Is hot yoga safe for everyone?

The benefits of practicing yoga in the heat are plentiful and varied. Sometimes, however, it may be in your best interest to stay out of the hot room...

• A mama-to-be may not want to practice in the heat during the first trimester of pregnancy. Thereafter, we recommend you consult your care provider before returning to the hot room. If hot yoga wasn't a regular practice before getting pregnant, we recommend sticking to prenatal yoga classes with a certified teacher.
• High-risk pregnancies should not practice in the heat at all, unless cleared by their health care provider/pregnancy consultant. The Modo Yoga Prenatal series can be practiced at home using this DVD.
• It would be a good idea to take a break from the heat if you're dehydrated, feeling depleted, have a fever or are fighting an illness like cold & flu. Rest up, hydrate, kick the bug from your system, then return when you're feeling better (and are less contagious!).
• If you have an acute injury that has resulted in substantial swelling and/or heat, best to wait at least 48 hours or until the swelling and heat has subsided before returning to the hot room.
• We highly recommend consulting your care provider before beginning a hot yoga practice if you have any major or chronic health concerns such as a cardiovascular condition.
• Students of a hot yoga practice must be of an age that their body can maintain a safe core body temperature. In general, the core body temperature of pre-pubescent children rises much faster than adults and they lack the ability to regulate body temperature through sweating. Inversely, after a certain age, the ability to maintain core body temperature decreases due primarily to circulatory conditions and a decrease in sweat gland function, so anyone seeking to begin a hot yoga practice later in life should consult their care provider before doing so.

Modo's first of six pillars is Be Healthy. One of the first steps in achieving lasting health is to listen to the messages of your body and honouring them above else, even if that means staying out of the heat. We'll miss you while you're taking a break, but will be here waiting for you when you're ready to return :)