I know people get nervous when they hear about power yoga in a heated room at our studio in Conshohocken, PA. They may think, “Is it super hot?” or “Am I going to faint?” or “How sweaty am I going to get?” or “Am I going to be uncomfortable in the heat and all that sweat?”
The truth of the matter is – there are so many benefits to sweating, like:
- loosens up your muscles,
- rinses out the toxins in your body, and
- keeps pores open.
We put a lot of stuff in our bodies, and it’s good to sweat them out. A little sweat never hurt anyone! Practicing power yoga gives you the strength and peace you may not realize you have as I found in my sweaty yoga practice.
I come from a background where I ran 5 miles every day in order to feel like I did something or to get a good workout. If I didn’t, I would feel like I needed more. Then in 1998, I hurt my foot, and I couldn’t do anything. That’s when I found power yoga, and it changed my life.
In the last 16 years, I have found that the more I practiced, the calmer I was. Little things didn’t bother me as much.My power yoga practice was where I got sweaty, got my workout in and felt really calm and at peace afterwards. I also got a lot stronger than I realized. Power yoga gave me the strength to do things that I didn’t think were possible.
A couple of years ago, I injured my shoulder and couldn’t practice power yoga for about 4 to 5 months. I was getting frustrated and felt like I needed to do something. One day, I went to Norristown Farm Park (just outside Plymouth Meeting) and started running. Before I knew it, I ran 5 miles without stopping. I was shocked that I could run that far without stopping after all these years of not running. The reason I was able to do that was because of power yoga. It gave me the strength and the breathing techniques to do that. It was such an eye opener!
I understand people get nervous about power yoga, and understandably so. It’s HARD! But you have to put in the work and keep showing up to see the results!
I am almost 40 years old and have been practicing for over 16 years. I am the strongest I’ve ever been. My sweaty power yoga has given my strength. Mind frame wise? I am totally at peace…most of the time.
The work that you put in on your mat will help build the strength to make life a little easier, bearable and happy!
If you have stories of how power yoga gave you strength and peace, we would love to hear about it! Feel free to leave a comment below.
Namaste!
More from our power yoga blog: Finding Peace in the Pose – By a Power Yoga Instructor in Conshohocken, PA
