Infrared Hot Yoga Can Improve Your Life

If you are a yoga enthusiast, then it is likely that you have heard about the detoxification and cleansing effects hot yoga sessions can provide. However, if you are new to hot yoga, or have never experienced it before, then you may be wondering what hot yoga is, and how infrared hot yoga differs from traditional hot yoga. To help you get a better understanding of infrared hot yoga, including why it has become so popular in recent years, you may enjoy the following summary of the benefits.

Hot yoga, as the name implies, is a yoga class that takes place in a heated yoga studio. Depending on the studio, and the style of yoga being practiced, hot yoga will take place in rooms ranging from 90-110 degrees Fahrenheit with variable humidity levels. Traditional hot yoga classes use forced air heating systems to heat the room, similar to the furnaces in many houses. The problem with these systems is that forced air can cause a yoga studio to feel stuffy, which can cause drowsiness and dry skin. Forced air systems can also push around allergens and pollutants in the air, which can be problematic for people with allergies and/or asthma.

Alternatively, infrared hot yoga uses infrared radiant heating systems that warm your body directly in a similar manner to how the sun heats your skin, but without the damaging UV rays. Specially designed panels installed in the yoga studio emit invisible rays of radiant energy that warm your body without the side effects that forced air heating can cause. Infrared hot yoga is rapidly growing in popularity as it can provide a variety of health benefits to yogis who take part in these classes. Here are just a few of the benefits of taking infrared hot yoga classes.

Boost Your Immune System and Remove Toxins

As we previously mentioned, infrared heat helps you to sweat a great deal. In fact, a 30-minute infrared yoga session can cause you to lose as much as a pound of water weight to sweat (making it important that you stay hydrated). While the evidence around the “detoxifying” effects of sweating is shaky, there IS a strong case for the associated benefits – for example, the increased water intake associated with saunas, hot yoga, and exercise supports the organs in their consecutive functions. In this sense, hot yoga can help the body with a sort of “flushing” effect. Furthermore, practicing hot yoga tends to support and encourage a healthier lifestyle overall. Studies have shown that infrared heat can actually help to boost your immune system by promoting the production of white blood cells, and infrared heat has also been shown to slow the production of cancer cells, making infrared hot yoga a great way for you to boost your overall health.

Improved Circulation

While exercise of any kind can increase cardiovascular health, infrared hot yoga can greatly increase circulation. Studies have shown that infrared heat can stimulate blood flow by opening up the body's capillaries. This can have a variety of health benefits including improving circulation, lowering blood pressure, providing more oxygen to the organs, and by helping them do their jobs more effectively.

Increase Flexibility

One of the primary reasons people start taking yoga classes is to improve their flexibility. This was also one of the reasons hot yoga took off, as heat can relax muscles providing a greater range of motion. Infrared hot yoga does an even better job at helping to improve students' flexibility, as the infrared heat directly warms the muscles, helping them to relax. In fact, studies have shown that athletes exposed to infrared heat are able to stretch three times greater than in a normal environment. Infrared heat can then allow yoga students to get a better range of motion, allowing them to melt better into their yoga positions.  

Weight Loss

Another reason for the growing popularity of infrared yoga is the extent to which it can help participants to lose weight. The fact is that the human body wants to maintain a consistent internal temperature, and your body will work hard to maintain this stable temperature. During hot yoga, as the body is exposed to heat it will work hard to maintain the body's internal temperature through the production of sweat. This causes your body to burn a large number of calories as you burn energy to stay cool. Additionally, infrared heat can also help to boost metabolism, which helps you to burn additional calories and lose weight.

Pain Relief

Infrared hot yoga can also provide much-needed relief for people suffering from chronic pain. By relaxing muscles and joints, improving blood circulation, and by helping to deliver oxygen to soft tissue, infrared heat can reduce the pain caused by a variety of chronic conditions. Whether you suffer from arthritis, fibromyalgia, or the general aches and pains of getting older, infrared hot yoga can help to relieve your pain and improve your overall sense of wellbeing.

Smooth Skin

As infrared heat causes you to sweat, it will also cause the pores in your skin to enlarge allowing for dirt to be flushed from your skin, helping to give it a smoother and healthier feel. Sweat can also help skin to heal faster and function better, meaning that infrared hot yoga can reduce and even clear acne, it can speed the healing of cuts and bruises, and it can help heal rashes and other skin conditions. Regularly participating in infrared hot yoga can help to rejuvenate your skin, leaving it looking and feeling healthier than ever before. 

More Energy 

Unlike many forms of exercise that can deplete the body’s energy stores, hot yoga has been shown to actually boost energy levels! And, many people who practice in the morning note that not only does it give them a sort of “kick-start” for the day, but it also helps them make better choices throughout the day. For example, many people feel the urge to hydrate more and eat healthier foods after a hot studio session!

Sleep Better

If you struggle with insomnia, you may be excited to learn that infrared hot yoga can also help you fall asleep easier and sleep deeper throughout the night. Since infrared heat helps to relax muscles and ease tension and pain, you will likely find that you feel more relaxed when you go to bed after an infrared hot yoga session. Even if your class is early in the day, you will likely find that the benefits of the infrared heat linger throughout the day making it easier for you to experience deep, restful sleep at night.

These are just a few of the benefits infrared hot yoga can provide, highlighting the reasons why these classes are growing in popularity amongst yoga enthusiasts.