Despite chilly, gusting winds outside,
the temperature is rising inside of Hot Yoga People, in Fort
Greene. In fact, it is rising in yoga studios throughout Brooklyn.
At HYP, co-owner Anita Ruderman greets yogis and yoginis (male
and female yoga students, respectively), with a warm smile and
words of encouragement. Thirty minutes earlier, she turned up
the heat inside of the studio in preparation for her morning
class.
"You need the perfect combination of temperature and humidity
to conduct a hot yoga class," said Ruderman. The heat allows
for deeper stretching and produces more sweat, which enables
the body to release more toxins, she explained.
Although yoga is a 5,000-year-old practice, hot yoga is a fairly
new phenomenon and hot yoga centers are very new to Brooklyn.
While there are several different types of yoga involving various
poses and postures, hot yoga follows a set series of 26 Hatha
poses and two breathing exercises. The main difference between
hot yoga and other practices is the heat.
"The heated room allows the body to become more flexible
at a quicker rate," said Laura McCracken, owner of Every
Breath You Take Hot Yoga, in Park Slope.
After encouragement from his Guru, Bishnu Ghosh, in Calcutta,
India, Yogiraj Bikram Choudhury, the founder of the worldwide
Yoga College of India, brought yoga to Beverly Hills, Calif.,
in the mid-1970s. There he spent five years developing his own
series of 26 classic postures with Western doctors. Slowly, the
temperature rose and the series came to life.
"The system is designed to work every part of your body,
so that it is a full-body workout," said Aiko Nakasone,
co-owner of Bikram Yoga, in Brooklyn Heights.
The 26 poses work every muscle, joint, ligament and internal
organ in the body. Each pose is performed in a specific order
to fully open and strengthen the body. For example, pose 15 cannot
reach its maximum extension without having already executed the
first 14 poses. The flow of the poses creates a balance between
the mind, body and soul.
Carrie Brownstein, 31, of Fort Greene, has been practicing hot
yoga at HYP since Ruderman opened the studio in November 2002.
"I like hot yoga because it really loosens me up,"
said Brownstein. "It’s also an amazing workout. I attended
other yoga classes before coming here, but I left feeling like
I still had to do some type of cardiovascular activity."
Hot yoga classes run for 90 minutes and cost between $16 and
$18 for a single class. (Class cards are also available for discounted
prices.) Temperatures usually range from 95 degrees to 105 degrees,
but can reach as high as 110 degrees. Instructors coach students
through each pose verbally, but never demonstrate the actual
pose, because instructors must be able to monitor students’ posture
at all times.
Practicing hot yoga has many benefits including: muscle tone,
weight and stress reduction, injury recovery, and an increase
in flexibility and energy.
"As all of the organs work together, strengthening the immune
system, hot yoga also reverses the aging process," said
McCracken.
Although hot yoga does not cure chronic ailments such as diabetes
or osteoporosis, it can help to relieve some of the symptoms,
explained Troy Myers, co-owner of Bikram Yoga.
Pregnant women or people with high blood pressure should consult
their doctor before practicing hot yoga. Also, yogis and yoginis
should not eat anything for at least two hours prior to the class
to avoid nausea.
For certification, Bikram – and some hot yoga – instructors attend
Bikram’s college in Beverly Hills.
"We went through an intense nine weeks of training with
two classes per day; it was life-changing," said Nakasone,
who attended the training with her husband and partner Myers.
Besides daily classes, instructors attend lectures and learn
the specific dialogue to use once certified.
While Bikram Yoga students practice on a carpeted floor, both
Ruderman and McCracken have hardwood floors throughout their
studios to eliminate odor.
"Bikram likes carpeted rooms, not hardwood floors,"
Nakasone said. "It’s a liability issue, we sweat a lot.
We practice in a stinky room with smelly bodies to find actual
peace and calm in all places. Finding calm is easy in the Himalayan
Mountains, but try finding calm in New York City."
The best part about hot yoga is that all people, regardless of
age, size, or fitness level, benefit from its practice. There
are no set levels of ability. Every day is a new day.
"The beauty of hot yoga is that you could practice it for
30 years, and even though the series is the same, the practice
is always different," said Ruderman.
But there’s more to yoga than hot yoga, and other forms have
health benefits, too.
"Any yoga practice is good for the body," noted Repose
owner Jane Weintraub, whose Bay Ridge studio does not offer hot
yoga classes. "At Repose, we concentrate on holistic well-being,
body strength, flexibility, reducing stress and creating inner
peace."
"The difference between hot yoga and other forms of yoga
is that it is a specific 26 postures and two breathing exercise
in a heated room," said Nakasone. "Other than that,
all yoga is wonderful and works all aspects of the mind, spirit
and body."
So grab a towel, comfortable and light-weight clothing, lots
of water, and join the heat wave spreading throughout Brooklyn.
Bikram Yoga is located at 106 Montague
St. between Henry and Hicks streets, second floor, in Brooklyn
Heights. Single Bikram class: $18. For more information call
(718) 797-2100 or visit www.bikramyogabrooklyn.com.
Every Breath You Take Hot Yoga is located at 327 Seventh St.
at Fifth Avenue, second floor, in Park Slope. Single hot yoga
class: $18. For more information, call (718) 832-5070 or visit
www.ebytyoga.com.
Hot Yoga People is located at 659 Fulton St. between Ashland
and Rockwell places, second floor, in Fort Greene. Single hot
yoga class: $16. For more information, call (718) 237-2300 or
visit www.yoga-people.com.
Repose Yoga is located at 8325 Fifth Ave. at 84th Street, second
floor, in Bay Ridge. For more information, call (718) 238-0174
or visit www.reposeyoga.com.
