In addition to helping you achieve a sense of well-being and flexibility, yoga does help one maintain a perfect body figure and shape as well. With many people struggling to lose weight, yoga might be just the solution they need. The only principle behind weight loss is, lose more calories than you take. Some of the best ways to achieve this include serious strength training, following a strict diet plan, and taking on other forms of exercise such as weight training, swimming, biking, and jogging among others.
Some of these approaches aren’t possible especially for individuals with physical injuries, seniors, and those with certain medical conditions. Yoga is however applicable for all hence the most preferred option.
Facts About Yoga and Weight Loss
As simple as it may seem, yoga helps the body lose weight through many ways. First, simple yoga helps you burn at least six calories per minute. This translates to 360 calories on the hour. In addition to this, yoga can trigger increased respiration of fats around muscles among other critical areas. This again leads to more calories and fat breakdown. For visible weight loss to occur, your body needs to burn at least 3,500 calories every day. Although this may seem like too much for yoga, it isn’t. Outlined below is a brief explanation of how yoga helps with weight loss.
- Yoga involves connecting with your inner self and tapping into the energy within. This can be achieved through controlled breathing and concentration, particularly while you meditate. Meditation helps the body release excess energy to allow cells to communicate with each other well. By doing this, your mind gets to reconnect with your soul, which almost always helps one avoid binge eating and other unhealthy habits that lead to weight gain.
- Yoga helps boost various processes in the body for physical fitness. This includes improved metabolism, muscle mass, flexibility, and hormonal balance. Flexibility here plays a huge role in ensuring you are physically fit. It is through improved flexibility that your body can experience improved blood flow and energy.
- Thanks to yoga, you can have more control over your body. The fact that you can feel the energy flow through your body promotes self-awareness. This forces you to start taking proper care of your body, and in particular through exercise and eating well-balanced meals. This eliminates the urge to dig in unhealthy burgers or fast foods for that matter. Many of the individuals that take yoga seriously choose organic over junk foods.
- Some aspect of yoga involves stretching as you exercise. The slow but steady stretching exercises enable one to be more flexible with time (this includes seniors). The improved flexibility not only makes your muscles stronger and firmer but also increases confidence in the ultimate goal. Studies on the effects of yoga also reveal that it does help boost your sex drive and performance as well. Regular, satisfying sex means happy hormones are released into the system, thus reduced stress.
- Yoga improves self-awareness. This means you will be mindful of the foods you eat and also strive to ensure your body only gets the best.
- You don’t have to spend a fortune to enjoy the benefits of fat burning yoga. With a good guide (from a DVD), a small mat, and the smallest space you can find, you can take the first step to losing weight painlessly. The other good thing about yoga is you get to make your schedule for the same. This is unlike signing up for the gym where you’d be required to show up at specific times.
- Yoga, including fat burning yoga, is gentle on your back, muscles, and the entire body. Unlike other tiring forms of exercise, you can do yoga for up to 3 hours without sweating a bucket.
- The increased metabolism, self-awareness, and flexibility also promote improved muscle mass and hormone balance naturally. Sustaining this is relatively easy considering you don’t need a special diet regimen or strenuous exercises to keep fit. All you need to succeed is some patient, drive, and discipline.
- The one driving force, and factor that makes yoga effective for weight loss is the ability to give one control over his life and body. As long as you feel in control and have an inner connection, most stressing factors won’t affect you. This is because your body is filled with positivity and drive to succeed. Any negative energies are channeled towards achieving what’s beneficial to the body. Despite your busy schedules and urgent meetings, you will always find time to connect with your inner-self.
If you have ever tried yoga classes and gyms to no avail, then chances are you weren’t doing it right. The fixed schedules, training programs, and levels can not only be confusing but limiting at the same time. A tailor-made yoga session just for you is all you need to get back on your feet. You may, however, need to find someone practicing yoga to help you get started. You could also find an online instructor or a yoga DVD to get started with. You should start seeing visible changes in your body and how you handle yourself in just under three months.
About The Author:
Elizabeth Rendon is a 37-year-old wellness blogger for many different sites. While she lives in Sydney, Australia, she grew up in Florida. When she is not writing, she enjoys listening to country music and hiking with her dogs.
