Effective Yoga For Weight Loss

What Is Weight Loss

Weight loss is when your body gets rid of excess body fat. In some conditions, it can also have a negative impact, especially if weight loss occurs due to a medical issue. Other than that, people use a low-carb diet, exercise and yoga for weight loss. People also try other ways such as cardio exercises, dance workout or other exercise to reduce belly fat. It also involves avoiding certain food and beverages that can impact the high calorie intake.

Does Yoga Help Tone The Body

While there are a variety of types of yoga, all forms include moving through a number of poses . Over time, these help to increase flexibility and strength as the body adapts to holding these poses for longer.

One trial in the Complementary Therapies in Medicine journal followed 60 patients that presented with abdominal obesity who were practicing 90 minutes of yoga twice a week for 12 weeks. When compared to the control group, the yoga group showed a significant reduction in their abdominal circumference, as well as an improved waist to hip ratio.

The yoga group also showed reduced body weight and body fat percentage as well as an increase in body muscle mass percentage, showing that yoga does build muscle effectively. Meanwhile, The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health also reported that 63% of adults said yoga motivated them to exercise more regularly.

We already know that if we move more, we burn more calories. However, weight loss and fat loss are not mutually exclusive. Our physical weight can fluctuate quite dramatically from one day to the next due to aspects such as hormones, the amount of sleep weve had, injury and levels of water retention. However, this doesnt equate to body fat loss or gain. In order to specifically achieve fat loss, Harvard Health Publishing states that we must eat fewer calories than we burn to be in a calorie deficit.

Yoga Poses For Shoulders And Upper Back

These yoga poses of weight loss are great to lend definition to your shoulders and upper back. Try these three poses to get rid of your back bulge and also strengthen your hands and shoulders.

• The Standing Big Toe Pose

The standing big toe pose has a number of benefits, ranging from giving a deep stretch to the hips, hamstrings and the groin and calves. It also improves your digestion process, provides ample relief to back pain and is particularly effective in alleviating pain as a result of sciatica pain.

Stand straight, keeping both feet together in mountain Pose. Transfer your weight onto your left leg and raise your right leg into the air. Hold onto your right big toe with the thumb of your right hand. Bring your left hand closer to your hip.

Keep the standing leg straight and try to straighten your right leg, keeping the upper portion of your body upright. Stay at this position, or if this seems fairly easy, try and fold your torso forward over your extended leg.

Hold to the count of five deep breaths and then switch on to the other side.

• Cow Pose

The asana is effective to drive away all the stress you feel from the niggling pain issues you get from menstrual cramps, lower back pain, and sciatica. The cat pose followed by the Cow Pose provides great flexibility to the neck, shoulders, and spine. The movement helps stretch the muscles of the back, hips, abdomen, chest, and lungs.

Repeat for at least 10 rounds, or until you feel your spine is warmed up.

• Cobra pose

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Why Should We Keep The Weight In Control

Before we discuss the weight loss methods, let us know why it is very important to lose weight

Some Facts and Figures about being overweight.

• More than 135 million individuals were concerned about Obesity in India.

• The predominance of obesity in India is varying from rural to urban and state wise.

• People dwelling in urban locations and States with high socioeconomic status were found to be having higher obesity prevalence.

Obesity might result in health complications such as hypertension, Type 2 Diabetes, Coronary heart disease, Degenerative joint disease.

A Short History Of Yoga As Exercise

What we think of today as yoga was first codified in the Yoga Sutras, a collection of aphorisms, sometime between 500 B.C. and 400 A.D. in India. Its in these collections where yoga is first defined as a spiritual practice. Yogas goal was to free oneself from active thought and distractions, to become conscious of nothing but the divine and ones consciousness .

How did we get from there to doing downward dogs at a suburban strip mall wellness center? Its a long route. We wont get into all of it.

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The asanas started in earnest with a style called Hatha yoga. This style fell in and out of favor over the centuries. In the late 1800s, physical fitness movements were sweeping Europe and spread to India. Nationalist fitness regimens developed, incorporating Hatha yoga asanas with strength training and other physical activities .

The modern Western yoga studio is directly traceable to Shri Yogendra, founder of The Yoga Institute. His first yoga center was popular with the middle-class Bombay bourgeoisie. In 1919 he opened a branch in the United States. He was arguably the first yogi to offer a secularized yoga practice . Some refer to this type of yoga exercise as modern postural yoga to separate it from classical yogas religious tradition.

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Weight Loss In Yoga: Is It Possible

Both the mainstream and social media offer services and techniques of yoga through celebrities and wellness gurus, but the exercise still lacks supporting data regarding its scientific factors and impacts on a person’s health. Yoga workshops are accessible in today’s time compared to the previous decades. But even though the exercise gained a lot of popularity and affirmation from its students, people still choose gym memberships over yoga classes due to the evident effects of the classic cardio-based workouts. Another reason is that gym businesses tend to exhibit their weight-loss program results, a boasting approach about physiological effects of yoga that its instructors do not just pose.

Weight loss is attainable, and many studies analyzed and approved the fact that there are actual routines and even diets that could significantly reduce the excessive mass of the human body. However, only a few are aware that there were already many scientific investigations conducted that support yoga and its impact on weight loss. Harvard Medical School experts led a comprehensive effort to define the weight loss effect and other health advantages of yoga.

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/8dhanurasana Or Bow Pose

Step 1: Lie on your stomach with your feet hip-width apart and arms by your side.

Step 2: Bend your knees upwards and take your heel towards your butt.

Step 3: Hold the ankles of both legs with your hands.

Step 4: Inhale and lift your chest and legs off the ground.

Step 5: Keep your face straight, pull your legs as much as you can. Your body should be tight like a bow.

Step 4: Pause for 4-5 breaths, then come to the starting position.

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How Yoga Promotes Weight Loss

Yoga promotes weight loss in different ways. The following are key weight loss benefits of yoga:

• Helps Cultivate Mindfulness:

  Practising yoga develops mindfulness and awareness of the body. This prevents impulsive eating, thereby restricting weight gain. For example, mindful eating helps exercise portion control and staying away from unhealthy foods. Regular yoga practice also calms anxiety leading to behavioural changes to prevent stress eating.

• Speeds Up The Metabolism:

  Hatha and power yoga poses like the Sun salutations and Bhastrika Pranayam help speed up the metabolism, contributing to better digestion. This aids weight loss.

• Burns Calories:

  Sun salutations with intensive breathwork are as effective as aerobic workouts and help accelerate calorie burn. Some active styles of yoga like Ashtanga Yoga, Power Yoga, and Vinyasa Yoga also prevent weight gain.

• Burns Belly Fat:

  Restorative yoga poses help burn harmful abdominal fat by working on the core muscles. Trikonasana and the Cobra pose are great at reducing upper and lower belly fat.

• Promotes Lean Muscle Formation:

  Yoga poses like the Boat pose, Plank pose, Chair pose, and Bow pose work on the glutes, abdomen, and hamstrings, helping you lose fat, strengthen muscles, and promote muscle formation.

• Increases Flexibility:

  If you practise yoga regularly and for a long time, your body will become highly flexible. Yoga also tones your body making you look lean and fit.

Whats The Right Form Of Yoga For Weight Loss

There are many different styles of yoga. You need to choose one of the more intense flowing styles of yoga such as Ashtanga, Vinyasa or Power Yoga if you want to lose weight.

These classes will give you a good workout and burn calories. Unlike some activities, such as running, yoga is unlikely to increase your appetite. It may even curb your appetite. A big plus if your aim is weight loss.

Just remember, the more powerful poses burn the most calories. You have to earn it!

The recommendations for weight loss are at least 150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity exercise per week. Online yoga programs can help you build a regular yoga practice. Easily accessible you can work out from home on a regular basis.

What counts as vigorous exercise? It means you cant say more than a few words without pausing for breathe.

Yes, you can achieve this with yoga. Ive finished yoga for weight loss sessions feeling every part of my body has been worked hard and all I want to do is go for a nap!

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Yoga For Weight Loss: 6 Ways To Get Back In Shape

• Sparshita Saxena, NDTV

For the longest time in my life, I was of the opinion that yoga involves a set of exercises where holding certain postures for a few seconds was the main objective. I used to think of it as a regime meant for those who were already fit but were keen on building their flexibility. I could somehow never relate it to being an effective tool for weight loss as compared to the high intensive workout sessions in the gyms. It took me quite some time to understand the mechanism of different asanas and their efficacy but I must tell you, the understanding of it was enlightening, affirmative and oh, so gratifying!

Yoga for Weight Lossasanas asanas

Can You Really Lose Weight By Doing Yoga

Following a restrictive diet and clocking up endless miles of cardio may be the most popular mantra to lose weight. But it doesnt work for everyone. Often running and hiking can leave you feeling really hungry. Its hard not to overeat and replace all the calories youve just burned through exercise.

My favorite weight loss solution is to head off on a long trekking trip with little access to food but it doesnt mean the weight will stay off! Your body switches to starvation mode and learns how to survive on smaller and smaller portions.

Instead, if youre struggling to lose weight, yoga could be the answer. It can reset your attitude towards food, help you sleep better, and get your body fitter and stronger.

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Surya Namaskar Yoga Poses For Weight Loss

The person who performs Surya Namaskar yoga asana does not need to do any other posture. This is a complete exercise.

That is why it is written at the end of the list here stating the basis of all exercises.

Twelve Steps To Perform Surya Namaskar Yoga Asanas for weight loss:

According to Suryana Namaskar yoga asanas for weight loss First of all, stand straight with both hands folded.

Breathing in, raise both hands to join the prayer posture. Now exhale as soon as you join both hands.

In the second step, keep both your hands straight and move upwards, and bend backward as much as possible.

Make sure that the waist remains balanced. Breathe in while you are in this second phase.

In the third step, while exhaling, bend forward and place your right hand near the right foot with palm land and do it.

And apply the left hand near the left foot with the palm land and tax it. Stand still for a while in this posture.

Now breathing in, the horse should come to the steering posture. Bringing your right foot forward, bend the knees with both hands.

Now, kneel the left leg from the ground and try to lift your head as high as possible. Stay in this posture for a while it is the best way to weight loss.

Now breathe in and come to the Dana Asana posture. That is, move your right leg back.

In Dana Asana, your entire body should be in a flat posture, and the weight of your entire body should be on the toes of hands and feet.

In the sixth step, while exhaling, come to the Ashtanga Asana.

How To Lose Weight Holistically

Weight loss can be accomplished by sticking to a proper diet plan and burning calories through workouts. The person aspiring to reduce weight holistically must work on both aspects to see the optimal results. Read on to know the methods in detail which gives guaranteed results to lose weight.

Before we plan a fitness regime like yoga to burn calories below are some of the requisites mentioned step by step which we must understand and implement first for authentic results.

Now Calculate your BMI to know if you are in any of the following category Overweight, Obese, underweight, and healthy weight

BMI is measured by dividing the weight by height squared.

Let us consider this analogy :

Ram weighs 90 kgs and his height is 1.78 meters then his BMI would be 90/1.78X1.78= 28 which is overweight. Suppose if ram has to hit the BMI of 22 to maintain a healthy weight then his Proportionate weight must be 70 Kgs.

2. Set the Weight reduction target which is Holistic.

BMR calculation Method:

5> Follow daily exercise regime:

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/8virabhadrasana 2 Or Warrior 2

Step 1: Stand on the ground with your feet hip-width apart and your arms by your sides.

Step 2: Exhale and take a large step to your right.

Step 3: Turn your right toes outwards and bend your knees at a 90-degree angle.

Step 4: Turn your left foot inwards at 15 degrees. The heel of your left foot should be aligned to the centre of the right foot.

Step 5: Lift both your arms sideways to bring them to your shoulders level. Your palms should face upwards.

Step 6: Take a few deep breaths in this position, then turn your head to your right and gently push your pelvis down as much as you can.

Step 7: Pause for a few seconds, then come back to the starting position. Repeat the same on the other side.

Diet Tips To Combine With Yoga

Image: ShutterstockOnly doing the yoga asanas wont help you gain weight. You have to have a balanced diet that also aids the increase in weight. A person gaining weight must follow a high-density diet. Eating nutritious food along with these asanas will ensure promising results. It is pivotal to have food rich in proteins and carbohydrates which will ensure healthy fats in the long run. Having chapatis, rice, suji, dals and oats is necessary. Other than that, one must eat nuts, pumpkin seeds, flaxseeds, milk and milk products, soy chunks, tofu, eggs and meat regularly to gain weight. It is crucial to also have fruit and vegetables which will deposit healthy and safe sugars into the body.

Tip: A dietician must be consulted before starting any high-density diets to ensure it suits your body.

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This fast-paced yoga style goes nonstop from start to finish, adding the cardiovascular element you need to really burn calories and lose weight. Vinyasa is a stylistic approach to practicing yoga, meaning it links a series of asanas together by flowing from one to the next very quickly. In the realm of asana practice as an athletic endeavor, the body needs speed and intensity to get results for weight loss,” says Bethany Lyons, founder of Lyons Den Power Yoga in New York City. Expect to walk out of a Vinyasa class feeling like you were just kicking butt at bootcamp.

What’s more, by focusing on the same asanas class after class, Vinyasa allows you to progress in the same way you would when following a multi-week workout program in the gym. With each class, you systematically and progressively build on what you’ve already accomplished, which is the key to any effective workout.