By Lisa Flueckiger, Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The physical, mental, and spiritual disciplines of yoga, which originated in ancient India, have made it to the shores of Brazil. For those interested in practicing yoga, Rio de Janeiro offers a handful of new options both in and around the city.
Bikram Yoga Rio – yoga in the city
A new Bikram Yoga studio has opened up in Botafogo, being one of the only places where this popular yoga style can be practiced in Rio. Bikram Yoga is a special Hatha Yoga performed in a heated room of around 40 degrees Celsius, to stimulate a profound detoxification, warm the muscles and overcome the limits that are set by the mind.
Bikram Yoga consists of 26 positions and two breathing exercises, which are performed during ninety minutes, always in the same order. The postures ensure that you move and train all parts of your body to ensure a holistic training.
The studio is conveniently located on Rua Bartolomeu Portela, 25 – Bloco A – Loja E, close to the Botafogo Metro station.
Prana in Paradise Yoga Retreat – a yoga retreat on Ilha Grande
Expatriate Kimberly Johnson offers seven day all-women yoga retreats on the beautiful island Ilha Grande, just about three hours from the city of Rio.
The Prana in Paradise Yoga Retreat is a chance to get away from the city tension while reaffirming health and wellness. In the retreat yoga will be practiced twice a day. Ms. Johnson says, “Yoga is about discovering new choices… becoming the strong, intuitive and empowered heroine of your own life.”
Guests of the retreat will be lodged in the Gota do Mar lodge in the Lagoa Azul (Blue Lagoon), which also has its own private beach. Guests can go on waterfall hikes, discover the island and its over one hundred beaches or just relax and meditate.
The next retreat will take place from April 7-13th, and welcomes all levels of yoga practitioners including pregnant and postpartum women. In Rio she also offers regular yoga classes, Rolfing bodywork and birth services.
Green Stone Journey Yoga Retreats – combine yoga and travel
Green Stone Journey offers three different kind of retreats all combining yoga exercises and sightseeing. They all start and end in Rio and visit some of the highlights of Brazil during the journey while yoga wellness and healthy eating are incorporated into the traveling.
Tara Campbell, Director of Green Stone Journeys, explains, “Our approach is to offer Yoga to people who also want to travel and see Brazil like regular tourism to include all the highlights and culture of Brazil.”
“The idea is to make yoga accessible to people who want to have a more conscientious travel experience and have fun at the same time, and who may also be new to yoga and looking to travel with like-minded people,” Campbell told The Rio Times.
The next tours are the Mountain and Coast Yoga Journey from April 20th – 29th, which goes from Rio to the mountains of Visconde de Maua and then to the coast to Paraty and the Yoga Island Discovery from May 11th – 20th, which enjoys Costa Verde’s (Green Coast) Ilha Grande and Paraty.
All accommodations are in spas and ensure a relaxing environment. The hotels, as well as the transportation and some of the meals are included in the journeys.