The Union

I love this studio. I have been to several heated yoga studios between Houston, San Antonio, and Austin, and the Union competes very well. The staff is great, very friendly and encouraging. I take away something different from each class I go to, and the fact that they change instructors for each class time really keeps it fresh. Twenty six and two, of course, stays the same (this is standard for Bikram yoga). I have yet to try out Bust a Move Crossfit, but as a former Crossfit athlete I think that the option to do both here is awesome! While I have had nicer amenities at other gyms/​studios, the Union still exceeds expectations. When I am in town I will always drop in for a class, and leave feeling strong, powerful, and centered.

Oh my, where can I start? Well I started attending Bikram Yoga about 6 years ago off and on. First if all, Bikram Yoga is extreme, practicing yoga in a heated room of about 90 degrees. Why would anyone want to do that?! The heated room allows your muscles and joints to loosen up giving you a much deeper stretch. The staff has been certified through the Bikram institution and therefore you can always expect the same quality instruction. The reason I love Bikram is the fact that you can always push yourself as hard as you want to get the workout you want. Not only does Bikram test your endurance but it also challenges your mind. I cannot wait to go back for a «drop in» class that cost 15 bucks. The class will leave you feeling euphoric, setting up your week for positive vibes! #Namaste

26 postures, 2 breathing exercises, lots of sweat! Friendly, knowledgeable instructors learn your name quickly and make an effort to get to get to know you. BYSA works to build a great sense of community by hosting events like «Breakfast With Bikram» and «Yoga Power Hour,» which is a great chance to ask questions and learn about this yoga. Believe it or not, Bikram is for everyone! Just know what you’re getting into and stick with it! You’ll reap the benefits for a lifetime.

As somebody who values comfort and air conditioning above all else, I’ll just go ahead and say that Bikram yoga in general is just miserable. Above the entrance to the yoga room is an accurate sign that says «Torture Chamber.» All that said, I am still giving this Bikram studio a hearty 4 stars. Confused?
Bikram yoga is a 90 minute session conducted in a room heated to 105 degrees. Even in San Antonio, that is HOT. I was peer pressured into my first session over the summer. Taking advantage of their first-timer’s special (for $ 5 more when paying for your first session, you can go as many times as you want over the next 10 days), I attended a few other classes within the next week and a half… then went ahead and bought some more classes after those were finished (because I don’t learn). While I am totally miserable through 75% of the 90 minutes, once I’m finished with class and out of that room, I feel energized and refreshed (albeit soaked through with sweat).
I was nervous about attending my first classes since I’m not experienced in any type of yoga. However, it wasn’t so bad, as you just do as much as you can — stretch as far as you can, even if it’s not the full stretch. If you lose your balance and fall out of a pose, you just get right back into it. It’s easy to not be self-​conscious when nobody is paying attention to you because they’re concentrating and trying to hold their own yoga poses. There are a ton of encouraging instructors, and though the 26 poses of Bikram are identical and in the same order every class, each instructor has a slightly different pace and style. I haven’t found one yet that’s disagreeable at all, and the variation in personality staves off any boredom of repetition for me.
I would encourage anyone to try a round of Bikram if they’re entertaining the notion. Yes, it’s hard, but if you weren’t interested in a little bit of a struggle then you would probably still be on the couch. There are all kinds of people in there, from high school students to some people that are gettin’ up there, age-​wise. There are people that have obviously been doing yoga for many years, and some that have just started, some that are way into fitness and have 2% body fat as well as some that maybe have a few pounds to lose. It’s easy to feel comfortable in a group that has no set type, and at this studio I definitely feel comfortable.
A few tips for newbies:
— bring a yoga mat, large (beach) towel, and fill up and bring the biggest water bottle you have. If you don’t have a mat and/​or towel, you can borrow them for $ 1 each.
— wear as few clothes as you feel comfortable in. You’ll wear no socks or shoes, and you WILL end up soaked in sweat by the end. A sports bra and tiny tiny little spandex shorts are common for ladies, and some men wear shorts only.
— try not to be self conscious. As opposed to the gym, there aren’t any peacocks who dress up to go to Bikram (you know the types at the gym — full makeup, every hair in place…). Everyone will end up a sweaty disaster, so don’t worry about how you look. You’re there for yourself, for your health. Do it because you’ll feel great at the end!

The instructors are awesome. They help push me through my tough days with a smiling happy face. :)

I enjoy yoga for many reasons but one thing especially, the fact that it is individualistic — not competitive. I love pushing myself to see what my body will allow.
I took my first class at Bikram. I would have loved to have been able to do more, so I inquired about binding and other things like balance poses. The response was that they do things like that in «the advanced» class which by the way was by invitation only and after at least 6 months of practice. An elite click. Um, no thanks.
It is a personal practice. I take HOT yoga at a large gym North of this studio. It is more challenging and does similar practice to Bikram yet you are «allowed» to try advance poses if you are able to-​not invited to. How ridiculous. I’m sad, bc I thought I had found a new place to keep going to. Guess I was wrong. :(

Review from a Bikram newbie.
I’ve wanted to take a Bikram yoga class for nearly a decade and it took this long for me to finally do it! I’m fairly in shape and wanted to try this out to mix up my running and gym routines. I really enjoyed my time taking these classes and really liked the instructors. What was great about these instructors (comments below) that may not be found in other Bikram studios (from what I’ve heard) is that they crack open the doors at times when the room gets a bit too sweltering hot. I happened to appreciate these little cool breaks.
They had a great offer for first-​timers with a $ 20 special for 10 consecutive classes. I took advantage of this offer and went for 6 consecutive days while I was in San Antonio before I had to head back to the northeast. I had a good experience here at least from my standpoint of being a newbie and for only six days worth of an experience. However, I do plan on coming back the next time I’m in San Antonio.
==Instructors==
Kate, was my first and final instructor (how poetic) and she was really great to have as an instructor and to ease into Bikram as a first-​timer. Very friendly, positive, encouraging, kept a good pace to ease you in and isn’t a drill sergeant when you need to take a water break or lie down (savasana).
Monika, I’ve only had one class with her, but she too was a great instructor to ease in beginners and kept a great pace. Similar to Kate, she was very positive, encouraging and wasn’t too pushy about taking water breaks or lying down.
Carlos, I took two classes with him, was a bit more intense but not too aggressive. He was a bit more fast paced and challenged everyone to push harder into their poses. He was also very mindful of the beginners having them take the time to first observe others in certain poses before they begin.
Russ, I took one class with him and he was pretty good too, took time for beginners to learn the poses, kept a good and positive pace.
==Facility==
The Bikram studio room is carpeted and once you walk in the room, you’re hit with the heat (think of walking into one of those dry saunas at the gym) and there is a bit of a damp smell, but not in a smelly gym shoes way.
Bathroom (women’s of course) was a bit small, with two stalls, a few showers, sinks and cubbies to hold your belongings. No lockers (don’t expect a locker room).
==What Bikram was like for me==
Every day was different in terms of how my body reacted. Day 1 was fine. Day 2 went a little better. Day 3 was a struggle and I couldn’t hold any of my poses and felt so frustrated with myself. Then Day 4 – 6 went so much better where by Day 6 I was able to hold many of the poses while controlling my breathing (remembering to calmly breathe in and out through my nose).
Bring your own towel and your own mat (if you have one); otherwise, you pay about $ 1 to rent a mat and, I think, another $ 1 to rent a towel.
You’ll wear very little clothes because you will sweat A LOT! See pics of people here (
). Trust me, I too felt self conscious just wearing a little tank top and shorts, but you will find people of all shapes and sizes, abilities, young and older, big and small, jocks and the elderly, purple and rectangle people, you get the picture, so don’t let your shyness or your thoughts of «but I’m out of shape, I’m too old, I’m blah blah» get in the way.
Oh and bring a ginormous (not kidding, even a gallon) bottle of water with you!
Breathe and I hope your experience is as good or better than mine.

I took a class here today, my first Bikram ever (I did one heated yoga class in college, but i truly am not yet a yogi, and have done maybe 1 power yoga class since then).
Casey (Kasey, KC?) was our instructor — she’s a great motivator and pushes you to your personal best. Even when I wanted to be complacent with the degree of my stretch, her gentle prodding made me push that extra inch. The judgment free attitude permeated the room (along with the CRAZYYYY heat!) and I never felt like a wimp when I took my breathers on my back.
Pricing seems reasonable, and the atmosphere is welcoming!

It’s really a shame I got into a debacle with one of the owners, Lisa, of this yoga studio. I really enjoyed going to classes here. The monthly rate is reasonable and affordable for students, and Steve, the co-​owner, is really nice and a great teacher. I was in such great shape when I went to Bikram on a regular basis, and every class was absolutely refreshing.
That being said, I know business can’t please everyone but my situation could have been handled so much better, and I am sad it ended in me parting ways with Bikram Yoga.
***Long, winded story warning.***
I joined Bikram early 2008, I believe. When I joined, I spoke directly with Lisa and was sure to ask whether my contract could be «frozen» because there was a pretty good chance I would be spending the summer interning out of town. She said, yes, there is was an option to freeze accounts. I said great, and immediately enrolled in the unlimited student auto-​withdrawal package. May rolls around, and if you’re a student or a parent, you know that means it’s finals time. My graduate degree program relied solely on final exams for grades, so my life was pretty much on hold starting in April. On top of that, my wallet had been stolen so I had to cancel all my cards and get new ones. When Bikram went to bill me for May, they couldn’t because my card number had changed. Lisa emailed me asking for my new information, and I asked about freezing my account. First she told me that there was no such thing as freezing accounts, but when I told her I remembered speaking directly to her when I joined she suddenly remembered that there was an option to freeze accounts (red flag! … this was just the beginning). It was still the first week of May when I requested my account be frozen, I hadn’t attended any classes yet for the month, but Lisa told me that I couldn’t freeze my account because my request came after the first of the month. I kindly asked her to send me the paperwork regarding my account in order to determine whether this stipulation was printed anywhere, and of course it wasn’t. Lisa demanded that I pay for the entire month of May (this is probably now half-​way through the month, and I still haven’t attended any classes) in order to keep my account current. She wouldn’t even consider the option of pro-​rating my month from the 1^st to when I asked for my account to be frozen even though I hadn’t attended a single class. I even suggested that she freeze my account for the month of May, and I would cancel according to my contract which stipulates that you must at least give 30 days notice before you quit (i.e. you go through two billing cycles, I believe. You pay for one more cycle, then your last month is free because it’s part of your payment up front – you pay for your first and last month of yoga). I just wanted to get my money’s worth, and I didn’t feel like getting taken advantage of for no reason – I hadn’t been to a single class that month! I told her a few days after the 1^st that I wanted to freeze my account, and that unprinted mistake cost me $ 70. Needless to say, I never went back, and she kept the deposit on my account.
Steve was copied on all the emails between Lisa and me, and yet he never intervened. I guess this is the danger you sometimes encounter with mom&pop operations – the rules aren’t clearly stated and sometimes that bites you in the rear. Part of me is still very bitter that they kept $ 70.00 of mine for stating some unwritten rule that I could never could have known existed. This was an unfortunate situation that led to a serious mishandling by these business owners. If Lisa would have just frozen my account, I probably would still be a Bikram Yoga Yogi. She traded two years of business for one month of fees. Someone tell me where is the business sense in that? I have not, and will never refer a friend of mine to Bikram Yoga.