Hi everybody!
I feel so frustrated that there is NO Bikram Yoga in this shit country – Brasil!
Jesus! This is proved to be the MOST AMAZING TYPE OF YOGA available now a days and for some reason absolutely nobody has any interest in opening a Bikram Yoga Studio whatsoever in this country!!!! I can´t believe it!
Millions of people all over the planet are practising Bikram and loving it. Getting in their best shape inside and outside. Tons of people are making big money opening Bikram studios and here, in Brasil, in Rio de Janeiro, people never heard about it! Feels like living in the Jurassic Era…
If I had the money, I would open a Bikram Yoga studio here in Rio (one branch in Leblon, another in Gavea and one more in Ipanema). I´d become a millionaire!
After doing loads of research online, I found one Bikram instructor here in Rio. But she only teaches Core Yoga because she has no available place for Bikram. I called the lady and bagged her to give me a buzz as soon as she can teach Bikram here.
In the meantime, I will have to do the only thing possible: practice Bikram Yoga by myself! 
I ordered Bikram´s books at Amazon.com as well as The Barkan Method DVD. I also downloaded the Asanas poses online and bought a little heater.
What I will do is start a jornal about my progress. If you´ve ever came to Rio, you know this city is terribly hot and humid so I will probably use my little heater only from June to September.
I am used to workout at home as I do Leslie Sansone´s “Walk Away the Pounds” for quite a while and LOVE IT!
So… Every evening, when I arrive home from work, I will first do my Leslie Sansone (my cardio), warm my muscles and sweat a lot. Than I will do my Bikram.
By the way, let me recommend you a couple of good books:
I purchased this book above because I related to the cover: losing weight, yoga and pineaple
Well, the book is much more than this. Jessica is very honest and tells her life story and how she came to enlighten her life, facing her personal / family issues. The book also talks about discipline somehow but mainly about living our true selves. And thats what yoga is all about, living your true self because YOU are the most important person under the sun. I really like when she describes the time she spent in Nepal and all the freedom she felt which led up to weight loss and emotional balance.
This is a very significant book and, as you go through the pages, you cant help but look back upon your own life.
I feel lucky I found the book, completely out of the blue – I was just browsing Amazon.com products.
This is a great book!
I will let you know how it goes.
ANYBODY OUT THERE!!! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE OPEN A BIKRAM YOGA STUDIO IN RIO DE JANEIRO!!!!!!!! YOU WILL GET RICH!!!!!!!
PS: Finally they will be opening a Brikam Yoga studio in Rio YES!!! Its quite far away from where I live, but its a beggining. I am sure there will be more soon Check it out:
http://www.bikram.com.br/
January 20th, 2010 at 6:14 AM
Hi Ana- I have been practicing Bikram in NYC for four years and will be in Rio from Jan 22-28. If you’re free, maybe we can practice on the beach…
February 18th, 2010 at 1:08 AM
Hello, John. Thanks for posting. I´m sorry for not replying before (I have been lazy towards the Blog).
I purshased Bikram both books at Amazon.com and I am trying to practice by myself. Not easy…..
Anyway, hope you enjoyed your time in Rio and coped well with the terrible hot weather!
All the best!
February 27th, 2010 at 9:59 PM
Hello: I will be in Rio March 9-20 and hoped I could find an underground bikram studio. From reading the posts it doesn’t appear there is one. Perhaps I’ll consider shortening my stay. I’m not certain a vacation would be a vacation with no yoga. Hit me back if there is an underground studio.
April 2nd, 2010 at 10:42 AM
Hi Ana,
Don’t you think one of the problem’s is the dialog is in english? If had a studio there in Rio and the classes was in english do you think people would come? I am considering opening a studio in Brazil, but I was wondering how to get instructor which speak portuguese.
Namaste
yuri
April 11th, 2010 at 7:56 AM
Hi Ana,
I’m also a Bikram lover living in Rio and miss it terribly. I’ve met with Ana (the Bikram instructor here that teaches core) and from her experience giving private lessons, there isn’t much demand for Bikram here because of the way Cariocas are (i.e. kind of lazy and wanting things easy and laid back rather than challenging and structured!) I’ll be in Rio for several months– if you’d like to start practicing together PLEASE contact me! I have the cds to practice but no heater.
Bjs,
Mira
April 15th, 2010 at 10:30 PM
I understand your frustration Ana…
I have learnt Portuguese and have been doing Bikram Yoga for over a year and was surprised to see no studios in Rio or São Paulo as I was planning to continue my training when I return there.
I’m planning to do the teacher training in Vegas and set something up in Rio so if its not me then I’m sure someone else will.
Keep training and Namaste
Troy
April 24th, 2010 at 3:25 AM
Hello guys,
I am so sorry, only now I´ve realized you posted about Brikram Yoga.
Well, absolutely NO Brikram studios here in Rio. And cariocas probably have no idea about the power of this practice and they also just DONT care. They just wanna go to the beach nd the gym.
Its is very frustrating. What I have been doing is practing by myself (since the ony certificated teacher living in Rio is not teaching Brikram but only Core Yoga in the middle of the afternoon – when I have to be at work).
I purchased DVD at Amazon.com (Shiva Rea, Barkan Method and Ana Brett & Ravi Singh – Kundalini Yoga) and try to practice daily. For the cardio I do Walk Away the Pounds which warms my muscles and makes it easier to do the asanas.
Now, I´ve injured my legs trying to run and have to take a break….
Anyway, my email is: analumagpos@hotmail.com
All the best!
April 30th, 2010 at 2:21 AM
Hi,
I train and practice under Jimmy Barkan, who as you all probably know was one of Bikram’s major students and has developed his own method incorporating hatha / power yoga into Bikram’s yoga = Barkan Hot Yoga
To ME, the Barkan method is better than Bikram, because there is diversity in the flow, freedom to do your own modifications during class based on whatever level the student is at, and also to add all kinds of music to the class. All of this minus Bikram’s bootcamp atmosphere. And as a carioca myself I know that we appreciate both eclectic music, freedom, and diversity =)
I currently practice at Barkan’s original studio in Ft. Lauderdale, but I’m planning on moving to Rio within the next year and **dreaming** of opening a hot yoga studio there…!!
July 12th, 2010 at 9:56 AM
i’ve been living in rio for about 4 months now, and it wasn’t until today that i realized how much damage i have done to my body by not working out since i’ve been here. i have been hunting online and have become beyond frustrated to see that there truly isn’t a hot yoga studio in the area. i’m totally kicking my own butt for not taking full advantage of yoga opportunities before we moved here from the U.S. If anyone knows of a studio that is provides hot yoga classes please email me, junk4joey@yahoo.com
good luck all
September 28th, 2010 at 8:32 AM
I stumbled upon this post from technoratic, good blog, keep it up.
October 15th, 2010 at 2:54 AM
Please open a bikram studio in Sao Paulo.
I need one desperately.
I used to have back problems before I started bikram 7 years ago.
They stopped completely when I started bikram.
Now that I live in Sao Paulo with no bikram, they started again.
Now I could barely walk w/o pain.
Please someone open a bikram studio here. Please! Please!
October 29th, 2010 at 12:53 AM
hi om people,
i moved to sao paulo from new jersey one month ago and dying without daily yoga….forgot my yoga mat in nj and was a mission findng one in sao paulo…it was expensive thin and not really sticky. finding a neti pot and spirulina powder is not working. i also was shocked to learn that there are very few vegetarian fake meat choices….no veggie slices or tropicana orange juice. i taught hatha yoga in new jersey n feel soo stiff here in brazil. 30 year old female. american in sao paulo. jennifercalmona@gmail.com
October 30th, 2010 at 7:48 AM
Hi, Jennifer.
Thanks for posting.
I KNOW!!!! I know how you feel……
First of all, the best yoga mat I could find is from Track & Field shop (Im sure they have shops in São Paulo – Im in Rio). It is expensive but, like I said, the best I could find.
You cant find wheat grass powder (or any wheat grass) here in Brazil. What I´ve got (Spirullina, Wheat Grass, Barley Grass, Clorella) I brought from New Zealand. All organic
You see, everything about vegetarian, raw food, yoga practices, wheat grass, etc etc…. is a zillion miles from the reality of this third world country……
Why did you move to Brazil?
All the best
November 22nd, 2010 at 10:11 PM
Hi!
I’ll be arriving in Rio in early December, and would LOVE to practice Bikram yoga together with other people to keep my practise while on vacation – anybody interested?
Namasté
//Monica
November 30th, 2010 at 9:31 AM
Hello!!!
I am from Rio, leaving all over the world for the last 5 years… Im now in Quincy, outside of Boston teaching Bikram at this great studio!! Planing going back to Rio to open a studio!! very soon I hope!!!
Ive got the Spanish dialogue so I can work between the 2 to make one in Portuguese.
Im going to Brasil in 2 weeks and will be meeting with some people about the location and investiments…
I need to make this happen ASAP!!! Im passionate about the practice and the teaching, cant live without them!!!
How can we get together??
My email is brisasilvestre@live.com
November 30th, 2010 at 5:15 PM
By the way, this is for everybody in Rio! We can get together and improvise a class while Im down there, from dec 14th trough jan 5th … I have a couple of heaters… I would be glad to help you guys out with some classes and posture clinic, where we study postures one by one, so you can do your own practice at home having a better understanding.
Also we can talk about some ideas for the studio down in Rio.
My email is brisasilvestre@live.com
January 9th, 2011 at 1:40 AM
Dear yoga friend!
Im in sao Paulo for 5 weeks and wants to practis and got sad when I read your site about there is NO bikramyoga around..
Do you know if there is a studio opened i Sao Paulo now in 2011?
Hug, Verona
February 9th, 2011 at 11:40 PM
I´ll be in Sao Paulo [and on/off Rio] from March – July 2011.
please let me know if you have found a way to practise BIKRAM – or have recommendations for any other good place for practising yoga!
cheers..
February 19th, 2011 at 11:04 AM
Hi
I am building a studio for bikram yoga near São Paulo ( one hour) in a very special place to do work-shops and events in conection with amazing nature landscapes and lakes(represa de Bragança/piracaia). But the prevision is that it will be ready only in one year. But please let your contacts so i can inform you when it will works. I have contact with some instructors, but nothing decided until then.
thomas@brieu.com
February 24th, 2011 at 3:06 PM
Hi everybody,
You are all wrong!!!
There is a bikran studio in brazil, is located in Curitiba, one of the first Brazilian bikran instructor came to Curitiba 5 years ago and opennned a litle studio, I have practiced there since last year.
March 2nd, 2011 at 5:37 AM
Hi Luiz,
Could you please send me the information on the Curitiba Studio. I am looking for a Bikram Studio in Brazil.
Thank you,
Suzana
March 20th, 2011 at 3:42 PM
I just returned from Miami where I had classes of Bikram at the studio of a relative, near Ft Lauderdale. The instruction was fantastic, very enthusiastic. It was great. I had a few classes also in Miami in the past. It´s the best for any age. Any instructor available in Sao Paulo? Maybe classes can be given at my building´s party lounge. Let me know.
April 4th, 2011 at 11:29 AM
I have heard that it is the government that makes it impossible to open a Bikram studio anywhere in Brazil. Something about having to have a certain type of degree from University in order to open anything fitness/health related … and this includes a Bikram yoga studio.
If this is true, it is such a shame that such a large and beautiful country doesn’t get to receive the benefits of such a wonderful practice. It is ridiculous to put such a stipulation on opening a studio when the teacher goes through such an intense training and more than qualified to maintain a studio.
Has anyone else heard this rule before?
June 4th, 2011 at 11:02 PM
Hi, what a mess. I’ve been practising Bikram Yoga here in australia and it’s really awesome. I’m sad to hear no hot yoga studios yet in Brazil. I’m Brazilian and should be back to Rio soon. have u tried Nirvana? Maybe we can open a place! This is becoming my main worry now, about going back and not having a proper place to practise…!