New studio features hot yoga for students
The inside of Bikram Yoga on the Hill is awash in mandarin orange and sky blue. Shiny black floors lead into the studio that looks out onto 13th Street through full-length windows and skylights.
The feel is more modern and industrial than the traditional muted Zen vibe of most yoga studios, but then again, Bikram style isn’t like other types of yoga.
“Bikram is a series of poses scientifically designed to work the whole body, every organ, system, tissue and muscle,” said Rasa Zubkute, the owner of Bikram Yoga. “It is not a flow, but a series of 26 postures that are held and then released to let the body absorb the benefits of each.”
Bikram Yoga is also conducted in a bit of a different environment than other forms of yoga. Students come out of the room glistening with sweat. During each 90-minute class, the room is kept at 104 degrees Fahrenheit and 50 percent humidity.
The sweltering atmosphere, which is standard for Bikram Yoga, loosens muscles and allows them to stretch deeper, Zubkute said.
“The heat also promotes the detoxification process because you sweat like crazy,” she said.
Bikram Yoga on the Hill opened in mid-January in the second floor space between Which Wich and the Fox Theatre.
The sole owner of the studio, Zubkute knew she wanted to start her own studio after becoming hooked on the practice about a year ago.
“I was captured by Bikram after my first class and I knew ‘this is it,'” Zubkute said.
Mary Dillon, a teacher at the studio, said Bikram has come to be an integral part of her life because of the many benefits of the practice.
“After my first class I knew that this was a tool that would help me greatly and now I am happier, healthier, thinner, calmer and stronger,” Dillon said. “With Bikram practice, my body naturally began to crave a healthy lifestyle.”
Attracting both newcomers and Bikram veterans, Zubkute said that business has slowly but surely been increasing as people find out about Bikram Yoga. The studio offers drop-in rates as well as different price packages for people who want attend classes regularly.
Its location on the Hill makes Bikram Yoga both accessible for and attractive to CU students, who are the studio’s main customers, Zubkute said.
Molly Gale, a freshman musical theatre major, said she tried a Bikram class after she saw signs about the studio’s grand opening. She said during the class she got used to the heat and liked how she felt afterward.
“As you keep going you get into a place where you don’t notice that you’re hot anymore,” Gale said. “Right afterward you feel so good and have lots of endorphins.”
The heat can also take a toll however, making students feel nauseous or dizzy during class.
“I got really dizzy and thought I was going to faint,” said Rachel Lelah, a freshman open-option major who tried Bikram for the first time at Bikram Yoga. “I thought the class was hard to get through but people who had already been doing it only had to sit down once.”
Many times, it takes up to a week for the body to adjust to the heat of Bikram Yoga, Zubkute said. However, for the people who love it, the practice becomes a part of their lifestyle because they understand the importance of replenishing and renewing the body, she said.
Dillon also stressed the importance of practicing regularly to gain results of health and happiness.
“Bikram only really works if you do it regularly,” she said. “The soul of the studio is people who get that.”
Contact Campus Press Staff Writer Emery Cowan at emerycowan@thecampuspress.com.
