Hot yoga

“In the middle of our life’s journey
I found myself inside a dark forest,
For the direct path has been lost.

Thus begins one of the most famous works of the 14th century, Dante Alighieri’s poemHell. This recently came to mind, not because trying all these different forms of exercise is like visiting the nine circles of hell, but because, being middle-aged myself, I, like Dante, have been on a journey (of exploring exercises) and found myself in a dark forest (yoga studio). Is hot!

Arriving at Beyoutiful Hot Yoga in the dark at 5:20am for a 5:30am class, it was immediately clear that this was a dedicated group, as I was far from the first person to arrive. In keeping with my theme of having an exercise buddy, I met my friend Linda Rohlinger in the parking lot and we walked in together. After signing the mandatory medical release form (does anyone actually read these things?) and storing my things in the lobby cubicles, I grabbed my yoga mat and headed into the studio.

While not technically hell, when I first entered the studio I was hit by a wall of heat that felt both suffocating and relaxing. I later found out that their goal is 105 degrees with 30-40% humidity. Owners Wes and Mimi Vemont (who opened their first Hot Yoga studio in 2013) assured me that the purpose of heat is actually to make it safer and more effective. By warming up your muscles, it increases circulation and flexibility for safer stretching. I think a lot of people come from the perspective that Hot Yoga is kind of extra challenging yoga or more advanced yoga or something that adds some level of torture to yoga. [but] We found that the level of injuries is significantly lower than in yoga classes that are not heated, according to Wes. However, I’m not sure I would recommend it to anyone who might be prone to overheating or fainting. In fact, before we started, our instructor kindly gave us advice on what to do if we felt like we were going to pass out.

In addition to being very hot, the studio was dimly lit with soft music playing in the background (which must be some kind of prerequisite for yoga studios). My first class was Hatha-style yoga, and overall I was impressed that the classes included almost as many men as women. Everyone looked fit and somehow ageless, as yoga practitioners tend to do. Our instructor had a very calm voice and led us through a series of 26 hatha poses that proved to be very challenging and sweat-inducing. Let’s just say that by the end of the hour I was a puddle.

My friend Linda really encouraged me to try several classes at Beyoutiful Hot Yoga because, as she explained, “they’re all so different! So in addition to the Hatha class, I took a Vinyasa Yoga class (same 26 poses, but more fluid). y), a Yin (gentle stretching) class, and an Inferno Hot Pilates class. And in fact, they were all quite different from the quiet, contemplative Yin class, where each stretch was held for so long that I wondered if the Instructor had fallen asleep until the end. Much more social Pilates class, with blaring, hardcore music that, judging by the attire, must have been sponsored by Lululemon. However, they were all extremely good workouts that focused on strength as well as flexibility and in balance, while also leaving me soaking wet. I can honestly say that if your direct path to fitness has been lost, you might really like to shake things up by finding a Hot Yoga class.

THE GOOD: Accessibility and convenience. The cost is just $20 to $29 per in-person class depending on how many you purchase (or there is a monthly plan option) and classes are offered at different times, from early morning to evening, to suit almost any time.

THE EVIL: Probably not for someone completely new to exercise or with significant health issues. These are challenging workouts!

THE CORE OF THE MATTER: With a wide variety of classes (I haven’t tried them all!) to keep things interesting, hot yoga is great for those, like me, who want to avoid losing strength and flexibility as we age.

Dr. Emry is a family physician and partner at Ironwood Family Practice in Coeur dAlene. Exercise Explorer MD will appear every two weeks in the press and Dr. Emry can be contacted at exerciexplorermd@gmail.com. 2023. This work is licensed under a CC BY-ND 4.0 license.