New exercise programs have been popping up at every street corner in Toronto. Everything from flying yoga to crossfit to Studio Lagree are all opening up new studios to help Torontonians get fit. While I love trying new programs, one thing I have stuck to for years is hot yoga because it just makes me feel great.
Traditionally, there are two types of hot yoga – Moksha and Bikram – however these days some yoga studios just heat up a room and call the class hot yoga. Personally I stay away from those because I never feel like I’m getting the maximum benefits that both the original practices deliver.
So what are the differences between the two original hot yoga practices? Well, there are many so I broke it down to make it easy for anyone who isn’t a yogi but is thinking of trying a hot yoga class.
Bikram Yoga
This is the original hot yoga created by Bikram Choudhury based around traditional hatha yoga techniques. All Bikram Yoga classes are 90 minutes, where students practice the same series of 26 postures, including two breathing exercises.Bikram is practiced in a room heated to 40 Celcius with a humidity of (at least) 40 percent. The classes can sometimes feel like being in a torture chamber and are very intense for anyone who’s never practiced. However, once you get used to the heat and the flow of exercises, it’s the best workout and detox, and you’ll truly feel fantastic after. Results are great in terms of balance, flexibility, mind focus – I enter the Bikram room and leave everything behind. Those 90 minutes are all about me and I leave much more focused and calm.
Moksha Yoga
This practice is much different in the sense that the classes are not necessarily 90 minutes, nor do they follow the same postures like in Bikram. This style of yoga is performed in a room just as hot as the Bikram room, though I often find Moksha rooms are not as hot because the humidity aspect is not applied as diligently. This makes a Moksha class more bearable for newbees, but perhaps a little more boring for the hardcore Bikram students. The class is either 60 or 90 minutes and follows a series of 40 asanas, but the best part is that teachers are free to bring their own creativity and experience to their classes.
Having been a Bikram advocate for 4 years, I was forced to switch to Moksha when I moved to an area that only offered Moksha. My take? I found that Moksha toned my legs and core muscles a lot more than Bikram, however I miss the intensity and focus that I get from Bikram. So anyone who is looking to start hot yoga, go for Moksha first… if that’s too easy, then you know you’re ready for Bikram.
Are you a die hard Bikram Yoga or Moksha Yoga fan? Let us know in the comments below or tweet us @ViewTheVibe.