Bikram Yoga is often seen as a test of endurance, heat tolerance, and sheer willpower. But behind the sweat-drenched efforts is a wildly fascinating interplay of muscular strength, control, and engagement.
Unlike flow-based yoga styles that emphasise rapid movement, Bikram Yoga is a controlled, structured practice—a precise 90-minute sequence of 26 postures and 2 breathing exercises. This repetition isn’t just about memorisation; it’s about building neuromuscular intelligence—strengthening, lengthening, and stabilising your body in predictable and progressive ways.
Your muscles are constantly working in every pose, whether you’re standing in stillness (shout out to our babe- Standing Head to Knee) or holding a deep delicioius backbend (Bow Pose, anyone?).
Understanding how they work will enhance your practice, prevent injury, and help you harness the full power of the sequence.
Lets take a peek into how your magical muscles work.
How Muscles Work: The Basics (broken down in a chill way, relax)
Muscles are contractile tissues (tissues that can contract, and relax)
Their job is to move and stabilise your bones.
Every time you lift your leg, extend your arms, or hold a posture in stillness, a combination of muscle contractions are at play:
• Your brain sends a signal to activate the right muscles.
• Your muscle fibers listen & contract to generate movement or stabilize a pose.
• And after they obey & the work is done, the muscles relax (and hopefully, so do you!).
In Bikram Yoga, the intensity of static postures means your muscles aren’t just moving, you’re often holding positions using sustained contraction, developing deep, long-lasting strength.
Types of Muscle Contractions in Bikram Yoga
In Bikram Yoga, your muscles work in three key ways:
1. Concentric Contractions: The Movers
These happen when a muscle shortens to generate movement.
For Example:
• Slowly, gently lifting your leg up towards the mirror in Standing Head to Knee
In this case, your quadriceps of the lifting leg contract concentrically to move & extend the knee joint to straighten into an "upside down L like linda".
2. Eccentric Contractions: The Strength Builders
Eccentric contractions occur when a muscle lengthens to control and keep movement smooth instead of collapsing. These contractions are essential for flexibility and injury prevention.
Continuing on from our Standing Head to Knee example:
• The hamstrings on our standing leg, eccentrically engage, to control the extension of the standing knee. This eccentric contraction prevents the knee from snapping into hyperextension.
3. Isometric Contractions: The Power of Stillness
In isometric contractions, the muscle fires without changing length-essential for stability and endurance.
Moving further in our Standing Head to Knee example:
• The quadriceps hold an isometric contraction to keep the knee in its extended straight position and prevent the leg from buckling.
Understanding these contractions transforms your practice- making you stronger, steadier, and more in control- and lets you get into the deep truths within the dialogue.
So back to our posture in focus in the context of the dialogue, by truly understanding mechanics and functional anatomy, you don’t need to overthink your knee..."no knee!"
Instead, by focussing on evenly distributing your body weight over the standing foot we automatically unlock access to the muscles on both the front and back of your standing leg.
Once that connection is established, we are called, if not commanded to shift full attention to engaging the entire thigh unit. With our leg straight, bones stacked, and muscles fully activated, we are able to hold ourselves upright safely and steadily, thanks to the seamless coordination of concentric, eccentric, and isometric contractions working together.
Fast-Twitch vs. Slow-Twitch Fibres: What Dominates in Bikram?
Your muscles contain two main types of fibres:
Slow-Twitch (Type I) Fibres: Built for Endurance
• These fibres activate during long holds (think Standing Head to Knee, Standing Bow, Triangle Pose).
• They use oxygen efficiently, making them fatigue-resistant.
• They are essential for holding deep, sustained postures.
For example: By holding a locked knee for the entire duration of Standing Head to Knee your calf, quadriceps, and core muscles are firing in slow-twitch mode.
Fast-Twitch (Type II) Fibres: The Power Players
• These fibres activate during explosive movements (like sitting down half way into Awkward Pose or coming down immediately into Balancing Stick Pose).
• They generate quick bursts of force but tire faster.
• They are crucial for transitions and powerful engagement.
For Example: In Awkward II, the fast twitch fibres in the calves fire hard and fast to get the heels off the ground and hold the high-toe balance...then the fast twitch fibres of the quads and glutes go off explosively to sit you down as you maintain that high toe balance.
In actuality, this part of the posture is an incredible test of neuromuscular control with fast twitch fibres working so hard to prevent wobbling while keeping you lifted!
Bikram Yoga primarily trains slow-twitch endurance fibres, but certain movements (like getting into Standing Bow or the quick movements in Awkward Pose) require bursts of fast-twitch power.
This is why practices such as Inferno Hot Pilates are so good (albeit in a hurts so good kinda way) and compliment the Bikram Yoga practice so beautifully because of the focussed Fast Twitch fibre training!
Strength vs. Flexibility: The Key to a Balanced Practice
Bikram Yoga challenges both flexibility and strength—but here’s the secret:
Flexibility without strength leads to instability.
Strength without flexibility leads to rigidity.
We need both.
Why Strength Matters in Flexibility
Truth be told, this is a hill that I will 100% die on and I touch on this point a lot, passive stretching is not enough.
We need active muscular engagement to create real, sustainable flexibility.
I stand proudly on this hill after almost 2 decades of teaching and have seen students strive for a perceived "shape" instead of the deep magic that the posture holds.
A posture during which I see this often in is the Standing Bow Pulling pose.
From my time as a student and teacher of this series, I have, and have seen students move into the posture passively- simply yanking your leg up and trying to stay still with your chest up won’t get you anywhere.
You need to:
✔ Kick actively into the hand (engaging quadriceps).
✔ Bring the upper body down & Stretch the fingers forward (spinal flexibility).
✔ Stabilise the standing leg (glute and core activation).
Balance between these elements allows you to deepen postures without overstretching or collapsing into the joints.
2 Common Muscle Imbalances in Bikram Yoga (And a couple of thoughts on how to fix them)
Even with a structured sequence, muscle imbalances happen.
Its through private sessions that as a teacher I am able to move with more precision into the many ways that you can coax your body into correction but the following imbalances & tips are very much available for you to bring to your awareness and practice in group classes.
1. Weak Glutes and Overactive Hip Flexors
• Too much sitting leads to tight hips and underactive glutes.
• Guide it into correction: During the bow pose (Dhanurasana) by focusing your efforts on using your inner thighs to draw the knees to hip width distance and maintain them there, you will kick off the glute activation chain.
As well as strengthening your glutes, you'll build total posterior chain strength and allow your hip flexors to take a load off & be guided into a stretch
2. Tight Shoulders from prolonged poor posture
• Poor posture or even "forward head posture" is a usual suspect as the cause of strained traps & shoulder stiffness.
• Guide it into correction: Focus on squeezing the ulnar side of the hand (pinky finger side) any time we have a hands palm thumb crossed grip during the class.
Squeezing the ulnar side works through neuromuscular control and something known as fascial tension balance.
Through this activation of the ulnar side of the hand, we activate the triceps, lats and lower traps which allow the shoulders to relax down away from the ears and tells the upper traps to chill since the body no longer needs them to work.
The end result being less tension in the neck and shoulders.
Eccentric Control & Engagement: The Secret to Effortless Strength
One of the biggest game-changers in Bikram Yoga?
Eccentric strength and proper muscular engagement.
✔ Instead of collapsing into postures, lower down with control.
✔ Instead of passive stretching, actively contract muscles while lengthening.
✔ Instead of hyperextending joints, stabilize with engaged muscles.
To my students who meet me regularly in group classes, you know the drill ;)
Using awareness of eccentric muscular strength as well as correct muscular engagement, we can transform this practice from passive to deeply powerful.
Your muscles are the secret to tapping into the magic of Bikram Yoga.
Bikram Yoga isn’t about heat endurance or flexibility—it’s about understanding how your body moves. When you activate the right muscles at the right time, your practice becomes stronger, safer, and more effective.
So next time you’re dripping with sweat in Triangle Pose trying your hardest not to be a mouth breather, remember: your muscles are working harder than you think—and they’re making you stronger with every class.
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