People think yoga is not real sport and doesn’t burn enough energy. That is wrong! Yoga is the perfect training to burn the extra calories that come with the end of year celebrations. Read below to discover yoga for weight loss!
What type of yoga for weight loss?
Yoga can burn from 180 to 600 calories per hour depending on which yoga you go for. Indeed, you have various types of yoga for weight loss. You burn more during a Bikram class than a restorative one for instance.
Our favourite style remains the Vinyasa (Ashtanga, Power yoga and yoga flow classes are styles of vinyasa yoga). Characterised by its flow that links the asana together, it requires you to always be in movement, making it the perfect yoga for weight loss. An active class of those burns in an hour as much as a 5 mph. run. (594 calories).
However, keep in mind that this figure assumes that you flow for an hour long. Child poses are not included ladies!
Yoga poses for weight loss
Not only yoga styles have an impact on the energy you burn, but there are also some special yoga poses for weight loss. Find below the perfect poses of yoga for weight loss.
Plank
The plank pose burns many calories because you need to engage all your muscles and to resist to gravity.
Chair
This pose requires you to activate the glutes (largest muscles in the body) and this burns a lot of energy.
Chaturanga
It’s basically a push-up and it engages all your muscles, resulting in a lot of energy burnt.
Sun salutations
Sun salutations are series of poses supposed to flow. This activates the cardiovascular system and engage the glutes, the abdominal, the shoulders, the biceps and the triceps.
Other benefits of yoga for weight loss
Yoga is appropriate to lose weight as it does burn energy. However, it is not the only reason why it helps you to get fit. It also increases your mindfulness and changes the way you apprehend your body and listen to yourself. You then pay more attention at what you eat and how you consume it.
For example, you seek for healthier food and avoid fat snacks that make you feel tired, resulting in weight loss.
Besides, it is a well known fact that some people tend to eat more during high stress time periods. By reducing stress, yoga helps you to behave and you lose weight.
So the answer to “is yoga good for weight loss” is definitely yes. Yoga is effective to lose weight in several aspects: it burns energy, improves your self esteem and builds healthier relationship to food. So even if it is not the exercise type that burns the most calories, it still does. Plus, if you just start exercising, it is perfect for you as it causes less injury.
If your excuse is that you do not have time to practice read our article about yoga at the office. Feeling like hitting the mat now? Watch this video.
