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If you’re trying to lose weight, you’ve probably heard the saying “calories in, calories out.” This formula makes it look simple: just eat less and exercise more. Easy peasy, right?
Well, actually, wrong. Evidence, both anecdotal and scientific, confirms that losing weight is actually much more complex and can be affected by numerous mental, physical, and lifestyle factors. So, if weight loss is your goal, yoga can absolutely help you get there.
Can Yoga Help with Weight Loss?
Including yoga in your routine can help you lose weight, but it’s not because yoga is the most efficient way to burn calories and build muscle- it’s not. (You’re going to want to include some cardio and strength training for that.)
Yoga’s role is in the mind-body connection realm, which plays just as important a part in your results.
Yoga:
Reduces stress, lifts your mood, counters anxiety, and improves sleep.
When you don’t feel your best mentally, everything is harder, including sticking with your weight-loss plans.
Encourages a growth mindset and a positive feedback loop.
Yoga teaches you that you can do hard things. When you practice consistently, you improve exponentially.
Improves body awareness and positivity
Yoga’s emphasis on alignment strengthens the mind-body connection, helping you feel more in tune with what your body wants. When you accomplish something in yoga, you learn to appreciate your body and what it can do.
Teaches mindfulness
Every yoga session is an opportunity to tune in to what your body is telling you, which helps you on and off the yoga mat.
Offers a supportive community
Community plays a huge role in your mental health and helps you reach your goals.
In fact, yoga can contribute to any change you’d like to make in your life, related to your weight or otherwise.
The Best Yoga Styles for Weight Loss
Although yoga is not considered aerobic exercise, some types are more active and intense, which can contribute to your physical fitness and strength.
These include:
Movement from one pose to another creates a continuous flow, which improves strength and mobility.
Ashtanga Yoga
A vigorous series of poses is practiced in a specific sequence. The cadence and inclusion of many Vinyasas make this style physically challenging.
Power Yoga
Applies the rigor of Ashtanga to a more open selection of poses. Can also include calisthenics and even weights, depending on the teacher.
Heating the yoga room to 90+ degrees Fahrenheit (32°C) encourages sweating and makes any yoga more strenuous.
Yoga Poses That Support Weight Loss
Challenging yoga poses help build strength and muscle. For the best results, incorporate these postures into a well-rounded yoga routine and be consistent.
Featured Yoga Mat: Cosmic Moon in Dusk Blue
Plank Pose (Phalakasana)
Sanskrit Meaning: Phalaka (Plank) Asana (Pose)
Pose Type: Arm Support
Why This Pose: Strengthens your arms and core
More to Explore: Yoga Poses for Core Strength
Step-by-Step Instructions:
1. Begin on your hands and knees with your shoulders over your wrists.
2. Extend your legs to the back of your mat, coming onto the balls of your feet.
3. Press into your palms to lift your shoulders.
4. Maintain a straight line from crown to heels.
5. Hold for up to one minute.
Featured Yoga Mat: Mindful Garden in Purple
Four-Limbed Staff Pose (Chaturanga Dandasana)
Sanskrit Meaning: Chatur (Four) Anga (Limb) Danda (Staff) Asana (Pose)
Pose Type: Arm Support
Why This Pose: Yoga’s version of a push-up
More to Explore: Yoga Poses for Strength
Step-by-Step Instructions:
1. Begin in Plank Pose.
2. Shift your body forward by coming onto your toes and moving your shoulders in front of your wrists.
3. Bend your elbows straight back, hugging your ribs, to lower.
4. Stop when your upper arms are parallel to the floor.
5. Press back up to a Plank.
6. Repeat five to ten times, lowering your knees to the floor if necessary.
Featured Yoga Mat: Liforme Classic Yoga Mat in Pink
Boat Pose (Navasana)
Sanskrit Meaning: Nava (Boat) Asana (Pose)
Pose Type: Seated
Why This Pose: Builds abdominal strength
More to Explore: Yoga Poses for Core Strength
Step-by-Step Instructions:
1. Begin seated on your mat with your knees bent and soles on the floor.
2. Lean your upper body back slightly and lift your feet off the floor.
3. Bring your shins to parallel with the floor.
4. Extend your arms parallel to the floor.
5. Keep drawing your thighs and abdomen together.
6. Extend your legs straight only if it doesn’t cause your upper body to lower.
7. Hold for three or more breaths.
Featured Yoga Mat: Lifome Classic Yoga Mat in Olive
Chair Pose (Utkatasana)
Sanskrit Meaning: Utkata (Powerful) Asana (Pose)
Pose Type: Standing
Why This Pose: Strengthens your legs and glutes
More to Explore: Yoga Poses for Leg Strength
Step-by-Step Instructions:
1. Stand in Mountain Pose at the front of your mat.
2. Lift your arms overhead.
3. Bend your knees to lower your seat.
4. Stop when you feel your thighs working.
5. Stay for five to ten breaths.
Featured Yoga Mat: Liforme Classic Yoga Mat in Golden Sand
Warrior II (Virabhadrasana II)
Sanskrit Meaning: Virabhadra (Hindu Warrior) Asana (Pose)
Pose Type: Standing
Why This Pose: Improves balance and leg strength
More to Explore: Warrior Flow
Step-by-Step Instructions:
1. Stand on your mat facing the long side with your feet wide apart and parallel.
2. Turn your right foot, pointing your toes to the front of your mat.
3. Bend your right knee over the ankle.
4. Take your arms to shoulder height with your right arm forward and your left arm back.
5. Take your gaze forward.
6. Take five or more deep breaths, then return to the center and repeat on the other side.
The Bigger Picture
Long-term weight loss is most effective when it’s part of an overall shift toward a healthier lifestyle. In addition to looking at your nutrition and exercise habits, this includes things like reducing your stress, getting better sleep, and finding movement practices that you enjoy.
Doing yoga consistently over time contributes to your mental and physical health in so many ways beyond the numbers on a scale; it’s part of a holistic approach to health and happiness.
FAQs About Yoga for Weight Loss
Can yoga help with weight loss?
Yes, yoga can help you lose weight as part of a comprehensive exercise regimen. Although yoga’s low-impact stretching and strengthening are physically beneficial, some of its mental effects, like stress reduction and body-mind connection, are even more impactful.
Which style of yoga is best for weight loss?
Any style of yoga that you enjoy helps you establish healthy habits and get moving. More vigorous styles like Vinyasa and Power Yoga can play a bigger role in your physical fitness.
Is yoga alone enough for weight loss?
Losing weight is the result of a combination of factors, including what you eat and drink, what kinds of movement you do, stress, and sleep. Adding yoga without other lifestyle changes will likely not result in weight loss. However, yoga can play a significant role in losing weight as part of a comprehensive strategy.
How often should I do yoga to support weight loss?
Try to do yoga two or three times a week. The consistency of your practice is more important than its duration.
Can yoga help reduce stress-related weight gain?
Yoga helps reduce stress, which in turn reduces weight gain associated with stress. The key is to get out ahead of stress by doing yoga regularly as a preventative rather than a treatment.
Is yoga suitable for beginners looking to lose weight?
Yoga beginners can definitely do yoga to support their weight-loss goals.
