The less the better. The more skin of your legs and torso that are exposed, the cooler you will be. Please do not bring a hand towel for wiping sweat; allowing the sweat to stay on your body and evaporate will help you cool down quicker.

Those who are concerned about how their body looks will find relief in our yoga method and our extremely non-judgmental, supportive, body-positive community. During class, you will be so highly focused on the internal sensations, verbal instructions, and breathing – the negativity about your appearance and the comparisons with other bodies will literally melt away.

Make sure that you have had the equivalent of three glasses of water (24-30 ounces) in the 2 hours before class, and as a beginner, please bring another 30 ounces of water into the room with you. You will learn about your hydration needs as you practice regularly and as you learn how to breathe better.

Pure water is best – Gatorade and other sugary sports drinks are not recommended during class, as they cause the body to digest and divert blood away from the skin and muscles.

The amount you practice will lead to different levels of benefit. A daily practice for 60 days is highly recommended for beginners who are committed to the most noticeable transformation in their health and well-being. In general, Bikram Yoga should be practiced at least 3-4 times per week for the full range of therapeutic benefits to take effect. Those who practice once or twice per week will still notice significant improvements in mobility, concentration, respiratory function, and emotional balance. Interventional research on the 90-minute class shows definite improvement in cardiovascular function, reduced cholesterol, and balanced blood sugar at a rate of 3 times per week, and reduction in mild-to-moderate depression and anxiety at a rate of 2 times per week.

Absolutely.  However, there are very specific guidelines for pregnancy.  First, although core temperature has been found to remain at a safe temperature in Bikram Yoga, the medical community wants to make sure that core temperature does not rise during the first trimester of pregnancy.

Hundreds of women around the world have practiced Rajashree’s Pregnancy Yoga within the Bikram Yoga classroom during all phases of pregnancy with no adverse effects (and very good birth outcomes), but we have to officially recommend that you take the first trimester of pregnancy to take one or two private, non-heated, prenatal classes with us and practice at home until Week 12. You may return to the “hot room” for the 2nd and 3rd trimesters as long as you have established at least 6 months of a regular practice prior to pregnancy.

Our director has been trained by Rajashree Choudhury in her Pregnancy Yoga system, practiced Rajashree’s Pregnancy Yoga throughout her entire pregnancy, and has assisted pregnant women with their yoga practices since 2006. The

Absolutely!  It is exciting to see and maintain the natural range of motion of the human spine, prior to stress and injury. Youth ages 14+ may practice the entire class. We ask that youth 16 and under practice a class or two with a parent prior to attending on their own.

Prior to puberty and sweat-gland development, most kids do better in a warm class or in the second half of class only. We recommend the Thursday 5:45 pm class, which is free of charge for any child (practicing with a parent who is paid).

One of the best things about this yoga is that you do not even need to be able to stand up to participate. Most chronic medical conditions are improved by this yoga, but we are happy to discuss special needs with you or your medical professionals. Please contact the director in advance if you are unsure about your ability to practice. We have good relationships with other health professionals in the community and will help you personally if any particular movements need to be avoided.

A consistent, comprehensive system for beginning students is extremely important in order to:

• build mastery and discipline
• develop subtlety and depth of understanding
• maintain safety before advancing
• improve strength and mobility of every single joint in every class
• train the mind to look for internal differences rather than external stimuli

Rather than the sequence changing, YOU change!  As you learn to pay better attention, look for the details, and steady your focus, you will experience that every single class is different.  Once you have created sufficient mastery of stillness and form in the beginning system, we offer intermediate and advanced levels.  This usually takes a minimum of 250 classes or 2 years of near-daily practice.

Nope.  Bikram is for everyone.  Each and every body type, any age, any physical shape, good or poor strength, chronic ailments or totally healthy, all will gain multiple benefits just from trying their best.  We have all types of people in every class, and we also have a very compassionate, supportive and kind community of people growing here together.

Absolutely! Bikram Yoga is beginner’s yoga.  Everyone takes the same class together and everyone works at their own level.  No matter where you are in your practice, just trying to do the postures to the best of your ability will bring you huge benefits(no matter how you look doing them!).  Keep in mind that you’ll need to attend several classes before you can really determine if this is for you.

The heat helps your muscles relax and allows you to get a much deeper stretch.  It also helps you to sweat out the toxins in your body.

Definitely.  Bikram Yoga will help you become flexible, and you’ll find that you improve just a little with each class.  Everyone works at their own level, and everyone’s got something going on with their body.  Some of us may be working towards getting these postures right for the rest of our natural days!  It’s the try that counts.

Definitely.  You will find that you’ll lose inches as well.  You’ll burn about 600 calories per class, and the postures will tighten up everything you own.