Ask The Hot Yoga Doctor!

saddle bag problem causing disfigured thigh

2008-05-10T04:33:03Z

Hi,

I have the problem of disfigured thighs due to saddle.Just to depict how it looks like I am attaching a pic showing this disorder. Friends have recommended me to undergo liposuction but since it is a fat reduction technique its of no use to me as i am very slim. I think in my case its due to muscle or the bone structure like that. I have heard of trikonasana and started practising. Please suggest some remedy

fused disks

2008-05-08T08:42:52Z

Hi Gabrielle,
I was hoping you could give me some advice on a certain restriction of one of my students.

This particular student has been coming to our studio for about two years now. She is in great shape and has a dedicated practice, but struggles with those postures, this one in particular, where you are instructed to tuck your chin to your chest, and compress your throat.

This student has fused disks in her neck. She has very little, if any, range of motion in her neck which inhibits her from being able to tuck her chin to her chest, thus losing what seems to be the primary, and extremely important benefits of this posture. When she tries to drop her head backward during the backbends, her flexibility is a little bit better, but is still a significant problem.

This student is a quiet, patient and positive woman who has never once complained about her situation. I would love to give her a modification for this pose, and for those others with the compression in the throat, but I have no idea what would create the same effect. I would greatly appreciate any advice or instruction you could give on this matter.

thank you so much,
sincerely,
susan

What do you do when the tears come???

2008-05-07T03:56:55Z

I live rurally (the boondocks), and have set myself up to do a 60 day challenge at home,(no fancy Yoga studios round these parts). I’ve been off to the library and borrowed 2 Bikram Choudhary books, got myself a heater, mat & towel and am up to day 6 tomorrow. Love it. Can someone please explain exactly what you do, when the tears and emotions start coming out. Today in triangle pose, when coming up to standing straight after the first set, I had a profoundly good, yet,...hard to really say, moment?? My question is though, do I just keep going, or rest, or go into it, or stand there crying, or continue crying whilst trying to maintain the next pose???? What happens in the hot yoga studio classes, when people have a release of sorts?

Heart Condition (Hot Yoga)

2008-05-09T07:41:02Z

I have wanted to know if it is ok to do hot yoga if you have a heart condition. I have cardiomyoapthy (enlarged heart)I have spoken to my doctor, but as you all may know if you are on the alternative path of tring to find out more about your body rather then listen to doctors to some extent. She says no but I feel that It should be ok. Can I get some feed back on this by an expert who may know.

arms behind the calf muscles

2008-04-22T18:37:23Z

I can not wrap my arms behind my calfs. How do I approach this?
Then when I straighten the legs lock the knees the arms are no where near the calf muscles.

Ultimately, I want to get the benefit of the posture. Any advice?

Trouble with legs

2008-03-06T08:49:52Z

Is there any trick to getting your legs twisted the correct way? I’m pretty close with my arms and hands, but I’m very frustrated with the lower half. I can get my foot next to my calf, but I don’t ever see it going behind the calf .

My instructor keeps telling me to squat down lower and raise my leg higher over the standing leg, but it doesn’t seem to work. It’s getting to where I just dread doing the pose and can’t wait till it’s over.

I’ve only been practicing Bikram for 4 months, and I know I should be patient, but this pose just frustrates me!

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Barb

slipping and sliding feet

2008-05-07T10:12:34Z

I’m now 10 classes into taking bikram yoga and the triangle pose gives me the most trouble and I don’t know what to do. My feet (and the dripping from my legs) are so sweaty that I can’t stay in place to get good form for the triangle pose. Any suggestions to stay in one place? Should I move so that my straight-legged foot is on my mat and not on the side of my mat. Or do I just keep doing it the way the instructor says until my inner thighs are strong enough to overcome slippage?

Thanks,

Jill

Lock the Knee

2008-03-06T04:49:37Z

“Lock your knee.” This is very difficult to understand. Been told for years to never do this. Please help me understand.
Posted by Matt on 01/21 at 10:56 AM

Hello Matt

Thanks for the question. I am going to assume that you are asking about the ramifications of locking the knee and not the anatomy of the knee!

Firstly, I think you have something there. There are lots of commands in the Hot Yoga room about locking the knee. I know that many people I have spoken to have also not really understood. When I started teaching I noticed that many were pushing their knee backwards, their knee joint locking the leg straight. Furthermore, with another too frequent command to “shift the weight” to one leg meant that students were leaning into one leg using the bones and joints to support them without necessarily using their muscles.

Effective knee locking can only benefit you if you engage and work your muscles. I prefer to tell my students to “pull up your kneecap with your quadriceps muscles”.

Locking the knee can be a controversial action to some. Your ability to have any sort of shock absorption in the leg is going to be greatly compromised (or non-existent) if the leg is locked. If you are walking, running and jumping you need your muscles, and joints and other structures to absorb some of the shock. If you are standing doing a yoga pose building balance, or building leg strength for only one example, then having a firm leg is going to do more for you. You will encourage strength, stability, stamina in those muscles, and you will effectively remove a linkage in your leg (by locking the joint) and make balance more likely. It seems that if you want to build optimal strength in your leg (and open up your knee joint area) then at some stage you are going to need to lock your knee.

There are many conditions where a locked knee is a symptom of an underlying more serious problem. This would be where the leg can neither straighten or bend (to some degree). So possibly some may be confusing the requirement to lock the knee in Hot Yoga poses with these problems.

Please let me know if that answers your question
Namaste
Gabrielle

pain during stretch

2008-05-04T01:14:25Z

Hi there. I have been practising a few times a week for the past 3 months. I have developed a new problem with this asana. I used to be able to touch my forehead to the floor without too much difficulty. In the last couple of weeks it has become much more difficult and a few times I have “pulled” the back of my right upper leg. Is that the hamstring ? I am wondering what I am doing wrong. I realise our bodies are different from day to day, but this seems more than that. Today something in the back of my leg felt as if it popped & it made certain parts of the rest of the class difficult. Last time I did this, it was ok after a few days rest. It is still sore but I can walk etc no problem. Thanks

So what do you wear?

2008-03-06T06:18:14Z

Posted by Eve

I am just wondering what people wear during their hot yoga?

Thanks ~eve~
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Argue for your limitations, and sure enough they are yours.

R. Bach