What a heated workout can and cannot do for you

For some people, sweating through an intensely hot workout class can border on a spiritual experience. For others, a toasty studio simply offers some relief from frigid weather.

- Emma Yasinski

NEW YORK -

Not all heated workouts are equally hot. Bikram yoga classes are typically 40 deg C, while other heated classes can range from a cosy 27 deg C to a scorching 50 deg C. And while hot yoga is perhaps the most familiar heated workout, hot pilates and hot high-intensity interval training classes are also popular.

Those who swear by these workouts claim that turning up the temperature can increase your flexibility, enhance your heart health or even help you sweat out supposed toxins.

Here is what exercising in the heat really can - and cannot - do for you.

HEAT MAY IMPROVE YOUR FLEXIBILITY

Some small studies suggest that applying heat directly to your muscles, such as with a heating pad, can increase your flexibility and range of motion. Stretching in a heated room may have similar effects, though there is limited research in this area.

Your blood vessels expand in the heat, allowing them to deliver more oxygen and blood to your muscles and tendons. This may help loosen your muscles and make you more flexible, said exercise physiologist and assistant professor Kelsey Bourbeau at the University of Northern Iowa.

HOT WORKOUTS GET YOUR HEART PUMPING