Happy Holidays to all of our staff and dedicated loyal yogis! It is a pleasure to walk into each of our studios and see so many familiar faces and also to meet so many new students who are just experiencing Bikram Yoga for the first time. New students are not beginners; we are all beginners, and hopefully learn something new about ourselves in each and every class. I have been practicing Bikram Yoga for 10 years now and, although tempted at times to slow down a little, my body tells me what it needs. If I miss too many days in a row I just don't feel the same.

It is amazing to me how Bikram Yoga keeps growing and growing. It was only 9 years ago that Bikram Yoga NYC's midtown studio was the first and only official Bikram Yoga in the entire region. People would travel from all over the five boroughs to come to class. Back in those days, we often had to turn people away because of lack of space. Today, if you look at Bikram's main website you will see how many studios there are now all over New York and throughout the rest of the world.

I will be talking about the Half Moon Pose with Hands to feet pose. I think that this first posture (or little series of postures) is the most difficult in the entire class. You have just rushed in to the studio from possibly a hard days work and your are feeling stressed out and may be wondering "why am I rushing into a crowded hot room to work so hard after I have worked so hard all day?" The breathing exercise is over and now you have to start moving your body. You are not quite warmed up even though the room is hot and you have started to sweat. You bend to the right and are holding the posture for what seems to be an eternity and in your mind you think to yourself "what am I doing here?" Well, you are not alone! I think like that every time I take a class. What I do tell myself is that if I can get through these first postures the rest of the class will feel great! This posture is designed to focus your mind and bring your awareness to yourself for the next 90 minutes. What a treat to allow yourself this time to make your life a little better one day at a time.

I have a few tips for you: make sure that if you have tight shoulders and neck that you don't push your arms back too far or let your shoulders scrunch up when you press your palms together. This will only add more tension to that area. Instead, ease into it a little. Be very gentle with your neck in the first back bend. You don't want to compress the cervical spine too intensely, especially at the beginning of class. Back bends are good for the spine but you must do it correctly. On the forward bend (hands to feet pose), many students who have tight hamstrings have a difficult time grabbing under their heels. Please just grab wherever you can so that you can press your belly on your thighs. That's the most important thing as a beginner. IF you set up your postures correctly you will not get injured so listen carefully to the instruction and do the best you can. Listen to your body everyday and watch how your body changes with regular consistent practice. IF you practice yoga every day for 2 months and you are not satisfied with how you look or how you feel, we will give you your old body back!