New York columnist Ruby Warrington samples a grueling new form of yoga

By Ruby Warrington

PUBLISHED: 17:03 EST, 22 March 2014 | UPDATED: 17:03 EST, 22 March 2014

In the heated yoga studio, the sweat is beginning to form on my upper lip. Just a few minutes ago, we were warming up with gentle sun salutations the traditional flowing move that opens most yoga classes.

Now Im holding 6lb hand weights and huffing and puffing my way through squats, performed on a step platform for maximum intensity.

And, led by Zander, a ponytailed hunk who looks as if he should be modelling in Mens Health magazine, it is becoming clear that this isnt going to be yoga as my red-faced classmates and I know it.

Stretch and bend: Yoga devotees Naomi Watts and Reese Witherspoon are pictured here leaving a class in Brentwood, Los Angeles

Im at the new PXT conditioning class at the slick Pure Yoga studio on Manhattans Upper East Side: one of several yoga bootcamp-style classes to have sprung up across Manhattan, where gentle stretching and meditative breathing techniques meet high-intensity cardio drills.

Inventor Loren Bassett says: As much as I love yoga, Ive always believed in cross training to stay in peak condition. You cant just do one kind of workout you need to shock your body to see any real change.

Read the rest here:
Fit in the City: Yoga bootcamp where Naomi feels the heat