Bikram Yoga Creates Natural, Healing Environment at Troy Location

You may have heard of Bikram Yoga before. With a large fan base, it’s often featured in fitness magazines and many celebrities, including Madonna and George Clooney, credit the technique for helping them maintain their slim physiques.

“I think a big difference is that this is a very therapeutic kind of yoga and there are no spiritual overtones to it,” said Jenny Barrett, co-owner of the Troy Bikram Yoga studio. “In one way, I think it makes it more universal and really a place to comfort people to heal their bodies.”

But, what exactly is Bikram Yoga and what is all the hype about?

A Natural Cure

Founded by Bikram Choudhury in the late 1970s, Bikram Yoga, also known as "hot yoga", operates on the theory that a natural process will bring restoration to health problems. In a total of 90 minutes, a fixed routine of 26 postures along with two separate breathing exercises are performed in a room set at a temperature of 105 degrees. Verbal commands are spoken in the same order each class by an instructor, and mirrors line the rooms to help participants work on their alignment.

Barrett along with her husband, Ian O'Laughlin, opened up their first Bikram Yoga location in Farmington Hills in 2007. With over 300 studios and growing within the United States, instructors must first complete a two month intense, in-residence training with Bikram Choudhury in Los Angeles and must meet certain approval and qualification requirements.

The Troy studio, near Big Beaver and Livernois, opened in January of this year in what Barrett and O'Laughlin both refer to as an “extremely convenient location.”

Because Bikram is typically found in larger cities across the United States, the couple decided to bring the studio to their home state, seeing the multitude of ways that many Metro Detroiters could benefit from it. 

Healing with Heat

Because of the high temperature in the room, instructors say the risk for injury or a pulled muscle is extremely minimal. The heat warms up the body, boosting circulation to the joints and creating an all-around relaxing, safer environment for stretching. Health benefits touted by practitioners include flexibility, which is often associated with yoga, as well as detoxifying, healing aches and pains, strength and balance, weight loss, and toning, for a complete system working all parts of the body.

“You know what you’re going to get with Bikram Yoga and you can see how you progress as you get more experienced with it,” O'Laughlin said.

Customers of all ages are welcome to join Bikram Yoga, with no previous experience needed. Attendees may possibly find themselves taking a class with a senior citizen, an athlete training for the Olympics or even Lady Gaga, who stopped by once.

“The staff is very welcoming and friendly and accepting of any beginners that may need a little extra help,” said Nina Carter, a Clinton Township resident and member of Bikram Troy. “After class, I always leave feeling accomplished and tired from a great workout.”

As the Bikram Yoga fixed routine was designed to globally benefit most modern health problems, it still does require participants to keep working at the postures.

“There’s always somewhere to go and it’s always a challenge,” Barrett said. “In the beginning, we always encourage people to take it easy and listen to their bodies because it takes a little while to get acclimated to the temperature of the room. But no matter how long you’ve been practicing, you’re always still getting benefits and making breakthroughs.”