8 Powerful Bikram Hot Yoga Benefits for Weight Loss

By Alex Assoune Mar 16, 2021

Bikram hot yoga is reported to have many health benefits like relieving stress, improving mood, flexibility, strength, and stamina. It is generally safe if you do not overdo it and come fully prepared for each session.

But what about weight loss? Is this type of activity prone to help get rid of excess body fat? Read on to find out why our experts think that the Bikram hot yoga benefits for weight loss are real and many times improperly disregarded.

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1. The higher heart rate and exercise intensity are some of the Bikram hot yoga benefits.

It is all about the heat. This type of yoga is usually practiced in a room at 40°C for 90 minutes. It is an intense workout just like other flowing types of yoga such as Power yoga, Ashtanga, and Vinyasa.

While the heat and the posture difficulty makes you perceive the exercise as more intense, the workouts practiced during hot classes are not necessarily going to make you burn more calories than other yoga styles.

One of the most powerful Bikram hot yoga benefits for weight loss lies in the increased heart rate. When working out in the heat, our heart pumps a very large amount of blood to our skin cells, doing their job producing sweat to regulate our body temperature.

Practicing this yoga style is a challenge in itself and the muscle that gets the best training will be your heart. And this is always a good thing, especially for those looking to lose weight.

Main point: The Bikram hot yoga benefits for weight loss do not come from the perceived workout intensity compared to other yoga styles. The most powerful fact is the heat that is making your heart beat faster. A better heart workout has many proven advantages for fat loss.

2. The heat of Bikram hot yoga classes makes your body work harder and spend more energy.

To lose weight, you need to burn more calories than you consume. A regular hot Bikram yoga class can influence fat loss, but not so much because of the link between the physical activity and the results we expect.

Many yoga practices burn fewer calories than other types of workouts like jogging or cycling. The Bikram hot yoga benefits for weight loss come from 90 minutes of regular practice, where the muscles are working continually.

Especially the heart. The intensity of hot yoga lies in the combination of heat, physical exercise, necessary concentration and balance, and a cardiovascular workout. It is important to choose an activity program that you are comfortable doing regularly. If Bikram yoga appeals to you, go for it!

Main point: Yoga in general will burn fewer calories than other types of workout. It is still efficient because of the heat, physical exercise, concentration and balance, and cardiovascular workout. At last, choosing the exercise program that appeals to you the best and doing it regularly is the best solution to achieve your goals.

3. Bikram hot yoga benefits for weight loss include better metabolism, blood pressure, energy levels, and stress relief.

Working in a heated room elevates the heart rate very intensively. Doing cardiovascular workouts regularly during the week has the benefit of better blood pressure and increased metabolic rate or the speed at which the body burns calories.

Raising metabolism through activity is a good factor in weight loss results. Hot yoga helps most people combat stress, change their energy intake, and energy expenditure to shed excess body fat.

The reduction of stress helps everyone have peace of mind, be more active during the day, have better healthy living habits, and produce less stress hormone cortisol, responsible for weight gain.

Main point: The elevated heart rate due to heat is one of the Bikram hot yoga benefits for weight loss. Done regularly, it results in increased metabolic function, stable blood pressure, stress relief, and more energy. It is a good step in adopting healthy living habits and getting rid of excess body weight.

4. The heated practice room helps you concentrate and improves your breathing.

Bikram yoga practice allows the body to reach very high temperatures and the heart to pump enormous amounts of blood to help regulate the body temperature. Because of the blood flow, Bikram yoga practitioners report having better focus and feeling more relaxed.

This helps conditions like asthma by improving breathing and developing better mental concentration. The heat makes this form of yoga practice more challenging, but everyone can get benefits from it.

Try not to be too self-conscious. You will be sweating a lot but everyone is sweating. It is advisable for children as well as seniors and is a great way to burn fat, increase strength and flexibility.

Main point: The heated room allows the body to perform better. Feeling more relaxed and having better focus, the intense cardiovascular exercise will improve concentration and breathing, along with strength and flexibility.

5. The psychological benefits of improving resistance to pain with Bikram hot yoga.

Doing an intense workout session in a heated room at very high temperatures can be a challenge. Good preparation and self-awareness are required to make the most out of the Bikram hot yoga benefits for weight loss.

The heat and the difficult postures train the body and the mind to accept stepping out of the comfort zone and welcoming difficulties. This is a very important skill that can serve everyone for their goals of fat loss, but also in other aspects our their lives.

Being accustomed to doing anything unpleasant or difficult at first requires very strong confidence and teaches how to overcome obstacles and reach goals. You may feel weak, dizzy or fatigued after a Bikram hot yoga practice, but you just have to take some rest and do it again.

Discipline and perseverance are the tools for improvement in life and can make with time your body goals a reality. Regular practice is key to experience the Bikram hot yoga benefits. Yoga practice is best combined with meditation, which can help you lose weight as well.

Main point: The very challenging workout occurring during Bikram yoga classes teaches the body and the mind to embrace difficulties and to overcome them. It makes regular practitioners more confident in their abilities to overcome obstacles and reach their weight loss goals.

6. Bikram hot yoga classes for detoxification of the body.

Bikram hot yoga benefits for weight loss are numerous and detoxification of the body is one of them. Intense physical activity in a heated room increases the metabolic function and the amount of sweat produced by the body.

When the body is hot, skin pores open up and sweat is produced continuously to regulate body temperature. When sweat evaporates, the skin, which is the largest organ in the body, will cool off, making the body temperature decrease.

The sweating process makes getting rid of some toxins easier. The increased blood flow due to a higher heart rate makes it also a lot faster. The toxins go from the blood through sweat out of the body. It is the case for heavy metals like cadmium, mercury, arsenic, and lead, known to arm the heart, brain, and immune system.

The high quantity of sweat going through the pores during Bikram hot yoga classes is responsible for getting rid of some of these toxins. But most toxins are eliminated by the liver and kidneys. Drinking a lot of water before and after your yoga practice ensures that these organs function efficiently. Keeping your skin hydrated is also important and I recommend using coconut oil as a natural moisturizer.

Main point: The heat of Bikram yoga courses keep the body hot making the skin cells produce a lot of sweat to help regulate its temperature. By flowing out of the skin pores, sweat takes with it some toxins out of the body. Higher blood flow is responsible for weight loss. Detox is the byproduct.

7. The importance of staying hydrated before and after Bikram hot yoga classes.

One may think keeping water intake in a small amount is a good method to lose weight. While it is true that less water means less weight, it can be very dangerous combined with Bikram hot practice because of the high quantity of water necessary for sweating.

The body needs a lot of water to function correctly and a large amount of water is constantly used for breathing, digestion, and sweating. Losing water weight is not going to help in the long run as only burning excess fat storages leads to lasting results.

Keeping water intake low can cause dehydration and a lot of negative consequences for health. When you know it is going to be hot and you are going to sweat a lot, it is best to be prepared by drinking water beforehand. Drinking more water boosts metabolism and helps you eat fewer calories.

After every Bikram hot yoga class, it is also recommended to drink a high amount of water to replenish the body of its water content after sweating. Drinking a lot of water helps to keep healthy digestion, which is important to maintain a healthy weight.

Main point: It is very important to stay hydrated before and after every Bikram hot yoga practice. Replenishing the body water content helps boost metabolism, eat less, stay healthy, and encourages better digestion, an important factor in maintaining a healthy weight.

8. A regular and enjoyable exercise program is a key factor for better healthy living habits.

Bikram hot yoga benefits for weight loss are plenty and we can only suggest you try it. It is a good way to get your heart pumping with an intense cardiovascular activity that is also very enjoyable.

While the heat can be a challenge for newcomers, it is beneficial for the health of the body and mind if you are properly prepared. The increased heart rate during exercise participates in keeping the heart healthy, raising metabolism, and regulating blood pressure.

This is particularly recommended for weight loss as calories will be burned quicker and more efficiently. But you should only choose Bikram hot yoga if you feel comfortable and motivated to do it. And many people already do so.

If it appeals to you and you can manage to take classes regularly, you might see the fat loss results you have been waiting for. You will also feel more relaxed, less stressed, and have better focus and mental concentration.

Main point: Choosing an exercise program with high cardiovascular activity to boost your metabolism is a healthy way to begin. Bikram hot yoga is a very good one if you know what to expect and feel prepared. The heat can be a challenge at first but is manageable with time and perseverance. Many people have already adopted it!

Summing up: Bikram hot yoga benefits for weight loss come little from the workout intensity but from the heat that is making your heart beat faster. Cardiovascular exercise has many proven advantages of fat loss.

Hot yoga can burn fewer calories than other types of workouts but is still efficient because it combines heat, concentration, balance, and cardiovascular workout. The elevated heart rate results in increased metabolic function, stable blood pressure, stress relief, and more energy.

The heated room allows the body to perform better. Feeling more relaxed and having better focus, the intense cardiovascular exercise will improve concentration and breathing, along with strength and flexibility.

Bikram yoga teaches practitioners to overcome difficulties. More confidence in their ability to reach their weight loss goals is the result.

The heat keeps the body hot making skin cells produce sweat to help regulate its temperature. And sweat takes with it some toxins out of the body. Higher blood flow is responsible for weight loss. Detox is the byproduct.

It is important to stay hydrated before and after every hot yoga session. Drinking water helps boost metabolism, eat less, stay healthy, and encourages better digestion, all factors in maintaining a healthy weight.

Picking a high cardiovascular activity to boost your metabolism like Bikram hot yoga is very healthy if you are prepared. The heat can be a challenge at first but it is a good step in adopting healthy living habits to lose weight.

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About the Author: Alex Assoune

Alex Assoune (MS) is a global health and environmental advocate. He founded Panaprium to inspire others with conscious living, ethical, and sustainable fashion. Alex has worked in many countries to address social and environmental issues. He speaks three languages and holds two Master of Science degrees in Engineering from SIGMA and IFPEN schools.

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