Five years ago, a friend suggested I try Bikram yoga to help cope with my postpartum depression.  Not wanting to resort to prescribed medications, I practiced 30 classes in 28 days. Not only did my postpartum depression go away, but I gained a new connection with myself. 

In 2012 we moved to Temecula and I was at BYT on opening day!  I had just been told by my doctor that I was pre diabetic, had high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and very overweight.  I needed to make big changes in my life so I practiced 105 times in 105 days. It was one of the hardest things I had ever done. I did every posture the best I could at that time. Upon returning to the doctor for more testing, I found that everything was back to normal! I lost 40 lbs and as I continued I kept losing the excess weight. My doctor was blown away by the radical changes and asked if I had gone on a diet. I told her I had started doing Bikram Yoga. Wanting to share the love and passion I have for Bikram Yoga, I decided to go to teacher training in the fall of 2013 to help others experience the benefits of this practice.

Being a mother and a military spouse has kept me very busy, yet during the difficult times that I’ve found my practice the most gratifying. I often get so busy I don’t know if I will make it to class but I am always a better version of myself after I have taken class.

I am pregnant with my second child and feel the need to keep practicing.  This has been the easiest and most enjoyable pregnancy! None of the typical aches and pains are there and I believe I owe it to my consistent practice.  I’m confident my consistent Bikram Yoga practice is keeping me strong and my baby healthy as well as preparing my body for a natural and beautiful birth.  

I have an amazing husband,  and a beautiful six-year-old daughter who I love spending time with.  They both know my yoga practice keeps me healthy and strong.  This yoga is medicine for the mind, body, and spirit and I do not ever plan on stopping!

Attending a gym and not finding the workout that would balance my mind, body, and soul, I happened to stumbled upon BYT.  Not knowing anything about it, I bought a Groupon pass and committed for an entire month.

High anxiety nailed me in my first class.  I kept looking at the clock hands – they didn’t seem to move.  Those were the longest 90 minutes of my life… the thought  “Why did I get myself into this?” continually raced through my mind.  When it was over and driving home I felt renewed…my mind cleared of negative thoughts and all negativity had sweated out of my body.  I was hooked, and couldn’t wait to return the next day.

I have been practicing at BYT over two years now.  Not practicing, I automatically notice the difference in my mood changes, lower energy, and an increase in anxiety. 

I was born in Long Beach, California. It was difficult growing up in an unstable and troubled home life which produced severe depression, anxiety, and PTSD.  Luckily, I found my soulmate at a young age, married 18 yrs and with three amazing kids.  My oldest, a junior in High School is an artist and bass player.  My son 14, a freshman in high school and talented musician plays the trumpet and oboe.  My youngest daughter is in choir and learning the bassoon.  We’re a close family and are happiest when in nature and traveling.

Bikram Yoga has definitely helped me overcome many obstacles in my life. I’m able to look at myself in the mirror, love what I see and be a better person.  My emotional health improves drastically when I practice on a regular basis.  I’m grateful for meeting all the teachers at BYT, the beautiful happy faces, and having a little piece of heaven where I can relax, let go, and breathe.  

One of our first students here at Bikram Yoga Temecula, David, 52, has been practicing various forms of yoga for about ten years. He began practicing yoga hoping to ease his lower back pain, brought on by years of construction work. He practiced at several local gyms and yoga studios before he discovered Bikram. Regular Bikram practice, he says, has actually freed him of his lower back pain, and taught him some things about humility and restraint.

Born in Washington D.C. David lived in Europe as a child, then in Colorado and Wyoming before his parents finally settled in San Diego. After a troubled adolescence, David joined the Marine Corps at a young age and travelled the Pacific. He settled in San Diego when he got out of the service, and started doing construction work. In 1990 he moved to Temecula, and in 1995 he started his own construction business. The recession was a trying period for David’s business, but the recent economic upswing has been good, and it has given David more time to devote to his family and yoga practice. He currently practices at least two to three times a week.

“My goal is to practice every day, strengthening my spine and meditative abilities. I often come to practice stressed and frazzled from my daily life, but I never leave that way. Practicing Bikram Yoga calms and centers me. I feel that the restraint, mental strength, and endurance I’ve gained in practice have helped me immeasurably in my life.” David says with a smile, “My long term aspiration is to be able to hold standing head to knee pose easily and indefinitely.”
“I feel that my yoga practice is come a long way from just seeking pain relief…there is much more than that to be gained. The answers to my everyday problems often come to me during practice. I intend to keep practicing, and learning.”

 Once I was a gym junkie and a runner. I had my ITunes “playlist”, my Saucony shoes, a personal trainer, and a “fat burner” concoction to boot. I was good to go, or so I thought. Although I will always appreciate the intensity of my workouts they often left me more amped up and sore rather than recharged and revitalized.  Admittedly I was very focused within my regiment yet the focus was not spilling over into my regular day.

Having a complicated history of yo-yo dieting, body image issues, and eating disorders I really needed something else. Along came Bikram Yoga. I found the “exercise” (it is really so much more!) that satisfied my need for intensity and more importantly gave me clarity and focus outside the “hot room.” My Bikram yoga practice, gave me the ability to see my body as it truly is and taught me how to respect, love and care for it in a way that I didn’t think was possible. Sometimes, in jest, teachers will refer to the time within the 90 minute class as the “torture chamber,” yet ironically the torture for me is not making it to class at least 6 times per week!

I tried some alternative yoga over the last 7 years of my yoga practice and I have enjoyed some of it and the people I have met, yet oftentimes those poses and the cooler temperature of the room has allowed me less flexibility and has caused me pains in the wrist, neck, and back. I really trust Bikram Yoga and my body feels oh so good during the class and absolutely amazing afterwards.  I cannot stop doing it, dissecting it, or telling others about it. It has really been an amazing part of my life. My husband tells me that I am the best mommy and wife that a family could have and I owe a great deal of this status to Bikram Yoga. The practice has allowed me to continue to become the best version of myself. I am forever grateful!

Today, my favorite pose is the Camel. I love how it heals my lower back, opens up my heart and stirs all kinds of emotions to the surface. Tomorrow, I will have a different favorite! That’s the beauty of Bikram Yoga. Each pose continually changes, teaches you more about yourself and makes you appreciate every part of who you are. I’ve been practicing Bikram yoga for over 7 years and this week, I just started to look into my eyes during class. I’ve always looked just above or to the left or right, but never directly. It’s opened up a whole new practice for me. My intention in class is different every day and I pray that I’m able to practice and embrace Bikram yoga until the day I die.

Namaste!