Category: Hot Yoga Classes

You Don’t Get The A** You Want By Sitting On It

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Written by Kate Hardcastle, a Yogafurie Hot Yoga Instructor and a graduate of Yogafurie Academy Teacher Training

We may have heard of HIIT yoga, OM Yoga Weights and Fitness Yoga used to describe classes and workshops before. What does this mean? Why is fitness becoming a big thing in the many different types of yoga on offer?

Have you ever been in a yoga class and your instructor holds you in plank (uttitha chaturanga dandasana) for so long that you feel like collapsing in a puddle on the mat? How about that inward groan as you lower down into chair (utkatasana) for the twentieth time before you’ve even reached halfway through? Do you experience shaky legs after your class?

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Why Hot Yoga is so Great!

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This article is written by Sinead. As one of our lead instructors, Sinead is someone who absolutely loves Hot Yoga and truly believes in it’s capacity to help people feel fantastic.

Since my motorbike accident 3 weeks ago (you can read about it here), I have had a lot of time to think and to reflect about what Yoga and Hot Yoga mean to me. And they mean an awful lot!

Here I offer some of the main benefits of Hot Yoga that I have experienced over the years.

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Summer Sweatfest Challenge and Little Hero Charity

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From John:

So I am 3 sessions in now and on track for my ‘warm up act’ target! I would have aimed for more but having had nearly 18 months away from the studio baby steps is my approach!

I am glad too, session 1 was a big eye opener! Despite the recent heat wave, it is still surprising how hot the studio can feel when you first enter. Whilst I quickly acclimatized, it is fair to say my yoga (and balance) was a little rusty and I had forgotten all the little extras that make all the difference, specifically a water bottle and hand towel! So whist thoroughly enjoyable, I was definitely a wobbly and unnaturally sweaty student with envious eyes on the many water bottles surrounding me! 

After such a long time, it was really good to get back into the studio. I was a little nervous as I had not been in since Will my son had been diagnosed, so it was definitely a little emotional to return. That said, once I had gotten over my initially exhaustion and self-inflicted dehydration, I was pleased to again experience the jump in energy levels and contentment I remembered from before.

Now three sessions in and I am pleased to see how quickly the steadiness and flexibility is returning. Although whilst thoroughly entertaining to try, Aaron’s hand stands are still a little way off!

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Serratus Anterior – Yoga Anatomy

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The quadricep, hamstrings, and hip flexors get a lot of attention in yoga. Yet, there is another muscle that is commonly used in yoga, but one that you may have never heard of. That muscle is the serratus anterior.

The serratus anterior is a deep muscle that supports and abducts the scapula. ‘Serratus’ is a Latin word that means, ‘saw-like’ and refers to the appearance of this muscle. The serratus anterior might not be mentioned very often in your yoga class, but you use it every single time you move into High Plank.

The serratus anterior in terms of an asana-based yoga practice

The serratus anterior slow our descent from High Plank into Chaturanga. When these muscles are weak, we come crashing down.

The serratus anterior originates at the side of the first through eight ribs. It runs laterally around the rib cage, passes underneath the scapula to insert on its medial border. The serratus anterior acts to abduct the scapula, or pull them away from each other. So when your yoga teacher tells you to, ‘push the floor away from you’ or to ‘lift up out of your shoulders’, it is the serratus anterior abducting the scapula which allows you to perform those actions. The action of the serratus anterior is critical for several other positions. Continue reading “Serratus Anterior – Yoga Anatomy” →

Yoga and Hot Yoga: deeper through anatomy

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(Try this at home!)

How can the study of anatomy deepen your Yoga and Hot Yoga practice? Well for one thing it can provide scientific guidelines to help you keep your body safe. For example, did you know that the discs that stack between and cushion your vertebrae get rehydrated whilst you sleep, so your spine is literally longer after a nights sleep. Pretty cool fact but how can this apply to a Yoga and Hot Yoga practice. Well, because your spine is longer in the morning this means all the ligaments and tendons that hold the spine together are tighter in the morning than in the evening. And tight ligaments feel stiff and are easier to pull. So, if you are practicing in the morning you should expect the body to feel stiffer in backbends than later in the day, and perhaps you might warm the back up more or go lighter in backbending postures then you would in an evening practice.

hmmmmm…..

 

 

 

Photo by Mathew Schwartz on Unsplash

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Meet the Teachers at Yogafurie!

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Meet Aaron!

Aaron trained with Yogafurie Academy to become a Yoga and Hot Yoga Teacher. Often we find Yoga Teachers who’s teaching style we love, and we regularly go to their classes. And then a great teacher-student bond forms over time. However we never really get to learn about the person behind the Teacher. Well, now Yogafurie is offering a ‘Meet the Teachers’ section on our newsletter and blog! This time, meet Aaron. Below is a little more information about Aaron’s passions in life.

teacher

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Sam’s Story – How Yogafurie Hot Yoga Helped to Transform Her Life

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Sam Hothersall found her symptoms of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) so crippling that she moved to Malta to avoid the long British winter. Last autumn she was anxiously awaiting the onset of SAD when a friend recommended she tried hot yoga at Yogafurie.

SAD

For Sam, an arts teacher at a secondary school, attending the classes was a revelation. ‘It was amazing,’ she says. ‘I went five times a week through the winter and it really helped me. I was waking up early and going before work, and I felt lovely and warm all day.’

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A few words on Patience

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Wait, Breathe and Trust That All is Coming; why Yogafurie’s approach is to allow the mind and body to find space and time.

Patience is a virtue and that means patience is not easy.

Often we ask you to practice patience right at the start of a yoga class; whether that’s sitting mindfully, doing a breathing exercise or lying down in savasana. How often have you been thinking to yourself in that moment, ‘Gosh, can’t we just get started?’

Of course patient practice has already begun, not just for you, but for everyone else on the mat as well.

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Why Hot Yoga?

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One of the things I really like about Yogafurie Hot Yoga classes is that we often set an intention at the start of class. It’s a few minutes to remember why we showed up, and what we might hope to change in our lives. It puts today’s class into a bigger picture of personal development goals.

We often hit the gym, or the road, every January with good intentions and a fresh determination to see it through this time. But determination gets eroded, and we stop working out or going out for that run. Perhaps that’s because we’re not taking time to remember why we’re going to the trouble.

So why hot yoga?

Hot Yoga offers some surprising benefits to anyone looking to de-stress, lose weight, rehab injuries, or increase suppleness and strength. I want to talk a bit more about all of those, but beforehand, let’s look at the method behind intention-setting in our Yogafurie classes.

why hot yoga

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Hot Yoga for Pain Management – Guest Article from Gina Hopkins M.Sc

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Why now?

For those who know me and for those who don’t, I’m the lady who has Dystonia, this means my posture is pretty unusual in my neck and sometime you may notice in my back. This is what you can see. What you can’t see is the prolapsed disc at L5 causing Sciatica, sometimes in both legs, in addition to back pain. Also, you don’t see the severe neuropathy in my feet, both of them, this is extremely debilitating. You might just notice I’m off balance, take easier options and modify when exercising.

I’m not known for being a ‘Yogi’ or a Yoga fanatic, many people will be surprised I even entertain Yoga. Yoga is known for being very gentle and for those who don’t break a sweat, you’re very
wrong! I am known in Bristol for my Grappling, Wrestling, Strongman and generally being a big advocate of sport for disabled. Yoga is hard! You need to be or will get very strong from doing
Yoga!

pain management

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