Nicole Doherty: Wellness

My most recent article published with American Athelete Magazine.

Some like it hot. Some like it not. Hot yoga boils down to personal preference: Some people love to sweat and some people don’t. But does it have more benefits? Here, the top myths about hot yoga—debunked.

Bikram is the most widely recognized hot yoga. It uses traditional yoga poses in a studio heated to minimum of 105°F with 40% humidity throughout the 90-minute class. The practice consists of a specific series of 26 traditional hatha yoga poses. Not all hot yoga classes, though, are specifically Bikram, so the poses (or even the room temperature or humidity) may be different. One thing we know, though, if you take hot yoga, you will sweat!

There are a lot of misconceptions about hot yoga, though. We clear them up here.

MYTH: Hot yoga is a great way to detox.

TRUTH: You do sweat in hot yoga and that sweating may release trace toxins through the skin, but you’re definitely not sweating out a lot of toxins.

Heavy sweating may actually impair your body’s natural detoxification system. It’s the liver and the kidneys—not the sweat glands—that actually filter toxins from our blood. And if you don’t drink enough water to compensate for excessive sweating, you could get dehydrated and stress the kidneys. And this, in turn, could prevent them from doing their job.

MYTH: You have to sweat to get any benefit from exercise, particularly yoga.

TRUTH: The main purpose of sweating is to cool down your system. We need to sweat to lower our body temperature to cool our organs and our internal temperature (otherwise, we’d get heat exhaustion or heat stroke). In fact, your body is sweating throughout the day to regulate your system whether you’re aware of it or not. (We lose about 10% water per day through sweat, why it’s important to replenish with water—not just when you exercise.)

Sometimes, though, it just feels good to sweat. It gives us the perception that we’re working hard, and hard work gives us a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. But, the bottom line: sweating doesn’t ensure you’re getting any additional benefits.

MYTH: Hot yoga is better for you than any other style of yoga.

TRUTH: First, understand that yoga has many benefits without being practiced in a heated room. From the breath work to bodywork, we can cleanse our bodies internally with any yoga practice. We use the practice to support the health of all our body’s systems: nervous, circulatory, endocrine, respiratory, and digestive. We can experience heightened brain function, increased oxygen, and the alleviation of stress and ailments. We can use yoga for recovery and for injury prevention. The list of benefits goes on.

Also know that traditional yoga creates heat internally to warm up the body through the breath. When we are more focused on the breath providing the internal heat for our practice, the ability to listen to the sensations of the body is more acute.
If you practice in a heated room, there is an additional benefit: I’ve found that the sweating may help clean out (and clear up) the skin, the largest organ in the body. It can also help you become more flexible, but see the next myth for more about this.

MYTH: You’ll be super flexible in hot yoga.

TRUTH: For people challenged with flexibility, practicing yoga in a heated room creates an environment for more supple muscles, thus allowing them to go further into poses they may not be able to practice in a non-heated room. Bikram Choudhury, the founder of the Bikram-style of hot yoga, explained this theory, saying, “You have to heat it [the body] up to soften it, because a warm body is a flexible body. Then you can reshape the body any way you want.”

But, this is important to note, there is a false feeling of looseness created in hot yoga. It’s been proven in many cases that this leads to overstretching and injury. So be cautious—and don’t push your body beyond its limits!

It’s important to note, however, that flexibility isn’t everything: it’s quite natural for some to believe that we do yoga just to get flexible, but that’s certainly not true. How far you can bend to touch your toes does not make you a better Yogi. Read my past article, Do I need to be flexible to do yoga?

In conclusion, there are both advantages and disadvantages to hot yoga. But one thing is clear, yoga is beneficial regardless of whether you practice in a heated room or not. Sweating is not what makes hot yoga a healthy practice. The yoga is what makes you healthy. Practice from a mindful place and please, don’t overdo it!

Click through for article

YOGI SEASONAL FOOD CLEANSE

Spring – 14 Days

NEW DATE – Monday, April 16th – Sunday, April 29th

It’s time to cleanse after all the holiday cheer! Join our professional team of yogis for a 14 Day Yogi Seasonal Food Cleanse designed to align your physical and energetic bodies as the weather and season changes.  You will learn how to detoxify and heal the body through the use of local, organic, sustainable food and use our yoga practice to further eliminate toxins and boost your immune system in preparation for the holiday and flu season.  This is the ultimate “foodie” cleanse!  No starving here, just wholesome clean foods that will make you feel better than ever!  We hope that after participating in the 14 Day Yogi Seasonal Food Cleanse, you will attain the knowledge that will guide you toward long term healthier practices and an enhanced life!

14 Day Cleanse Includes:

• PDF workbook including a detailed description of the cleanse, expert advice on how to succeed and get the most out of the cleanse, journal templates, 2 week sample menu, shopping lists, list of local farmers markets and organic markets, vegan restaurant guide, delicious seasonal vegan recipes and more.One in-person group q & a meeting (optional attendance)
• Daily outdoor yoga classes at “Bronson Canyon Yoga” geared specifically toward the cleansing process. ** If you are out of town or pay for yoga elsewhere you can still join the cleanse (choose “no yoga” option below)
• Email forum/Facebook
• Yoga class the day before cleanse start date, plus optional Q & A

Testimonials from our past cleanse groups!

Save the Date:
Sunday, April 15th
9:00am optional Q & A;
9:30am yoga class at Bronson Canyon Yoga

Price for 14 Day Cleanse:
$80 – $120
nic@nicolepresents.com

Cleanse Options

New Cleanse Member – No Yoga $80.00 USD New Cleanse Member – With Yoga $120.00 USD Trade for Services (Email Us) $0.00 USD

Written by Nicole Doherty
for American Athlete Magazine

Becoming a great athlete certainly takes a lot of work. It takes time, dedication, practice and commitment. One of the first orders of business for a professional athlete is conditioning—cleaning up the body and priming it for optimal performance. The same is true about the practice of Yoga.

Our physical form, which is our body, is very much like a machine. Much like a car, we need to clean the outside, vacuum the inside and perform regular maintenance, like changing the oil, on schedule. We need to do the same with our bodies; we need to maintain our personal vehicle.

Most athletes are great at what they do because they have detoxified their system and have become attuned to their bodies and its needs. To continue using the car analogy: Detoxified your system and becoming attuned to your body makes it function at peak performance. This helps it operate well at high speeds, keeps it from breaking down over long distances, and helps keep the wheels on. Simply put, successful athletes learn how to maintain their bodies.

Most people come to Yoga with bodies like beat up Chevys. And that’s OK because at least they are beginning the healing process. Think of Yoga teachers as mechanics who are prepared to make repairs using the right tools. In Yoga, we start to work the outer layers to move toward the inner layers using techniques to create body awareness. We peel away past injuries and the negative compensations that have developed over time as a result these injuries. We also peel away tension and stress. More importantly, we use the practice to prevent new injuries, open the body, and detoxify the system.

In Yoga, the outer layers of the practice address the functional anatomy—aligning the body, working isometrically, isolating muscles, strengthening, stabilizing and elongating them.

Part of the practice of releasing impurities is achieved utilizing postures like “seated forward folds” and “twists”, which help to stimulate and wring out the intestines, where most of our garbage resides. But even more important than these particular poses is the use of the breath. When we consciously breathe we generate heat in our system that burns off the pollutants found in our gut. There are many different breathing techniques that are part of the cleansing process, a common one found in classes today is called “Breath of Fire”.

Once we begin the purification process, we notice that it begins to take hold in other aspects of our being. Ever notice the way you feel after you’ve cleaned your car? I have a Mini Cooper and when that little cutie is clean and sparkly, well, I just want to put the top down, blast the radio and drive all over LA!

My point is this: When we freshen up, we start to feel better. Our energy is cleaner. We present ourselves differently. Our mind is serene when there is less clutter on the floor and the seats.  Detoxifying the body soothes the internal chatter of the mind.  The whole goal of Yoga is to still the fluctuations of the “mind stuff” or “citta” as the term is known in Sanskrit.

I began practicing yoga over ten years ago, and I really didn’t understand these concepts very well. Maybe I just chose to ignore what I needed to change about myself. I loved the way Yoga made me feel every time I walked into a class, but my lifestyle outside class was not supporting the practice. I worked really hard and partied even harder. I was stressed out. I never watched what I ate. I slept a little—mainly watched the clock. I drank caffeine to stay awake during the day and would take sleeping pills at night. Even worse, I actually thought this was pretty normal because it was behavior I learned was shared by friends and coworkers. I simply didn’t think change was needed.

Now that I have learned about the mind-body connection and how energy works, it seems so crazy that I couldn’t figure out why I still didn’t feel great. But I should have known. Gold Medalists don’t win those medals training every now and again while binging on cupcakes, donuts, caffeine and sleep aids. They talk the talk and they walk the walk.

When I started practicing yoga regularly, 3 – 5 times per week, I really started to become aware of shifts in how I was feeling. Once I began to purify my body, my mind followed. 

Every time I showed up on my mat, I was confronted with the thoughts that were feeding my addictions and patterns of behavior off the mat. I learned that going inward into the highly individual practice of Yoga became a journey of realization, discovery, acceptance and awareness. Every time I released the tension and toxins of my body, a little more of my mind’s negativity went with them. I began to experience peace, joy and happiness. These came in bits and pieces at first but then became regular occurrences.

In Yoga, as with all athletic practices, dedication and consistency is encourages. This is defined as “abyasa” in Sanskrit. Following this course, we can unravel the complications of the body and mini traumas (or big ones) that have occurred on our life path. We can use a practice of breath and movement to release resistance and move toward more spaciousness in our minds. With more space, we can develop a keener awareness and sharper focus. When we are ready, we can dive even deeper to discover more through yogic practices like meditation.

That’s certainly what I did. My life has changed as a result of my own Yoga practice and Yoga has spilled into every crevice of my existence. I no longer succumb to any of the aforementioned behaviors. Interestingly enough, I’m now a sober, vegan Yoga teacher who also leads seasonal food cleanses. This certainly was not my intention 10 years ago when I walked into the Yoga studio. But my life has become amazing.

If you are resisting detoxification through a Yoga practice (or any training), it’s probably your Ego telling you to not change. But like any good coach, my suggestion is to just keep showing up to practice. Put in the time. With consistency and dedication, you can make a real shift in your life. As Patabhi Jois, one of the founders of Western Yoga has famously said: “All is coming. Yoga is 99% practice and 1% theory”.  Yes, it’s really all about experiencing it first hand.

Carve out some time, dedicate yourself to a practice and commit to real change.

YOGI SEASONAL FOOD CLEANSE

Winter – 14 Days

NEW DATE – moved it back because of people’s holiday schedules
Monday, January 16th – Sunday, January 29th

It’s time to cleanse after all the holiday cheer! Join our professional team of yogis for a 14 Day Yogi Seasonal Food Cleanse designed to align your physical and energetic bodies as the weather and season changes.  You will learn how to detoxify and heal the body through the use of local, organic, sustainable food and use our yoga practice to further eliminate toxins and boost your immune system in preparation for the holiday and flu season.  This is the ultimate “foodie” cleanse!  No starving here, just wholesome clean foods that will make you feel better than ever!  We hope that after participating in the 14 Day Yogi Seasonal Food Cleanse, you will attain the knowledge that will guide you toward long term healthier practices and an enhanced life!

14 Day Cleanse Includes:

• PDF workbook including a detailed description of the cleanse, expert advice on how to succeed and get the most out of the cleanse, journal templates, 2 week sample menu, shopping lists, list of local farmers markets and organic markets, vegan restaurant guide, delicious seasonal vegan recipes and more.One in-person group q & a meeting (optional attendance)
• Daily outdoor yoga classes at “Bronson Canyon Yoga” geared specifically toward the cleansing process. ** If you are out of town or pay for yoga elsewhere you can still join the cleanse (choose “no yoga” option below)
• Email forum/Facebook
• Yoga class the day before cleanse start date, plus optional Q & A

Testimonials from our past cleanse groups!

Save the Date:
Sunday, January 15th
9:00am optional Q & A; 9:30am class

Price:
$80 – $120
(see options below)
nic@nicolepresents.com

Yogi Seasonal Food Cleanse

New Cleanse Member – No Yoga $80.00 USD New Cleanse Member – Includes Yoga $120.00 USD Cleanse Member – Recipe Addendum $40.00 USD Trade for Services (Email Us) $0.00 USD