Hot Yoga For Dummies

Having a great hot yoga class isn’t about how smart you are; it’s about how dumb you are willing to let yourself be.

The three most dangerous words in the English language, and the ones that will sabotage your every hot yoga class, are:

“I know that.”

The most successful people throughout history and right now in our hot yoga room, are those who know that they don’t know. And are ready to learn something new.

How teachable are you?

What is your Teachability Index?

Never mind your IQ; you need a high Teachability Index. This is the measure of how open you are to learn in any given situation.

When your Teachability Index is low, your learning valve is stuck.

The good news is that it isn’t stuck forever; your Teachability Index fluctuates all the time. And you control it.

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Hot Yoga and Pregnancy

Hot Yoga during pregnancy? Yes, No, Maybe?

Some people just say no to hot yoga during pregnancy.  Others  couldn't imagine not having their hot yoga practice through the pregnant months.

Who's right? You are, of course.

Especially when you're pregnant, it's important to do what feels good to you. Everyone will have an opinion; only you can choose what feels right for you (this is great training for parenthood, by the way, when everyone and their mother will offer sage advice on what you're doing wrong; you have to learn filter what you hear and listen only to your inner parenting guide.)

The woman who trained me to be a hot yoga teacher, Michelle, practiced and taught hot yoga throughout her pregnancies. She looked wonderful - you know, one of those women who glows during pregnancy and is all belly, no body fat.

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Yoga in a Sardine Can?

Is this hot yoga or is it torture?

On the first day of summer, out in the middle ot Times Square, hundreds of people gathered to do Hot Yoga out on the street. Not hot enough to fry an egg on the sidewalk, it WAS hot enough to work up a sweat and get all the benefits of hot yoga in an outdoor flash mob.

But Times Square's got nothing on us.

With the advent of summer - longer days, more light and heat later in the day, temperatures soaring into the 100s already - our little Riverflow hot yoga studio has been filled to the brim with hot-to-trot students of all kinds - beginners, advanced, enthusiastic, skeptical. And we welcome everyone.

But is it OK to do hot yoga in a crowded room?

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Three Ways To Lock In The Benefits of Hot Yoga

"Lock your arms! Lock your leg! Lock your knee or the pose hasn't even started!"

You hear the word "lock" a lot in hot yoga. Here are the many variations you may have heard for 90 minutes straight:

"Squeeze your biceps behind your ears like they're holding your head onto your neck."

"Lock your thigh muscle; pull it up off your kneecap. Look for the dimple above your knee in the mirror."

"Make your standing leg like a tree-trunk, a lamppost. Lock your knee!"

Here's why you will hear that over and over again: 

The lock is the key to getting all the benefits of hot yoga.

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Why it takes a community to do hot yoga

I got a shy call today from a woman who timidly inquired if hot yoga is OK for an inflexible, out of shape, overstressed Mom. She asked which hot yoga classes are best for beginners, the least crowded.

My answer: hot yoga was made the inflexible, overstressed, embarrassed and overwhelmed. Come to hot yoga, and come home

This is more than a hot yoga class; this is a warm, welcoming hot yoga community... and that makes all the difference.

Because sometimes it takes a community to transform your life.

When was the last time someone was truly excited to see you walk through the door? At Riverflow, we know how much it takes to take the time to take care of yourself. So just come in, and we'll take it from there. Get ready to unload your struggles, your stuck places, your need for support right here in hot yoga.

It's not just our heat that softens you. 

It's how other Riverflow students welcome you, with stories of their First Time In Hot Yoga. Or smile encouragingly as you bravely attempt each of the hot yoga poses. Strangers-no-more will tell you proud they are of you, what an accomplishment it was just staying in the hot room for the full 90 minutes.

Instant Community, just add sweat.