Intense Yoga Workout for a Type A Personality

Do you have a Type A personality? Are you constantly looking for new activities, sports, or jobs to challenge yourself? Are you highly motivated, interested in critiquing what you’ve done in the past to be better in the future? If so, you may be ready for the rigors of Bikram Yoga. This is perhaps the most intense yoga workout there is. After every class you will leave feeling satisfied and motivated. Satisfied that you’ve just worked harder than you’ve ever worked before. And motivated because there is always something to improve, strengthen or tweak. The intense yoga workout of Bikram is a practice of perseverance that will never leave you feeling bored or lazy. Read on to find out what you should expect from this challenging practice.

Heat

Bikram yoga is a 90-minute class taught in a room heated to 105 degrees Fahrenheit with humidity of 40%. Within the first two poses, you will be dripping with sweat. People have been known to lose three pounds of water weight during just one session. Consequently, it is absolutely necessary to stay well hydrated before and after a class. If not, the heat will leave you feeling nauseous and dizzy. What you will hear from most Bikram yoga instructors is, that if it is your first class, your goal is “just to stay in the room.”

To state the obvious, your first class will be very challenging. You may not even be able to practice all of the poses because your body will still be adjusting to the demanding heat and water loss. Don’t fear the feelings of dizziness, just let them come, stay put on your mat, and get through the class.

Poses

In this intense yoga workout, the same sequence and set of 26 poses is carried out. The real endurance comes in holding these challenging poses for a long period of time. The first half of the class starts with a rigorous standing series culminating in Tree Pose and Toe Stand, two very challenging postures requiring one to balance their entire weight on the ball of the foot. The second half of the class is an intense series of mat exercises. What will be quite illuminating is that even if you practice Bikram Yoga regularly, you will be challenged by the series in different ways every time you practice. This is where your Type A mentality will come in. One day you will nail Balancing Stick and the next you’ll be falling all over the place.

What to Keep in Mind (or Not)

Beyond just body and the breathing, keeping the mind still is perhaps the most difficult aspect to master in this intense form of yoga. This is especially difficult for those of you who self-critique during your series. “Why couldn’t I keep my arm more aligned? What was wrong with my Eagle Pose?” The more you let go, the better you will be at your practice: Just a short word of wisdom for all those Type A’s out there.