"Practice, practice, practice, and all will come."
Pattabhi Jois, a famous Indian yoga teacher, repeated this mantra his whole life. If "all comes" with practising yoga, can yoga also reduce stress and help you lose weight?
If you have already tried every one of the tips and tricks for losing weight, you can't keep to a diet for more than a few weeks and are desperately looking for exercises to help you lose fat. Yoga can help you develop strategies for sustained weight loss.
Here is everything you need to know about yoga for weight loss.
Can Yoga Help You Lose Weight?
So, can yoga help you get rid of extra pounds?
Broadly speaking, YES.
Yoga consists of a sequence of physical poses (asanas), more or less tonic and done at a more or less rapid rhythm depending on the type of yoga. So, as you will be moving, toning and exercising your muscles, yoga can help you get back into shape or stay fit.
One aspect that is essential when trying to lose weight is pleasure. If you don't enjoy practising yoga, you won't be motivated and will skip yoga lessons or home yoga sessions, which means you won't attain your weight-loss goals.
Yoga helps tone and sculpt your body. But yoga is much more than a simple physical exercise.
Yoga can benefit weight loss in several ways, although it may not be as intense as other forms of exercise. While some forms of yoga are gentle and focused on relaxation, others are more dynamic and physically demanding. Power yoga, Vinyasa, and Ashtanga yoga, for example, can provide an excellent cardiovascular workout, burning calories and contributing to weight loss.
Yoga emphasizes mindfulness and awareness, which can extend to your eating habits. Practising mindfulness may help you become more conscious of what and how much you eat, potentially reducing mindless snacking or overeating. Chronic stress can lead to weight gain, particularly around the abdominal area. Yoga is known for its stress-reducing benefits, helping to lower cortisol levels. Reduced stress can contribute to better weight management.
Certain styles of yoga, such as power or hot yoga, can elevate your heart rate and boost metabolism, aiding in calorie burning. Many yoga poses engage and strengthen various muscle groups. Building lean muscle mass can increase basal metabolic rate (BMR), meaning you burn more calories even at rest.
Yoga can have positive effects on hormonal balance. For example, it may help regulate hormones like cortisol and insulin associated with weight management. Yoga encourages a mind-body connection, promoting self-awareness and self-care. This can translate into healthier lifestyle choices, including diet and exercise.
Consistency and Long-Term Commitment: people find yoga accessible and enjoyable, leading to greater consistency in their exercise routine.
It's important to note that the effectiveness of yoga for weight loss can vary from person to person. It's often recommended to combine yoga with a balanced diet and other forms of exercise for optimal results. Additionally, individual factors such as the intensity and duration of the yoga practice and overall lifestyle choices play a role in determining its impact on weight loss.
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What Yoga Style is Best for Weight Loss?
There are several different types of yoga. All forms of yoga are based on deep breathing and harmony between mind and body.
But suppose the slower aspect of the more traditional yoga forms turns you off. In that case, more dynamic styles, such as Ashtanga or Vinyasa yoga, are particularly well suited to burning calories and toning your body.
These yoga styles are also suitable for eliminating toxins and teaching you to listen to your body and its signals for hunger and fullness.
Additionally, many yoga poses help modulate the adrenal and thyroid glands, which help regulate our metabolism.
You can also try Bikram Yoga if there are no contraindications in your case. It is a form of Hatha Yoga (the most common yoga style) executed in a room heated to 40°C and with 40% humidity to facilitate the evacuation of toxins.
A Bikram Yoga lesson generally lasts 90 minutes and comprises 26 poses and two breathing exercises. You should consult a doctor before practising Bikram Yoga.
Though you shouldn't do more than two Bikram Yoga classes a week, if you want to lose weight quickly, daily home yoga routines can help.
These daily home yoga sessions can be rounded out with studio lessons or with a private tutor for:
- Vinyasa Yoga
- Ashtanga Yoga
- Prenatal Yoga
- Sophrology
- Positive thinking exercises
- Meditation exercises
What Are the Best Yoga Poses for Weight Loss?
With a healthy diet with lots of fruits and vegetables, fibre and very little fat, yoga can help you lose weight, especially stomach fat.
Be mindful of your general state of health before doing the following exercises. If you are unsure of your ability, consult a yoga specialist who will teach you to do them without injuring yourself.
Cobra Pose (Bhujangasana)
Stop as soon as you feel any pain!
Not for those suffering from cervical or back problems or hernia.
This pose strengthens the abdominal muscles and reduces stomach fat. It also strengthens the spine and back.
- Lie down on your stomach with your legs stretched out
- Place the palms of your hand on the floor just underneath your shoulders
- Inhale and slowly raise your upper body
- Hold this position for two full breaths
- On the exhale, lower your whole body to the ground
- Repeat five times with a 15-second rest period between each repeat.
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The Bow Pose (Dhanurasana)
Contraindications: back and cervical problems, hernia.
This yoga pose reinforces the abdominal wall. It activates the digestive system and is an excellent way to stretch your back.
- Lie down on your stomach with your legs stretched out
- Bend your knees and grasp your ankles with your hands
- On the inhale, raise your head while looking in front of you (to reduce the stress on your spine) and raise your legs as high as they will go
- Maintain this pose for two full breaths, breathing normally
- On the exhale, bring your body back to the original position
- Repeat five times with a 15-second rest period between each repeat.
The Boat Pose (Naukasana)
One of the best poses for a flat belly. It is also suitable for the digestive system and strengthens the back and legs.
- Lie down on your back with your legs stretched out before you
- While inhaling, raise your legs, keeping them straight
- Grasp your legs with your hands around your calves (or your knees if that's too difficult)
- Make sure you keep your back straight and your abdominal muscles tight to avoid injury
- Breathe normally and keep the pose for two full breaths
- On an exhale, return to your original position
- Repeat five times with a 15-second rest period between each repeat.
Plank Pose (Kumbhakasana)
Contraindication: shoulder injury
The best pose is to keep a flat stomach and tone your whole body. It sculpts arms, shoulders, back, buttocks and thighs.
- Lie down on your stomach.
- Place your hands on either side of your shoulders and push against the ground.
- Your hands must remain under your shoulders; your body should form a straight line from the top of your skull to the tips of your toes.
- Careful not to arch your back
- Remain in this position as long as you can while breathing normally
- Release the pose on an exhale
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Wind-Relieving Pose (Pavanamuktasana)
This pose helps with lumbago while regulating the acidity of the stomach. It tones your abdomen and hips.
- Lie down on your back
- Bend your knees and, while exhaling, bring them to your chest
- Apply pressure to your stomach with your thighs
- While exhaling, raise your head and try to touch your knees with your chin. Careful: don't apply pressure to your cervical vertebrae; your upper back should work.
- Breathe deeply and keep the pose for two full breaths
- Return to the initial position on the exhale
- Repeat five times with a 15-second rest period between each repeat.
You should start seeing results soon if you practice these five poses regularly! Here are some more poses to help you lose weight.
Sound of Mind and Sound of Body: Using Yoga to Lose Weight
Weight loss is not the only advantage of practising yoga: you will feel liberated!
The benefits of yoga are numerous (not just to keep in shape):
- Become more flexible
- Manage stress
- Learn to meditate
- A physical activity you can do at home
- Increased concentration
Lose weight with anti-stress yoga
Yoga helps you manage stress - while some people lose their appetites under stress, others find their appetite increases. They eat because they're stressed, and so they gain weight. Regular practice of any form of yoga helps decrease stress levels. Being more relaxed, the munchies disappear.
Yoga also helps improve sleep patterns. Sleep problems are intimately linked to stress. Some meditation or yoga exercises just before sleep can help reduce stress and improve sleep quality. Having less trouble falling asleep and sleeping through the night, you won't be as tired when the alarm rings.
Yoga's ultimate goal is harmony.
Beyond physical activity, yoga is a philosophy and introducing it into your life can fundamentally change you. You will feel better in your mind and, thus, in your body.
Trying out yoga means incorporating it into your lifestyle. You'll see - though you might say, "Meditation is not for me", or "Yoga is too slow, I need something more energizing," or even "I don't really like all that spiritual stuff", and yet, with the right yoga teacher, you will soon find yourself slowly adopting all the facets of yoga into your daily life.
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You are aiming for harmony between mind and body. Even if you need to lose more than 20 pounds, you will find that those pounds that were ruining your life now seem meaningless after a few yoga sessions.
Yoga is not a competition, as any yoga teacher will tell you: neither against others nor against yourself. The ultimate goal is not to master all the poses, lose X pounds or test your limits - the point of yoga is to make peace with yourself and learn to accept your body.
Finding A Personal Trainer Specialising in Yoga to Lose Weight
Of course, you can do home yoga, but if you are starting, you might need motivational help.
Is the secret to eating less and healthily to be found at the feet of a yoga sports coach?
Why use a personal trainer specializing in yoga?
The advantage of a sports coach is that they have training in something besides yoga. Suppose they decide you need more energetic physical exercises to lose weight fast. In that case, they can give you advice on other sports, such as skipping rope, cardio exercises, weight lifting, pilates or other muscular reinforcement sports in addition to yoga.
A yoga-oriented personal trainer will have the advantage of understanding how the body works and being open to alternatives than your average sports coach. This is why we suggest you unite these two aspects - yoga teacher and personal trainer - in one person.
A personal trainer will motivate you.
A sports coach is also a good motivator. Alone at home, you tend to abandon all your good resolutions reasonably quickly, while a personal trainer giving classes once or twice a week won't let you skimp. There is no way around it - they will ensure you do the exercises.
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To sum it up:
- No need to follow the newest fad diet. Concentrating instead on healthy, well-balanced eating habits while doing physical exercise is usually enough to stay in shape!
- Yoga is not a magic wand that will magically let you lose weight - but it helps tone your body and muscle it evenly.
- In addition to aiding in weight loss, yoga is a natural anti-depressant. It will help you manage stress and let go of your negative thoughts. The vicious stress-nibbling-pounds circle will be broken, leaving the happier yoga-healthy eating-healthy body circle in its place.
- A personal trainer specializing in yoga can help with nutritional advice and other, more intense physical activities to complement your yoga lessons.
Be careful not to hurt yourself when doing yoga poses. Don't hesitate to contact one of our superprofits and take yoga classes to learn to do them correctly.
Learn how yoga lessons could help you get a better night's sleep and help you conceive a child!
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