Bikram Commitment.

I've made the decision to commit to going to Bikram Yoga every single day this week. Which means I will have to leave work just before 5pm every day.

This is a huge commitment though. It's 90 minutes of yoga poses in a 110-120 degree room. I am soaked from sweat within the first two poses of the class. My least favorite pose of the class is Dandayamana Janushirasana, the "standing head to knee pose."


It's a balancing pose, and you have to hold it for a full 60 seconds. The balancing leg can not be bent, and the lifted leg has to be locked out and parallel to the floor. Thankfully, the pose comes earlier in the class... So we do it and get it over.

The benefits of the pose are really important:

• Builds mental strength
• Improves concentration
• Unifies mind and body
• Uses all major muscle groups
• Exercises digestive and reproductive organs
• Good for diabetes
• Strengthens back muscles

I started doing bikram about a year and a half ago. I've only been going about four times a month though, until recently. And just in the past few weeks I've gotten much healthier and feel a lot better. When I first began classes in 2004, I was interested in solving my back problems. (Achy and sore back.) Almost immediately I stopped having back problems. I haven't had back problems at all in the past year. There are specific exercises that help strengthen the back muscles.

I highly recommend bikram yoga to anyone who doesn't like the whole "new age-iness" of other types of yoga where you do chanting. I'm not into that. It makes me uncomfortable. Bikram yoga is completely different and is all about cardio and strength building. My goal is to continue to increase my flexibility and develop long, lean muscles.