To be quite honest with you, I used to despise yoga. In high school, I was forced to participate in yoga during gym class with the rest of my classmates. This consisted of watching an instructor on the TV screen in an extremely cramped room. At the time I thought it was terribly mundane and I loathed the smell of the yoga mats (which they did not clean on a regular basis. So gross!)
Despite my somewhat traumatic first-hand experience with yoga, I’ve grown to actually love it. I’ve recently been going to Moksha Yoga where they offer hot yoga classes for all levels. The studio is clean, calming, and completely welcoming. At first I was very hesitant and was not expecting to enjoy it. I thought it would be boring and that I wouldn’t get into it very much, but I was wrong!
It’s fun and active, but doesn’t put any pressure on you to keep up with everyone else. Participants are welcome to take a break any time during the class, and the room is usually quiet or plays light music which means you can focus on what you’re doing. I’ve only attending a handful of classes, but I can definitely say that this is going to be my new healthy addiction.
Hot yoga has provided so many benefits for me physically, mentally, and emotionally. Here are some of the main benefits I’ve gained from trying hot yoga.
1) Less stress
Yoga can do wonders for stress! I’ve always been told this by others, but honestly you have to experience it for yourself to truly believe it. Classes are calming and sometimes lightly lit, depending on your instructor’s preference, which can help set the mood for relaxation. They also usually light candles and having stones that are supposed to help with relaxation too. The deep stretches feel amazing for your body and releases all the tension in your muscles. The warmer temperatures also allow you to stretch your body further than you normally would, and at the end of class, you get to just lie there. At that point, I’m so relaxed it takes me forever to get up and out of the studio!
2) Glowing skin
I feel as if the warmer temperatures in hot yoga studios opens my pores and releases all of the toxins in my skin. Not sure if that’s exactly what is happening, but that’s what it feels like! After finishing a class my skin is flushed, glowing, and feels so soft and supple. I can see that my skin look so much more radiant, even only after a few classes. Hot yoga helps you get that inner glow that no make-up could mimic.
3) Flexibility
Flexibility is definitely something that I can improve on, which is sort of embarrassing considering the fact that I’m a dancer. Regardless, hot yoga is perfect for stretching your limbs and increasing your flexibility because of the warmer temperatures that loosen your muscles right up. I feel awfully accomplished when I can touch my toes without feeling too much tension.
4) Overall happiness
Since yoga has made me so much more relaxed and calm, I’ve found that in general, I’m happier than I used to be. This might also be a result of the extra endorphins that are released in my body from working out and being active, which in turn make you happy. Regardless, participating hot yoga has given me an outlet to release all of the tensions in my life both physically and emotionally, thus allowing me to focus on all of the better and brighter things happening.
These are just a few of the benefits that hot yoga has given me. I hope that this inspires you all to at least try out a hot yoga class. If you have before, maybe you’ll want to go back and try to commit to it. I assure you that you’ll find these benefits and so much more if you invest your time into it.