Bikram Yoga in the Media

Can You Transform Your Whole Life in 60 Days?

By Paige Williams
O, The Oprah Magazine  |  December 21, 2009

She’s 80 pounds overweight, divorced, out of work, and deeply in debt. She needs a physical and spiritual overhaul. Can 60 days in a Bikram hot-yoga studio really undo years of damage?

A few highlights from this humorous and truthful article about one woman’s journey from depression and low energy, back to having confidence and control in her life, and on the road to health and vitality…

“The students around me are tanned and toned and very nearly nude. Every body glistens. We’re in a Bikram yoga studio, after all, where the heat is set to 105 degrees and the humidity to 40 percent, to facilitate flexibility. The men wear nothing but shorts; the women rock hot pants and halters. Because I’d rather lick the sweat-soaked carpet than bare my wretched flesh, I have on the hot-yoga equivalent of a snowsuit: calf-length sweatpants, a jog bra, and a T-shirt. I’m huffing harder than a serial killer. And we’re only on posture number one.”

I need to change so many things about my life, it’s hard to know where to start. I need physical and spiritual transformation, from the mental to the muscular to the molecular. I need to stop treating my body like a landfill. I need stability, which I haven’t seen in so long, I’ve forgotten how it feels. I need a reset button.

This won’t be easy. As I start the challenge, I’m divorced, in debt, and 80 pounds overweight. Wellbutrin and Lexapro, in their little amber bottles, rattle around in my life like maracas. My career? Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride.

“How long did it take you to get yourself into this mess?” Gregg asks me one day. “Years,” I say.

Part 1 Read

http://www.oprah.com/health/Paige-Williams-60-Day-Makeover

Part 1 Print version

http://www.oprah.com/health/Paige-Williams-60-Day-Makeover/print/1

For a PDF of the entire – click here

The 60 Day Makeover: Part II

By Paige Williams
O, The Oprah Magazine | January 19, 2010

In January, 2010, Paige Williams—overweight, divorced, out of work, and in debt— embarked on the 60-day Bikram challenge in hopes of turning her life around. Here she writes about the final 30 days of her journey.

For depression, I was taking (and had been taking for years) the highest possible combination dosage of Wellbutrin and Lexapro. I slept miserably if at all. I had headaches every day. I had plenty of reasons to be happy, but I couldn’t see any of them.

The 60-day challenge got me out of bed and out of my own head and showed me the futility of self-flagellation and regret. I’ve stopped taking the Wellbutrin and Lexapro, and, while the depression is still with me, it feels manageable. I’ve still been turning like a rotisserie chicken at night when I sleep, but I must not be grinding my teeth anymore, because I no longer wake up with a headache. Now I’m ready to see what Bikram has done for my body.

I do not, and will never, love every class. Some days I’d rather stroll through Times Square in a string bikini than spend another 90 minutes in that steam box. Yet the best of Bikram redeems those days. The best of Bikram is like being in love. It’s like taking in that first breath of springtime air, seeing green tips on the stems of dogwoods.

Part 2 Read

http://www.oprah.com/health/Paige-Williams-60-Day-Bikram-Yoga-Makeover

Part 2 Print version

http://www.oprah.com/health/Paige-Williams-60-Day-Bikram-Yoga-Makeover/print/1

For a PDF of the entire – click here