Hot yoga is a variation on the traditional yoga practice where heat is added to the equation. Three months ago the only option for hot yoga was in Kimberley. Since then One Love Hot Yoga has expanded into Cranbrook.
The Cranbrook studio is owned by Chelsey Dormer, Sue Inshaw and Kristi McRae. McRae also owns the Kimberley studio. Dormer and Inshaw were attending McRae's classes in Kimberley and found that there were a lot of people driving from Cranbrook to attend.
"We all met through that," said McRae, "and this developed."
Dormer said that after recognizing the need in Cranbrook, they opened the One Love Hot Yoga in Cranbrook together in November.
Since then the reception has been amazing, said Inshaw.
"People love the main class that we offer because it's accessible to everybody, to all levels of strength and flexibility," Inshaw said.
"We've been overwhelmed with how everyone has been so open-armed and excited about this venture," Dormer said.
Classes are usually one hour or 75 minutes and they are held in the yoga room which can hold up to 39 people. So far the most they've had in a class is 33 people.
The heat for the hot yoga is provided by FAR infrared panels which convert light directly to heat. The panels that hang over the studio warm nearby objects without raising the air temperature.
"The main difference is the heaters," said Dormer. "The infrared technology heats the objects, so you're getting heated to about 1.5 inches, so it loosens your muscles and lubricates your joints and is just that much more detoxifying. You sweat, you really sweat."
She said the heat makes the yoga more accessible for people who have joint and muscle issues as well. The hot classes get to about 41 degrees Celsius, while the warm yoga classes run about 34 degrees.
The room is also humidified.
Inshaw has been teaching yoga since 2005. She began in Kimberley. She specializes in flow, prenatal and postnatal classes.
Dormer has been teaching since September, but has practiced yoga for 10 years. She specializes in hot yoga.
McRae took the Moksha certification teacher training in 2012 and has been teaching for almost two years. She's been practicing for over a decade.
Though McRae is certified in the Moksha style, the Cranbrook classes are mostly based off the traditional yoga sequence.
Schedules and more info for One Love Hot Yoga Cranbrook can be found online at www.onelovehotyoga.ca or at their Facebook page.