TheHotYogaDoctor

hi there

i am 32 years old… i danced, played sports, ran competitively my entire life till the age of approx 25 when a knee injury slowed me down…i heard about hot yoga and have been practicing bikram yoga in the hot studio now for approx 2 years 3-5 times a week depending on my schedule and i am really, really loving it….it has changed my life..i never liked yoga before as i like an intense workout and always found yoga to be easier for me no matter how hard i pushed but being in the heat has changed that…i love to challenge myself through the class and have only increased my flexibility and stamina…i feel like i am in the best shape of my life..however i am considering getting pregnant soon and i have heard you cannot practice hot yoga while pregnant…is this true??  if so can i still practice bikram yoga without the heat??  and if not do you have any suggestions as to what i can/should do while pregnant without being bored in a prenatal kind of class…..although…this will be my first pregnancy and i know i might feel differently when i am going through it, but i just want to know my options now and then play it out as it happens…

thanx trace

Hello trace

You have done so much Bikram yoga in the hot room that you should be able to continue. I generally tell women to go with what they know. So if they are 3 months pregnant and have never done HY before then maybe it is better to wait. But you have 2 years’ experience under your belt.

My story: I practiced Bikram Yoga between 2-5 times per week when I was pregnant. Plus I was teaching several classes per week. I went to pregnancy yoga - and yes, I thought it was boring. But it gave me a great opportunity to meet other first-time moms. And I learned some stuff that I incorporated into my Bikram series while everyone else was lying on their tummies - which I couldn’t do after about month 4.5. The Bikram series doesn’t really address any pelvic opening moves to facilitate childbirth, so I created that for myself.

Doing this yoga was absolutely the best thing I possibly could have done. Pranayama breathing is a gift and allows you to perfuse your whole body and that of your baby with beautiful life-giving breath.

There will undoubtedly be some modifications for you and your pregnant form. But rest assured you can do 90 minutes of wonderful yoga in that heat.

Come back and tell us what happens

Namaste
Gabrielle

thanks so much for clearing that up for me…that makes me so happy to know i can conitinue in the heat…i am however very in tune with my body and will not do anything i feel is not working for me when and if i do get pregnant… i will definately let you know how it goes although i’m not sure how long it will take to get me there in the first place…lol..but in the meantime i will keep practicing and maybe get a preganancy class lined up for the other benefits you mentioned to add to my regular routine… thanks again you’re a great help

thank you again for replying to my post on getting pregnant.  i am so happy with the answer but after thinking a bit more i want to reassure myself that there are no postures i have to be eliminating right? (other than modifying some if my belly was to get in the way of course). i have heard backward/side bending is dangerous for the fetus as it can tear the placenta away from the uterus, have you ever heard this?  also what if my doctor is not educated in hot yoga and was to tell me not to do it, how should i approach that?  is there a temperature that would be too hot, or would it be based on how i feel?  and would i still just drink water or does the pregnant body need something else with some metabolites in it for a 90 min class?

trace

My wife and me have been on the fertility trail for a long time, both of us are bikram yogis, but I stopped it for a while because the heat is not the best if you have challenges with your sperm count. Didn’t make any difference though and yes she is 10 weeks!

Anyway one of our yoga teachers had a two babies not long ago and she said during her first pregnancy she continued teaching and practicing bikram on a regular basis. She felt great during the pregnancy but the baby was relatively small when she was born. She is healthy no worries. She thought it might have been due to the yoga and stopped practicing and teaching during her second pregnancy. Apparently it made a difference for her.

I am not a doctor, maybe Gabrielle can say something about this?

Hello Trace

There are some poses that you will avoid. But at the moment you don’t need to be concerned with those. You probably wouldn’t be needing to change anything from anywhere from 3-5 months. I stopped doing some poses at around 4 months (of course didn’t lie down on my stomach from then on) and there are other modifications.

You have inspired me to put something together for this. I wanted to keep up my yoga in the hot room and didn’t want to just stand or lie there when the others were doing the poses I was supposed to avoid.

The most influential obstetrician in my region (and the most experienced) tells his patients that they can continue going to Bikram Yoga. I do not know under which conditions the placenta tears away from the uterus. Remember you have been doing this for some time so your body is used to the movements. You have to decide for yourself. Remember the first rule here is to do what you know. I may not be saying the same thing to someone who does not normally do hot yoga or any yoga at all.

When I was pregnant, my body was not happy to be in the studio when it was too hot. I have perfectly controllable temperature so whenever I was teaching or practicing I would drop the temperature to body temperature and no higher. No one complained. Heating a room to 110 degrees F poses a risk for anybody, pregnant or not. So please know what conditions you are practicing in.

Your body will have many demands made on it by the fetus. You are probably already taking folate supplements. Electrolytes of course will be good for you. I took specific pregnancy vitamin supplements but had to stop them as they were too strong and made me so thirsty… Maybe you will find that an organic diet will be sufficient and/or some specific supplementation (iron, folate, b) you can talk to your doc, pharmacist, your friends!

Keep us posted on your *status*

Namaste
Gabrielle

Hello borntosucceed!

Congratulations on your impending addition

I just wanted to comment on your words about the teacher who had 2 babies. I would hate to think that someone would base their decision to practice this yoga on the one story. As all pregnancies are unique it would be difficult to make any kind of statement about how the yoga affected the fetus. With all respect, it does read as though the yoga had something to do with the small size of her baby at birth. One could take the other tack and say that the reason the baby was so healthy was because she did so much yoga! Her second baby is a unique individual with its own DNA and response to its environment. The most important thing is that the teacher did what she had to do.

Namaste
Gabrielle

thank you dr. i will look forward to whatever you come up with/put together on this subject, i assume you meant some kind of modifications/different stretches or poses to do while in class, etc.  anyway thanks again

Hi there,

What about pre conception?  Is it safe to do Bikram whilst trying to fall pregnant?

Thanks
Melissa

Hi Melissa

Yes I believe it is safe to do so. Your body’s systems are being toned to function better. It could actually make conception more likely. I know this has been the case in many women around the world - at least anecdotally as I am unsure as to any clinical trials.

If I can just bring up that it is worth making sure you have the appropriate intake of folic acid and other minerals and vitamins in some kind of supplementation.

I wish you the wonder of a life enriched by being a parent - in whatever form that takes.

Namaste
Gabrielle