My Hot Yoga experience

It may sound cliché but the truth is that Yoga, with a strong emphasis on hot yoga, changed the course of my life. For me, “hot, cold, fast, slow” doesn’t take away from the experience of Yoga. There is a great reason why people gravitate toward, and create different styles of yoga practice. Ultimately, we are all searching for truth and depth of feeling, and our practice needs to meet us right where we are.

My journey into hot yoga began when I was 20. I had a longstanding interest in moving meditation, physical fitness, spiritual and existential musings, and exploring the depths of consciousness for most of my life, so when the opportunity to join my friend in a Bikram hot yoga session came up, I was intrigued. She said it would be tough, but I was up for the challenge. Little did I know that this was going to knock down a door of deep healing for me.

I was going through a breakup at the time and my previous coping habit of using substances to fly away from my bodily experience was going to knock me down like a brick house in a tornado. I made it through the first class, and afterwards, found myself nestled in a stairwell in the foetal position, nursing my tears. The floodgates had opened, and I was faced with years of suppressed emotion, stored chemicals, and a new awakening to being in my body. 

Fast forward a few years, and I was living back on Long Island, working at Whole Foods, and getting into the new-age health craze I’d always dreamed of. Beautiful, floating hippie chicks all around and yoga at the ready, I 'shopped around' at a few local studios and found that only heated yoga made me feel anything at a deeper level. I got stuck in at sweet Yoga Oasis, where the tunes were sacred, the incense was burning, and the temperature was HOT. 

This was my haven. I came here to be with myself before and after work a few times per week. I remember the notion that came back to me from the first time I tried hot yoga in Buffalo, NY - whatever my life was challenging me with, there was a deeper knowing and deeper strength (that I thought others in my life didn’t have) that emerged when I was in this space. Every time I felt challenged in a class - often nothing to do with the posture - I had to remain calm, bury myself deep within my breath, and be with my heart. It was there I found the well of peace and strength that made my experience of hot yoga less rigorous, and more steady and controlled over time. 

When the energy ‘to push hard to impress’ was around me in others, I was able to pull back and compose myself, often able to ‘complete’ the practice without leaving the room or lying down for too long. For me, the journey of hot yoga was about focusing inward, feeling the body and breath, and listening. This same intention has followed me throughout my yoga journey both inside and outside of the heat.

Becoming a regular ‘hot yogi,’ my lifestyle choices started to fall into place. My relationship with alcohol changed rapidly, synthetic drugs and chemicals completely repelled me, and my diet started to match my body’s needs and cravings naturally. My tendency toward healthy eating and wellness routines escalated and I have felt more vibrant as the years go by.

When I moved to Sheffield in 2011, my teaching began. From my humble home studio in Crookes to co-founding two Hot Yoga Sheffield locations, the past 13 years of personal practice, teaching and business management have landed me as a YAP Registered Senior Yoga Teacher and Studio Director at Soul Fire Studios.

What an absolute adventure it has been making my way to this moment in time. I am glad to be able to pass on all that I know and have experienced in the field of hot yoga, and can’t wait to share this journey with you!

Let’s IGNITE the deep transformational power of this practice, the Alchemy of Hot Yoga.

With Vibrance,

Anne Marie