If you’ve been to one of our Oxygen Yoga & Fitness studios or checked out our yoga class options, you might have noticed that lots of our class options are performed in a heated room. Our studios are heated with FAR Infrared technology which raises your body temperature. In previous blogs, we’ve discussed many benefits you can get from hot yoga, from clearer skin to improved flexibility. Today, we’ll focus in on how you can utilize the heated studio to your advantage and get the best experience possible out of your time in the studio.
You’ve likely come into the studio with some sort of goal you’re trying to accomplish. Maybe there’s a new pose you’ve been dying to be able to hold. Or maybe you want to be able to clear your mind for longer, pushing away unhelpful thoughts and worries. No matter what your goal is, you might want to consider whether taking a heated class could help you get closer to that goal. Here are three reasons a heated practice might be just the thing you need to take the next step.
A Reminder to Breathe
Breathwork is an essential part of any yoga practice. As CNET points out, when practicing hot yoga there’s the possibility that your heart rate will rise faster. Focusing on your breath is an important way to respond to this rising heart rate. Try to use this as a reminder of how important it is to breathe through your practice. Breathing is considered to be important to yoga not only because we need to breathe to live and thus to exercise, but also because the practice of breathing through our nose and into our entire body is considered an important part of bringing our entire body together in practice. If you have difficulty remembering to focus on breathing in your usual workouts or yoga practice, the added necessity of the practice in hot yoga could provide the perfect platform to shift your focus into this area of yoga.
An Opportunity to Push Yourself
As we mentioned in ‘6 Reasons We Like Our Yoga Hot’, practicing yoga in a heated room can help improve your flexibility. Jorianne Numberes, MS, explains in Women’s Health Magazine that stretching in hotter temperatures makes it easier for our muscles to stretch. So if you have stretches you’ve always wished you could push further, or poses you’ve never quite been able to twist yourself into, hot yoga might be the place where you can finally achieve some movement towards these goals.
Seeing yourself make progress towards any goals you may have for your flexibility while in the heated room could also help motivate you to keep up your practice. As explained by Fast Company, motivation increases as we progress, or appear to progress even. If you’re feeling stagnated in your practice or like you could use some extra inspiration to keep going, why not see how good it feels to stretch further in a hot yoga class.
An Unnatural Habitat
You’ve likely heard before that we are creatures of habit. But have you ever considered what that really means? Dr. Stephanie Collier explains that habits make our lives simpler because we don’t have to think as much. But while this shortcut through our days is often helpful, when we want to change a habit it can feel like anything but. If achieving your goal requires changing habits, switching up an environmental factor like the heat around you might be helpful in achieving it. According to Psychology Today, it’s easier to institute a habit “if it’s build off of an existing chain”. So if you want to, for example, create a habit of mindful movement or focusing on your breath, you may be able to associate this habit with the ritual of stepping into the heated studio.
Remember that it’s important to consult with a medical professional to make sure hot yoga is right for you, and to listen to your body throughout the practice. If you’re interested in giving hot yoga a try, feel free to check in with your local studio to see what options are available near you.
**While this article is researched, we do not claim to be making medical advice. Please always consult a medical professional for medical advice. **