Bikram Yoga Founder Bikram Choudhury Established late 20th century Practice emphases Unchanging sequence of postures in a heated room, designed as a rejuvenating exercise to strengthen the entire body, from head to toe.

Bikram Yoga is a system of yoga that Bikram Choudhury synthesized from traditional hatha yoga techniques[1] and popularized beginning in the early 1970s.[2][3] All Bikram Yoga classes run for 90 minutes and consist of the same series of 26 postures, including two breathing exercises.[4] Bikram Yoga is ideally practiced in a room heated to 40C (104F) with a humidity of 40%.[5] All official Bikram classes are taught by Bikram certified teachers, who have completed nine weeks of training endorsed by Bikram.[6] Bikram certified teachers are taught a standardized dialogue to run the class, but are encouraged to develop their teaching skills the longer they teach. This results in varying deliveries and distinct teaching styles.[5]

Bikram Choudhury, founder of the Bikram Yoga system, is also the founder of the Yoga College of India. Born in Calcutta in 1946, Bikram began practicing yoga at age four. He practiced yoga 46 hours every day. At the age of thirteen, he won the National India Yoga Championship. He was undefeated for the following three years and retired as the undisputed All-India National Yoga Champion. Bikram later devised the 26 postures sequence and founded Bikrams Yoga College of India. He has also written books and sings.[7]

As of 2006, he had 1,650 yoga studios around the world.[8] In 2012, there were 330 studios in the United States and 600 worldwide.[9]

After practicing Bikram yoga three times per week for eight weeks, a 2013 study of healthy adults found that deadlift strength and flexibility improved, and participants lost a small amount of body fat. However, they found no improvements on cardiovascular measures.[10] The same researcher found that women burned 330 calories and men 460 per 90-minute session, roughly the equivalent of walking briskly at about 3.5 miles per hour for 90 minutes.[11]

Other claimed benefits include enhanced strength, increased flexibility, improved posture, mental clarity, a balanced blood pressure and improved ability to concentrate,[citation needed] fewer toxins and impurities,[12] and Bikram claims specific poses can help clean out the veins and arteries.[13]

Excessive sweating caused by the hot and humid conditions of a Bikram yoga room can result in dehydration. There is also a risk of hyperthermia: overheating of the human body. Symptoms include nausea, dizziness, fainting, and potentially heat stroke. A strong focus on hydration before and after class, combined with listening to one's body and resting during class when necessary, reduces these risks.

Various conditions such as multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, and some cardiac complications can cause unique sensitivities to heat. Those struggling with these conditions are encouraged to check with their doctors before beginning hot yoga.[14] Additionally, those who take medications for depression, nervousness, or insomnia may also wish to check with a doctor to determine if the heat will exacerbate any medical conditions.

According to an article in the Huffington Post, The health benefits of the additional heat are "largely perceptual", because "People think the degree of sweat is the quality of the workout, but that's not reality. It doesn't correlate to burning more calories.".[15] A small study by the American Council of Exercise found "found no difference in the increase in core temperature or heart rate between the two 60-minute sessions.".[15]

In Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class (First Edition), Choudhury claims he conducted medical studies at the Tokyo University Medical School validating the medical benefits of his 26 postures. During one of the lawsuits, defendants demanded copies of the "medical" studies and Choudhury claimed he could not find them. In Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class (Second Edition), Choudhury removed all references to medical studies.[16]

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Bikram Yoga - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia