Gigi Morley isn't afraid to get hot, sweaty and accidentally intimate with those who follow Bikram's mantra...

I am a huge fan of drip-drenching sweaty 'I can see right up your shorts, Betty' Bikram Yoga because it ‘s founder Bikram Choudhury, works on the premise that you are never too old, never too late, never too sick, never to bad to start from scratch and begin again.

He should know, at seventeen when he injured his knee in a weight-lifting accident, doctors said he’d never walk again. Determined not to accept life in a wheelchair Bikram found his way back to Calcutta, worked on yoga postures with his guru and six months later his knee had totally recovered.

Right now I feel its time for me to start again. I’m one too many you-are-what-you-eat bars away from a size hero, one too many deadlines away from finishing what I started (this article) and after accidentally flooding the antique jewellery boutique below my flat whilst defrosting the fridge, far too de-motivated to tackle the mundane task of emptying my suitcase,

Now, I long for the clarity of thought and life/work balance that I found through Bikram when I practiced in the past. It consists of 26 postures carried out in a heated room at a temperature of approximately 105°F for 90 minutes. It provides Krispy Kreme and passion fruit mojito detoxification, I hate-my-bottom stress-relief and “look how high I can get my leg darling” flexibility and strength.

Bikram is an extra hundred odd pounds on top of my gym membership so I was contemplating whether to ditch one for the other. Then there it was in my inbox, like a sign from Bikram himself, an offer of 30 days for £30 from lovely Olga at the Hot Bikram Yoga studios in Fulham.

Great, but there’s always a catch. It’s not 30 days at my leisure for £30. It’s, (drum roll please) The 30-day Bikram Yoga Challenge! This dares you to practice in the torture chamber for 90 minutes without passing out or throwing up, every day for 30 days straight without missing a day, regardless of what else is going on in your life.

It’s times like these I wish I had the same approach to life as my gorgeous boyfriend. He’s up at 8.20am every morning (including weekends) and straight to his home office desk without fail. His breakfast consists of a daily fix of yoghurt, banana and mango with a heaped tablespoon of green food. He believes that life’s a gym so always takes the stairs, runs up hills and never stands still on an escalator. Since a little bit of what you fancy does you good, after a healthy dinner he has something sweet, usually one finger of short bread and a slither of Green and Blacks. Naturally this is off set by running every day and Taekwondo on Wednesdays and Fridays.

I, on the other hand find routine desperately dull. If life’s a gym it’s only so I can more eat more cake at afternoon tea. My working hours are very unpredictable and I often don’t get to bed till 5am. I swing from virtuous dinners of grilled fish and raw spinach to throwing wannabe size 10 caution to the wind with truly glorious handmade banana and walnut fudge and vanilla macaroons.

I can only sigh when I think of the last time I did the Bikram Yoga Challenge. After the late class on day 5 my car was towed away. I had to walk all the way home and drag my poor sister along on a midnight search for it. When I finally located it I had to pay £200 for the privilege of retrieving it. Hideous!

Then, on day 20, I emptyied the washing machine of my Bikram gear and noticed I’d picked up someone else’s shorts by mistake. Desperate to return them to the rightful owner with a can “ I buy you an energy drink?” apology, I popped them in the dryer and packed them straight away along with fresh towels and water. But on day 21 I arrived at the early class (the only one I could do that day due to work commitments) to find I hadn’t actually packed my own shorts, duh! With new-found Bikram clarity, I knew the only option that would allow me to continue along the path of 30 day virtue, was to risk someone behind me shouting THIEF as I did the class in their zillion times too-small-for-me shorts and to try not to laugh out loud as I looked at my ridiculous self in the mirror.

This time, as I finish off the last piece of banana and walnut fudge, armed with my new Eco friendly yoga It Bag, the real challenge is to keep going after 30 days, to make it part of my weekly routine and not have to start over again in a years time. Wish me luck and let me know if I owe you a virgin cocktail and a new pair of sweaty Betty shorts.

For more information contact Olga at Hot Bikram Yoga or for details of Studios in North, West or City of London visit Bikram Yoga and to say hi to Gigi... email gigi@thegigimorleyshow.com