Hot yoga and Bikram, honestly
5 min read · Updated October 16, 2026 · sources checked October 16, 2026
In short
Hot yoga is any yoga practised in a heated room, usually 30 to 40 °C. Its best-known form, Bikram yoga, is a fixed sequence of 26 postures and 2 breathing exercises done for 90 minutes at about 40 °C and 40 % humidity, devised by Bikram Choudhury in Los Angeles in the 1970s. The heat is modern; it raises body temperature and heart rate.
Hot yoga is one of the most searched yoga styles in the English-speaking world, and the one furthest from the yoga of the texts. It deserves a clear page: where the heat comes from, what the sequence is, what courts have said about its founder, and what the research really measures.
Where the heat comes from
Bishnu Charan Ghosh's Calcutta
The postures of Bikram yoga come from the hatha yoga and physical culture taught in Calcutta by Bishnu Charan Ghosh (1903-1970), the younger brother of Paramahansa Yogananda, who founded a College of Physical Education there in 1923. He taught a fusion of postures, physical culture and muscle control, including weight training and nauli. Bikram Choudhury, born in Calcutta in 1944, became his regular student in 1962, at eighteen.
Los Angeles, 1970s
In 1971 Bikram Choudhury moved to the United States and opened a studio in Los Angeles. He developed a fixed sequence of 26 postures and two breathing exercises, described in his 1978 book Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class, practised in a room heated to about 40 °C (105 °F) with around 40 % humidity, for 90 minutes. The heat was meant to recreate India's climate. Paid nine-week teacher trainings, run by the founder, later helped Bikram studios spread around the world.
"Hot yoga" later became a general term. A 2025 systematic review defines it as any yoga practised in warm to hot conditions, from 25 °C upwards; most studies used Bikram, others heated vinyasa or hatha classes.
The Bikram sequence
The 26 postures are the same in every class, in the same order, with the same script spoken by the teacher:
| Part | What it contains |
|---|---|
| Opening | standing deep breathing, a prāṇāyāma |
| Standing series | half moon with backbend and forward bend, awkward pose, eagle, standing balances and bows, triangle, tree, toe stand |
| Floor series | wind-removing pose, sit-ups, cobra, locust, bow, fixed firm pose, half tortoise, camel, rabbit, forward bends, spine twist |
| Closing | kapālabhāti, "blowing in firm", then śavāsana |
Many of these postures exist in hatha yoga under Sanskrit names (triangle, dhanurāsana, bhujaṅgāsana). The heated room and the fixed script are modern.
What courts and the press have documented
Personal facts about a living person belong here only when they are published and judged. They are part of this style's history:
- Copyright, 2015. Bikram Choudhury claimed copyright over his sequence and sued other studios. On 8 October 2015, the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that the sequence is "an idea, process, or system designed to improve health" and therefore not protected by copyright (Bikram's Yoga College of India v. Evolation Yoga). Anyone may teach the 26 postures.
- Harassment verdict, 2016. In January 2016, a Los Angeles jury found him liable for harassment and retaliation against his former legal adviser, Minakshi Jafa-Bodden, awarding $924,500 in compensatory damages and, the next day, about 6.5 million dollars in punitive damages (Associated Press).
- Other lawsuits. At that time, six women had filed civil suits alleging sexual assault; his lawyers said he had never assaulted any of them and that prosecutors had declined to bring charges (AP).
- Afterwards. He left the United States for India in 2016; in 2017 a Los Angeles judge issued a warrant for his arrest for failing to pay the judgment. A documentary, Bikram: Yogi, Guru, Predator, was released in 2019, after which some studios dropped his name.
None of this changes what a posture is. It is a reason to choose a studio for its teachers, not for a brand.
What the research shows
The body in the heat
- In a laboratory study of 24 practitioners guided through a standard 90-minute Bikram class, average energy expenditure was 286 kcal (179 to 478), and all postures were classed as light-to-moderate intensity. Experienced practitioners reached higher heart rates (86 % of predicted maximum against 72 %) and sweated more (1.1 kg per hour against 0.6) than novices (Pate and Buono, 2014).
- A systematic review of 43 studies (942 participants, 76 % women) found that a hot yoga session raises body temperature and heart rate, but not the energy cost, compared with non-heated yoga. Regular practice was associated with improvements in some cardiometabolic and functional measures, but many studies lacked rigorous designs, and the authors conclude that claims that hot yoga brings greater health benefits than other forms of yoga or exercise are unsubstantiated. They also note case reports of ill health after hot yoga (Willmott et al., 2025).
Adverse effects
In an online survey of 157 hot yoga practitioners, just over half (82) reported at least one adverse event during a session; among them, the most common were feeling light-headed (61 %), dizziness (60 %), nausea (35 %) and dehydration (34 %) (Mace and Eggleston, 2016). A convenience survey cannot give a true rate, but it shows that these symptoms are common, not rare.
In short: the heat makes the session feel harder and you sweat more, but it does not make the yoga "more effective". Flexibility may feel greater in the heat; that does not mean the joints are safer.
Who it suits
Hot yoga suits healthy adults who enjoy heat and a fixed, athletic routine. It suits less well beginners who do not tolerate heat, older people, and anyone in the situations listed at the top of this page. Intensity is moderate in effort but high in heat load. On the levels of practice, it is not a beginner's necessity: you can learn the same postures at room temperature.
Practising more safely
- Drink water before, and sip during and after: at the sweat rates measured by Pate and Buono, a 90-minute class means roughly 0.9 to 1.7 litres of sweat.
- Eat lightly two to three hours before, not just before.
- Start with shorter or cooler classes; sit or lie down whenever you need, and leave the room if symptoms appear.
- Do not push the stretch further because the muscles feel warm.
- Avoid practising when ill, after alcohol, or after a night without sleep.
Finding a studio
There is no single authority for hot yoga. Ask the studio what temperature and humidity it uses, how long the class lasts, whether teachers are trained to recognise heat illness, and whether you may leave the room at any time. For the same postures without the heat, see hatha yoga, Iyengar yoga or the beginner postures. All the schools and paths: the paths of yoga.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between hot yoga and Bikram yoga?
Bikram yoga is one specific fixed sequence of 26 postures and 2 breathing exercises, 90 minutes at about 40 °C. Hot yoga is the general term for any yoga in a heated room: flow, yin or other sequences, at temperatures that vary by studio.
Is hot yoga traditional Indian yoga?
No. No classical yoga text calls for a heated room. The heated studio is a creation of the 1970s in the United States; the postures themselves come from hatha yoga as taught in Calcutta by Bishnu Charan Ghosh.
Is hot yoga safe?
For healthy adults who hydrate and listen to their body, it is generally tolerated, but in one survey just over half of hot yoga practitioners reported an adverse event such as dizziness, nausea or dehydration. People who are pregnant or have heart disease should not practise it without medical advice.
Does hot yoga burn more calories?
Less than often claimed. In a laboratory study of a standard 90-minute Bikram class, the average energy expenditure was 286 kcal, classed as light-to-moderate intensity, far from the 1,000 calories sometimes advertised.
Sources
- Willmott AGB et al. Hot Yoga: A Systematic Review of the Physiological, Functional and Psychological Responses and Adaptations. Sports Medicine Open, 2025 DOI 10.1186/s40798-025-00917-7 PMID 41032153 checked October 16, 2026
- Mace C, Eggleston B. Self-Reported Benefits and Adverse Outcomes of Hot Yoga Participation. International Journal of Yoga Therapy, 2016 DOI 10.17761/1531-2054-26.1.49 PMID 27797657 checked October 16, 2026
- Pate JL, Buono MJ. The physiological responses to Bikram yoga in novice and experienced practitioners. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, 2014 PMID 25141359 checked October 16, 2026
- Bikram's Yoga College of India v. Evolation Yoga, No. 13-55763, US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, opinion filed 8 October 2015 checked October 16, 2026
- Bikram Yoga Founder Ordered to Pay Punitive Damages for Harassment, Associated Press via Claims Journal, 28 January 2016 checked October 16, 2026
- Bikram Choudhury, Wikipedia (born 1944 in Calcutta, 1971 Los Angeles, lawsuits, 2017 arrest warrant, 2019 documentary) checked October 16, 2026
- Bishnu Charan Ghosh, Wikipedia (Calcutta physical culture teacher) checked October 16, 2026
- Exercise During Pregnancy, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (avoid hot yoga or hot Pilates) checked October 16, 2026
- Heat exhaustion and heatstroke, NHS (symptoms and what to do) checked October 16, 2026
Yogide explains what the texts and the studies say; it is not medical advice. If you have a health condition, are pregnant or feel pain, talk to your doctor before practising, and stop any posture that hurts.