Studies show that traditional yoga is safe and useful for most people and has many advantages if the instructor acts competently and carefully monitors his charges.. Much less is known about hot yoga, later practice, so many are wondering if hot yoga is right for me?.

Bikram yoga or hot yoga - a practice that is performed in a room heated to 38-40 degrees Celsius. Like other practices of yoga, it came to us from India, having received its name from its inventor, Bikram Chowdhury.. After the injury, he discovered that classes in a heated room speed up recovery. Today Bikram Yoga is very popular not only in America and Europe, but also in Russia.

Physically hot yoga is tougher than normal, which makes practitioners susceptible to dehydration and muscle damage.. Assistant Professor of Public Health at the Central University of Washington Casey Mace believes that the possible risks are the same for all types of yoga. She studied hot yoga in detail, and his research showed that some practitioners noted greater flexibility and improved mood, but more than half experienced dizziness, nausea and dehydration..

“Perhaps there is a misconception that these feelings are normal, but they are not,” she said.. - If people experience dizziness or headaches, weakness or fatigue, this may be due to loss of fluid.. They should rest, cool and drink. Proper body hydration is the key ".

However, Dr. Mace believes that in general hot yoga is safe, and the side effects that we can observe are usually mild.. Although, like any yoga, this practice has certain risks.

This summer, doctors from Chicago reported that an absolutely healthy 35-year-old woman had a cardiac arrest during a hot yoga class.. The woman survived, but what happened made her and many other practitioners think about the safety of Bikram Yoga..

Also during hot yoga classes, muscle and joint injuries can be more common, because heat makes people feel more flexible than they really are.. So says professor of kinesiology Carol Ewing Garber, who in the past was president of the American College of Sports Medicine.

“You have to be a bit on your guard when you look at some kind of research, because they are conducted among well-trained yoga teachers in the best conditions,” said Dr. Garber. “The reality is that in the real world there are many differences between teachers in terms of their practices.”.

One Bikram Yoga study has shown that this practice improves balance, increases body strength and range of motion in both upper and lower body, and can also improve arterial stiffness and metabolic processes, such as glucose tolerance and cholesterol, increases bone density. and reduces stress levels. However, Australian researchers reviewed the literature, including the one that was written by co-owners of Bikram Yoga Studio, and noted that only one randomized controlled trial of hot yoga was conducted.. Most studies do not track adverse events and are carried out only on completely healthy adults, so it is impossible to speak with full confidence about the safety of Bikram Yoga..

If you have low blood pressure or had health problems before, you should consult a doctor before trying hot yoga.. If you have adverse reactions to heat, you are prone to heatstroke or dehydration, you feel unwell in the bathroom, baths or sauna, it is better to follow traditional yoga practices. If you do decide to go to a bikram yoga class, make sure that your body is well hydrated and drink plenty of water before, during and after exercise..

“If you sweat profusely, it’s very difficult to fill this fluid,” says Dr. Garber.. “Many people can't recognize the early signs of heat stroke.”.

Symptoms of heat stroke include thirst, excessive sweating, dizziness and headache, weakness, muscle cramps, nausea or vomiting.. Therefore, as soon as you feel at least one of these symptoms during practice, finish the classes, drink and rest..

Ekaterina Romanova.

Source: The New York Times.

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