With temperatures dipping down to the negative double digits this week, hot yogas 40C rooms can look like a much-needed reprieve from winters chill.

But while the warmth may be appealing, Ira Jacobs, dean of the University of Toronto faculty of kinesiology and physical education, says the temperature difference may increase heat stress at least at the beginning. That makes it all the more important to keep these tips for beginners in mind:

Come with an open mind. Oftentimes people hear all sorts of different things on both ends of the spectrum, whether its going to be intensely challenging or maybe theyre coming thinking its not going to be very challenging at all, said Damien Smith, a manager at Bikram Yoga in downtown Toronto, for beginner tips for those looking to sweat it out. Aim to challenge yourself rather than keep up with anyone else.

Keep going. Jacobs says if you go to three to five sessions a week, it takes most people about two weeks to adapt to the heat. Things will get easier after that.

Eat, but not too much. Coming to class on an empty stomach is never a good idea, but you dont want to be weighed down by a recent meal, either. Having something to eat (about) two hours before class time is a good estimate for most people, Smith said.

Drink lots and lots of water. Students should bring plenty of water sweat is a big part of hot yoga. Bring plenty of water during class. Drinking more water during the day before your class can also help, as will promptly rehydrating afterwards.

Dont sweat the equipment. A mat, towel andwater bottle are essential gear for any yoga session, but if youre just starting out, you can probably get away with just bringing a water bottle. Our studios and most others will definitely rent mats and towels, said Smith. We like to keep it simple as far as beginners go.

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Five tips for starting hot yoga during the cold winter

Poor posture can cause back, neck and shoulder pain and negatively impact your productivity -- poor posture. While a healthy spine has a slight S-shaped curve, the majority of us slouch into a C-shape when sitting at our desks.

"The human body was built to move more than sit in a chair, car and couch for a large chunk of the day," says Seattle-based yoga instructor Michael Huffman. Leaning too far forward to look at a computer monitor or slouching can cause neck and back aches, stiffness and cartilage compression.

"No matter how good your posture is, when you're sitting at a desk all day, your muscles are working very hard to hold your spine up, so just releasing tension from those muscles and allowing them to stretch takes a lot of pressure off the spine and is also energizing," says Alameda,Calif-based yoga instructor Sandy Blaine and author of Yoga for Computer Users (Rodmell Press, 2008).

Good posture allows the muscles around the lungs to stretch, allowing you to take fuller breaths, boosting productivity and improving concentration and focus. But you don't have to go to a yoga studio to get these benefits. The following yoga poses can be done even when you can't leave your desk.

1. Seated Spinal Twist. [This pose is beneficial in] releasing back tension that collects when you're holding a seated position all day," says Blaine. Plant your feet on the floor and elongate your spine with the crown of your head in line with your tailbone. Next, cross your right leg over your left and on the exhale, twist from the lower belly towards the top leg, allowing the upper body to follow. Hold the pose on each side for 30 seconds to one minute.

2. Forward Bend (Seated Uttanasana). Sitting towards the front edge of your chair, plant your feet slightly wider than your hips so your shoulders can fit between your knees. For those with less flexibility or a sensitive lower back, lean forward, resting your forearms on your knees and elongate the spine into a half-forward bend. If you can go further, drop your shoulders between your knees so your head hangs toward the floor. "Forward bending brings fresh oxygen to the brain and puts some needed space in the rear section of the spinal disks," says Huffman.

Related:How Treadmill Desks Can Improve Your Health and Productivity

3. Hands Alive.This pose is a variation on Urdhva Hastasana or upward facing salute, it stretches your shoulders and armpits, helps relieve mild anxiety and improves circulation in the back and arms.Sit tall, pushing your sit bones into the chair. Imagine a string is attached to the top of your head that gently lifts the crown up, putting space between your vertebrate. Inhale and raise your arms towards the ceiling with palms facing each other, make sure to relax your shoulders away from your ears. Spread your fingers wide, then close them into fists six times. Keep your spine long and make sure your rib cage isn't jutting out. Exhale and bring your hands down.

4. "I dream of Genie."Sit up in your chair and fold your arms at shoulder height like a genie, keeping your torso stable. Swing your arms from one side to the other in that position, keeping your ribcage and spine stable. "Everyone has tight thoracic spinal muscles -- the rhomboids and paraspinals that run along the spine between the shoulder blades. [This pose] breaks up tension in these muscles," says Blaine.

Related:How to Eat Your Way to a Less Stressful Day

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Desk Yoga to Improve Your Posture

Right feet at the front of their mats, knees bent, leaning forward, they stand with their arms in the air in a warrior pose.

It is a fitting movement toward the end of this Warriors at Ease yoga class.

The class is designed to help those dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder, particularly veterans, find relief from their symptoms. Those include hyper arousal, anxiety, hyper vigilance, depression, insomnia, social avoidance and nightmares.

The class is held three times a week at Mt. Sinai Congregation, 2610 Pioneer Ave. It is free for military personnel; civilians are asked to make a $7 donation.

For Deb Causey, who spent 23 years in the Wyoming Air National Guard, yoga has taught her to be more aware.

"(It) gives you an awareness of your body," she says.

That awareness, and the control that goes with it, are two reasons the class aids those with post-traumatic stress disorder, also known as PTSD.

The class was started here by clinical psychologist Sherry Gardner and Natalie Vernon, a certified yoga teacher.

In the last few years, professional literature has begun to show that yoga practice is good at relieving symptoms of PTSD, Gardner says.

"Researchers have been able to demonstrate that many of the (PTSD) symptoms result not from the horrible story but from the residue of the trauma," she adds.

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Yoga Helping Veterans With PTSD

Quick links to other pages on this site | Still can't find it? see Site Index Lyn Tally leads a group of Citadel football players during a Yoga class as part of off season training. Tally has taught the Yoga class at the Citadel for five years. (Brad Nettles/postandcourier.com) 1/11/13

Visualize your thoughts, like they are clouds moving through the sky. If you get lost in your thoughts, take a breath and then let them go.

Citadel football coach Kevin Higgins wont be using those words to fire up his players when they play Appalachian State next season. But the Bulldogs are employing that advice spoken by yoga instructor Lyn Tally to a roomful of players to get ready for next fall.

Citadel players are taking part in 45-minute, twice-a-week yoga sessions as part of an intensive five-week training period before the start of spring practice in early February.

In addition to twice-daily sessions of heavy-duty weightlifting and speed work, Citadel players gather in groups of about 30 in the upstairs mat room at Deas Hall to clear their minds and stretch their bodies through yoga.

Poses such as Sun Salutation and Plank Position dont come naturally to a 6-0, 310-pound lineman like Jim Knowles, but the junior from Belle Glade, Fla., said its worth the effort.

It gets me very loose, he said. It stretches my hamstrings, makes you very flexible. When you get down in that three-point stance, the coaches want you to come out with a low pad level, and doing yoga really helps.

In contrast to the blasting heavy metal or rap in the weight room, the yoga class is mostly quiet, with the occasional gasp or grunt from the players and the soothing tones of Tally, who runs Go Interactive Wellness and has been working with the Bulldogs for four years.

We really work on trying to get into their hips, so they can get lower to the ground with more open, flexible hips and create more range of motion, Tally said. And since this is my third or fourth year with some of the guys, weve been working more on the mental aspects of being really focused.

Yoga is much bigger than just the physical aspects, and this season weve gotten more into the mental aspects. Getting them to hold the poses for a longer time kind of hits all those points at the same time.

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Citadel football turns to yoga in offseason workouts

The hottest class at Green Monkey, a friendly yoga and workout studio tucked atop a Starbucks on a crowded South Miami street, is literally hot.

Hot Power Yoga, not to be confused with the more extreme Bikram yoga in which workout rooms are heated to 100 degrees and above, is a steamy, fast-paced class that combines Hatha yogas high-intensity poses. Yet the multipurpose class also features pauses to incorporate Ananda style yoga through silent affirmations. The result aims to fine-tune and calm body and mind.

The class is held in a room heated to about 90 degrees. The steamy environ helps students sink into the stretches but isnt as oppressive as Bikram in already unseasonably hot South Florida. Students are advised to hydrate, take a break in childs pose if need be, and water is available. As a first-time visitor I made it through an hour. Not bad.

Fans like this hot stuff. Anas Benoudiz, 35, a professional photographer, says Hot Power Yoga changed her perceptions of what yoga could be.

I was anti-yoga until I came here. I was more into the high cardio type of workouts running, kickboxing, she says. I was hesitant about the atmosphere, its very relaxed. Im not going to break a sweat.

Five months later and Benoudiz is a regular.

Ive actually lost weight doing yoga because I come almost every day. I run, sometimes I do spinning. My muscles get tight and this helps me loosen my muscles and I come out sweating and all your toxins go out and its amazing.

The class, run by Grisell Gonzalez, is an invigorating and challenging 90 minutes designed with many familiar postures yoga aficionados will recognize from other Hatha classes downward dog, star pose, headstand, childs pose, warrior one and two, plank and more. These more vigorous movements aside from childs pose which is a cool-down position and used frequently whenever one feels the need to catch ones breath and focus mix well for cross-training purposes. They also stand up on their own should your goal be weight loss, conditioning, increased strength and flexibility.

But Gonzalez, who offers clear instruction and guidance, wants her students to get a bit more.

These things are important but yoga helps us find calmness, peace and inner joy, which makes life more meaningful, she says.

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Hot Power Yoga fine tunes body and soul