Thoughts on Bikram Yoga, part 23, or maybe 32, or 47

As you can tell from the title of the post, I've been thinking about Bikram Yoga just a little bit.

The more I think of it, the more my body hurts, just thinking about all the times that I've been told to "go beyond" my flexibility, lock my knees, and "push and push and push". If you've ever been to a Bikram/hot yoga class, you know what I'm talking about.

As I write this, I can feel my hyperextended knees, a product of years and years of Bikram.

This isn't the first time I've written about Bikram Yoga. I first wrote about it last year, ironically enough, in defense of it.

I've changed my mind. I've changed my mind in a big way.

The last time I wrote about Bikram, I claimed that it's not so bad to only focus on the physical aspect of it, and I quoted B.K.S Iyengar:

"The stress that saturates the brain is decreased through asana and pranayama, so the brain is rested, and there is a release from strain. Similarly, while doing the various types of pranayama the whole body is irrigated with energy. To practice pranayama people must have strength in their muscles and nerves, concentration and persistence, determination and endurance. These are all learned through the practice of asana. The nerves are soothed, the brain is calmed, and the hardness and rigidity of the lungs are loosened. The nerves are helped to remain healthy. you are at once one with yourself, and that is meditation."

So where did I go wrong, let me count the ways.

Bikram does not teach pranayama
I made the mistake of thinking that Bikram yoga teaches pranayama. It doesn't. Besides doing Breath of Fire (Agni-Prasana) at the end of 90 minutes of asana, there's no other teaching of pranayama, which, as anyone who's dabbled into this topic knows, is a vast subject to study.

Bikram does not teach asana skills and techniques
I also made the mistake of thinking Bikram yoga *teaches* a person to *do* yoga. It doesn't. You do not learn how to approach a pose safely. You do not learn modification. You do not learn the mechanics of a pose as it relates to *your* specific body frame and needs.

Bikram does not promote a safe practice
The lack of instruction, adjustment, understanding of anatomy and alignment, plus the heat are grounds for injury, (not to mention the innate human desire to compete and show off, pushing some people to do more than they should).

I've been reading up on more about the injuries that people get coming out of Bikram, from meniscus tear to knee issues and dehydration. To be really frank, I'm mad. I'm mad that this thing that's supposed to be healing and healthy is putting people's body in jeopardy. And I'm really mad because people will be coming out of Bikram thinking that *this* is yoga, and miss out on the true benefits that other style and type of yoga offer.

Bikram can hurt more than help beginners (and non beginners too)
Bikram yoga, I've seen, is often called the "gateway drug" for yoga. It's less intimidating since all that "spiritual stuff" is taken out. It's appealing because it promises to deliver fat loss, detoxification, and a yoga butt. So, Bikram rounds up a lot of rookies. You'd be crazy not to sign up, right?

Yet, it's atrocious for beginners because of its complete disregard for the potential for injuries. As a beginner, I'm very likely to be completely ignorant of how my body moves. Hell, I didn't even realize I had these body parts that could do more than driving and typing. Everything feels awkward, and I really don't know what I should be doing, or should not be doing. The instruction from Bikram yoga teacher is usually, "just watch what people do around you". What if they've been doing this for 10 years? I would bend over backwards (possibly literally) to emulate them.*

Hotter is not better
You know the euphoria that you have after a hot Bikram class? Yes, the one that makes you feel like you worked out really hard and expelled all the so-called toxin out of your system? I've now realized that it's just heat exhaustion. In addition, in the heat your body loses its sense of "uh oh, we've gone too far", and..., well, goes too far. "Once you stretch a muscle beyond 20 or 25 percent of its resting length, you begin to damage a muscle," said Dr. Robert Gotlin, director of orthopedic and sports rehabilitation at the Beth Israel Medical Center in Manhattan.

I'm sorry
I hereby apologize to everybody that I've taken along to do Bikram yoga with me. Knowing what I do now, I highly, highly, highly recommend you starting your yoga practice with something else. (I'll write more about finding a teacher in another post).

What a difference a year makes. I guess this is what they call "the learning process".

* Actually, I no longer aspire to look like a long time Bikram practitioner. I can do without hyperextended knees like these.

Yoga Teacher Student Prayer

This is a chant that we usually do at the beginning of the Philosophy or Pranayama portion of the teacher training with Kathryn Payne. Without looking at the words, I usually get tongue-tied around the fourth line. My Sanskrit gets very sketchy here :) It is, ironically, my favorite part of the whole chant: "May our study together be filled with light."

I'm trying to chant this teacher student prayer at home, and it's not easy. I just don't remember when to go up and when to go down.


Om saha navavatu
Sah nau bhunaktu
Saha viryam karavavahai
Tejasvi navadhitam astu
ma vidvisavahai
Om santih santih santih

May (brahman) protect us both together;
May (brahman) use us together;
May we work together powerfully;
May our study together be filled with light;
May we not oppose each other.

Om। Peace. Peace. Peace.
ॐ

To chant or not to chant. Or, Om it or lose it.

One of the assignments in the Philosophy portion of my Yoga Teacher Training is discussing the sound Om, and whether we should do it in a class with our students.

As always, it was a debate with a few sides of the coin thrown in. Some said, "We should do it but not before explaining the significance of it so people won't get weirded out by it." Some said, "We should just chant, and when people feel comfortable enough with it, they'll join us."

In some places, though, this question isn't even a question. At 24 Hour Fitness, for example, chanting is not allowed in yoga class, period. (Because, you know, someone's going to be offended that this "weird religious thing" is getting in the way of them getting a yoga butt.)

Personally, I agree that we tend to feel more comfortable saying or doing something once we understand its meaning, reason, and purpose.

However, for some reason, the first time that I heard the Anusara invocation, I immediately felt drawn to it, and without even knowing the words and what they mean, I would find myself humming and singing it to myself from time to time.

I wonder if there are certain sounds that just resonate (har) with us, from a visceral level, with something deep and unconscious inside of us? I wonder if somewhere, our mind has a memory of a certain sound or rhythm that, even if we think it's the first time we hear it, it's actually been imprinted in us before?

Before I get too deep into it, here is the Anusara invocation:

Om Namah Shivaya Gurave
I offer myself to the one true teacher within and without
Saccidananda Murtaye
In the forms of reality, consciousness and bliss
Nisprapancaya Shantaya
Ever present and full of peace
Niralambaya Tejase
Independent being, the vital essence of illumination

ॐ णमह शिवाय गुरवे
सच्सिदानान्दा मुर्तये
निस्प्रपंकाया शान्ताय
निरालाम्बाया तेजसे

About "The Yoga Education of Nikki Chau"

I am the luckiest girl on earth, in this context, in choosing a Yoga Teacher Training program.

When I came up with the revelation to learn how to teach, I searched far and low in all corners of Google to find a Teacher Training Program, and it was no less daunting than finding fresh French truffles.

A Google search for "yoga teacher training" yielded 540,000 results, and "yoga teacher training seattle" yielded 82,300 results as of this writing.

What's the difference between all of them? Does it matter? Who's doing the teaching? What do all these names mean? Is it the yoga style or the center's name? How much does it cost? When is it?

All these questions floated in my head.

As luck would have it, I decided to go with Pacific Yoga, and cannot possibly be happier with my decision.

The teachers: Theresa Elliott, Kathryn Payne, and Paul Bubak, provide a thorough and well-rounded program of skills in asanas, pranyama, Sanskrit, philosopy, and anatomy. I especially appreciate learning about alignment and anatomy in the Asana portion, because I had never learned much about alignment prior to this, except for an Iyengar class with Richard Schatel at the Center for Yoga of Seattle.

Since I started studying with Theresa, Kathryn, and Paul, and especially working with Theresa closing on yoga postures, I have gained an enormous amount of respect for how the body works. Quite honestly, I'm completely *horrified* at how negligent other yoga teachers are, but that's the topic of another post.

So, this blog will detail my learning, and unlearning, of all things yoga, and inevitably, life. Much that I will write about will come from my training at Pacific Yoga, other Yoga Intensives and workshops, books I read, and living my yoga off the mat.