Hot Yoga Isn’t Any Better for You Than Regular Yoga. So Why Do We Love It So Much?

At age 15, I attended my first yoga class with my dad, who’d been occurring and on about how a lot better he felt mentally and bodily since he began working towards. His ranting bought me curious, so I agreed to check out a 90-minute scorching yoga class with out a lot of a clue what I used to be getting myself into. (I’ve since grow to be an authorized yoga instructor.)

About 20 minutes into the category, I used to be gasping for air, combating the urge to both cross out or hurl.

“This will’t truly be good for you—why do these individuals need to torture themselves like this?” I questioned. However by the point class was over, all of it made sense. I left that room feeling mild as a feather—energized, but relaxed—and I knew I needed to do it once more.

Many individuals I’ve spoken to have had comparable experiences with scorching yoga—it has considerably of an addictive high quality. And on high of the sensation you could have after a category, it’s presupposed to have much more advantages than conventional yoga, like burning extra energy, eliminating extra toxins (dangerous bodily substances), and growing your capacity to stretch within the poses.

However the fact is, analysis exhibits scorching yoga in all probability isn’t any higher for you than working towards yoga at normal temperatures. In actual fact, there are even some dangers related to scorching yoga you might have considered trying to bear in mind.

1. You’re not likely sweating out toxins

Many individuals assume if you’re sweating buckets in a scorching yoga class, your physique is releasing extra toxins, however this merely isn’t true.

Sweat is definitely made up of 99 % water mixed with salt, proteins, carbohydrates, and urea (a substance produced by the physique throughout protein metabolism)—not toxins, in line with UAMS Well being.

Toxins depart your physique by your liver, kidneys, and intestines. Sweating excessively, say, when you’re taking scorching yoga lessons typically, may trigger your kidneys to retain water and truly maintain on to toxins and recirculate them in your physique, per UAMS Well being.

Sweating an excessive amount of may also result in dehydration, in line with the Mayo Clinic.

2. You’re not burning that many extra energy

One of many main promoting factors for decent yoga is that the excessive temps ramp up calorie burn. Rising warmth in your physique can, theoretically, improve calorie burn. That mentioned, analysis has but to indicate that scorching yoga truly burns extra energy than a daily yoga class.

In a small Might 2020 research within the Worldwide Journal of Train Science, 16 individuals accomplished a one-hour scorching yoga class and later did the identical sequence at room temperature. The researchers checked out joint vary of movement, respiration price, energy burned, and biomarkers of stress and irritation earlier than and after the lessons. Their outcomes confirmed comparable enhancements in all measures after the heated and non-heated yoga class.

Due to the small dimension of this research and restricted time-frame (every individual solely took one scorching yoga and one common yoga class), extra analysis is required into long-term results of every kind of yoga.

American health tradition typically facilities round extremes and achievements, so scorching yoga could be very “sellable.”

3. It’s in all probability not higher to your coronary heart

Should you assume you’re doing all of your coronary heart a favor in scorching yoga, assume once more. Researchers got down to take a look at whether or not scorching yoga was extra helpful for the center than common room-temp yoga in a January 2018 research in Experimental Physiology.

For the 12-week research, 52 individuals have been divided into three teams: One group practiced conventional 26-posture scorching yoga, one group did the identical postures at room temp, and one management group who didn’t apply.

The researchers took measurements to evaluate blood move to the center earlier than and after the lessons. Outcomes confirmed that each teams working towards yoga skilled comparable coronary heart well being advantages, whereas the management group that didn’t apply noticed no advantages.

4. You threat overstretching

I at all times hear individuals say the warmth in a scorching yoga class helps them stretch a lot deeper, and that is in all probability true: The warmth does assist your muscle groups heat up sooner, which may give you extra mobility than you’d sometimes have—however this isn’t at all times a very good factor.

With heat muscle groups, you could be much less conscious of your physique’s limitations and find yourself overstretching, which might result in strains and sprains, in line with Williams School.

Muscle mass which can be too unfastened can even fail to correctly help your joints, which might result in joint ache and irritation, in line with the Massachusetts Institute of Expertise (MIT).

5. It will not be finest to your physique kind, or dosha

Ayurveda, the Indian well being science of yoga, says the universe is made up of 5 components—aakash (area), vayu (air), jala (water), prithvi (earth), and teja (fireplace). From this attitude, every individual is made up of a selected mixture of those components, normally with some extra dominant than the others.

The dominant components decide your dosha, or energetic kind, and your psychological, emotional and bodily wellbeing are mentioned to be ruled by it. The three doshas and their related components are:

1. Pitta: Fireplace and water
2. Vata: Area and air
3. Kapha: Earth and water

In accordance with Ayurveda, an individual with a pitta dosha already has the vitality of fireplace of their biology. These sorts typically gravitate to intense, sweaty train as a result of they take pleasure in it.

However for the pitta-dominant individual, doing yoga, (or any train) in heated temperatures is taken into account dangerous. Extra warmth in Ayurveda is attributed to issues like stress and nervousness, irritability, burnout, irritation within the physique, pores and skin points, heartburn, indigestion, and extra.

To seek out out your dosha, search out an Ayurvedic practitioner for a private analysis or take a web-based dosha quiz.

So why can we love scorching yoga a lot?

Sizzling yoga was popularized by Bikram Chodhury within the Seventies, who launched warmth into the apply with the intention of simulating the excessive temperatures in India. Regardless of controversy and allegations towards him, scorching yoga lives on as probably the most practiced types of yoga within the U.S. as we speak.

Individuals love scorching yoga for various causes. Some say it’s due to the endorphins they get after sweating it out on the mat, others take pleasure in getting deeply into the postures, and a few merely say they only love the way it makes them really feel.

To not point out, American health tradition typically facilities round extremes and achievements, so scorching yoga could be very “sellable.” In different phrases, you could really feel such as you’re not likely doing something for your self in a daily yoga class the place you’re not gasping for air, leaking sweat from each pore, watching and criticizing your self in a full-length mirror in a room that feels extra like a health club than a sacred area so that you can join with your self.

However keep in mind: Conventional yogic philosophy says steadiness (not achievement—that’s your ego!) is the final word aim of the apply. If you’re transferring your physique and connecting to your breath in a yoga class, you’re getting advantages—psychological and bodily—it doesn’t matter what.

The underside line

Fact is, scorching yoga in all probability isn’t any higher for you than yoga practiced at normal room temperatures. The analysis evaluating the 2 remains to be fairly restricted, however small research appear to point that a lot of the advantages, like improved measures of coronary heart well being, extra mobility, and energy burned, are about the identical.

Sizzling yoga may be harmful for some individuals—you possibly can grow to be dehydrated or find yourself overstretching to the purpose of harm.

That being mentioned, at all times know your self. Should you like to burn off some steam at scorching yoga as a result of it makes you are feeling like a weightless unicorn flying by the sky, then by all means, apply on. Simply be certain you’re doing so safely—drink plenty of water (earlier than and after) and thoughts your physique’s limits.