Im interested to hear peoples views on bikram yoga, I practised it for 3 months regularly last year. I found that the yoga made me very emotional especially when I got home I would be very sad or have a lot of anger. Is this a positive thing, my body releasing stored emotions or a sign that I was pushing myself to breaking point? Im thinking of taking it up again as I enjoyed it but not sure if its that beneficial.
Bikram Yoga despite slick advertising and marketing, and practiced by some celebs (Raquel Welch was Bikram follower until they had disagreement later; Lady Ga Ga, some sports celebs, etc) is really nothing special at all!
Doing Yoga in heat is fine, you need not do it all the time in such heat though. Some countries like India can be so hot at times you certainly don’t need to do it in a heated room. There are many other versions of ‘Hot Yoga’ besides Bikram.
With only a set number - 26 asanas done in 90 minute sessions it is limited.
Not too mention as an Instructor it is a franchise so very expensive. You can learn far more in other Yoga branches for a lot less.
The main official HQ website I don’t think is very good at all, especially for a group pulling in so much money.
As for emotions released, most feel happy after exercise or in better mood as it releases chemicals prone to facilitate those emotions. The opposite you mentioned?, try Sivananda Yoga they have positive thinking and meditation classes too or another Yoga group, you may feel lot better. Or other things like Time Line Therapy (look up name or Tad James NLP) wil help release negative emotions for good.
Greetings 
You’re going to potentially get quite a gamut of responses to this one.
I personally feel that Bikram yoga is beneficial for me. Will that continue to be true? I have no idea, but the last few months it has helped me a lot.
If you haven’t tried other forms of yoga, I would certainly experience them so that you know what’s out there. Then in the end, choose the practice that you feel is most beneficial to you. Everyone is different, everyone has a different path, everyone is coming from a different background, so what is right for one may not be true for another.
As for the emotions coming up, I personally feel that to be a VERY good thing. In my opinion those charged emotions are responsible for all sorts of disharmony and dis-ease of the mind and body. As they come up, sit with them, breathe deeply, don’t attach to the emotion, and allow them to be integrated.
Hi Bunny,
What I currently advocate for students is that they cultivate the skill of discernment so that they know what is serving them in their living - their yoga, their friends, their foods, their relationships, their emotions.
I caution students who appear to confuse environment with the availability of yoga. There are benefits from a sweat lodge which are not yoga benefits, per se. There are benefits from doing 100 sit-ups in a sauna. This is also not yoga, per se. If the practice itself is serving your life, that is fine and only for you to say based on your diligent introspection of your living.
The practice of yoga can bring up emotions for the student to confront. However a practice only of asana that only brings up anger and depression AND doesn’t provide methods for dealing with those emerging emotions, that isn’t particularly healthy in terms of a balanced human being. But it is certainly okay for a practice to bring up emotions.
I will say this, the people who practice this style of yoga are very committed and loyal to the practice and those are admirable traits to emulate - when they are tempered with introspection, humility, and gratitude.
gordon
[QUOTE=avedabunny;57836]Im interested to hear peoples views on bikram yoga, I practised it for 3 months regularly last year. I found that the yoga made me very emotional especially when I got home I would be very sad or have a lot of anger. Is this a positive thing, my body releasing stored emotions or a sign that I was pushing myself to breaking point? Im thinking of taking it up again as I enjoyed it but not sure if its that beneficial.[/QUOTE]
Generally speaking, one should feel revitalized and relaxed after practice.
Sometimes negative emotions will surface, but you should be taught a way of releasing and detaching from these emotions.
Sounds like you might be doing a style that is not best for you right now. Try other types of classes and see how you feel. A class that has a long, deep relaxation at the end would be ideal.
When you get home, practice more savasana (corpse pose) with slow, deep breathing. Check your breath throughout the day.