Temps too hot / prone poses OK while TTC and pregnant?

Hi Megan

Thank you so much for all the details. Yes, I think the decision has to come down to you and your comfort level. I am very pleased you’ve found some useful guidance on my website.

I too think 115 degrees F is too high. For anyone. For one, combine the high temp with mid-levels of humidity and the conditions serve up a whopping great Heat Index score that is probably a reason you’ve felt faint at times.

Feeling faint is not advisable for any student. It’s especially not advisable (or is not a good sign or something you should unnecessarily put up with) when you’re pregnant.

Consulting your yoga teacher may not get you anywhere. I could be wrong. They could tell you they are happy to reduce the temperature to a reasonable body temp (98ish), but my experience is they are more likely to tell you the temperature is what it’s supposed to be. (Which we know not to be the truth because (if they use the bikram level specified) it’s just a repeated myth that Bikram is performed at a set temperature of 105F.) They may also say “well, nobody else complains and so we’re not changing it.”

Those excuses don’t pass the test for me. Science shows us that 115 is too high. We can get an excellent challenge and that wonderful sweat by manipulating the environment with lower temps and mid-range humidity. And at those levels EVERYONE is safe. Pop the temp up and in normal circumstances, maybe a few people are at high or moderate risk (and maybe more). Are they willing to put up with heightening the risk, even if for a few people?

Several years ago, a man on the forum complained of a sore neck where he couldn’t turn his head after class and he experienced a little dizziness/confusion after class. He was in all likelihood playing with a deathly scenario. He was unwilling to admit the super high temps would be the reason largely because nobody else was complaining.

Another litmus test is to ask you these questions: Can all students get through the class without a break? Are there people who have to stop for a breather every so often? Some people use the expression ‘dropping like flies’ or ‘taking a knee’. Anything like that happening in your studio?

As I sit here writing this to you, I realise you can use the Bikram dogma ingrained in so many teachers and studios to support your case. You could approach them and say: “In most Bikram or hot yoga websites the world over, the temperature quoted is 105F . You appear to be heating to 115F. What is the rationale for going above and beyond the 105F? And why, if heat stroke and irreversible damage COULD reasonably occur in students whose body temperatures rise above 40C or 104F would you be risking students’ health?”

I believe 105F is unnecessarily high and introduces physiological challenge way beyond a more therapeutic 98 level and provides a mental challenge that requires you to STOP listening to your body–so completely goes against yogic principles.

If you’re used to bypassing your body’s signals, how will you be being pregnant?

I suggest that you look up hyperthermia (not hypothermia) and heat stroke.

This is copied from Wikipedia for you:

Exertional Heat Stroke

“Significant physical exertion in hot conditions can generate heat beyond the ability to cool, because, in addition to the heat, humidity of the environment may reduce the efficiency of the body’s normal cooling mechanisms.^[8] Human heat-loss mechanisms are limited primarily to sweating (which dissipates heat by evaporation, assuming sufficiently low humidity) and vasodilation of skin vessels (which dissipates heat by convection proportional to the temperature difference between the body and its surroundings, according to Newton’s law of cooling). Other factors, such as insufficient water intake, consuming alcohol, or lack of air conditioning, can worsen the problem.

“The increase in body temperature that results from a breakdown in thermoregulation affects the body biochemically. Enzymes involved in metabolic pathways within the body such as cellular respiration fail to work effectively at higher temperatures, and further increases can lead them to denature, reducing their ability to catalyse essential chemical reactions. This loss of enzymatic control affects the functioning of major organs with high energy demands such as the heart and brain.”

As far as yoga poses are concerned, I think it’s generally what you’re comfortable with. If you’re TTC there really isn’t a pose I can think of I wouldn’t do. You won’t be lying on your tummy at some point during your pregnancy. For me that was half way.

I’m wondering if there’s another studio where you can test what it’s like to practise at a temp of <100F. I would be so curious to see if you sweat as much. Generally after 2 weeks of commencing your practice, your acclimatization process is about over and the sweating settles down. Did that happen to you at all, or did you always sweat a lot. Of course, I imagine you realise you need to compensate for lost electrolytes. Are you taking something?

You see, you may not be a ‘salty sweater’ but you could–like thousands of hot yogis around the world–have low grade chronic heat exhaustion. Not enough to make you obviously sick but enough to have some effect. That’s why I am asking you if you could try practising in conditions that are not as hot to see if we can rule heat exhaustion out.

I know this may scare you a bit, but I would rather you be aware of the risks and make an informed decision. I did another search and came up with a neat page for you to read here:

https://www.emedicinehealth.com/heat_exhaustion_vs_heat_stroke_comparison/article_em.htm#what_causes_heat_exhaustion_and_heat_stroke

Interested to hear your thoughts on all the above and read answers to some of those questions!

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂