Oxygen Yoga & Fitness isn’t your standard yoga studio. Located in midtown Toronto, classes are a fusion of yoga and aerobics. Oxygen Yoga is one of the only studios that uses infrared heating to make you sweat and eliminate toxins.

With 70 locations across Canada, this is the first location in Toronto. With over 20 classes to choose from, Oxygen offers something for all fitness levels.

Oxygen classes are mostly high energy non-stop movement based on aerobic exercises and the foundations of Yoga.

While my particular class, the Hot Power Fusion, didn’t include sun salutations and mantras, it did include movements into yoga poses and emerging out of those movements.

The class mostly focused on high energy, pumped up exercises with weights, jumping jacks and resistance bands. It wasn’t what I was expecting, but some of the best studios have the ability to surprise you with the unknown. Bring extra towels because it gets sweatier than you expect.

The best part about this studio is that it doesn’t shy away from owning what it is - a loud and proud studio focused on intense exercise with infrared technology.

The beauty of infrared sauna (one of my favourite detoxing methods) is that it heats your body from the inside instead of topical sweat.

Infrared is similar to the effects of Ujjayi breath (a yogic type of breathing) that stimulates and heats your body from the inside. Infrared heat is used to eliminate toxins and is said to help with weight loss. It’s also a stress reliever and helps to improve overall skin health.

With one central studio that heats up, the studio has a nice, clean design with two showers, mala beads, essential oils and athleisure wear for purchase.

Mantras and quotes are posted throughout the studio, but the one that stands out is sprayed on one wall inside the studio, “I love my life.” A mantra that all participants recite at the end of the class instead of the regular, Namaste.

One of the popular evening classes is the Deep Stretch and Relaxation, and Yang and Yin classes for a slower paced class with the perfect balance of stretching and strengthening.

The Deep Stretch and Relaxation class is good for beginners and allows you to get used to the heat. Plus, there’s the added benefit of a scented oil on your forehead at the end of class. The studio also offers heated barre and boxing classes for a really deep sculpt and tone.

For extra toning, the Tone and Sculpt is a one-hour class designed to tone the body while using a weighted body bar. Try the Hot Amazing Arms, a 30-minute classes that focuses on the upper body while using infrared heat to make you sweat.

There are also specialty classes like Zumba and Prenatal yoga. Classes are offered in 30, 45, or 60-minute classes.