1 993 50 EFFECTS OF HEATED AND THERMONEUTRAL YOGA INTERVENTIONS ON ARTERIAL STIFFNESS IN MIDDLE-AGED ADULTS. THE STUDY INVESTIGATED THE EFFICACY OF 12 WEEKS OF HEATED AND THERMONEUTRAL BIKRAM YOGA IN REDUCING ARTERIAL STIFFNESS IN MIDDLE-AGED ADULTS. FIFTY-FOUR SEDENTARY ADULTS (AGES 40-60 YEARS) COMPLETED 12 WEEKS OF YOGA AT 40.5 DEGREES C (N = 21), YOGA AT 23 DEGREES C (N = 14) OR TIME CONTROL (N = 19). BRACHIAL-ANKLE PULSE WAVE VELOCITY (PWV) WAS NOT SIGNIFICANTLY ALTERED BY HOT OR THERMONEUTRAL YOGA INTERVENTIONS. 2018 2 1045 36 EFFECTS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS PRACTISED IN HEATED AND THERMONEUTRAL CONDITIONS ON ENDOTHELIUM-DEPENDENT VASODILATATION: THE BIKRAM YOGA HEART STUDY. NEW FINDINGS: WHAT IS THE CENTRAL QUESTION OF THIS STUDY? DOES THE HEATED PRACTICE ENVIRONMENT ENHANCE THE EFFECTS OF BIKRAM YOGA ON ENDOTHELIUM-DEPENDENT VASODILATATION IN HEALTHY, MIDDLE-AGED ADULTS? WHAT IS THE MAIN FINDING AND ITS IMPORTANCE? THE PRIMARY FINDING FROM THIS INVESTIGATION IS THAT THE HATHA YOGA POSTURES IN THE BIKRAM YOGA SERIES PRODUCE SIMILAR ENHANCEMENTS IN ENDOTHELIUM-DEPENDENT VASODILATATION IN HEALTHY, MIDDLE-AGED ADULTS REGARDLESS OF ENVIRONMENTAL TEMPERATURE. THESE FINDINGS HIGHLIGHT THE EFFICACY OF YOGA POSTURES IN PRODUCING IMPROVEMENTS IN VASCULAR HEALTH AND DOWNPLAY THE NECESSITY OF THE HEATED PRACTICE ENVIRONMENT IN INDUCING VASCULAR ADAPTATIONS. ABSTRACT: WE HAVE PREVIOUSLY DOCUMENTED IMPROVEMENTS IN ENDOTHELIUM-DEPENDENT VASODILATATION WITH A BIKRAM (HOT) YOGA INTERVENTION IN MIDDLE-AGED ADULTS. AT PRESENT, THE EFFECT OF ENVIRONMENTAL TEMPERATURE IN HOT YOGA ON ENDOTHELIAL FUNCTION IS UNKNOWN. THE PURPOSE OF THIS INVESTIGATION WAS TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTS OF BIKRAM YOGA INTERVENTIONS PERFORMED IN HEATED OR THERMONEUTRAL CONDITIONS ON ENDOTHELIUM-DEPENDENT VASODILATATION. FIFTY-TWO SEDENTARY BUT APPARENTLY HEALTHY ADULTS AGED 40-60 YEARS WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO ONE OF THREE GROUPS: BIKRAM YOGA PRACTISED AT 40.5 DEGREES C (N = 19), BIKRAM YOGA PRACTISED AT 23 DEGREES C (N = 14) OR SEDENTARY TIME CONTROL (N = 19). THE YOGA INTERVENTIONS CONSISTED OF 90 MIN BIKRAM YOGA CLASSES THREE TIMES A WEEK FOR 12 WEEKS. ENDOTHELIUM-DEPENDENT VASODILATATION WAS MEASURED NON-INVASIVELY USING BRACHIAL ARTERY FLOW-MEDIATED DILATATION (FMD). BODY FAT PERCENTAGE DETERMINED VIA DUAL-ENERGY X-RAY ABSORPTIOMETRY WAS SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER IN THE HOT YOGA GROUP AFTER THE INTERVENTION THAN IN THE THERMONEUTRAL YOGA AND CONTROL CONDITIONS. BRACHIAL ARTERY FMD INCREASED (P < 0.05) IN THE THERMONEUTRAL YOGA GROUP AND TENDED TO INCREASE IN THE HOT YOGA GROUP (P = 0.056). NO CHANGES OCCURRED IN THE CONTROL GROUP. THERE WERE NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN FMD CHANGE SCORES BETWEEN GROUPS. WE CONCLUDE THAT BIKRAM YOGA PRACTISED IN THERMONEUTRAL CONDITIONS IMPROVED ENDOTHELIUM-DEPENDENT VASODILATATION IN HEALTHY, MIDDLE-AGED ADULTS. THESE NEW FINDINGS HIGHLIGHT THE EFFECTIVENESS OF HATHA YOGA POSTURES ALONE, IN THE ABSENCE OF A HEATED PRACTICE ENVIRONMENT, IN IMPROVING VASCULAR HEALTH AND ARE OF CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE GIVEN THE INCREASED PROPENSITY FOR HEAT INTOLERANCE IN AGEING ADULTS. 2018 3 1944 14 SALT AND WATER BALANCE AFTER SWEAT LOSS: A STUDY OF BIKRAM YOGA. BIKRAM YOGA IS PRACTICED IN A ROOM HEATED TO 105 DEGREES F WITH 40% HUMIDITY FOR 90 MIN. DURING THE CLASS A LARGE VOLUME OF WATER AND ELECTROLYTES ARE LOST IN THE SWEAT, SPECIFICALLY, SODIUM IS LOST, THE MAIN CATION OF THE EXTRACELLULAR FLUID. THERE IS LITTLE KNOWN ABOUT THE VOLUME OF SWEAT AND THE AMOUNT OF SODIUM LOST IN SWEAT DURING BIKRAM YOGA OR THE OPTIMUM QUANTITY OF FLUID REQUIRED TO REPLACE THESE LOSSES. THE PARTICIPANTS WHO TOOK PART IN THIS SMALL FEASIBILITY STUDY WERE FIVE FEMALES WITH A MEAN AGE OF 47.4 +/- 4.7 YEARS AND 2.6 +/- 1.6 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE AT BIKRAM YOGA. THE TOTAL BODY WEIGHT, WATER CONSUMED, SERUM SODIUM CONCENTRATION, SERUM OSMOLALITY, AND SERUM ALDOSTERONE LEVELS WERE ALL MEASURED BEFORE AND AFTER A BIKRAM YOGA PRACTICE. SWEAT SODIUM CHLORIDE CONCENTRATION AND OSMOLALITY WERE MEASURED AT THE END OF THE PRACTICE. THE MEAN ESTIMATED SWEAT LOSS WAS 1.54 +/- 0.65 L, WHILE THE AMOUNT OF WATER CONSUMED DURING BIKRAM YOGA WAS 0.38 +/- 0.22 L. EVEN THOUGH ONLY 25% OF THE SWEAT LOSS WAS REPLENISHED WITH WATER INTAKE DURING THE BIKRAM YOGA CLASS, WE DID NOT OBSERVE A CHANGE IN SERUM SODIUM LEVELS OR SERUM OSMOLALITY. THE SWEAT CONTAINED 82 +/- 16 MMOL/L OF SODIUM CHLORIDE FOR AN ESTIMATED TOTAL OF 6.8 +/- 2.1 G OF SODIUM CHLORIDE LOST IN THE SWEAT. THE SERUM ALDOSTERONE INCREASED 3.5-FOLD FROM BEFORE TO AFTER BIKRAM YOGA. THERE WAS A DECREASE IN THE EXTRACELLULAR BODY FLUID COMPARTMENT OF 9.7%. SWEAT LOSS IN BIKRAM YOGA PREDOMINATELY PRODUCED A VOLUME DEPLETION RATHER THAN THE DEHYDRATION OF BODY FLUIDS. THE SWEATING-STIMULATED RISE IN SERUM ALDOSTERONE LEVELS WILL LEAD TO INCREASED SODIUM REABSORPTION FROM THE KIDNEY TUBULES AND RESTORE THE EXTRACELLULAR FLUID VOLUME OVER THE NEXT 24 HR. 2020 4 425 14 CALCIUM LOSS IN SWEAT DOES NOT STIMULATE PTH RELEASE: A STUDY OF BIKRAM HOT YOGA. IT HAS BEEN HYPOTHESIZED THAT SWEAT LOSS DURING EXERCISE CAUSES A DISRUPTION IN CALCIUM HOMEOSTASIS THAT ACTIVATES BONE RESORPTION AND OVER TIME LEADS TO LOW BONE MINERAL DENSITY. THE PURPOSE OF THIS SMALL PILOT STUDY WAS TO DETERMINE WHETHER DERMAL CALCIUM LOSS FROM A BOUT OF EXCESSIVE SWEATING DURING LIGHT INTENSITY PHYSICAL ACTIVITY TRIGGERS AN INCREASE IN BIOMARKERS OF BONE RESORPTION. BIOCHEMICAL MARKERS RELATED TO BONE HOMEOSTASIS WERE MEASURED BEFORE AND AFTER A 90 MIN BIKRAM HOT YOGA PRACTICE PERFORMED IN A ROOM HEATED TO 105 DEGREES F WITH 40 % HUMIDITY. PARTICIPANTS WERE FIVE FEMALES WITH A MEAN AGE OF 47.4 +/- 4.7 YEARS. NUDE BODY WEIGHT, SERUM TOTAL CALCIUM (CA(2+)), FREE IONIZED CALCIUM, ALBUMIN, PARATHYROID HORMONE (PTH) AND CTX-I WERE MEASURED BEFORE AND AFTER A BIKRAM HOT YOGA PRACTICE. MEAN ESTIMATED SWEAT LOSS WAS 1.54 +/- 0.65 L, WHICH ELICITED A 1.9 +/- 0.9 % DECREASE IN PARTICIPANT'S BODY WEIGHT. MEAN CA(2+) CONCENTRATION IN SWEAT WAS 2.9 +/- 1.7 MG/DL AND THE ESTIMATED MEAN TOTAL CALCIUM LOST WAS 41.3 +/- 16.4 MG. SERUM IONIZED CA(2+) INCREASED FROM 4.76 +/- 0.29 MG/DL TO 5.35 +/- 0.36 MG/DL AFTER THE BIKRAM HOT YOGA PRACTICE (P = 0.0118). SERUM PTH DECREASED FROM PRE- 33.9 +/- 3.3 PG/ML TO POST- 29.9 +/- 2.1 PG/ML YOGA PRACTICE (P = 0.0015) WHEN ADJUSTED FOR HEMOCONCENTRATION (PTHADJ), IMPLYING A DECREASE IN PTH SECRETION. WE CONCLUDE THAT CALCIUM LOSS IN SWEAT DURING 90 MIN OF BIKRAM HOT YOGA DID NOT TRIGGER AN INCREASE IN PTH SECRETION AND DID NOT INITIATE BONE RESORPTION. 2020 5 2076 22 THE EFFECT OF BIKRAM YOGA ON ENDOTHELIAL FUNCTION IN YOUNG AND MIDDLE-AGED AND OLDER ADULTS. THE PURPOSE OF THIS INVESTIGATION WAS TO DETERMINE IF BIKRAM YOGA, A STYLE OF HEATED HATHA YOGA, WOULD IMPROVE ENDOTHELIAL FUNCTION IN YOUNG AND MIDDLE-AGED AND OLDER, HEALTHY ADULTS. THIS TRIAL WAS PERFORMED IN 36 YOUNG (N = 17) AND MIDDLE-AGED AND OLDER ADULTS (N = 19) WHO COMPLETED 3 WEEKLY BIKRAM YOGA CLASSES FOR 8 WEEKS. HEIGHT, BODY WEIGHT AND BODY COMPOSITION WERE DETERMINED AND ENDOTHELIAL FUNCTION WAS MEASURED NONINVASIVELY USING BRACHIAL ARTERY FLOW-MEDIATED DILATION (FMD) BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION. NO CHANGES IN BODY WEIGHT, BMI OR BODY FAT PERCENTAGE OCCURRED AS A RESULT OF THE INTERVENTION IN EITHER GROUP. BRACHIAL ARTERY FMD WAS SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED IN MIDDLE-AGED AND OLDER (P < 0.05) BUT NOT IN YOUNG ADULTS AS A RESULT OF THE INTERVENTION. THE RESULTS DEMONSTRATE THAT A RELATIVELY SHORT-TERM BIKRAM YOGA PRACTICE MIGHT SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVE VASCULAR ENDOTHELIAL FUNCTION IN MIDDLE-AGED AND OLDER ADULTS. WHILE APPARENTLY HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS IN THIS STUDY EXPERIENCED NO ADVERSE EVENTS, THOSE WITH PREEXISTING CONDITIONS SHOULD TAKE CAUTION AND CONSULT WITH A PHYSICIAN PRIOR TO ENGAGING IN THIS STYLE OF YOGA. 2017 6 268 18 ACUTE PHYSIOLOGIC EFFECTS OF PERFORMING YOGA IN THE HEAT ON ENERGY EXPENDITURE, RANGE OF MOTION, AND INFLAMMATORY BIOMARKERS. PERFORMING YOGA IN A HEATED ENVIRONMENT (HY) IS A POPULAR EXERCISE MODE PURPORTED TO IMPROVE RANGE OF MOTION (ROM), BODY COMPOSITION, AND AEROBIC FITNESS. THE PURPOSE OF THIS INVESTIGATION WAS TO COMPARE A SESSION OF HY TO ROOM TEMPERATURE YOGA (RTY) WITH REGARDS TO ROM, OXYGEN CONSUMPTION, CALORIC EXPENDITURE, AND BIOMARKERS OF ACUTE STRESS AND INFLAMMATION. SIXTEEN EXPERIENCED YOGA PRACTITIONERS (F14, M2; 40 +/- 11YR; 22.6 +/- 1.8 KG/M(2)) COMPLETED A 1-HOUR STANDARDIZED BIKRAM SEQUENCE IN HY (105 DEGREES F, 40 DEGREES C) AND RTY (74 DEGREES F, 23.3 DEGREES C) CONDITIONS (ORDER OF CONDITIONS RANDOMIZED, HUMIDITY STANDARDIZED AT 40%). INTRA-EXERCISE METABOLIC GAS EXCHANGE AND HEART RATE (HR) WAS MONITORED USING A METABOLIC CART. ROM MEASURES WERE TAKEN PRE AND POST-EXERCISE AT THE ELBOW, SHOULDER, HIP, AND KNEE. CYTOKINES INTERLEUKIN 6,10 (IL-6, IL-10) AND TUMOR-NECROSIS-FACTOR ALPHA (TNF-ALPHA) WERE ANALYZED FROM BLOOD SAMPLES COLLECTED PRE- AND 30-MINUTES POST-EXERCISE. INTRA-EXERCISE METABOLIC GAS EXCHANGE AND HEART RATE (HR) WAS MONITORED USING A METABOLIC CART. BOTH BOUTS ELICITED SIMILAR ACUTE CHANGES IN ROM ALTHOUGH HY ELICITED A GREATER INCREASE IN HIP ABDUCTION (RTYDELTA DEGREES = 2.3 +/- 1.3|HYDELTA DEGREES = 6.6 +/- 1.5; P < 0.05). MEAN VO2, PEAK VO2, %VO2MAX, HR, AND KCAL EXPENDITURE DID NOT DIFFER BETWEEN CONDITIONS. RER WAS LOWER DURING THE HY (RTY = 0.95 +/- 0.02| HY = 0.89 +/- 0.02; P < 0.05) WITH A CONCOMITANT ELEVATION IN FAT OXIDATION (RTY = 0.05 +/- 0.01|HY = 0.09 +/- 0.01, G.MIN(-1); P < 0.05) AND DECREASE IN CARBOHYDRATE OXIDATION (RTY = 0.51 +/- 0.04|HY = 0.44 +/- 0.03, G.MIN(-1); P < 0.05). SERUM IL-6 WAS INCREASED (15.5 +/- 8.0-FOLD) FOLLOWING HY ONLY (P < 0.05). HY DOES NOT SIGNIFICANTLY ELEVATE AEROBIC ENERGY COST COMPARED TO RTY BUT MAY ACUTELY INCREASE FAT SUBSTRATE UTILIZATION AND HIP ROM. FUTURE STUDIES REMAIN NEEDED TO ESTABLISH DOSE-RESPONSE RELATIONSHIPS FOR INCLUDING HY OR RTY INTO WELL-ROUNDED FITNESS PROGRAMS. 2020 7 2075 26 THE EFFECT OF BIKRAM YOGA ON ARTERIAL STIFFNESS IN YOUNG AND OLDER ADULTS. BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: BIKRAM YOGA IS THE MOST POPULAR FORM OF HOT YOGA, DESPITE THE LIMITED INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON ITS CARDIOVASCULAR BENEFITS. THIS STUDY SOUGHT TO DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF BIKRAM YOGA ON ARTERIAL STIFFNESS AND INSULIN RESISTANCE IN YOUNG AND OLDER ADULTS. METHODS: TWENTY-FOUR YOUNG (MEAN AGE+/-STANDARD DEVIATION, 30+/-1 YEARS) AND 18 MIDDLE-AGED AND OLDER (MEAN AGE, 53+/-2 YEARS) ADULTS COMPLETED AN 8-WEEK BIKRAM YOGA INTERVENTION. BIKRAM YOGA CLASSES WERE PERFORMED FOR 90 MINUTES PER SESSION, THREE TIMES PER WEEK, IN A ROOM HEATED TO 40.5 DEGREES C WITH 40%--60% RELATIVE HUMIDITY. RESULTS: BODY MASS, BODY FAT PERCENTAGE, BLOOD PRESSURE, AND FASTING BLOOD GLUCOSE AND TRIGLYCERIDE CONCENTRATIONS DID NOT SIGNIFICANTLY CHANGE AS A RESULT OF THE INTERVENTION IN EITHER THE YOUNG OR THE OLDER GROUP. TRUNK FLEXIBILITY, AS MEASURED BY THE SIT-AND-REACH TEST, INCREASED IN BOTH GROUPS (P<0.01). TOTAL (P<0.05) AND LOW-DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN CHOLESTEROL (P<0.05) LEVELS, PLASMA INSULIN CONCENTRATIONS (P<0.01), AND SCORES ON THE HOMEOSTATIC MODEL OF THE ASSESSMENT OF INSULIN RESISTANCE (P<0.01) DECREASED IN OLDER ADULTS, WHEREAS TOTAL AND HIGH-DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN CHOLESTEROL CONCENTRATIONS WERE REDUCED IN YOUNG ADULTS (ALL P<0.05). CAROTID ARTERY COMPLIANCE (P<0.05) WAS INCREASED AND BETA-STIFFNESS INDEX DECREASED IN YOUNG (P<0.05) BUT NOT IN OLDER ADULTS. CAROTID PULSE PRESSURE DID NOT SIGNIFICANTLY CHANGE IN EITHER GROUP. CONCLUSION: A RELATIVELY SHORT-TERM BIKRAM YOGA INTERVENTION IMPROVED ARTERIAL STIFFNESS IN YOUNG BUT NOT OLDER ADULTS AND SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED INSULIN RESISTANCE INDEX IN OLDER BUT NOT YOUNG ADULTS. 2013 8 1298 19 HATHA YOGA AND VASCULAR FUNCTION: RESULTS FROM CROSS-SECTIONAL AND INTERVENTIONAL STUDIES. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF HATHA YOGA ON ARTERIAL ELASTICITY AND ENDOTHELIAL FUNCTION. FIRST, A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY WAS PERFORMED TO DETERMINE WHETHER YOGA PRACTITIONERS WOULD DEMONSTRATE GREATER ARTERIAL COMPLIANCE AND ENDOTHELIUM-DEPENDENT VASODILATION THAN THEIR SEDENTARY PEERS. SECOND, AN INTERVENTION STUDY INVOLVING 13 SEDENTARY MIDDLE-AGED AND OLDER ADULTS (51 +/- 7 YEARS) WAS PERFORMED TO DETERMINE WHETHER 12 WEEKS OF HATHA YOGA WOULD ELICIT INCREASES IN ARTERIAL COMPLIANCE AND ENDOTHELIAL FUNCTION. IN THE CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY INVOLVING A TOTAL OF 34 SUBJECTS, THERE WERE NO GROUP DIFFERENCES IN BODY FATNESS, BLOOD LIPID AND LIPOPROTEIN CONCENTRATIONS, CAROTID ARTERY COMPLIANCE OR BRACHIAL ARTERY FLOW-MEDIATED DILATION (FMD). HEMOGLOBIN A1C WAS LOWER IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS THAN IN SEDENTARY ADULTS (P < 0.05). TOTAL CHOLESTEROL AND HEMOGLOBIN A1C DECREASED AFTER THE INTERVENTION (P < 0.05) WHILE CAROTID ARTERY COMPLIANCE AND BRACHIAL ARTERY FMD DID NOT CHANGE. THE RESULTS OF BOTH CROSS-SECTIONAL AND INTERVENTIONAL STUDIES INDICATE THAT REGULAR PRACTICE OF HATHA YOGA IS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH IMPROVEMENTS IN VASCULAR FUNCTIONS. 2013 9 1377 24 IMPACT OF HOT YOGA ON ARTERIAL STIFFNESS AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN NORMAL AND OVERWEIGHT/OBESE ADULTS. BACKGROUND: OBESITY IS ASSOCIATED WITH ARTERIAL STIFFENING AND DIMINISHED QUALITY OF LIFE. BIKRAM YOGA MAY BE A FEASIBLE ALTERNATIVE TO TRADITIONAL EXERCISE AMONG OBESE INDIVIDUALS. ACCORDINGLY, THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO INVESTIGATE THE IMPACT OF BIKRAM YOGA, A HEATED STYLE OF HATHA YOGA, ON ARTERIAL STIFFNESS IN NORMAL AND OVERWEIGHT/OBESE ADULTS. METHODS: FORTY-THREE (23 NORMAL BODY MASS INDEX OR BMI; 20 OVERWEIGHT/OBESE) APPARENTLY HEALTHY PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED AN 8-WEEK BIKRAM YOGA INTERVENTION. BODY COMPOSITION WAS ESTIMATED VIA DUAL ENERGY X-RAY ABSORPTIOMETRY, ARTERIAL STIFFNESS WAS MEASURED VIA BRACHIALANKLE PULSE WAVE VELOCITY, AND HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE WAS ASSESSED VIA RAND 36-ITEM SHORT FORM SURVEY AT BASELINE AND AT THE END OF THE 8-WEEK INTERVENTION. RESULTS: AFTER THE INTERVENTION, BRACHIAL-ANKLE PULSE WAVE VELOCITY DECREASED (P < .05) IN OVERWEIGHT/OBESE PARTICIPANTS WHILE NO SUCH CHANGES WERE OBSERVED IN NORMAL BMI PARTICIPANTS. IN THE QUALITY OF LIFE MEASURES, EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING IMPROVED (P < .05) IN BOTH GROUPS, AND GENERAL HEALTH IMPROVED (P < .05) ONLY IN THE NORMAL WEIGHT BMI GROUP. CONCLUSION: BIKRAM YOGA AMELIORATES ARTERIAL STIFFNESS IN OVERWEIGHT/OBESE ADULTS AND CAN POSITIVELY IMPACT QUALITY OF LIFE REGARDLESS OF BMI. 2016 10 404 18 BIKRAM YOGA TRAINING AND PHYSICAL FITNESS IN HEALTHY YOUNG ADULTS. THERE HAS BEEN RELATIVELY LITTLE LONGITUDINAL CONTROLLED INVESTIGATION OF THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON GENERAL PHYSICAL FITNESS, DESPITE THE WIDESPREAD PARTICIPATION IN THIS FORM OF EXERCISE. THE PURPOSE OF THIS EXPLORATORY STUDY WAS TO EXAMINE THE EFFECT OF SHORT-TERM BIKRAM YOGA TRAINING ON GENERAL PHYSICAL FITNESS. YOUNG HEALTHY ADULTS WERE RANDOMIZED TO YOGA TRAINING (N = 10, 29 +/- 6 YEARS, 24 SESSIONS IN 8 WEEKS) OR A CONTROL GROUP (N = 11, 26 +/- 7 YEARS). EACH YOGA TRAINING SESSION CONSISTED OF 90-MINUTE STANDARDIZED SUPERVISED POSTURES PERFORMED IN A HEATED AND HUMIDIFIED STUDIO. ISOMETRIC DEADLIFT STRENGTH, HANDGRIP STRENGTH, LOWER BACK/HAMSTRING AND SHOULDER FLEXIBILITY, RESTING HEART RATE AND BLOOD PRESSURE, MAXIMAL OXYGEN CONSUMPTION (TREADMILL), AND LEAN AND FAT MASS (DUAL-ENERGY X-RAY ABSORPTIOMETRY) WERE MEASURED BEFORE AND AFTER TRAINING. YOGA SUBJECTS EXHIBITED INCREASED DEADLIFT STRENGTH, SUBSTANTIALLY INCREASED LOWER BACK/HAMSTRING FLEXIBILITY, INCREASED SHOULDER FLEXIBILITY, AND MODESTLY DECREASED BODY FAT COMPARED WITH CONTROL GROUP. THERE WERE NO CHANGES IN HANDGRIP STRENGTH, CARDIOVASCULAR MEASURES, OR MAXIMAL AEROBIC FITNESS. IN SUMMARY, THIS SHORT-TERM YOGA TRAINING PROTOCOL PRODUCED BENEFICIAL CHANGES IN MUSCULOSKELETAL FITNESS THAT WERE SPECIFIC TO THE TRAINING STIMULUS. 2013 11 1676 17 OBJECTIVE AND SUBJECTIVE MEASURES OF EXERCISE INTENSITY DURING THERMO-NEUTRAL AND HOT YOGA. WHILE HOT YOGA HAS GAINED ENORMOUS POPULARITY IN RECENT YEARS, OWING IN PART TO INCREASED ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGE ASSOCIATED WITH EXERCISE IN THE HEAT, IT IS NOT CLEAR WHETHER HOT YOGA IS MORE VIGOROUS THAN THERMO-NEUTRAL YOGA. THEREFORE, THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO DETERMINE OBJECTIVE AND SUBJECTIVE MEASURES OF EXERCISE INTENSITY DURING CONSTANT INTENSITY YOGA IN A HOT AND THERMO-NEUTRAL ENVIRONMENT. USING A RANDOMIZED, CROSSOVER DESIGN, 14 PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED 2 IDENTICAL APPROXIMATELY 20-MIN YOGA SESSIONS IN A HOT (35.3 +/- 0.8 DEGREES C; HUMIDITY: 20.5% +/- 1.4%) AND THERMO-NEUTRAL (22.1 +/- 0.2 DEGREES C; HUMIDITY: 27.8% +/- 1.6%) ENVIRONMENT. OXYGEN CONSUMPTION AND HEART RATE (HR) WERE RECORDED AS OBJECTIVE MEASURES (PERCENTAGE OF MAXIMAL OXYGEN CONSUMPTION AND PERCENTAGE OF MAXIMAL HR (%HRMAX)) AND RATING OF PERCEIVED EXERTION (RPE) WAS RECORDED AS A SUBJECTIVE MEASURE OF EXERCISE INTENSITY. THERE WAS NO DIFFERENCE IN EXERCISE INTENSITY BASED ON PERCENTAGE OF MAXIMAL OXYGEN CONSUMPTION DURING HOT VERSUS THERMO-NEUTRAL YOGA (30.9% +/- 2.3% VS. 30.5% +/- 1.8%, P = 0.68). HOWEVER, EXERCISE INTENSITY WAS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER DURING HOT VERSUS THERMO-NEUTRAL YOGA BASED ON %HRMAX (67.0% +/- 2.3% VS. 60.8% +/- 1.9%, P = 0.01) AND RPE (12 +/- 1 VS. 11 +/- 1, P = 0.04). ACCORDING TO ESTABLISHED EXERCISE INTENSITIES, HOT YOGA WAS CLASSIFIED AS LIGHT-INTENSITY EXERCISE BASED ON PERCENTAGE OF MAXIMAL OXYGEN CONSUMPTION BUT MODERATE-INTENSITY EXERCISE BASED ON %HRMAX AND RPE WHILE THERMO-NEUTRAL YOGA WAS CLASSIFIED AS LIGHT-INTENSITY EXERCISE BASED ON PERCENTAGE OF MAXIMAL OXYGEN UPTAKE, %HRMAX, AND RPE. DESPITE THE ADDED HEMODYNAMIC STRESS AND PERCEPTION THAT YOGA IS MORE STRENUOUS IN A HOT ENVIRONMENT, WE OBSERVED SIMILAR OXYGEN CONSUMPTION DURING HOT VERSUS THERMO-NEUTRAL YOGA, CLASSIFYING BOTH EXERCISE MODALITIES AS LIGHT-INTENSITY EXERCISE. 2018 12 2258 18 THE PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES TO BIKRAM YOGA IN NOVICE AND EXPERIENCED PRACTITIONERS. CONTEXT: BIKRAM YOGA HAS GAINED A LARGE FOLLOWING, POSSIBLY BECAUSE OF WIDESPREAD CLAIMS BOASTING ENERGY EXPENDITURE OF UP TO 1000 CALORIES PER SESSION. HOWEVER, THESE CLAIMS ARE UNFOUNDED BECAUSE NO SCIENTIFIC STUDY HAS INVESTIGATED THE METABOLIC RESPONSE TO A COMPLETE, STANDARDIZED BIKRAM YOGA CLASS. OBJECTIVES: THIS STUDY INTENDS TO DETERMINE ENERGY EXPENDITURE, HEART RATE, AND SWEAT RATE IN NOVICE AND EXPERIENCED PRACTITIONERS FROM A STANDARDIZED BIKRAM YOGA CLASS. SETTING: DATA WERE COLLECTED IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL CHAMBER OF THE EXERCISE PHYSIOLOGY LABORATORY AT SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY IN CALIFORNIA, USA. PARTICIPANTS: MALE (N = 5) AND FEMALE (N = 19) PARTICIPANTS BETWEEN THE AGES OF 18 AND 57 Y WERE RECRUITED THROUGH FLYERS IN YOGA STUDIOS THROUGHOUT SAN DIEGO. PARTICIPANTS WERE CLASSIFIED AS EXPERIENCED OR NOVICE PRACTITIONERS, HAVING COMPLETED >/=20 OR <20 SESSIONS, RESPECTIVELY. INTERVENTIONS: PARTICIPANTS WERE GUIDED THROUGH A STANDARDIZED 90-MIN YOGA CLASS PERFORMED IN A HOT ENVIRONMENT USING BIKRAM'S STANDARD BEGINNING DIALOGUE, WHILE EXPIRED GAS WAS COLLECTED AND HEART RATE WAS RECORDED. OUTCOME MEASURES: ENERGY EXPENDITURE, CALCULATED VIA OXYGEN UPTAKE, AND HEART RATE WERE DETERMINED FOR EACH POSTURE AND TRANSITION PERIOD. IN ADDITION, SWEAT RATE AND CORE TEMPERATURE WERE RECORDED FOR EACH PARTICIPANT. RESULTS: MEAN (+/-SD) RELATIVE VO2 FOR THE ENTIRE 90-MIN SESSION WAS 9.5 +/- 1.9 ML X KG-1 X MIN-1, RANGING FROM 6.0 TO 12.9 ML X KG-1 X MIN-1. MEAN ABSOLUTE ENERGY EXPENDITURE WAS 286 +/- 72 KCALS, RANGING FROM 179 TO 478 KCALS. INDEPENDENT SAMPLE T TESTS REVEALED SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES (P < .05) IN RELATIVE ENERGY EXPENDITURE, HEART RATE, ENDING CORE TEMPERATURE, AND SWEAT RATE BETWEEN EXPERIENCE LEVELS. MEAN RELATIVE ENERGY EXPENDITURE WAS 3.7 +/- 0.5 KCAL/KG IN NOVICE PRACTITIONERS AND 4.7 +/- 0.8 KCAL/KG IN EXPERIENCED PRACTITIONERS. PERCENTAGE OF PREDICTED MAXIMUM HEART RATE AND SWEAT RATE WERE 72.3% +/- 10.6% AND 0.6 +/- 0.2 KG/H IN NOVICE PRACTITIONERS AND 86.4% +/- 5.2% AND 1.1 +/- 0.5 KG/H IN EXPERIENCED PARTICIPANTS. ALL POSTURES WERE CLASSIFIED AS LIGHT-TO-MODERATE INTENSITY ACCORDING TO THE AMERICAN COLLEGE OF SPORTS MEDICINE (ACSM) STANDARDS. CONCLUSIONS: BIKRAM YOGA MEETS REQUIREMENTS FOR EXERCISE OF LIGHT-TO-MODERATE INTENSITY AND, THEORETICALLY, COULD BE USED FOR WEIGHT MAINTENANCE OR WEIGHT LOSS IF PRACTICED SEVERAL TIMES PER WEEK. 2014 13 2139 15 THE EFFECTS OF BIKRAM YOGA ON HEALTH: CRITICAL REVIEW AND CLINICAL TRIAL RECOMMENDATIONS. BIKRAM YOGA IS A STYLE OF HATHA YOGA INVOLVING A STANDARIZED SERIES OF ASANAS PERFORMED TO AN INSTRUCTIONAL DIALOGUE IN A HEATED ENVIRONMENT (40.6 DEGREES C, 40% HUMIDITY). SEVERAL STUDIES EVALUATING THE EFFECT OF BIKRAM YOGA ON HEALTH-RELATED OUTCOMES HAVE BEEN PUBLISHED OVER THE PAST DECADE. HOWEVER, TO DATE, THERE ARE NO COMPREHENSIVE REVIEWS OF THIS RESEARCH AND THERE REMAINS A LACK OF LARGE-SCALE, ROBUSTLY-DESIGNED RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCT) OF BIKRAM YOGA TRAINING. THE PURPOSE OF THIS REVIEW IS TO CONTEXTUALISE AND SUMMARISE TRIALS THAT HAVE EVALUATED THE EFFECTS OF BIKRAM YOGA ON HEALTH AND TO PROVIDE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH. ACCORDING TO PUBLISHED LITERATURE, BIKRAM YOGA HAS BEEN SHOWN TO IMPROVE LOWER BODY STRENGTH, LOWER AND UPPER BODY RANGE OF MOTION, AND BALANCE IN HEALTHY ADULTS. NON-RCTS REPORT THAT BIKRAM YOGA MAY, IN SOME POPULATIONS, IMPROVE GLUCOSE TOLERANCE, BONE MINERAL DENSITY, BLOOD LIPID PROFILE, ARTERIAL STIFFNESS, MINDFULNESS, AND PERCEIVED STRESS. THERE IS VAST POTENTIAL FOR FURTHER, IMPROVED RESEARCH INTO THE EFFECTS OF BIKRAM YOGA, PARTICULARLY IN UNHEALTHY POPULATIONS, TO BETTER UNDERSTAND INTERVENTION-RELATED ADAPTATIONS AND THEIR INFLUENCE ON THE PROGRESSION OF CHRONIC DISEASE. FUTURE RESEARCH SHOULD ADHERE TO CONSORT GUIDELINES FOR BETTER DESIGN AND REPORTING TO IMPROVE RESEARCH QUALITY IN THIS FIELD. 2015 14 968 19 EFFECTS OF AN 8-MONTH ASHTANGA-BASED YOGA INTERVENTION ON BONE METABOLISM IN MIDDLE-AGED PREMENOPAUSAL WOMEN: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY. ALTHOUGH YOGA HAS THE POTENTIAL TO BE AN ALTERNATIVE PHYSICAL ACTIVITY TO ENHANCE BONE HEALTH, THERE IS A LACK OF HIGH QUALITY EVIDENCE FOR THIS TYPE OF INTERVENTION. THE PURPOSE OF THIS RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL WAS TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTS OF A PROGRESSIVE 8-MONTH ASHTANGA-BASED YOGA PROGRAM ON BONE TURNOVER MARKERS (BTM), AREAL BONE MINERAL DENSITY (ABMD) AND VOLUMETRIC BONE CHARACTERISTICS IN PREMENOPAUSAL WOMEN. THIRTY-FOUR PREMENOPAUSAL WOMEN (35-50 YEARS) WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED EITHER TO A YOGA GROUP (YE, N = 16) OR A CONTROL GROUP (CON, N = 18). PARTICIPANTS IN YE GROUP PERFORMED 60 MINUTES OF AN ASHTANGA-BASED YOGA SERIES 2 TIMES/WEEK WITH ONE DAY BETWEEN SESSIONS FOR 8 MONTHS, AND THE SESSION INTENSITY WAS PROGRESSIVELY INCREASED BY ADDING THE NUMBER OF SUN SALUTATIONS (SS). PARTICIPANTS IN CON WERE ENCOURAGED TO MAINTAIN THEIR NORMAL DAILY LIFESTYLES MONITORED BY THE BONE SPECIFIC PHYSICAL ACTIVITY QUESTIONNAIRE (BPAQ) AT 2 MONTH INTERVALS FOR 8 MONTHS. BODY COMPOSITION WAS MEASURED BY DUAL ENERGY X-RAY ABSORPTIOMETRY (DXA). BONE FORMATION (BONE ALKALINE PHOSPHATASE, BONE ALP) AND BONE RESORPTION (TARTRATE-RESISTANT ACID PHOSPHATASE-5B, TRAP5B) MARKERS WERE ASSESSED AT BASELINE AND AFTER 8 MONTHS. ABMD OF TOTAL BODY, LUMBAR SPINE AND DUAL PROXIMAL FEMUR AND TIBIA BONE CHARACTERISTICS WERE MEASURED USING DXA AND PERIPHERAL QUANTITATIVE COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY (PQCT), RESPECTIVELY. WE FOUND THAT THE SERUM BONE ALP CONCENTRATIONS WERE MAINTAINED IN YE, BUT SIGNIFICANTLY (P = 0.005) DECREASED IN CON AFTER THE 8 MONTH INTERVENTION, AND THERE WERE SIGNIFICANT (P = 0.002) GROUP DIFFERENCES IN BONE ALP PERCENT CHANGES (YE 9.1 +/- 4.0% VS. CON -7.1 +/- 2.3%). NO CHANGES IN TRAP5B WERE FOUND IN EITHER GROUP. THE 8-MONTH YOGA PROGRAM DID NOT INCREASE ABMD OR TIBIA BONE STRENGTH VARIABLES. BODY COMPOSITION RESULTS SHOWED NO CHANGES IN WEIGHT, FAT MASS, OR % FAT, BUT SMALL SIGNIFICANT INCREASES IN BONE FREE LEAN BODY MASS OCCURRED IN BOTH GROUPS. THE FINDINGS OF THIS STUDY SUGGEST THAT REGULAR LONG-TERM ASHTANGA YOGA HAD A SMALL POSITIVE EFFECT ON BONE FORMATION BUT DID NOT ALTER ABMD OR TIBIA BONE CHARACTERISTICS IN PREMENOPAUSAL WOMEN. KEY POINTSREGULAR LONG-TERM ASHTANGA-BASED YOGA PROGRAM HAD A SMALL POSITIVE EFFECT ON BONE FORMATION, BUT NO EFFECTS WERE FOUND ON BONE RESORPTION.NONE OF THE BONE DENSITY OR GEOMETRY VARIABLES WERE CHANGED BY THE 8-MONTH ASHTANGA-BASED YOGA INTERVENTION.FUTURE YOGA INTERVENTIONS SHOULD FOCUS ON LONGER DURATION AND GREATER FREQUENCY TO ELICIT IMPROVEMENTS IN BONE MINERAL DENSITY. 2015 15 1427 14 IMPROVEMENTS IN GLUCOSE TOLERANCE WITH BIKRAM YOGA IN OLDER OBESE ADULTS: A PILOT STUDY. BIKRAM YOGA IS AN EXOTIC FORM OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY COMBINING HATHA YOGA AND THERMAL THERAPY THAT COULD POSITIVELY IMPACT METABOLIC HEALTH. ALTHOUGH THIS INCREASINGLY POPULAR ALTERNATIVE EXERCISE MAY BE IDEAL FOR OBESE ADULTS DUE TO ITS LOW IMPACT NATURE, FEW STUDIES HAVE ELUCIDATED THE HEALTH BENEFITS ASSOCIATED WITH IT. AS AN INITIAL STEP, WE DETERMINED THE EFFECT OF BIKRAM YOGA ON GLUCOSE TOLERANCE. FOURTEEN YOUNG LEAN AND 15 OLDER OBESE SUBJECTS COMPLETED AN 8-WEEK BIKRAM YOGA INTERVENTION IN WHICH CLASSES WERE COMPLETED 3 TIMES PER WEEK. GLUCOSE TOLERANCE WAS ASSESSED USING A 75 G ORAL GLUCOSE TOLERANCE TEST. THE AREA UNDER THE GLUCOSE CURVE FOLLOWING THE ORAL GLUCOSE TOLERANCE TEST WAS SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED AS A RESULT OF THE BIKRAM YOGA INTERVENTION IN OLDER OBESE (P < 0.05) BUT NOT IN YOUNG LEAN SUBJECTS. WE CONCLUDED THAT A SHORT-TERM BIKRAM YOGA INTERVENTION IMPROVED GLUCOSE TOLERANCE IN OLDER OBESE, BUT NOT IN YOUNG LEAN ADULTS. 2013 16 99 15 A PATIENT WITH ELECTROCONVULSIVE THERAPY-RESISTANT MAJOR DEPRESSIVE DISORDER WITH A FULL RESPONSE TO HEATED YOGA: A CASE REPORT. DEPRESSION REMAINS DIFFICULT TO TREAT AS A RESULT OF LESS THAN OPTIMAL EFFICACY AND TROUBLESOME SIDE EFFECTS OF ANTIDEPRESSANTS. THE AUTHORS PRESENT THE CASE OF A PATIENT WITH TREATMENT-RESISTANT DEPRESSION WITH MELANCHOLIC FEATURES WHO HAD PREVIOUSLY BEEN UNRESPONSIVE TO ELECTROCONVULSIVE THERAPY (ECT) PLUS AN ANTIDEPRESSANT REGIMEN BUT WHOSE CONDITION FULLY REMITTED WITH THE ADDITION OF A STANDARDIZED FORM OF HEATED HATHA YOGA (HY; BIKRAM YOGA) PRACTICED IN A ROOM HEATED TO 105 DEGREES F. THE PATIENT WAS A 28-YEAR-OLD WOMAN WHO UNDERWENT 8 WEEKS OF HY AS PART OF A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL OF HY FOR DEPRESSION WHILE CONTINUING HER ANTIDEPRESSANT TREATMENT. THE PATIENT WAS ASKED TO ATTEND A MINIMUM OF 2 WEEKLY, 90-MINUTE HY CLASSES. AFTER 8 WEEKS (12 CLASSES IN TOTAL), THE PATIENT NO LONGER MET THE CRITERIA FOR A MAJOR DEPRESSIVE EPISODE WITH MELANCHOLIC FEATURES, PER MINI-INTERNATIONAL NEUROPSYCHIATRIC INTERVIEW (MINI) CRITERIA. HER DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS HAD IMPROVED DRAMATICALLY, WITH INVENTORY OF DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMATOLOGY, CLINICIAN-RATED (IDS-C30), AND HAMILTON DEPRESSION RATING SCALE (HAM-D28) SCORES DECREASING FROM 28 AT BASELINE TO 3, AND FROM 28 AT BASELINE TO 4, RESPECTIVELY, INDICATING REMISSION. THIS PATIENT'S ECT-RESISTANT DEPRESSION REMITTED WITH THE ADDITION OF HY TO HER ANTIDEPRESSANT REGIMEN. BECAUSE OF HER YOUTH AND ATHLETICISM, THIS PATIENT WAS LIKELY WELL SUITED TO THIS RIGOROUS FORM OF YOGA. FURTHER RESEARCH IS NEEDED TO EXPLORE HY AS A POTENTIAL INTERVENTION FOR TREATMENT-RESISTANT DEPRESSION. 2021 17 2778 13 YOGA STRETCHING FOR IMPROVING SALIVARY IMMUNE FUNCTION AND MENTAL STRESS IN MIDDLE-AGED AND OLDER ADULTS. PROTECTION AGAINST AGE-RELATED IMMUNE SUPPRESSION IS IMPORTANT IN ELDERLY INDIVIDUALS. THIS STUDY DETERMINED THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON MUCOSAL IMMUNE FUNCTION AND MENTAL STRESS. SALIVA SAMPLES WERE COLLECTED FROM 23 ADULT WOMEN (AGE: 60.4 +/- 10.4 YEARS) BEFORE AND AFTER 90 MINUTES OF YOGA STRETCHING OR REST TO MEASURE SECRETORY IMMUNOGLOBULIN A (SIGA), CORTISOL, AND TESTOSTERONE. THE SIGA CONCENTRATION AND SECRETION RATE WERE SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER AFTER YOGA THAN BEFORE (P < .05). THE CORTISOL CONCENTRATION AND SECRETION RATE WERE LOWER AND TESTOSTERONE SECRETION RATE HIGHER AFTER YOGA (P < .05). YOGA STRETCHING CAN REDUCE STRESS AND ENHANCE MUCOSAL IMMUNE FUNCTION IN ELDERLY WOMEN. 2018 18 439 18 CARDIOVASCULAR, CELLULAR, AND NEURAL ADAPTATIONS TO HOT YOGA VERSUS NORMAL-TEMPERATURE YOGA. CONTEXT: CHRONIC HEAT EXPOSURE PROMOTES CARDIOVASCULAR AND CELLULAR ADAPTATIONS, IMPROVING AN ORGANISM'S ABILITY TO TOLERATE SUBSEQUENT STRESSORS. HEAT EXPOSURE MAY ALSO PROMOTE NEURAL ADAPTATIONS AND ALTER THE NEURAL-HORMONAL STRESS RESPONSE. HOT-TEMPERATURE YOGA (HY) COMBINES MIND-BODY EXERCISE WITH HEAT EXPOSURE. THE ADDED HEAT COMPONENT IN HY MAY INDUCE CARDIOVASCULAR AND CELLULAR CHANGES, ALONG WITH NEURAL BENEFITS AND MODULATION OF STRESS HORMONES. AIMS: THE PURPOSE OF THE PRESENT STUDY IS TO COMPARE THE CARDIOVASCULAR, CELLULAR HEAT SHOCK PROTEIN 70 (HSP70), NEURAL, AND HORMONAL ADAPTATIONS OF HY VERSUS NORMAL-TEMPERATURE YOGA (NY). SETTINGS AND DESIGN: TWENTY-TWO SUBJECTS (MALES = 11 AND FEMALES = 11, 26 +/- 6 YEARS) COMPLETED 4 WEEKS OF NY (N = 11) OR HY (N = 11, 41 DEGREES C, 40% HUMIDITY). YOGA SESSIONS WERE PERFORMED 3 TIMES/WEEK FOLLOWING A MODIFIED BIKRAM PROTOCOL. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: PRE- AND POSTTESTING INCLUDED (1) HEMODYNAMIC MEASURES DURING A HEAT TOLERANCE TEST AND MAXIMAL AEROBIC FITNESS TEST; (2) NEURAL AND HORMONAL ADAPTATIONS USING SERUM BRAIN-DERIVED NEUROTROPHIC FACTOR (BDNF) AND ADRENOCORTICOTROPIC HORMONE (ACTH), ALONG WITH A MENTAL STRESS QUESTIONNAIRE; AND (3) CELLULAR ADAPTATIONS (HSP70) IN PERIPHERAL BLOOD MONONUCLEAR CELLS (PBMCS). STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: WITHIN- AND BETWEEN-GROUP STUDENT'S T-TEST ANALYSES WERE CONDUCTED TO COMPARE PRE- AND POST-VO2 MAX, PERCEIVED STRESS, BDNF, HSP70, AND ACTH IN HY AND NY GROUPS. RESULTS: MAXIMAL AEROBIC FITNESS INCREASED IN THE HY GROUP ONLY. NO EVIDENCE OF HEAT ACCLIMATION OR CHANGE IN MENTAL STRESS WAS OBSERVED. SERUM BDNF SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED IN YOGA GROUPS COMBINED. ANALYSIS OF HSP70 SUGGESTED HIGHER EXPRESSION OF HSP70 IN THE HY GROUP ONLY. CONCLUSIONS: TWELVE SESSIONS OF HY PROMOTED CARDIOVASCULAR FITNESS AND CELLULAR THERMOTOLERANCE ADAPTATIONS. SERUM BDNF INCREASED IN RESPONSE TO YOGA (NY + HY) AND APPEARED TO NOT BE TEMPERATURE DEPENDENT. 2021 19 504 20 COMMUNITY-DELIVERED HEATED HATHA YOGA AS A TREATMENT FOR DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS: AN UNCONTROLLED PILOT STUDY. OBJECTIVES: THERE ARE NO KNOWN STUDIES OF CONCURRENT EXPOSURE TO HIGH TEMPERATURE AND YOGA FOR THE TREATMENT OF DEPRESSION. THIS STUDY EXPLORED ACCEPTABILITY AND FEASIBILITY OF HEATED (BIKRAM) YOGA AS A TREATMENT FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS. DESIGN: AN 8-WEEK, OPEN-LABEL PILOT STUDY OF HEATED YOGA FOR DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS. SUBJECTS: 28 MEDICALLY HEALTHY ADULTS (71.4% FEMALE, MEAN AGE 36 [STANDARD DEVIATION 13.57]) WITH AT LEAST MILD DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS (HAMILTON RATING SCALE FOR DEPRESSION [HRSD-17] SCORE >/=10) WHO ATTENDED AT LEAST ONE YOGA CLASS AND SUBSEQUENT ASSESSMENT VISIT. INTERVENTION: PARTICIPANTS WERE ASKED TO ATTEND AT LEAST TWICE WEEKLY COMMUNITY HELD BIKRAM YOGA CLASSES. ASSESSMENTS WERE PERFORMED AT SCREENING AND WEEKS 1, 3, 5, AND 8. HYPOTHESES WERE TESTED USING A MODIFIED-INTENT-TO-TREAT APPROACH, INCLUDING PARTICIPANTS WHO ATTENDED AT LEAST ONE YOGA CLASS AND SUBSEQUENT ASSESSMENT VISIT (N = 28). RESULTS: ALMOST HALF OF OUR SUBJECTS COMPLETED THE 8-WEEK INTERVENTION, AND CLOSE TO A THIRD ATTENDED THREE QUARTERS OR MORE OF THE PRESCRIBED 16 CLASSES OVER 8 WEEKS. MULTILEVEL MODELING REVEALED SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS OVER TIME IN BOTH CLINICIAN-RATED HRSD-17 (P = 0.003; DGLMM = 1.43) AND SELF-REPORTED BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY (BDI; P < 0.001, DGLMM = 1.31) DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS, AS WELL AS THE FOUR SECONDARY OUTCOMES: HOPELESSNESS (P = 0.024, DGLMM = 0.57), ANXIETY (P < 0.001, DGLMM = 0.78), COGNITIVE/PHYSICAL FUNCTIONING (P < 0.001, DGLMM = 1.34), AND QUALITY OF LIFE (P = 0.007, DGLMM = 1.29). OF 23 PARTICIPANTS WITH DATA THROUGH WEEK 3 OR LATER, 12 (52.2%) WERE TREATMENT RESPONDERS (>/=50% REDUCTION IN HRSD-17 SCORE), AND 13 (56.5%) ATTAINED REMISSION (HRSD SCORE