FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Yogiraj Bikram Choudhury is the founder of the worldwide Yoga College of India™. Born in Calcutta in 1946, Bikram began Yoga at the age of four with Bishnu Ghosh, brother of Paramahansa Yogananda (Autobiography of a Yogi, founder of the Self Realization Fellowship in Los Angeles). Bikram practiced Yoga four to six hours a day at Ghosh's College of Physical Education in Calcutta; and at the age of thirteen, he won the National India Yoga contest. He was undefeated for three years.

At seventeen, an injury to his knee during a weight-lifting accident brought the prediction from leading European doctors that he would never walk again. Not accepting their pronouncement, he had himself carried back to Bishnu Ghosh's school, for he knew that if anyone could help to heal his knee, it was his teacher. Six months later, his knee had totally recovered. Ghosh was a celebrated physical culturist and the first to scientifically document Yoga's ability to cure chronic physical ailments and heal the body.

Bikram was asked by Ghosh to start several Yoga schools in India. There Bikram came into his own. The schools were so successful that at Bishnu's request Bikram traveled to Japan and opened two more. He has since brought his curative methods of Yoga therapy around the world.

Can I lose weight doing Bikram Yoga?

A minimum of 10 classes per month is recommended to get the phenomenal benefits of Bikram Yoga, among which is weight normalisation. As a beginner, it takes three classes for your body to understand the proper approach to the posture, and ten classes for your body to begin to work with postures. You will then start to realise optimisation of all your body systems. Digestion and respiration, as well as endocrine, lymphatic and elimination systems will begin to work harmoniously. Your appetite will normalise, and your unhealthy cravings will diminish. All of these results will help to normalise your weight if you devote yourself to a regular practice. It is estimated that between 350 to 500 calories are burned in a Bikram Yoga class.

Can I reduce stress by doing Bikram Yoga?

A regular practice calms the mind, increases mental clarity and energy and helps to reduce stress. The heated room environment also increases willpower, determination, concentration and patience.

What if I'm not flexible?

This is the most common misconception that prevents people from coming to a yoga class. But yoga is not about how flexible you are. It is about stretching your body and spine in all directions. All that matters is that you try the right way, go to your personal "edge" and you will get 100% of the benefit.

Can I do Bikram yoga if I’m pregnant?

Unfortunately it is not advised to do yoga in the heated studio, especially in the first trimester when the mother’s core temperature should not be elevated.

How often should I attend class?

For good results, we encourage regular practice of 3 times per week minimum. For lifechanging results, 4 of more times per week.

What if I feel sore after class?

Didn't know you had a muscle there? Congratulations you have utilized 100% of your body. You are on the way to regaining your birthright: using your body in the full range of motion that it was designed for. Muscle soreness is a buildup of lactic acid. What's the best way to get rid of the lactic acid? Streching. It may seem impossible to imagine that coming back for more will help, but it is THE BEST way to relieve the soreness. If you wait too long to come back, then you will be starting all over again.

What should I do after class?

• Cool Down
• Drink plenty of water
• Come back the next day, even if you're sore.

Do I need to drink water before class?

Drink plenty of water. You can lose up to 3-5 pounds of water-weight during a class. This is NOT a good weight to lose. It is easy to get dehydrated, so make sure you are drinking plenty of water after class and the entire day before you come to class. You are less lifely to feel lightheaded or dizzy during class if you've had enough to drink in the hours proceeding class.

How much water is enough?

This is going to carry on a person by person basis. Typically a good formula is take your body weight and divide by 2. This is how many ounces of water you should consume daily. Here's an example: 140 lb/2 = 70 oz. 64 oz is a half gallon. Seem like a lot? Remember our bodies are mostly water. Being fully hydrated helps take pressure off of organs to do their jobs and helps flush the body and keep it running smoothly. The most typical exuse for not drinking is the increased visits to the resroom. Your body will adjust to the increased water intake. You may also find benefits of decreased body odor, smoother skin, and shinier hair.

Why is it important to practice yoga with a Certified Instructor?

Every Bikram's Yoga College of India is directly affiliated with Bikram Choudhury, creator of Bikram Method Yoga. All instructors are personally trained and certified by Bikram to ensure his methods and philosophy are preserved and properly taught. Certified instructors have a continuing connection to Bikram Choudhury and his training staff, allowing the certified studio to draw from all of the resources Bikram's training centre has to offer. Anyone can claim they teach "Bikram Yoga", but unless there is a certified instructor supervising how and what is taught at the studio, you are not getting true Bikram Method Yoga.

How does Bikram Yoga work?

By the tourniquet effect: stretching, balancing (using gravity), and creating pressure all at the same time. The blood supply in arteries and veins is being cut off, creating pressure. When released, a lock gate effect is created, causing blood to rush through veins and arteries, flushing them out. Also, pressure is applied to the heart by its relative position to the rest of the body.

Will I feel nauseus or dizzy during class and will I be tired after my first class?

It is not unusual to feel nauseous or dizzy during your first class. Practicing yoga in a heated room reveals to us our present condition, and inspires us take much better care of ourselves.

Usually the problem is that we do not drink enough water for daily living, let alone for exercising in a heated room. Nutritionists tell us that we need 64-80 ounces of water a day to help the body function properly.

In the heated yoga room, your body needs adequate fund of water to allow perspiration to release heat from the body as you practice. So we estimate you need another 64-80 ounces (sometime during the day) to allow for your 90 minutes in the room. Once you are drinking enough water your body will tolerate the heat better and you will actually enjoy the heat.

If you feel disoriented or like you need a good nap after your first few classes, this is likely because your body has begun to cleanse itself as a result of the yoga practice. Don't be scared. After the first few classes this sensation will pass. The more you can relax as you give your 110% honest effort during class, the more energized you will feel throughout the class and throughout the rest of your day.

Please explain 80/20 breathing?

80-20: In this method of breathing, you take in a full breath. Go to the posture and continuously let out 20 percent of the air through your nose with your mouth closed. In postures that require 80-20 breathing, you need oxygen in the lungs to do the posture, so you will be able to maintain proper strength while performing the posture.

I've been experiencing tremendous pain in my hamstrings since I've started Bikram Yoga. What should I do?

Bikram says, "It's not what you do, but how you do." So don't let the mind wander during practice. Don't be too aggressive or impatient, either. The only time you will hurt yourself (create a sprain or pull) is if you overuse your strength or do postures mindlessly. Think of alignment. Biomechanically you are very safe if you do postures in alignment.

Muscle imbalance creates a lot of problems. Check to make sure there is good alignment with the left and right side of the quads. Balance with the foot in alignment and the weight in alignment. Remember, the body follows the eyes. Be careful to do the postures correctly, because you are creating an imprint that is hard to undo.

Breath is the only way to affect the involuntary systems. Oxygen deprivation is a major cause of spasms, other muscle pains, and sciatica. Use breath to break through fear of pain-- sigh a relaxed sigh. Deep diaphragmatic breathing is best when dealing with lots of resistance. Send the breath there--breathe through the nose.

And finally, honor your boundaries, but expect them to expand. Have faith!

I have bad knees. I experience bad knee pain. Can Bikram Yoga help me?

Whether the knees are arthritic or injured, Bikram yoga will definitely help. Bikram actually healed his knee, which was crushed by a 300 pound weight, with his guru's help doing yoga. You must move the knees to get circulation to them, and Bikram's yoga helps you do both.

So how should you proceed? Make sure to listen carefully to the alignment instructions in each posture. When you are told to keep your feet parallel in standing postures, please do so. A half inch in either direction away from parallel has its effects all the way up the knees and into the hips.

In standing balancing postures, it is also important to keep the standing foot straight and the standing knee pointing straight ahead. If your knee bows back (hyperextension) you should bring the weight forwards towards the toes so as to engage the quadriceps muscle ("lock the knee") and lift the kneecap upwards. This action brings the leg into one line and brings true strength to the knees.

When you are bending your knees in any of the standing postures, keep the knees pointed over the toes.This will ensure that the knees and hips are strengthened evenly inside and out.

In triangle, when you are told to push your hips forward as you bend your front knee, this will keep your hip in line with your knee in line with your foot. This is also good for even strengthening of hip and knee joints.

In some of the standing postures, it might be very difficult to bend your knee to a 90 degree angle. So do the best you can without creating pain. Better to keep proper alignment bending 1% than to go 100% in poor alignment.

In the floor poses, notably fixed firm, half tortoise and perhaps rabbit, it might be difficult for you to bend your knees enough that the hips sit on the heels. To test your knee flexibility, keep lots of weight in your hands and bend the knees gradually to the point (but not past) of pain. You must be able to relax and breathe in the posture, holding it steady, for anything to happen. As the pain decreases and you start feeling more comfortable, you can gradually take the weight out of your hands and allow more pressure on the knees. Eventually you'll be able to go all the way into the posture, and you won't even remember the time when you couldn't even sit down!

You'll find that little by little your knee pain goes away and soon you'll realize that you can walk, climb up and go down stairs, even run a little without pain!

My back hurts after I practise Bikram Yoga. Do you have any suggestions?

Please follow the instructions carefully when you are doing forward bends. For example, in the half moon--padahastasana series, the instructions are to bring your torso on your thighs, chest to the knees, no light space anywhere between the torso and the thighs. If you try to straighten your legs without having this first part accomplished, you can create pain in your lower back. Also keep in mind the instruction "360 degrees stretching." What that means is to make the stretch even throughout the whole back side of the body. (See previous question for more details).

You also want to follow these guidelines in separate leg stretching. Bikram says, "Suck in your stomach and bend your upper body down from your lower spine towards the floor." It is difficult to suck in your stomach unless you exhale, so make sure to exhale as you fold forward. When you suck in your stomach, it supports the whole pelvis to roll forwards with the rest of your spine--this eliminates strain in the lower back.

Working carefully, mindfully, allowing your breath to flow with your movement will help you to gradually deepen your experience of the postures.

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Nicola J Bloedel Photography - email: bloedelphotography@optusnet.com.au

Photographs reproduced courtesy of Esak Garcia