Sweat so Good!
You do it for that delicious mix of warrior accomplishment and complete calm; it's what keeps you coming back to hot yoga.
Yet you may be blissfully unware of the amazing cellular health you're getting not just from the asanas, but from the sweating you do in hot yoga.
Get ready to get blown away when you hear how deeply and completely healing your regular hot yoga practice is, for every cell in your body.
Talk about sweat equity...!
In 2011, Stephen Genuis, MD completed, Blood, Sweat and Urine: An assessment of Induced Sweating for Management of Toxicity. The conclusions: induced sweating is a highly effective means of eliminating several nasty chemical toxins.
This is HUGE news. Especially if you're living in the modern world (you are).
You are the first generation to be exposed to widespread chemicals everywhere in your everyday life: in your furniture, your cosmetics, in the walls of your home, in the air you breathe and the food you eat. We live in The Age of Toxicity. And most of the chemicals you live with have undergone NO safety testing. Zip. Nada. Zero.
The test group? You.
Meanwhile, ubiquitous toxicity has been linked to everything from infertility and cancer to depression and auto-immune disease. Research confirms the role of chemicals in the development of these devastating conditions and many more.
Today more than ever, optimal health depends upon your body's ability to eliminate toxins.
Here's something to sweat about: chemical toxins are not so easy for the body to expel. On the contrary, they are typically stored in cells for years, where they do their damage over time.
Dr. Genuis' research confirms what traditional cultures have always known: sweating is a vital for good health. Native American sweat lodges and Finnish saunas are based on this wisdom. It's what my Yiddish grandfather used to call, a good "schvitz!"
No wonder people are filling our hot yoga studios.
Hot yoga is not just another passing fad. Certainly hot yoga feels good: you immediately feel more flexible, more calm, less pained. But on an even deeper level, hot yoga feels good becuase you're cleansing toxins from the inside out.
You gravitate towards hot yoga because your body needs it, now more than ever.
Dr. Genuis' study found that induced sweating factilitates the release of Bisphenol A (a devastating hormone disruptor), organochlorine pesticides (neurotoxins) and heavy metals, among numerous other poisons.
It's kind of cool when science confirms what we already know: hot yoga rocks.
Sweat is sweet. The more you sweat it out in hot yoga, the more you heal.
Enter the hot yoga studio and leave your toxins at the door. Every time.
Rhonda Uretzky, E-RYT
Reader Comments (5)
I knew I liked the sweat for some reason! It's good for me. CYA toxins..... :)
So true Heather! Most people say they hate to sweat (who says they like to sweat?? Only us hotties) but they're talking about on the subway in their work clothes. Sweating has always been a luxury practice for the elite of society (think Shamans in ancient cultures, thermal baths in ancient Greece and Rome, modern spas for pampering as well as the rise of elaborate home spas and saunas of the rich and famous). Sweat is your body's natural healing and beautifying treatment. And you get that royal treatment in every hot yoga class.
PS - Sweat doesnt smell! It's the bacteria that is being expelled that often does. Once thats cleansed you wont smell anything - but you may have to burn the clothing that held the smell. That bacteria is tenacious but just think: its on the outside of your clothes instead of festering inside your body now.
I have an idea - I think we should BURN our yoga clothes at graduation. I assure you mine have seen better days!! I read Gabby's post too about her clothes. Might be the perfect time to PURGE those stinky things!
We are indeed in the Age of Toxicity. And we are the hapless guinea pigs of big business' wheelings and dealings! Everyday there is more shocking news about the things that corporations get away with - for example, despite major pushback from citizens, "today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved Dow Chemical’s new “Enlist Duo” herbicide which is a mixture of glyphosate (the active ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup) and the even more toxic chemical 2,4-D of “Agent Orange” fame. What do these two lovely chemicals do to us?"
"Exposure to 2,4-D has been linked to cancer, Parkinson’s disease, endocrine disruption, and reproductive problems. It’s already the 7th largest source of dioxins in the U.S. By the EPA’s own estimation, approval of “Enlist Duo” will lead to an unprecedented 2 to 7 fold increase in its use." (cited from Center for Food Safety's Oct 15th email).
There is a lot of chaos out there - and it is truly our responsibility to try and maintain a barrier between ourselves and this chemical chaos that we have not chosen for ourselves. My opinion? Your dollar is your vote - don't buy chemical-ridden foods, cleaners, sprayed foods, etc. But that aside - I do believe hot yoga is an incredible asset to the modern human. Sweating is beautiful and necessary, and so many people never reach that particular level of sweat outside of a hot yoga studio!
One things I picked up while working on the farm : cilantro/oregano pesto is an incredible heavy-metal remover. Try it out for a few days to additionally pull heavy metals from your body. This recipe links to a just cilantro pesto, but I know that cilantro/oregano is a powerful duo for this purpose: http://chetday.com/howtoremoveheavymetals.htm
Thanks for the tip about cilantro and oregano.
Grace, every age has bemoaned dire circumstances. Chemicals, while not pretty, have nothing on Black plague There is always a solution and often it comes from those who are focused on what works - like oregano and cilantro - and not on what is wrong.
Look up - things are always working out for you. But only if you can see them despite appearances otherwise.