Nothing about Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class™ is haphazard. It is a twenty-six asana series designed to scientifically warm and stretch muscles, ligaments and tendons in the order in which they should be stretched.

Bikram's twenty-six exercises systematically move fresh, oxygenated blood to one hundred percent of your body, to each organ and fiber, restoring all systems to healthy working order, just as Nature intended. Proper weight, muscle tone, vibrant good health, and a sense of well-being will automatically follow.

Your Progress the honest time and effort you give to Yoga.

How quickly you progress will depend entirely on you.  It will have to do with how well you understand what you are trying to accomplish in each pose, how honestly you try to accomplish your goal, and how supple your muscles and joints have become in comparison to the point at which you began. In Yoga there is no standard of comparison except yourself. Perfect is the best you can do that day.

• Your body burns fat more effectively, fat may be redistributed and burned as energy during the class. It is common to lose centimeters of shape in a very short time
• The heat produces a fluid-like stretch allowing for greater range of movement in joints, muscles, ligaments and other supporting structures of the body
• Capillaries dilate in the heat; more effectively oxygenating the tissues, muscles, glands and organs and helping in the removal of waste products
• Your peripheral circulation improves due to enhanced perfusion of your extremities
• Your metabolism speeds up the breakdown of glucose and fatty acids
• You benefit from a strengthening of willpower, self control, concentration and determination in this challenging environment
• Your cardiovascular system gets a thorough workout
• Your muscles and connective tissue become more elastic and allow for greater flexibility with less chance of injury and improved resolution of injury
• Sweating promotes detoxification and elimination through the skin - which is the body's largest eliminating organ
• Just as when your body raises its temperature to fight infection, the raised temperature in the room will assist in improving T-cell function and the proper functioning of your immune system
• Your nervous system function is greatly improved and messages are carried more efficiently to and from your brain
• Metabolism improves in your digestive system and in the body's cells (that is food in the gut and nutrients in the cells)

The 26 Postures:

If practiced regularly, Bikram’s yoga will reduce many symptoms of chronic illness and unite the mind, body and spirit. Benefits include: increased flexibility, strength and balance, weight loss, defined muscle tone, improved energy, and a slowed aging process. In summary, Bikram’s yoga is an excellent all-around practice to enjoy for the rest of your life.

Specific Benefits of Each Posture:

1. Pranayama Series (Standing Deep Breathing):Good for relaxation, detoxification, helps high blood pressure, exercises nervous, respiratory and circulatory systems
2. Ardha-Chandrasana with Pada Hastasana (Half Moon Pose with Hands to Feet Pose):Works into the whole skeletal and circulatory systems, Improves and strengthens every muscle in the central part of the body, Increase the flexibility of the spine, Firms and trims waistline, hips, abdomen, buttocks and thighs
3. Utkatasana (Awkward Pose):Improves overall body strength, Strengthens and tones leg muscles, Improves flexibility in toes and ankles, Aligns skeletal system
4. Garurasana (Eagle Pose):Works into twelve major joints of the body, Facilitates lymphatic function, improving immune system, Improves mobility of hip joint, Good for varicose veins
5. Dandayamana-Janushirasana (Standing Head to Knee Pose): Improves concentration, Strengthens back muscles, Exercises digestive and reproductive organs, Good for diabetes
6. Dandayamana-Dhanurasana (Standing Bow Pulling Pose):Stimulates cardiovascular system, Reduces abdominal fat, Improves strength and balance
7. Tuladandasana (Balancing Stick Pose):Increases cardiovascular circulation, especially to heart blood vessels, Exercises pancreas, spleen, liver, nervous and circulatory system, Good for varicose veins
8. Dandayamana-Bibhaktapada-Paschimotthanasana (Standing Separate Leg Stretching Pose):Increases circulation to the brain and adrenal glands, Helps reduce abdominal obesity, Releases lower back
9. Trikanasana (Triangle Pose): Opens and increases flexibility of hip joints, Good for kidneys, thyroid and adrenal glands, Works all muscular groups simultaneously
10. Dandayamana-Bibhaktapada-Janushirasana (Standing Separate Leg Head to Knee Pose): Assists in regulating pancreas and kidneys, Balances blood sugar levels, May be good for depression and memory loss
11. Tadasana (Tree Pose): Assists in correcting bad posture, Increases hip and knee flexibility and mobility, Good for circulatory problems, arthritis and rheumatism
12. Padangustasana (Toes Stand Pose): Creates balance and focus in body and mind, Strengthens stomach muscles, Strengthens joints (hips, knees, ankles and toes)
13. Savasana (Dead Body Pose): Returns cardiovascular circulation to normal, Slows heart rate, reduces blood pressure, Teaches complete relaxation
14. Pavanamuktasana (Wind Removing Pose): Massages ascending, descending and transverse colon, Relieves lower back pain, Firms and tones muscles of the abdominal wall, thighs and hips
15. Sit-up: Strengthens and tightens the abdomen, Open mouth exhalation stimulates diaphragm and eliminates toxins from lungs
16. Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose): Improves flexibility and tone of spinal muscles, massages, works and tones back muscles, Helps relieve and prevent lower backache, Rejuvenates spinal nerves enriching them with a rich blood supply
17. Salabhasana (Locust Pose): Firms buttocks and hips, Strengthens the abdominal wall, Strengthens shoulder, arm and back muscles
18. Poorna-Salabhasana (Full Locust Pose): Firms muscles of the abdomen, upper arms, hips and thighs, Helps correct bad posture, Increases spinal strength and flexibility
19. Dhanurasana (Bow Pose): Improves strength and balance Reduces abdominal fat and strengthens abdominal muscles, Opens diaphragm and expands the chest region - improves respiratory conditions, Develops internal balance and harmony
20. Supta-Vajrasana (Fixed Firm Pose): Helps conditions of sciatica, gout, varicose veins and rheumatism in the legs, Slims and tones thighs, firms calf muscles and strengthens the abdomen, Strengthens and improves flexibility of lower spine, knees and ankle joints
21. Ardha-Kurmasana (Half Tortoise Pose): Improves mobility of shoulder girdle and associated muscles (scapula, deltoids, triceps, latissimus dorsi), Stretches lower part of the lungs, increases lung capacity, Relieves stress and migraines
22. Ustrasana (Camel Pose): Opens rib cage, lungs and digestive system, Compresses spine, relieving back problems, Flushes fresh blood through kidneys
23. Sasangasana (Rabbit Pose): Balances hormones, Stimulates thyroid and parathyroid glands through compression, helps balance and regulate metabolism, Provides maximum longitudinal extension of the spine
24. Janushirasana with Paschimotthanasana (Head to Knee Pose with Stretching Pose): Head to knee pose helps balance blood sugar levels and the metabolism, Strengthens and stretches the hamstrings, Relieves compression of the spine and sciatica
25. Ardha-Matsyendrasana (Spine Twisting Pose): Compresses and stretches spine from the bottom to the top, Increases synovial fluid of the joints, Massages kidneys, liver, gall bladder, spleen and bowels
26. Kapalbhati in Vajrasana (Blowing in Firm Pose): Detoxifies and cleanses body by removing stale air and toxins from lungs, Strengthens abdominal organs and wall, Good for high blood pressure.

Hatha yoga, this thousands of years old practice, has been called "the yoga of willpower." Just doing it strengthens our will, an attribute of mind. When we have the positive experience of being able to do more than we expected, our confidence and self-esteem get a boost, fostering a more positive mind. We begin including positive thoughts about ourselves, and allow negative self-talk to fade away. Our practice strenthens our mind.

According to Bikram, the mind has five aspects which as they develop, bring equanimity to the mind. These are: Faith, Self-control, Determination, Concentration, and Patience. Each of these five develop by practicing Bikram's yoga.

The roots of Vedanta philosophy ask us to believe in ourselves and believe in God. Karma yoga, the yoga of action, is knowing your gift and using it. No one can force you to do what's not for you. In the Bhagvad Gita, Krishna tells Arjuna, "It is better to follow your own calling imperfectly than follow another's perfectly. If death should come while following your own path, this is surely better than living with the fear and anguish of following a false path." (3:35) When we're forced to do something that is against our own nature, our soul is unhappy, there is no peace. When the soul is unhappy, pain begins to trouble the body as well. Rather than change your ways to conform with the world, you must eventually find a way to express your truth from your heart regardless of the world.  

What makes your soul happy? What is your goal? Since the rest of the world doesn't care what your soul wants, it is up to you to find out. If you are struggling with these issues, engage in hatha yoga practice, and in the context of your practice--asana, meditation--you will soon find the Faith--your foundation or roots--to go in any direction in your life. As Bikram says, "If you believe it, it will work better. If you don't believe it, it will happen anyway. The longer something takes to work, the longer it lasts."

When we are lacking in self-control, materialistic attachments, sexual attachments, and "fun" will divert your attention from your path. Yoga practice, by developing a sound body, helps us develop a sound mind which is more conducive to positive thoughts. When we have positive thoughts, we are more likely to be grateful, generous, and loyal. According to Bikram, loyalty and gratitude are two of the most important inner attitudes to have. They help us keep our  priorities straight--helping us to be supremely sensitive to others.

What is the connection between Bikram yoga and our emotions?  When we have receive messages from our environment, they are conveyed through the nervous system via biochemical reactions to all our cells. When we have no self-control, we will be at the mercy of our biochemistry--good news stimulates "be happy" and bad news stimulates "be depressed" reactions. However, through asana practice, we begin to develop self-control , and whether the news is good or bad, a kind of stability is established in our biochemistry that enables us to not overreact to external events. We become able to "keep our cool,"  and keeping things in perspective, we can develop an effective, appropriate response.

The story goes that Jesus studied with a guru in Joya, India from the ages of 12 to 30, then went to Tibet. After being persecuted in Tibet for preaching self-realization and God-realization, his disciples helped him return to Jerusalem, where he met with even stronger challenges. Jesus still taught us to turn the other cheek. People were jealous of him and tried to tear him down, but no one could take Jesus' peace away from him because he was living in higher cosmic consciousness.

Another example of living in higher consciousness is that when Ghandhi was shot, he said "Jai Ram," which roughly translates to "Amen." In other words, he had the equanimity of mind to be in a state of love and devotion even upon being shot, and died with God's name on his lips. And yet another example of someone who has become imperturbable because of his devotion is Ishar Chandra, the vice chancellor of Calcutta University. Bikram once saw him hide himself behind a wall rather be seen by, and therefore embarass, a man passing by who owed him money. What love, what sensitivity, for a man of such power!

Bikram's talk about determination emphasizes "stick with it." First, you have to know what your goal or destination is. Then you have to keep working towards your goal until you achieve it, without giving up. Yes, there will be bad or difficult times. Life is like waves in the ocean--up and down. If you wait long enough, the good comes. It's a matter of finding skillful means to deal with the challenges.

For example, look at a difficult marriage. If the husband is working hard for the family but isn't succeeding, the wife shouldn't give up, but rather she should show moral support so he doesn't give up. However, if the husband has alcohol or drug problems, the wife should ignore him and let him burn himself.  Saying something in that event can make it worse. Since one rotten apple spoils the whole barrel, there should be a limit, a boundary in love. Beyond that limit, bad behavior can not be tolerated.

If you lose your self respect, you're losing yourself. Bikram recommends: never make yourself cheap or expendable. Don't go "to the basement." Don't invite negative people into your life. Ask yourself, "Who am I? Why have I come to this earth as a human being?" and stay concentrated on the activity that arises from your questions.

Concentration is an important precursor to meditation. It is difficult for many of us to sit still, it is even more difficult to keep our mind on just one thing for even 10-12 seconds.  Without hatha yoga, we normally use only 3-5% of our bodies. With hatha yoga, we reenergize, revitalize and reorganize the body and become able to use 100% of the body.

The ancients created hatha yoga to prepare the body to sit still so the mind could be still. They modeled the postures after animals, and endowed the postures with supernatural powers. For example, the cobra posture was modeled after the animal with the strongest spine in the world, therefore in performing the posture, you develop a strong spine. The camel posture creates space in the throat so that like a camel, you don't need as much water. The tortoise posture brings the body close and compact so the heart doesn't have to pump as hard as normal, which relaxes the heart. In fact, if you breathe like a tortoise--2 minutes for each inhale, 2 minutes for each exhale, the tortoise endows you with long life. (Work your way up to this.)

The word "Ha Tha" conveys balance of opposites: Sun and Moon, right and left, male and female, warm and cool. Without the sun, there is no prana or life force. Without the moon to cool, there is too much energy and the object burns up. Once body/mind is in balance, it becomes easier to sit still, concentrate and enter meditation.  These capabilities develop out of hatha yoga practice, particularly Bikram's series, in which concentration is aroused from deep within your most internal self to perform the postures.

Determination and patience go hand in hand. Once you set your mind on your goal, and work with determination towards it, you need patience to ride the waves of life. With the fruits of hatha yoga practice--a good body and a good mind--you have the tools to reach your soul. In a  Bikram yoga class, your patience is developed, because you can't possibly accomplish the postures in one session. You develop a sense that effort over time brings  the results that are truly satisfying and nourishing to the soul. When you please your soul, it releases more of itself to you. Then you become able to serve your Self and God and accomplish what you were created to do in this lifetime.

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