Bikram Yoga and Philosophy

[NatKat]

#9689

Great thread!
Both sides of this debate resonate with my experiences – I have found both loving & supportive Bikram teachers as well as abrasive “militaristic” and possibly money-hungry ones.

I started Bikram at a wonderful studio in a large city. I had 2 favorite teachers & felt total love and encouragement in their classes. The rigidity of the programme is simply to push lazy Americans past their comfort level. Truly, we moderns are the only people in the history of the planet to expect everything in life to be pleasant, easy, soft, and comfortable. It taks “push” to get beyond this TV & convenience-food mindset. My favorite teachers were also skilled in demonstrating and correcting alignment when I had questions or made mistakes.
At this same studio was 1 teacher I disliked. I avoided her classes. I found her rude, abrasive, insenstive.
I moved from that city and did not practice for several years. Just yesterday I started practice again for health reasons.

I have mixed feelings about this new studio. The manager seems money-hungry … but I don’t blame her. It is a tough business. Sweetness and love will not pay an expensive lease. I estimate the build-out costs 30k minimum. I forgive “money hungry” studio owners unless they are outright rip-offs. Most are losing sleep trying to stay ahead of lease and buildout costs, pay staff, etc.

What bothered me more about this teacher was negativity during teaching and lack of ability to demonstrate a pose. This teacher recited from rote – not really “present”. When a personal anecdote was told – it seemed negative in nature. My previous teachers told inspiring anecdotes if they veered into the personal. Possibly this teacher/manager is just burnt-out and can’t afford to hire more staff. OK, fair enough.

What totally disturbed me was: I had a specific question about a pose and this teacher didn’t answer it and seemed unwilling or unable to actually demonstrate the pose. At my previous studio, even the teacher I “hated” was competent at demonstrating poses. Most of the teachers in my old studio did 1 repetition of each pose to demo. This teacher sat down most of the class and did NO demonstration.

In any case, I don’t care for the new studio and it is a long drive from my small town so am researching how to heat my home dance studio. I love Bikram, love the philosophy, but have encountered a wide range of talent, skill, and compassion in the teachers.

Will stay at this new studio for now. I can ignore what I dislike about the teacher at least temporarily. Also, it is unfair to judge after only 1 class. My experience may improve. OTOH, if I am going to practice with no demonstration or real guidance, I might as well do it at home with Bikram’s book & CD and save myself the gas money and commute time!

[ashwinkn.ash]

#9695

hi i’ve thoracic ‘s’ shaped scoliosis wat to do???? plz say!!!! i’m very much upset by this!!!

[ashwinkn.ash]

#9696

hi i’ve thoracic ‘s’ shaped scoliosis wat to do???? plz say!!!! i’m very much upset by this!!! plz reply !!!!!

[ashwinkn.ash]

#9697

reply please………..

[Robert Scanlon (Webmaster)]

#9698

I’m sorry for the delay. Gabrielle has been running a Teacher Training program in Costa Rica for the last 4 weeks and has a backlog of forum posts to attend to.

She will be travelling over the next 3 days and will probably not get to this post until Monday next week.

In the meantime I will move it to a more appropriate place – and recommend if you haven’t done so already, please use the search function in this forum (for “scoliosis”) where you will most certainly find more threads.

Namaste

[kikuka]

#9810

Hi everyone.

I am new to hot yoga, but I hope you don;t mind me making an observation. I don’t doubt that there are teachers and studios that are less than excellent and I am sorry for those with bad experiences. I send my best hopes that they have better experiences in the future.

I am lucky – my studio does hot yoga rather than Bikram, but it suits me, the teachers are wonderful (and all different) and I am learing so much. One thing that does seem important to me at least, within this debate is personal confidence. I was not physically confident, having been very overweight for a long time, and could easily have been bullied into pushing myself too far based on secret inner thoughts that I was not worthy to be in the class, that it was only for fit, slim people, etc. Fortunately, my lovely teachers aproached me in the right way, with a combination of encouragement and correction, and my physical confidence is growing. I am learning that I am OK to say no when I can’t go any further without judgement, and if they do judge – so what? I am more confident to lie down if I feel I need to without those negative thoughts I was plagued with before.

Perhaps this is the essential (and most difficult to define?) skill a yoga teacher should have – the ability to instill that personal and physical confidence into his/her students so that they can set their own challenges and limits based on what they feel on the day.

[cheermom1963]

#9811

Love Love Love this thread!!

There are so many different points of view here and I believe each and every one is correct….for that person. Im still a newbie, Ive only attended 5 classes but fact of the matter is that after saying I was not coming back after the first class….I DID!!! So I truly believe that you cant make a decision on Bikram in just one, two or three classes because you’re just learning. Learning takes time and you need to give yourself that and the instructors that chance.

I too am lucky enough to have a studio that is very in tune with the students. There was a first timer at class last night who almost got up and walked out, and instead of singling her out in front of the rest of the students, the instructor slowly walked up the student while still giving dialogue, told her to sit for a few minutes, and gave her a bottle of water. She often went over to check on her throughout the class as well. The student remained in the class to the end.

So I guess you need to have all aspects in place at the right time: 1. the will and determination to learn Bikram’s yoga, 2. the understanding that you can’t learn nor appreciate the practice in 1 class, and 3. have a studio available that fits your needs and comfort level.

[tamatai2002]

#9866

I had a very bad experience yesterday in my Bikram yoga class. My class was extended by more than 90 minutes, this class finish at 6: 00 pm. I had the commitment to pick up my grandson at 6: 30 pm. It was already 6: 10pm we were still I the 23 posture plus we need it more time for the savasana. As I realized that I couldn’t stay in the class more time I started to get out of the class at 6: 10 pm and then the instructor approached to me and asked me the reason why I was leaving the class, I told her I had to pick up my grandson and I would be late because the class ends at 6:00 pm (sometimes the class extended a few more minutes but it is fine), she replied in haughty tone that class still did not end and needed to finish the class and if I could not do it was better to not return.
What a bad experience!

[Gabrielle (The Hot Yoga Doctor)]

#9868

Hi Maria

What can I say? I hate bullies. OK, so hate is a strong word. And I hate the behavior of bullies! 😉 But I bet you felt really peed off to say the least.

I guess one gets left wondering in times like this: Is that yoga? Is that the kind of person I want to facilitate my yoga class?

BTW Was that the owner?

Here’s the thing: You go to class and you have an implied contract of sorts. They contract to start a class and finish a class at certain times. You make a decision to attend based on that offering because it fits into YOUR life.

Simple really. How arrogant to assume that you are there to have whatever crap she has to dish out, despite the fact that SHE was wrong.

There, I have said it. I have had it ‘up to here’ with this kind of abusive nonsense. You are the customer not a punching bag.

So, are you going to approach the owner?

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

[msully76]

#11146

After reading some of these stories I thought that I would respond. I started Bikram yoga 5 years ago, 3-4 days a week and loved it. After 2 1/2 years I left because it no longer was for me. I no longer enjoyed the classes because of the toll it took on my body, I was loosing as much as 9 lbs pre class and was just wiped out for the rest of the day. I found other forms of yoga that I fell in love with for the next 2 years that included hot power yoga, not nearly as hot as Bikram. I have however, returned to Bikram but on a limited basis. 1-2 times per week with at least 3 days in between classes while still practicing other forms. I have found that this has been the best combination for me as I am enjoying Bikram yoga as much as I ever have. Based on my experience I would say to anyone practicing any form of yoga something one of my instructors (hatha flow) says all the time. ” THIS IS YOUR PRACTICE SO YOU DECIDE WHAT IS BEST FOR YOU”. I have taken this to my Bikram practice and has worked well. I know that Bikram can be strict but we all need to take care of US. Don’t be bullied. If you are sick LEAVE the room. If you can’t lock your knees, DON’T. Do what you can do and know that is beneficial.

[Gabrielle (The Hot Yoga Doctor)]

#11149

Hi Mark

I am so pleased you have found a way to balance your practice. It’s nice to have you back on the forum after your little hiatus! I checked your old posts and found you were here posting way back in 2010! I do want to add something that I hope can give some clarity to the many issues that you have hinted at in your response!

For me you are implying that you have felt bullied and that the environment was more strict than you would like. This tends to be part of the Bikram culture for many studios: The teachers demand instead of suggest. Mandate instead of lead. I do know from experience that one can have tremendous discipline in a class yet still feel incredibly free as a student to do what one needs (within the bounds of well instructed precise commands). As you may have read elsewhere, I believe that some things need never be suggested as forbidden activities. The less spoken about the less they tend to happen. In my studios we never said “you may not leave the room”. Yet students rarely did. The caring of the students was paramount without any stick needed.

Quite separate from the issues of deciding what is best for you (a responsibility with which I believe most students can admirably cope) is the issue of needing quite some time to recover from class and the fact that the class took its toll on your body. These are issues of either/and/or a dose of heat exhaustion because the studio is being heated(along with the humidity) at a level that is too high for your body. The other is that potentially incorrect techniques are not being corrected by the instructors so that your body is paying a price.

Without further conversations I cannot give you any definitive opinion, just that these are very big possibilities.

I would love to know however if coming back to your practice you lose the same amount of sweat as you did before (you mentioned it in your old posts too so that’s why I am interested).

Thank you for posting and welcome back to your practice. Yay

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

[msully76]

#11150

Thank you so much for replying so quickly. I have been back to Bikram for 6 weeks now attending perhaps 15 classes in that time. Yes I still have a water loss each class that averages 7 Lbs per class with one class as high as 10 so the water loss is the same as it was several years ago when I was practicing 3-4 days per week. I don’t believe the room is any hotter than any other time as I have stayed at the same studio. My recovery time after class has not been as difficult as it once was and I think this is because of better diet and doing other types of yoga that has actually made me stronger and thus made the poses a bit easier. I am well aware of hydration methods beyond just water to make sure I am replacing electrolytes as well. I eat spinach and broccoli and other vegetables daily as well as fruit. I only use natural sea salt and add that to my water along with lemon and some energen C powder. That being said I am enjoying Bikram yoga again but can’t participate more than 2x a week. I know my sweat glands are working.

[luv2yoga]

#11217

Hi I was wondering do you still have the issue with the water loss? Also do you have low blood pressure?

For me, I sweat buckets of water, but show very little weight loss on the scale, maybe 2-3 pounds. I don’t even check no more, not interested. I know if I don’t replenish quickly with water and lemon juice, etc. I am going to eat like a pig in about an hour. Well good luck, this is an interesting post, I ask my self some of these questions and look at people in the studio, wondering am I the only one thinking about these things, everyone is floating on air, and can’t wait to get back, I dare not bring up the topic.

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