Hot yoga TOPLINE FITNESS
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Headline A recent clinical study at Massachusetts General Hospital found that hot yoga can reduce symptoms of depression. The trial divided 80 adults, with moderate to severe depression, into two groups. For two months, half did hot yoga twice a week and half did not. The result? A massive 44 per cent had ‘such a dramatic improvement in symptoms’ they ‘were no longer classed as depressed’. In the other group, that number was six per cent.
Start line
Yoga has been around since 2700 BC, but hot yoga became popular in the 1970s when Bikram Choudhury, a Kolkataborn yoga teacher, moved to Los Angeles. To replicate the feeling of practising yoga in Indian temperatures, he heated LA yoga studios to 40C and taught a 90-minute sequence of 26 ‘postures’, calling it Bikram after himself. Quincy Jones and Raquel Welch were clients, and by the 2000s, he’d made a reported $75 million. And owned 43 luxury cars. However, the guru, now 79, has since been accused of rape and sexual assault, and fled the US. Many studios now prefer the name ‘hot yoga’. A class might also be called hot yoga if it deviates from Choudhury’s original 26 postures.
Down the line
Today, hot yoga is everywhere. Jennifer Aniston claims it ‘realigned’ her spine, Meghan Markle loves it and, unsurprisingly, Gwyneth Paltrow is a devotee. On TikTok, hot yoga videos have 184 million views. Then there’s Hotpod Yoga (hotpodyoga.com), founded in 2013 by yogi Nick Higgins and entrepreneur Max Henderson. It now has 52 yoga studios.
Outline
Unlike most hot yoga sessions, which take place in a normal but heated yoga studio, Hotpod classes operate inside an
inflatable, temperature-regulated ‘pod’. Yogis gather inside with their mat and the door is zipped shut. I did a Hotpod class in Notting Hill, London. The cost depends on the studio; there it’s £18 (€21). The style was ‘vinyasa flow’ – think lots of downward dogs and cobra poses – and took an hour. The pod looked like a purple bouncy castle, only hotter and with sweaty adults rather than happy children. Pods are made from a breathable nylon and vary in size. Notting Hill’s is a snug 11m x 7m.
Hotline Obviously, this yoga is hot. In fact, ‘sweltering yoga’ might be more apt – but I can see that’s not as catchy. Most hot yoga classes run at around 40C. Hotpod’s is 37C, but a class can feel warmer depending on how many people are present – there were eight at mine. It’s humid, too; humidifiers keep levels at 40-60 per cent. And it’s sweaty. During one downward dog, sweat dripped from my forehead and into my eyes. It stung. Still, the pod never smells bad. At Hotpod, diffusers pump out bergamot, lavender and citrus scents during the class. There is also bergamot shampoo and conditioner in the showers. Bliss.
Lifeline Hot temperatures make your heart work harder, boosting the cardiovascular elements of the workout. And heat relieves joint pain and keeps muscles strong. Hotpod’s Higgins says that, thanks to hot yoga, he doesn’t get muscle atrophy – muscle-mass thinning. Best of all, the warmth increases flexibility, which can make yoga poses easier. I do yoga quite often, but in hot yoga I found my triangle poses were especially triangular.
Guideline According to Hotpod, anyone older than 16 can do a class. Higgins says his mother, in her 70s, practises regularly. Pregnant? This is not for you.
Waterline Strangely, I didn’t drink much water. But Hotpod advises having plenty before and during the class.
Clothes line Also strangely, tight clothes fare better in the heat than baggy ones. Leggings and a tank top are best.
Pipeline Next up, minipods! One-person home-use versions of Hotpod’s studio pod will feature a heater, humidifier, lighting and a screen to play prerecorded classes. No price yet, but Higgins says it will be available next year. Gwynnie will, no doubt, be first in line.