[QUOTE=charliedharma;54538]I run a studio and some complain it is too cold so I go and turn the heat up , later someone will complain that it is too hot and can we open windows and doors , somebody then will complain that it is too draughty , so much suffering ! some just get on with it adapting to the conditions , humans can survive in really extreme conditions , heat and cold . If people complain its cold , we do utkatasana with long holds , they then take jumpers off , and know not to complain too much as they find holding utkatasana for long time is challenging and they sometimes dont like that and would prefer to start with a simpler softer pose , oh how the mind carries on. I love doing yoga in the heat of India but mostly Im in uk so this is what it is . We can generate our own heat through practise , and heating is usually destroying the planet and costs me a fortune , he said sitting in his centrally heated house . I had an American friend who was staying last week she was cold so I built fire and put coal and logs on , she was shocked I was using coal and we talked about the merits of nuclear power over coal which she actively protests against , the next day The earthquakes hit japan and now there is worry over that , Its not easy keeping warm ![/QUOTE]
I trained in India for a couple of years, it gets pretty cold during winter, especially up in the north.
During summer, it certainly gets hot, but that is the natural climate not an artificially induced one. Asana halls are largely open, so you get the full benefit of the natural prana in the air, especially in the morning. The body adjust to climate, especially if you’re training in that climate. So during summer, the body adjusts to the heat and winter the cold. I notice differences in my metabolism, the food my body needs in different climates, the way I train. Practicing in an excessively heated room seems to put a ‘stress’ on my body that is not compatible with the natural process I’ve described.
I also feel insulating a studio from the natual prana in the air and creating an artificial environment is not conducive to my practice. Of course, we need a comfortable environment. Here in London, they used to simply open the windows between classes, and then close the windows so the studio is a comfortable, ‘universal room’ temperature. That way there is fresh air in the room and everyone is warm and dry.
At the studio I was at last night, they’ve abandoned this, windows are always closed, heat up to the maximum.
I’ve since spoken to another studio and asked if they are now also heating the practice rooms, I was told that they keep them only at room temperature, so that will be my next stop.
This is not to knock ‘hot’ yoga, I just choose to practice in a different way that’s better for me. The class last night was not advertised as a hot yoga class.
