Yoga is quickly becoming a workout of choice among many different groups of people, and that’s for a good reason. Yoga provides a relaxing, yet invigorating workout that has mental health benefits, physical benefits, and overall well-being perks.
You also may be wondering if yoga is good for weight loss. Just like all other forms of physical activity, you can most definitely lose weight by practicing yoga. This is because it has both cardio and strengthening elements. There are also many different styles of yoga that you can choose from to see what suits your needs and preferences best.
But many people wonder, is yoga exercise good for weight loss? We will illustrate how to lose weight by practicing yoga in this article.
Can You Lose Weight By Practicing Yoga?
Yoga is considered a physical exercise, just like with any other exercise or workout, it’s 100% possible to lose weight with yoga. Yoga is not just physical though, many people fall in love with the combination of physical activity and mental exercises that produce a sense of calm in their lives.
In fact, many people begin their yoga journey with weight loss goals in mind and are able to not only lose weight but keep it off.
Fat loss works in 2 traditional methods; reducing caloric intake, and by burning calories with physical exercise by bringing the heart into the “fat-burning zone.”
Through a yoga class, you can raise your heart rate high enough to enter the fat-burning zone which can result in shedding pounds.
Many yogis attend a class once to a few times a week which is sufficient for both maintaining and losing weight.
How Do You Lose Weight With Yoga?
The best way to achieve weight loss with your yoga practice is to combine healthy, conscious eating with a rigorous yoga practice schedule.
You can begin by practicing 1 hour of yoga at least once a week. This meets the USDA’s guidelines of getting 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity a week for optimal health.
Additionally, just 30 minutes of physical exercise per day has been shown to promote weight loss. There are plenty of online yoga videos that offer a 30-minute class, free of charge!
To boost weight loss, increase the amount of yoga exercise you do weekly. Complementing yoga with other exercises like walking, jogging, or strength training may take you closer to your weight loss goal.
Try out different classes.
How Much Weight Can You Lose By Doing Yoga?
Yoga can be a tool to reach your weight loss goals. With any weight loss plan, success depends on a variety of factors.
If you reduce your calorie intake by 500 per day, as well as burn an additional 500 calories through exercise, you can expect to lose about 2 lbs per week.
This is considered a safe and typical amount of weight to lose in one week when combining exercise with calorie restriction.
Although physical exercise can help achieve weight loss, the best way to lose weight is to eat healthily and reduce daily calorie intake.
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What Yoga Is Best For Weight Loss?
Since losing weight is dependent on reducing calorie intake, the more calories you burn equals the more weight you could potentially lose.
Each type of yoga offers a different level of exertion and finding the right type for your experience level and body type is key.
The best kind of yoga for fat burn is Power or Vinyasa Yoga. In one class you could burn upwards of 800 calories. It’s so efficient at burning calories because the heart rate stays elevated for almost the entire class, which is usually 75-90 minutes long.
Keep in mind this class should only be attempted by people who are in general good health and get the go-ahead from their doctors to practice vigorous cardio exercise.
Here is a breakdown of how many calories 60 minutes of each type of yoga burns:
(Estimates based on a 150lb female)
Bikram Yoga / Hot Yoga – 330 calories
Gentle Yoga – 189 calories
Vinyasa Yoga /Power Yoga – 594 calories
Yin Yoga – 100 calories
Restorative Yoga – 100 calories
Check out this cool calculator and enter your exact weight to see how many calories you can burn in each type of class.
Other Ways Yoga Can Help You Lose Weight
Practicing yoga helps build a healthy lifestyle and positive mindset. This can help people keep the pounds off and keep losing weight even off the mat.
Better Sleep
Yoga has been proven to improve sleep. It can help keep you fall asleep faster and sleep longer, deeper, and experience fewer wakings.
Having good sleep health has also been proven to help us lose and keep weight off. When we have poor sleep habits our metabolism doesn’t operate as efficiently.
If you want to lose weight, you must get good sleep, and a yoga practice can help you achieve that.
Better Mental Health
Having a better mindset is key to achieving goals like losing weight. Yoga can reduce symptoms like anxiety and depression.
Many people tend to gain weight when they are unhappy, so bringing positivity and joy into your life will help with losing weight.
Improved Confidence and Self-Worth
Yoga has been proven to increase one’s sense of self–worth, which can lead to a better self-image and more confidence.
This can help people who are struggling with their weight or body image by giving them more confidence to achieve their goals and accept who they are.
Reduced Pain That May Lead to Comfort Eating
Studies have shown that a regular yoga practice can actually alter the structure of the brain, increasing grey and white matter which may reduce our overall sensation of pain.
Less pain may equal a more sustained and healthy lifestyle and eliminate bad habits like binge or comfort eating to soothe pain.
Motivation From Peers
Yoga usually is a group activity and when you regularly visit a yoga studio, you become part of an awesome community of great people (yogis!)
Being around other healthy and active people is probably one of the most powerful ways one can achieve their health-related goals.
How Much Yoga To Lose Weight?
Like any other exercise, the key to losing weight with yoga is to stay consistent. Weight loss happens by expending more calories than you intake.
Depending on the type of yoga, a daily calorie deficit can be achieved with a 30-minute to 1-hour yoga class.
Some people are also able to lose weight by eating healthy and doing only one to two yoga classes per week. Regardless, of how much yoga you do, you should start focusing not only on physical exercise but nutrition.
*This blog post is purely informational and is not intended to provide advice that should otherwise be given by a medical professional. All bodies are different and before starting any new activity or diet, check in with your medical practitioner.
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