The Hot Yoga Doctor – Free Bikram and Hot Yoga Resources › Hot Yoga Doctor Forum › General Hot Yoga Discussion › Hot Yoga *faq* › Facial swelling
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This is probably an odd question. I’ve only been doing hot yoga a few weeks and I take classes in the evening. The next morning and continuing thru the day, I find my face is swollen, particularly around the eyes. I really look like I’ve taken a beating after a class. Why am I retaining fluid? I’m sure the answer is probably more hydration, but I feel like I drink quite a lot before class and after. I’m wondering if anyone else has this issue?
Hello cory
This is a problem I have not encountered before.
What is your electrolyte consumption like? How much water are you drinking? Are there any other areas of the body that are *retaining* fluid? Questions and more questions…
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂Hi Gabrielle!
Yeah, if there is a strange reaction to something, my body will find it!
I haven’t really measured how much water I drink before class but I try to get in 4 glasses before and maybe 64 ounces after class and before bed. As for electrolytes, I don’t do any before or after. Perhaps I should? My face looks puffy and my eyes swell a bit, but I haven’t noticed swelling anywhere else, in fact my stomach is always considerably less bloated after a class. My husband always comments how exhausted I look after class (thanks, dear) and I notice the next morning I have more than usual undereye puffiness.
Another thought is, since I usually have difficulty sleeping after a night class, maybe the puffiness is related to not enough quality sleep?
I appreciate your thoughts. I’ve found this website extremely helpful in my practice.
Cory
You know, now that I’m thinking about it, I have another thing to add. I also get a pretty bad headache after every class. The only time I didn’t get the headache was when the heater was broken and the temperature was only 95. I felt GREAT after that class and like a damp dishrag after every 105 degree class. Could this be an electrolyte imbalance issue? I feel like I’m getting enough water….
Thanks!
Cory
Hi Cory
Hmmm… lots of issues here that may or not be related.
I know for myself that I get headaches when I have physical cleansing to do (typically if I haven’t done the yoga for a while after non-yoga holidays for eg). You are at the beginning of your yoga practice so you may simply have lots of *stuff* that needs to come out. The heat facilitates a deeper practice with enhanced benefits that happen more quickly. This could be the reason you didn’t have the headache after the low-temp class.
You know if you are drinking enough water if your urine is a straw to clear color. You seem to be drinking enough but I would definitely invest in some Emergen-C or some other electrolyte supplement.
The other thing you may want to consider is trying to get to classes in the first part of the day. You will probably find an improvement in your sleep patterns. And I suspect, if the puffiness is only about your yoga (and I cannot be sure) then it should be lessen through the day. As you may be intimating, the puffiness could be about lying down to sleep soon(ish) after finishing class.
Try the electrolytes, and try a different class time and please come back and tell us all what works for you…
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂I know this is an old post but the same thing happens to me with my eyes. Any recommendations?
Hi Donna
If you wouldn’t mind spelling out exactly what happens, when, under what circumstances, how long it lasts, how long it takes to dissipate, what electrolytes you choose to take and when do you take them. Anything that you can offer will be really helpful. Start by reading this thread to see if there are any questions that you too could answer.
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂 -
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