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Old 08-18-17, 08:02 AM  
eam531
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At-home 30 day Bikram yoga challenge

I mentioned in a previous yoga thread that I was doing a 30 day Bikram yoga challenge at home. I have finished!

TL/DR version: Enjoyed the challenge very much and the sequence has numerous benefits, but it is not balanced enough for me to do exclusively for the long term. If you want to know more, keep reading.

Methodology:

6 days on, one day off. The routines 60 to 90 minutes long and were a mix of YouTube videos, DVDs, and audio-only. See this page for the YouTube videos I used. Scroll down to about the 6th post. Some routines were pure Bikram (26 postures done two times); others were Bikram-like routines (these included some of the original 26 postures, dropped some, added others, and/or did only one repetition of each posture).

Heat:

Room temperature in a second floor room. It got pretty warm. Tony Sanchez, Bikram's top student, does not believe in having the studio be ultra-heated. That's good enough for me. In winter, I will use a space heater.

What I liked about the pure Bikram sequence:

Easy to memorize sequence

Repetition of the postures enables you to improve or go deeper on the second repetition (or lets you back off).

Lots of balancing postures

Lots of backbending postures (many yoga routines have too many forward bending postures)

Improves concentration, endurance, and lower body strength

Short savasana between each floor posture enables you to regroup

Pranayama breathing exercises start and finish each routine

What I didn't like about the pure Bikram sequence:

No postures that directly target the upper body--no postures where you support your weight on your hands (no planks, down dogs, etc.). You do pull on your feet a lot, but that really isn't enough of an upper body workout for me.

No postures that directly target the core except old-school unsafe sit-ups (legs are kept straight and people practically fling themselves up). I modified with bent knees. Planks are better for the core anyway.

If anyone has knee, back, or neck issues, several postures need to be modified or substituted with other postures. I did this and still got great benefits.

Summary:

This challenge was totally worth doing. I feel great--physically and mentally. While the full Bikram sequence is not as difficult as the full 90 minute Ashtanga primary series, it isl not an easy sequence of postures to do for 90 solid minutes. I feel pretty darn proud that a 61 year old woman with crap knees was able to complete the challenge. I like the Bikram style of yoga and am delighted that there are so many options to do this yoga at home. I intend to continue doing the sequence each week, but I will do other types of yoga and/or weight training for a more well-rounded regimen.

IMO the Bikram-like routines by Bikram's top students Tony Sanchez and Jimmy Barkan, and other teachers, are better designed than the original 26/2 sequence. These later routines include postures that target the upper body and the core; Jimmy Barkan also eliminated the unsafe situps.
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People have done all kinds of remarkable things because they thought they could. People routinely fail to do quite ordinary things because they assume they can't--Reinhard Engels

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Disclosure: I have a personal relationship with a fitness instructor who has appeared in some videos.
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Old 08-18-17, 08:24 AM  
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Thanks for posting! This is very interesting.
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Old 08-19-17, 10:18 AM  
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Betsy, thanks for the follow up -- interesting to read about your results and the lack of upper body work. I have to give you a very heartfelt thank you again for your somewhat recent post about the youtube Bikram classes. I've been doing the Maggie 60 minute one once or twice a week since you posted and I just love it. The 60 minutes and non-repetition of the standing poses seems to be key for me not having dread about it. On the contrary -- I look forward to it!

I am a pretty happy, glass half full, go with the flow sort of person, but on the days I do this practice, my mood is taken to a new place -- I feel younger, more carefree, able to be silly or whatever. It's fantastic!
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Old 08-19-17, 10:34 AM  
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Thanks for sharing this. I missed your original post. I'm going to consider this or something similar at some point in the future. I have oodles of Bikram CDs and DVDs, possibly enough to do 30 days without repeating a DVD or cd, though of course the movements would be repeated.
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Old 08-19-17, 10:51 AM  
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On a related note a Bikram studio near me has added hot Pilates and torched barre. They also added 60 and 75 minute classes.
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Old 08-19-17, 11:46 AM  
eam531
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bee View Post
Betsy, thanks for the follow up -- interesting to read about your results and the lack of upper body work. I have to give you a very heartfelt thank you again for your somewhat recent post about the youtube Bikram classes. I've been doing the Maggie 60 minute one once or twice a week since you posted and I just love it. The 60 minutes and non-repetition of the standing poses seems to be key for me not having dread about it. On the contrary -- I look forward to it!

I am a pretty happy, glass half full, go with the flow sort of person, but on the days I do this practice, my mood is taken to a new place -- I feel younger, more carefree, able to be silly or whatever. It's fantastic!
Yay!! I'm so glad you liked Maggie's class and that it has proven so beneficial.

I have to say that I also prefer 60 minute classes of pretty much any type of yoga, including Bikram and its offshoots. I did Maggie's 60 minute class more often than any others during my challenge.
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Betsy

There is no way of telling people they are all walking around shining like the sun--Thomas Merton

People have done all kinds of remarkable things because they thought they could. People routinely fail to do quite ordinary things because they assume they can't--Reinhard Engels

Stay gold, Ponyboy--S.E. Hinton

Pick up your crazy heart and give it one more try--Ryan Bingham

Disclosure: I have a personal relationship with a fitness instructor who has appeared in some videos.
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Old 08-19-17, 05:15 PM  
bee
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Maggie seems great!! I think I'd love a live class with her. When I used to do Bikram at a studio, those instructors..... wow! They were so adamant about everything having to be exactly according to Bikram -- I know, that's his schtick, not necessarily their's, but I still feel scarred for one pose that I had to modify and got called out on in class. I was thinking about that as I did it this morning.
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