Yoga Styles
Hot Yoga — Bikram Style
Hot Yoga is a series of 26 postures performed in a precise order, in a room heated to 105 degrees. This class systematically works the entire body, concentrating on the essence of every organ, bone, joint, muscle, ligament, tendon, blood vessel, nerve and gland. Incorporating strength, balance, and flexibility Hot Yoga teaches students how each pose stimulates the mind and restores and shapes the body.
Benefits of Hot Yoga
- Muscle Toning
- Balance
- Weight Loss
- Stress Reduction
- Increased Vitality
- Flexibility
- Strength
Reasons for the Heat
- Enhances vasodilatation* so that more blood is delivered to the muscles
- Allows oxygen in the blood to detach from the hemoglobin more easily**
- Speeds up the breakdown of glucose and fatty acids
- Makes muscles more elastic, less susceptible to injury
- Improves coordination
- Reduces heart irregularities associated with sudden exercise
- Burns fat more easily***
* The capillaries that weave around the muscles respond to heat by dilating. This brings more oxygen to the muscles and helps in the removal of waste products such as carbon dioxide and lactic acid.
** When blood passes through warm muscles oxygen releases more easily from the hemoglobin. Blood passing through cold muscles releases much less oxygen.
*** Warmed muscles burn fat more easily than cold ones. Fat is released during stress.
The stress of intense exercise causes a deluge of fatty acids into the blood streams. If you exercise with cold muscles they can't use the fatty acids, and they end up in places where they aren't wanted, such as the lining of your arteries.
Note: Muscles aren't the only beneficiaries of heat. Higher temperatures improve the function of the nervous system, meaning that messages are carried more rapidly to and from the brain or spinal cord. Warm muscles are more elastic and are less susceptible to injury. Warmer temperatures produce a fluid like stretch that allows greater range of motion. Cold muscles don't absorb shock or impact as well and aren't stretched as well so they get injured more readily.
— Excerpt from "Smart Exercise" by Covert Bailey
Hot Vinyasa
Hot Vinyasa is an all levels class that will inspire the beginner and challenge those with an established practice. Be prepared to sweat, move and adventure into a deeper relationship with you body and a more profound relationship with life itself. The room is heated to 90 degrees. Some vinyasa experience necessary. Not recommended for brand new beginners.
Hot Power Fusion
Hot Power Fusion captures the essence of the traditional hot yoga class and its 26 static postures while incorporating the flow and grace of vinyasa sequences.
Students will receive the benefits of a Hot Yoga class with further hip opening, upper body strengthening and core strengthening benefits.
This class appeals to both the traditional Hot Yoga and vinyasa student who is looking to deepen their yoga practice.
- The class is taught in a room heated to 100 degrees.
- 75 minute time format with energetic music and fun!
- All levels, including beginners, are welcome and will find this class accessible.
- Designed with a combination of hot yoga static postures and Vinyasa Yoga flowing sequences.
Vinyasa Flow
Beginners: Struggling with a downward dog or trikonasana? Want to know what these terms even mean? Geared toward beginners, but all levels are welcome to join this class focusing on the fundamentals.
Beginners/Intermediate: Suitable for beginning students as well as experienced students who enjoy a gentler class. Develop body awareness, learn basic postures (asanas), and proper alignment. Learn yogic forms of breathing and how to sequence breath and movements together, and become familiar with the connection to your physical and energetic body.
Open: All levels of students are welcome, but some experience is necessary. This class is not recommended for beginners.
For a good part of your 90 minute practice, each time you breathe, you flow from one posture to the next, with some longer holds along the way. It is the vigorous motion that defines the vinyasa style and creates immense inner heat. Classes are taught at a regular room temperature.
Intermediate/Advanced: A challenging level incorporating fun variations of inversions, jumpbacks, backbends, forwardbends and twists. This class is not recommended for beginners. (Not offered at this time)
Anusara
Anusara is a hatha yoga system developed by John Friend. The asanas are taught with clear and anatomically precise principles of alignment based on the natural science of bio-mechanics which honors the natural movement of the body. Anusara yoga celebrates the physical and subtle body as an embodiment of consciousness and opens the door to the inner awareness. Anusara means literally "to flow with grace," to playfully step into the current of this unfolding universe and dance in it with joy.
We offer Open Level and Basic Anusara classes.
Anusara Flow
This is an Anusara inspired class (see the description for Anusara class), integrating the biomechanical alignment principles and heart qualities of Anusara Yoga within a vinyasa-style format which emphasizes the constant flow of breath through a graceful flow of asanas.
Vinyasa Open/Restorative
This class starts with a vinyasa flow of Sun salutations and hatha postures and ends with restorative yoga. Restorative yoga is a gentle, calming, therapeutic kind of yoga that uses props to support the body to deepen the benefits of the poses. Some experience necessary.
Click on a link below to learn more about that specific Yoga style.
