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What Is Bikram Yoga?

Bikram Choudhury is an internationally renowned yoga teacher from India who has taught over three million students. He brought his system to the United States in 1971 at the invitation of the American Medical Association.

Bikram's yoga is a routine of 26 poses based on Hatha Yoga , which works the whole body in 90 minutes. The poses work synergistically and cumulatively to return the body to a balanced state. The yoga builds energy, stamina and flexibility. It incorporates strength, challenge, gravity, balance, and most importantly the tourniquet effect. The Bikram technique allows the stretching, squeezing and massaging of the internal organs, flushing out the cardiovascular system and stimulating the endocrine and nervous systems in order to release any deficient hormones and enzymes. The body is self-regulating and self adjusting.

The routine of Bikram Yoga is dynamic and exhilarating. The room is intentionally warm so that your muscles will stretch more easily. The series works equally well for beginning as well as advanced students. Bikram says: "Never too late, never too old, never too bad and never too sick to do this yoga and start from scratch again."

Bikram Yoga Postures

	Pranayama Breathing · Mental relaxation · Detoxification · Works the nervous, respiratory and circulatory systems.		Tree Pose · Creates hip and knee mobility · Releases abdominal tension · Helps inflammation of the lower back
	Half Moon Pose · Helps lower back pain, constipation, obesity of stomach, bronchi distress, scoliotic deformities, frozen shoulders. · Works deltoid, trapezius, pectoralis major and hamstrings. · Exercises the colon, pancreas and kidney.		Wind Removing Pose · Helps constipation, flatulence and hyper acidity. · Massages ascending colon, descending colon and transverse colon.
	Awkward Pose · Helps to open pelvic area, alleves joint pain and arthritis of the knees, strengthens lower limbs, relieves sciatica, improves flexibility in toes and ankles. · Works quadriceps and deltoids.		The Cobra Series of Postures (Cobra, Locust, Full-Locust and Bow) · Works to compress and open up the spine. · Each posture works a specific section of the spine. · Creates spinal changes, helps low back pain, scoliosis and cervical spondylosis.
	Eagle Pose · Strengthens lower extremities, joint mobility for hip girdle and all 12 major joints. By creating pressure in the joints and releasing allows fresh blood supply to flow in. · Control of sexual energies, improves function of central nervous system.		Fixed Firm · Strengthens and improves flexibility of lower spine, knees and ankle joints. · Helps to cure sciatica, gout and rheumatism in the legs. · Helps varicose veins. · Helps to cure and prevent hernia.
	Standing Head to Knee Pose · Improves concentration, avoids sciatica by improving circulation and flexibility, reduces diabetes, strengthens back muscles and nerves. · Works the muscular, skeletal, reproductive and digestive systems.		Half Tortoise · Provides maximum relaxation. · Cures indigestion, constipation and flatulence. · Stretches lower part of the lungs – good for emphysema and asthma. · Helps diabetes. · Increases blood flow to the brain, bringing mental clarity.
	Standing Bow Pose · Increases circulation to the heart and lungs. · Improves elasticity of the spine by compressing the spine. · Helps with lower back pain. · Opens diaphragm and lungs.		Camel · Strengthens muscles in the back and shoulders. · Produces maximum compression of the spine, stimulating the nervous system. · Improves flexibility of neck and spine. · Relieves backache. · Helps kypho-scolitic deformities.
	Balancing Stick Pose · Increases blood flow all over the body at the same time. · Clears blockage in arteries · Builds strength in lower extremities · Works the pancreas, kidneys and spleen · Works muscular, reproductive, nervous and circulatory systems.		Rabbit · Stretches spine, maximum extension – opposite of Camel. · Helps maintain mobility and elasticity of spine and back muscles. · Nurtures the nervous system, brings blood to the brain, helps cure depression. · Helps diabetes. · Helps with colds, sinus problems, chronic tonsillitis, sore throats and strep throat. · Good for thyroid and parathyroid and larynx.
	Separate Leg Stretching · Helps for constipation, abdominal obesity and hyperacidity. · Increases circulation to the brain and adrenal glands. · Good for small and large intestines.		Head to Knee with Stretching · Helps balance blood sugar level, especially good for diabetics. · Good for the immune system, stimulates the thymus. · Improves kidney function. · Increases circulation to the liver and the spleen, pancreas, thyroid, thymus and intestines.
	Triangle Pose · Good for kidneys · Helps chemical imbalances in the system. · Helps colitis, constipation, hip and back pain, spondilitis, general mobility and menstrual disorders. · Cardiovascular benefits · Circulatory, digestive, immune, reproductive and muscular systems all worked.		Spine Twisting · Only posture that twists spine from top to bottom at the same time. · Improves flexibility of spine and hip joints. · Helps prevent slipped discs. · Increases circulation and nutrition to spinal nerves, veins and tissues. · Helps sciatica. · Improves digestion. · Helps tennis elbow.
	Standing Separate Leg Head to Knee · Helps abdominal obesity, diabetes, thyroid, blood sugar balance, pancreas and kidneys. · Works endocrine, reproductive and digestive system. · Works obiliques, iliopsoas, quads, deltoids, trapezius, biceps and triceps.		Kapalbhati Breathing · Helps to rid body of toxins. · Good for emphysema and other respiratory ailments. · Strengthens, massages and increases circulation to the abdominal organs and muscles, including the diaphragm. · Good against high blood pressure and good for the heart.