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Culturally, we’re trained to chase happiness, as if it exists somewhere outside of us. We might buy into the idea that we’ll be happy when… we lose 10 pounds, score the perfect job, have a bigger house, find the person who’s going to complete us… and stay on the run trying to check these things off our list, sure that our happiness payoff is coming eventually. If you’ve ridden that ride, then you already know it leads to despair and depression, not happiness, peace or joy. These are things we find inside ourselves, not outside, and the practice of yoga has an uncanny knack for helping us uncover and erode the tendencies, ideas or ways of being that are blocking us. ~Yogis Anonymous~

The first step to gaining flexibility is simply to show up on your mat. During your first class, you probably won’t be able to touch your toes, never mind do a backbend. But if you stick with it, you’ll notice a gradual loosening, and eventually, seemingly impossible poses will become possible. You’ll also probably notice that aches and pains start to disappear. That’s no coincidence. Tight hips can strain the knee joint due to improper alignment …of the thigh and shinbones. Tight hamstrings can lead to a flattening of the lumbar spine, which can cause back pain. And inflexibility in muscles and connective tissue, such as fascia and ligaments, can cause poor posture.

•How will I feel after my first couple of Hot Yoga classes?

The first class, for most beginners, is generally challenging. This is because you are not used to the temperature in the room. It usually takes 2-3 classes for you to adjust your body to the room temperature and enjoy the heat. You might feel even sleepy; this is most likely because your body has begun to cleanse itself as a result of the Hot Yoga class. This sleepiness will disappear after your body has become stronger and used to the exercise.
It is also not unusual to feel nauseous or dizzy during your first Hot Yoga class. Usually the problem is that you did not drink enough water. In the heated yoga room, your body needs adequate water to allow perspiration to release heat from the body.
You might also feel sore or stiff the day after your first class. Don’t worry about this too much or let it keep you from coming back. Even if you feel stiff and sore, you can practice Hot Yoga. In fact, the feeling will generally go away once you warm up. This is because your body starts expelling lactic acids by profuse sweating.

•Will Hot Yoga help me lose weight & tone my body?

Yes. The use of breath and heat (created by internal and external sources) combining with yoga poses increases heart rate, metabolism, stimulates elimination, and reduces food cravings. The poses work all muscles and burn fat resulting in a toner and stronger body.

•What if I’m not flexible?

Many people think that they need to be flexible to do yoga, but that’s like saying you need to be strong to lift weights -just as you become stronger by lifting weights, you’ll start to gain flexibility by doing yoga. This is especially true of Hot Yoga – because your muscles are warm, then your body will be more open and pliable and you’ll find that you can stretch more deeply than you can at room temperature.

Know that this is your class, so you can take it at your own pace. It’s okay if you need to sit out a posture or two to recover your breath, only you know the limits of your body. And remember just turning up to your mat each and every time is an achievement in itself.

Most of us who do yoga have been impatient about our practice at some point in time. We’ve wanted to open a certain area of our body or attain a challenging pose, and we may have even gotten frustrated with ourselves if it wasn’t happening then and there as we would have liked.

But it is okay if your balance is off, your postures are a little messy, or you haven’t mastered a certain pose, you are doing better than before you started practicing yoga. Every day you practice you are making progress, and you should recognise all of the progress you have already made.

If you are patient, determined and follow your heart you will be rewarded!

Lately we have been working on this arm balance in class. Arm balances are a fun part of your practice, the joy you get when you have the ability to lift off away from the ground and feel the strength of the body, and/or the laughter of trying, falling and getting back up again.

This posture first requires you to be able to twist your torso, this alone is improving flexibility throughout the spine and lower back. Twisting your torso also massages the abdominal organs, which improves digestion and detoxification. It will then require both core and arm strength, to be able to hold yourself off the ground as you lift your legs up parallel to the floor. You will also be increasing your hand strength & wrist articulation.

Tips to make it easier:
•Rest your outer hip on your back arm so you have more support
•Lift one leg at a time until you have built up enough strength and confidence to raise them together

It’s important to remember that yoga is a practice — you will very likely fall out of the pose when learning it! But that’s okay, just keep trying until eventually you can hold this pose for five even breaths.