I was quite nervous when I stepped in a bikram yoga studio, not far from our house. It was my first time to try out a yoga class – and I had to choose bikram over the other styles of yoga.
Aside from learning mind-boggling postures that is already itself pretty hard to learn, bikram is practiced in a room with a temperature of at least 105°F with 40% humidity.
The instructor was very gracious in answering all my questions before commencing class. And I became calm for a moment. However my calmness was short-lived upon seeing my yogamates clad in itsy-bitsy bikini-like yoga outfits. Most of them looking fierce with toned arms and abs.
I let out a deep breath to remove the jitters that I was feeling.
Being one of the first-timers for that class, they assigned a space for me – right smack in the middle of the gazelle-like creatures who seemed like experts in the practice of yoga.It was quite daunting.
I rolled out my yoga mat, and placed a big towel over it. At the head of my mat, I strategically placed another small towel that I plan on using to wipe bucket loads of sweat that I will be creating during the class. Alongside it, a bottle of water for hydration. The class wasn’t starting yet and I was already sweating.
The first posture that we did when class commenced was the Standing Deep Breathing or Pranayama in Sanskrit. It was a bit awkward for me at first, since there was a breathing technique while in posture.
I took in a full breath before going into posture and continuously exhale while achieving the posture. After a while, I felt lighter and the breathing became natural.
There were 26 postures in all that we did for a full 90 minutes. The postures were not as back-breaking as I thought it would be. I just had to control my breathing during the poses and I had a very light and healthy snack an hour before my first bikram session. I didn’t want to faint or feel dizzy in the middle of the class. Because I have heard about people who was so nervous in anticipating their first class – that they forget to eat and hydrate well just BEFORE the session. I didn’t want that to happen to me.
It was also very purifying in the last postures, as I feel beads of sweat form almost everywhere on my body. I started to feel cleansed and purged of all the toxins that have been lurking inside me.
I was expecting that I would feel tired after my first class, but instead I found myself brimming with energy for the rest of the day. And I was already looking forward to my next class!
