-up sequence.0 -
Mid -- No, you are not the only one. I sweat enough doing yoga in my air-conditioned living room with a ceiling fan going. Yoga to me isn't about sweating to death, but instead increasing flexibility, balance and strength. I don't need 105 degrees and humidity to do that.
And if I wanted that, I'd just do it outside in the summer. I live in Florida, after all! lol
thats really not how it is and you paint a false negative picture of bikram yoga. obviously you have never tried it. there is no sweating to death. If anyone is interested they should try it or take advice from someone who has. I love it but now it isnt available nearby.
So you don't sweat when you do yoga in a 105-degree room? Are you seriously arguing that?
I don't care if OTHER people want to do Bikram or any other hot yoga. I simply said *I* have no interest in it.0 -
Mid -- No, you are not the only one. I sweat enough doing yoga in my air-conditioned living room with a ceiling fan going. Yoga to me isn't about sweating to death, but instead increasing flexibility, balance and strength. I don't need 105 degrees and humidity to do that.
And if I wanted that, I'd just do it outside in the summer. I live in Florida, after all! lol
thats really not how it is and you paint a false negative picture of bikram yoga. obviously you have never tried it. there is no sweating to death. If anyone is interested they should try it or take advice from someone who has. I love it but now it isnt available nearby.
So you don't sweat when you do yoga in a 105-degree room? Are you seriously arguing that?
I don't care if OTHER people want to do Bikram or any other hot yoga. I simply said *I* have no interest in it.
you make up facts to get angry? I didnt say there was no sweating. Did I now?0 -
Mid -- No, you are not the only one. I sweat enough doing yoga in my air-conditioned living room with a ceiling fan going. Yoga to me isn't about sweating to death, but instead increasing flexibility, balance and strength. I don't need 105 degrees and humidity to do that.
And if I wanted that, I'd just do it outside in the summer. I live in Florida, after all! lol
thats really not how it is and you paint a false negative picture of bikram yoga. obviously you have never tried it. there is no sweating to death. If anyone is interested they should try it or take advice from someone who has. I love it but now it isnt available nearby.
So you don't sweat when you do yoga in a 105-degree room? Are you seriously arguing that?
I don't care if OTHER people want to do Bikram or any other hot yoga. I simply said *I* have no interest in it.
you make up facts to get angry? I didnt say there was no sweating. Did I now?
Dude, calm the hell down. If you enjoy Bikram, do Bikram. My having no interest in it has no bearing on whether you enjoy it. I'm not angry. I'm just kind of taken aback that you're arguing that there isn't a great deal of sweating in a 105-degree, high humidity room.
"Sweating to death" is a figure of speech. It is not literal.0 -
Mid -- No, you are not the only one. I sweat enough doing yoga in my air-conditioned living room with a ceiling fan going. Yoga to me isn't about sweating to death, but instead increasing flexibility, balance and strength. I don't need 105 degrees and humidity to do that.
And if I wanted that, I'd just do it outside in the summer. I live in Florida, after all! lol
thats really not how it is and you paint a false negative picture of bikram yoga. obviously you have never tried it. there is no sweating to death. If anyone is interested they should try it or take advice from someone who has. I love it but now it isnt available nearby.
So you don't sweat when you do yoga in a 105-degree room? Are you seriously arguing that?
I don't care if OTHER people want to do Bikram or any other hot yoga. I simply said *I* have no interest in it.
you make up facts to get angry? I didnt say there was no sweating. Did I now?
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Mid -- No, you are not the only one. I sweat enough doing yoga in my air-conditioned living room with a ceiling fan going. Yoga to me isn't about sweating to death, but instead increasing flexibility, balance and strength. I don't need 105 degrees and humidity to do that.
And if I wanted that, I'd just do it outside in the summer. I live in Florida, after all! lol
thats really not how it is and you paint a false negative picture of bikram yoga. obviously you have never tried it. there is no sweating to death. If anyone is interested they should try it or take advice from someone who has. I love it but now it isnt available nearby.
So you don't sweat when you do yoga in a 105-degree room? Are you seriously arguing that?
I don't care if OTHER people want to do Bikram or any other hot yoga. I simply said *I* have no interest in it.
you make up facts to get angry? I didnt say there was no sweating. Did I now?
Dude, calm the hell down. If you enjoy Bikram, do Bikram. My having no interest in it has no bearing on whether you enjoy it. I'm not angry. I'm just kind of taken aback that you're arguing that there isn't a great deal of sweating in a 105-degree, high humidity room.
"Sweating to death" is a figure of speech. It is not literal.
Your responses have seemed more angry/defensive than Dave's IMO. It didn't help that you equated "there is no sweating to death" with "there is no sweating at all" in his response, then more or less accused him of being disingenuous.0 -
Mid -- No, you are not the only one. I sweat enough doing yoga in my air-conditioned living room with a ceiling fan going. Yoga to me isn't about sweating to death, but instead increasing flexibility, balance and strength. I don't need 105 degrees and humidity to do that.
And if I wanted that, I'd just do it outside in the summer. I live in Florida, after all! lol
thats really not how it is and you paint a false negative picture of bikram yoga. obviously you have never tried it. there is no sweating to death. If anyone is interested they should try it or take advice from someone who has. I love it but now it isnt available nearby.
So you don't sweat when you do yoga in a 105-degree room? Are you seriously arguing that?
I don't care if OTHER people want to do Bikram or any other hot yoga. I simply said *I* have no interest in it.
you make up facts to get angry? I didnt say there was no sweating. Did I now?
Dude, calm the hell down. If you enjoy Bikram, do Bikram. My having no interest in it has no bearing on whether you enjoy it. I'm not angry. I'm just kind of taken aback that you're arguing that there isn't a great deal of sweating in a 105-degree, high humidity room.
"Sweating to death" is a figure of speech. It is not literal.
Your responses have seemed more angry/defensive than Dave's IMO. It didn't help that you equated "there is no sweating to death" with "there is no sweating at all" in his response, then more or less accused him of being disingenuous.
That makes sense. Because "lol" at the end of a response simply stating that I'm not interested in it and stating my own personal reasons without attacking anyone else's choices always comes across as anger.
I totally see how you would think that.0 -
Bikram yoga is great for many things. But it often gets inflated calorie burn results because of the heat and how that can affect your heart rate (which is often the measurement being used to calculate calorie burn).
I love Bikram yoga, and am trying to get back to doing it again. I like it for how my joints feel and overall flexibility and relaxation. As others have stated, 300-500 calories is generally what someone will burn in a 90-minute yoga class. Bikram isn't much different. Definitely not the 800+ calorie burns you see reported.
Try it out. You may love it. I did. It is intense, but the payoff is great. Be sure to hydrate throughout the day (not just right before the class). Some people say that the heat can induce people to injury because it allows you to stretch farther than you'd normally be comfortable doing. I don't really buy that personally, but it's worth noting. You should always be careful when doing any new activity and don't push it until you are comfortable.0 -
Speaking only from personal experience and preference, I love it. I think one of the most important things to consider when practicing as a newcomer is compassion for the body.
There are a lot of movements that may not feel "right" for you if you do them the way the person on the next mat over is doing them. Really check in with your body and be compassionate. Do as much as you can do. Try to be fully present and acknowledge the places during the flow where you can breathe a little deeper and make a little more space for a little more stretch, but don't hurt yourself trying to push too hard!
Enjoy!
P.S. I'm 224 lbs & 5'5", according to this calculator, I burn a pretty significant amount of calories during my sessions (I do a "power yoga" that is fast paced in the heated studio). I suppose the most close to being accurate would be a HRM, though:
http://www.my-calorie-counter.com/Calories_Burned/conditioning-exercise-bikram-yoga.asp0 -
Good for you! I love bikram- I wish I did it more.
Calorie burn is totally estimation IMHO. I always "budget" that I burned around 1000 even though I'm sure I burn more. I wore my HRM once and it was much higher than 1000. I'm 188 lbs. and 24 years old. Forgot my resting heart rate.
A few tips:
1.) Eat at least 90 mins to 2 hours before class. Make sure you get in a good mix of carbs and protein. Otherwise you will get very lightheaded.
2.) Drink LOTS OF WATER at least 90 mins to 2 hours before class. It takes your body 90 mins to absorb water so do this to avoid deydration.
3.) Don't wipe your sweat! I know it's tough but it's your body's AC and it'll just keep coming back anyway. :laugh:
4.) Don't drink until the first 30 mins are over. Your body needs to get acclimated to the temperature of the room and if you drink before the first 30 mins are up you'll just cool your body down and negate the amazing affects of hot yoga!
5.) Stay in the room! Even if you can't do every pose. Just try not to leave. I promise if you follow those tips that you'll feel accomplished for at least trying it.
Best of luck!:flowerforyou:0 -
LOTS WATER !! Make sure you are very well hydrated starting from the day before.I'm trying bikram (hot) yoga for the first time this afternoon. A calculator on everydayhealth.com says I'll burn 885 calories in 90 minutes...is this for real? Anybody know of any other good ways to calculate calories burned, since MFP doesn't have a category for this?
I'm kind of intimidated by the thought of doing yoga for 90 minutes in a heated room, but everybody I know who has tried it says it's awesome. Any tips for first-timers?
Otherwise you'll find yourself past out next to the extra yoga mats in the back of the class.0 -
Good for you! I love bikram- I wish I did it more.
Calorie burn is totally estimation IMHO. I always "budget" that I burned around 1000 even though I'm sure I burn more. I wore my HRM once and it was much higher than 1000. I'm 188 lbs. and 24 years old. Forgot my resting heart rate.
A few tips:
1.) Eat at least 90 mins to 2 hours before class. Make sure you get in a good mix of carbs and protein. Otherwise you will get very lightheaded.
2.) Drink LOTS OF WATER at least 90 mins to 2 hours before class. It takes your body 90 mins to absorb water so do this to avoid deydration.
3.) Don't wipe your sweat! I know it's tough but it's your body's AC and it'll just keep coming back anyway. :laugh:
4.) Don't drink until the first 30 mins are over. Your body needs to get acclimated to the temperature of the room and if you drink before the first 30 mins are up you'll just cool your body down and negate the amazing affects of hot yoga!
5.) Stay in the room! Even if you can't do every pose. Just try not to leave. I promise if you follow those tips that you'll feel accomplished for at least trying it.
Best of luck!:flowerforyou:
These are all great tips. You probably won't be able to do all the poses the first time and that's ok. Just stay in a comfortable position (I like doing child's pose) until you're ready to resume.
Definitely make sure you drink a lot of water before and after. If I don't rehydrate completely I feel like I'm hungover the next day.0 -
Mid -- No, you are not the only one. I sweat enough doing yoga in my air-conditioned living room with a ceiling fan going. Yoga to me isn't about sweating to death, but instead increasing flexibility, balance and strength. I don't need 105 degrees and humidity to do that.
And if I wanted that, I'd just do it outside in the summer. I live in Florida, after all! lol
thats really not how it is and you paint a false negative picture of bikram yoga. obviously you have never tried it. there is no sweating to death. If anyone is interested they should try it or take advice from someone who has. I love it but now it isnt available nearby.
So you don't sweat when you do yoga in a 105-degree room? Are you seriously arguing that?
I don't care if OTHER people want to do Bikram or any other hot yoga. I simply said *I* have no interest in it.
you make up facts to get angry? I didnt say there was no sweating. Did I now?
Dude, calm the hell down. If you enjoy Bikram, do Bikram. My having no interest in it has no bearing on whether you enjoy it. I'm not angry. I'm just kind of taken aback that you're arguing that there isn't a great deal of sweating in a 105-degree, high humidity room.
"Sweating to death" is a figure of speech. It is not literal.
Your responses have seemed more angry/defensive than Dave's IMO. It didn't help that you equated "there is no sweating to death" with "there is no sweating at all" in his response, then more or less accused him of being disingenuous.
That makes sense. Because "lol" at the end of a response simply stating that I'm not interested in it and stating my own personal reasons without attacking anyone else's choices always comes across as anger.
I totally see how you would think that.
I didn't say your initial comment was one of anger (it wasn't), but your responses after Dave's comment about your wording did come off that way, yes. Your response to me also comes off as condescending and ****ish, as well, just fyi.0 -
I've been doing Bikram since last July. I started with three classes a week, and it's progressed to the point where I am now on Day 48 of a 60 day challenge, which is to do 60 classes in 60 days. I was already doing about 5 classes a week as of last December, so suffice it to say that Bikram has become the centerpiece and cornerstone of my fitness regimen, supplemented with occasional other cardio (stairmaster) or freeweights (1-2 times a week). I lost 45 lbs in the first few months (while quitting smoking! How is that possible?) and have maintained that loss. My body has changed so much, as has my mental outlook. I can't say enough about Bikram. I credit Bikram yoga with my fitness successes and plan on continuing my Bikram practice consistently after my 60 day challenge is completed. Namaste!0
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Hi there, I have been doing this Hot yoga for 4 weeks now and the difference it has made to me is unbelievable, whther its calories being burned or not. I work hard at it, I attend an organised class 3 times a week. Sweat like crazy ! holding the poses and the repetitions certainly feel as though their working, my abdomen is certainly taking shape, before I have tried gyms but didnt work for me boring to be honest.. So have found this and I'm not to bothered about what it burns I just input the automatic yoga button on the ipod, lol .. what I do love is the complete inner peace I feel after the session, I dont walk out - I float. Its a great feeling and certainly helped with my stress levels, I have ditched the wine as well.. oh and my bad back is better than ever. I recommend it but be warned its addictive but in a healthy way I think x
Nameste :happy:
Do you mind to tell me how many lbs do you lose?0
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