In the hustle and bustle of Kings Cross is a hideaway yoga studio that specialises in hot yoga and Pilates, with four studio spaces (two heated mat studios, a mat Pilates studio and one studio equipped with reformer beds).
Time Out tried the hot mat pilates class, which focuses on the core for 50 minutes. Our class was in the 27-degree room, which doesn’t sound warm but once we began 100 pulses in the box position we were sweating buckets.
There are approximately 40 mats in each studio, and so there is lots of space to feel comfortable and have your own space to stretch. Our classroom is mirrored on one side, with clear views of the city out of an expansive window at the end of the room.
Heating the rooms isn’t just a perk for winter, One Hot Yoga hold their classes at human body temperature to maximise use of muscles and to burn fat. Classes taken in their hottest room are at a much slower pace in order to get deep stretches in a vinyasa yoga session.
In hot mat Pilates, the aim is to feel the burn from repetition and carefully monitored poses, but in reformer classes they target different parts of the body using dynamic exercises on a rolling carriage and by using resistance springs.
A casual yoga or Pilates class is $37 ($42 per class for reformer), but the studio has multi-passes and memberships available that cater to your preferred style. It’s a beautiful studio, too, from the white and gold bathrooms to the scented candles burning in the reception area.