Try Hotpod Yoga at Norwich's Castle Quarter

Yoga in any temperature is full of benefits - like reducing stress and improving physical fitness. The heat from a hot yoga practice additionally allows muscles to become warmed up and relaxed during the workout, which improves flexibility. Being in a hot, humid room gets your body working harder without really realising it, creating a more intense workout for your heart, lungs, and muscles. You are guaranteed to get a good sweat, improve circulation, and from my own experience, leave feeling rejuvenated.

Hotpod Yoga is a trendy new way for Norwichers to spend time breaking a sweat, clearing their minds, and meeting up with friends.

Kelly Brown, who owns and operates the studio with her partner Devon Boyd, explains: “We’re really aiming to offer something for everyone, whether that's an electrician struggling with back pain, best friends looking for an alternative way to get together on a Friday night, or people who have enjoyed yoga for years and want to take their practice further.

"We like to challenge you in our classes, but we also don't take ourselves too seriously. The class is whatever you make of it, and our aim is to help you to feel your best. If you want, you can push yourself and work up a sweat, which you most definitely will in the 37C heat, or you can spend the hour relaxing and taking some time out for yourself, either is very welcome.”

I got the chance to try out a class for myself, and as someone who has had some experience with yoga in the past, I can say that this studio is on a whole different level.

The class takes place in an inflatable pod with dim purple lighting, taking the focus off of the way the poses look and instead placing attention onto how they feel. The instructor had a gentle and encouraging tone that was carried from start to finish. He walked around the room helping us get comfortably and correctly into our poses in a way that didn’t shift the attention of the class onto you. The instructor offered multiple variations of yoga poses so the flow could be adapted for each individual - from a beginner to an advanced yogi.

We spent time working on strengthening and stretching each area of our bodies. The pace was relaxed and allowed good time for us to find our way into the positions before moving onto the next.

The class ended how you would hope every good yoga session would - in Shavasana - or, laid out on our backs with our eyes closed. The yoga instructor sprayed essential oils into the room and offered us a chance to use that time to slow down and focus on our breath.

Even on a hot day, there is something special about getting into a heated room and moving your body. As the cold winter months approach, so should a different sort of appreciation for Hotpod Yoga.

Although I left my class completely drenched in sweat, I felt surprisingly refreshed and renewed, and others agreed.

From my own past experiences with the practise, it was hot yoga that first got me hooked. It is an exercise that is unique to anything else I have tried. The owners having lived hectic London lifestyles recall having tried Hotpod Yoga for themselves for the first time. Kelly shares. "We both fell in love with how amazing the classes made us feel. Our shoulders felt a little less tense and our minds calmer, and we soon realised that there was more to look forward to on a Monday night than being one step closer to the weekend.”

The studio is decked out with a kitchen area, including a table to sit and chat, changing rooms, showers, a water station, and storage space.

Classes run seven days a week. Visit hotpodyoga.com/studios/norwich