By: Devendra Jaiswal
Bikram Choudhry, the founder of Bikram Yoga, was born in Kolkatta in 1946. Who studied Yoga with Bishnu Ghosh, brother of Paramahansa Yogananda (Author of the most popular book on Yoga, The Autobiography of a Yogi, and founder of the Self-Realization Fellowship in Los Angeles). It is a series of 26 poses performed in a room heated from around 95-105 degrees Fahrenheit. Bikram started many training centers for yoga, on the direction of his master Bishnu Gosh. Later, he founded his own system of yoga known as Bikram Yoga.
Bikram practiced Yoga at least four to six hours every day at Ghosh's College of Physical Education in Calcutta. At the age of thirteen, he won the National India Yoga Championship. He was undefeated for the following three years and retired as the undisputed All-India National Yoga Champion. Bikram teaches at the Yoga College of India in Mumbai and other locations around the world, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Paris and Tokyo.
Bikram has designed a sequence of 26 yoga postures (or asana) and two breathing exercises that are performed in a heated room. The postures are vigorous and demand a lot from the students. The heated room, typically around 95-105 °F (35-40 °C), makes muscles more pliant and encourages sweating which purportedly acts as a purifier. People of all levels, ages and body types practice together with a teacher acting as a guide, taking the class through the ninety-minute series.
Each Yoga Pose is usually performed twice and held for a certain period of time. Their Yoga Sessions start from Standing Postures, then the Backbends, Forward Bends, and Twists. The Poses are accompanied by Kapalabhati Breath or the "breath of fire".
Heat is used in Bikram Yoga in order to allow you to go deeper and safer into a Yoga Pose. Your body becomes more flexible in the heat and since most poses used in Bikram are physically challenging, heat allows you to get into a pose that you never imagined you can do. It also eliminates the risk for injuries, promotes sweating and helps you release the toxins in your body. The poses not only work on your muscles but also your internal organs. Each pose stretches and strengthens your muscles, joints, and ligaments and, at the same time release the toxins and work on your internal organs like the Glands and the Nervous System.
Some people are often discouraged to Practice of Yoga by thinking that they are not flexible enough. Yoga is not about being flexible, but about strengthening your body and your spine in all directions with the goal of creating a union between the body, mind and spirit. All that matters is to try the right way without pushing yourself too far. In practicing, you may wear shorts or leotards or anything you feel comfortable sweating in.
Bikram Yoga is designed to "scientifically" warm and stretch muscles, ligaments and tendons in the order in which they should be stretched. Practice of this Style of Yoga promotes the cleansing of the body, release of toxins and utmost flexibility. It can also reduce stress and increase Blood Circulation. The practice of Bikram Yoga can also help you lose weight and develop toned and strong muscles.
Anyone can practice Bikram Yoga. In even people with chronic diseases such as Arthritis, Diabetes, and thyroid disorders may benefit in doing the Yoga Poses by reducing symptoms and is also one of the best ways to prevent any ailments by keeping the body healthy. In fact, it has helped its founder, Bikram, recover from a serious Knee injury he acquired in his training for weightlifting. He had been told by his doctors that he would never be able to walk again. After consulting with his Yoga teacher, he resumed his Yoga practice and his daily performance of the Asanas allowed him to rebuild his muscle and walk again. Hollywood celebrities, athletes and ordinary people also claimed that the practice of Bikram Yoga helped them in reaching high levels of performance, extend their careers, heal their bodies, achieve mental clarity and increased energy levels.
Bikram Yoga Classes uses the same routine every Class. Let your body tell you how often you should practice. Some may find this boring since they feel that they are starting over and over every time they come to class but you should remember to take satisfaction in the small accomplishments you have for repeatedly doing the poses.
