Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class - Softcover

Bikram Choudhury

3.91

592 ratings by Goodreads

9780007154999: Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0007154992 ISBN 13: 9780007154999

Publisher: Thorsons, 2003

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All yoga students, beginners or advanced, will benefit from this accessible book. It studies each of the 26 movements, breathing exercises and rest poses that form the basis of every Bikram yoga class. Regular practise will completely transform your health by reversing and preventing illness. This is the only guide available on Bikram Yoga. 'It's never too late, it's never too bad, you're never too old, you're never too sick to start from scratch once again.' Bikram Choudhury Bikram yoga began when Bikram, a former yoga champion, made a full recovery from a crippling accident thanks to yoga, heat and his guru, Bishnu Ghosh. His guru then sent Bikram to Bombay to heal the sick with yoga. Finding that he did not have enough time to help everybody individually, Bikram began to develop an accessible sequence of postures that everyone could follow and benefit from. Today, every class follows the same sequence of 26 postures and exercises in a studio heated to 100 degrees F. This reader-friendly guide studies each of the 26 movements in detail, showing and describing the 'ideal' position as well as what the beginner is more likely to be able to achieve initially and the problems they are likely to encounter. Each move is also accompanied by details of its specific health benefit and a student's personal experience of the posture.

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Review:

Bikram Choudhury, author of the newly revised Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class and yoga guru to the stars, is on a mission to heal America through yoga. Bikram claims that faithfully doing his yoga routine, which consists of 26 hatha yoga asanas (postures) set down by Patanjali over 4,000 years ago, can fix everything from chronic diseases (like heart disease, diabetes, and arthritis) to obesity and depression. According to Bikram, his beginning yoga class exercises 100 percent of the body, increases energy, and leaves you looking and feeling fantastic.

The book contains nearly 200 photographs illustrating each of the poses. Each asana is also accompanied by detailed directions on how to do it the right way. Can't quite twist your leg around your head or touch your nose to your knee? Bikram will tell you how to modify poses so one day you, too, can resemble a pretzel.

This is not an easy workout. Even intermediate students will find Bikram's yoga routine, which requires about an hour to complete, challenging. Need encouragement? Beginning Yoga contains suggestions for maintaining proper yoga practice, a section on the medical benefits of yoga, notes from Bikram's students, and a good dose of Bikram humor and philosophy. If you can't get to one of Bikram's 100 yoga centers and want to give his style of "hot yoga" a try, open up Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class and let Bikram work his magic on your body, mind, and spirit. --Ellen Albertson

About the Author:

Bikram, who was already a yoga champion in his teens, developed Bikram Yoga in the 1970s after being left wheelchair-bound from a crippling accident. He managed to make a complete recovery thanks to heat and yoga and his guru Bishnu Ghosh, who then sent Bikram to Bombay to help heal sick people with yoga. Bikram found that he did not have enough time to help everyone individually and over the years developed the particular sequence of yoga moves and breathing exercises that he still uses today with remarkable results.

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