Why Can Yoga Support Weight Loss?
Yoga has long been known as an exercise method that helps increase flexibility, reduce stress and improve mental health. However, many people do not know that yoga is also an effective support tool for weight loss. Although yoga doesn’t burn as many calories as cardio or HIIT workouts, it helps build muscle, boost metabolism, improve focus, and create healthier eating habits.
Practicing yoga regularly helps balance the body, reduce stress and regulate eating psychology, thereby helping you control your weight better. In addition, yoga also helps increase endurance and flexibility, supporting the process of burning excess fat in a natural and sustainable way.
1. Choose the Right Type of Yoga for Weight Loss
There are many different types of yoga, but not all are suitable for weight loss goals. Some types of yoga are relaxing and focus on breathing, while others help strengthen muscles and burn calories. Here are some types of yoga best suited to support weight loss:
- Power Yoga: This type of yoga combines strong and continuous movements, helping to strengthen muscles and burn energy.
- Vinyasa Yoga: Vinyasa focuses on the connection between breath and movement, helping the body move continuously, thereby increasing flexibility and burning calories.
- Ashtanga Yoga: This is a high-intensity form of yoga with fixed sequences of movements, helping the body endure and promoting the process of burning energy.
- Hot Yoga: Performed in a high-temperature room, hot yoga helps you sweat more and eliminate toxins through your skin, while speeding up your metabolism.
You can choose one of the above types of yoga or combine several types to create variety and achieve better results in the weight loss process.
2. Effective Yoga Poses for Weight Loss
One of the benefits of yoga is its ability to affect many different muscle groups, helping the body tone and burn excess fat. Here are some effective yoga poses that help support weight loss:
2.1. Warrior Pose
Warrior pose helps strengthen your legs, arms, and core. This movement requires balance and concentration, which in turn helps burn calories and improve endurance.
How to do it: Stand straight, step left leg back, bend right knee into a 90 degree angle. Raise both arms above your head, eyes looking forward. Hold this position for 30 seconds to 1 minute, then switch legs.
2.2. Boat Pose
Boat pose is a great exercise that helps strengthen the abdominal muscles, helps firm the core and aids in burning belly fat.
How to do it: Sit on the floor, legs straight. Lift both legs off the floor and balance on your tailbone, arms extended straight forward. Hold this position for 30 seconds to 1 minute, focusing on breathing evenly.
2.3. Plank Pose
Plank is a basic yoga pose but very effective in toning the entire body, especially the abdominal muscles, back muscles and shoulder muscles.
How to do it: Lie face down on the floor, lift your body up with your forearms and toes touching the floor, keeping your back straight. Hold this position for 1 minute, focusing on tightening your abdominal muscles and maintaining even breathing.
2.4. Downward-Facing Dog
Downward Facing Dog pose helps strengthen the upper body and stretches the muscles of the back, legs, and arms. This is a pose that helps improve flexibility and endurance.
How to do it: Start in a crawling position with your hands and knees touching the floor. Push your hips up, straighten your arms and legs, forming an inverted V shape. Hold the pose for 1 minute, maintaining deep breathing.
3. Yoga combined with a healthy diet
Yoga is not only a workout for the body but also helps you control your mind and eating habits. After practicing yoga, you will tend to feel more comfortable, making it easier to adjust your diet to suit your weight loss goals. Here are some healthy eating principles when practicing yoga to lose weight:
- Eat a balanced diet: Increase your consumption of green vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and protein from lean meat or tofu.
- Drink enough water: Make sure to drink enough water throughout the day, especially before and after yoga to keep your body hydrated.
- Avoid foods high in sugar and fat: Limit consumption of foods high in sugar, saturated fat and processed foods.
- Snack before training: If you feel hungry before your workout, snack on some nutritious foods like bananas, nuts, or yogurt.
Combining regular yoga practice with a healthy diet not only helps lose weight but also improves overall health and enhances quality of life.
4. Maintain a Daily Yoga Schedule to Lose Weight
To achieve weight loss results through yoga, you need to maintain a regular exercise schedule. Depending on your condition and goals, you can set up an exercise schedule of 3-5 sessions per week, each session lasting 30-60 minutes. In addition, take time to rest and restore your body, avoid overtraining.
Below are suggested yoga schedules for the week to support the weight loss process:
- Monday: Vinyasa Yoga – 45 minutes
- Tuesday: Power Yoga – 60 minutes
- Wednesday: Hot Yoga – 30 minutes
- Thursday: Restorative Yoga – 45 minutes (restorative yoga)
- Friday: Ashtanga Yoga – 60 minutes
- Saturday: Light yoga and stretching – 30 minutes
- Sunday: Rest
Make sure you practice yoga regularly and focus on breathing deeply and correctly in each movement. This will help you achieve better results and support safe and sustainable weight loss.
Yoga is an Effective Weight Loss Support Tool
Practicing yoga not only helps increase flexibility and improve mental health, but is also an effective weight loss aid. By choosing the right type of yoga, practicing calorie-burning poses and combining it with a healthy diet, you will clearly see positive changes in your body.
Maintain a regular and persistent exercise schedule to achieve your weight loss goals. Yoga not only brings flexibility and firmness but also helps you create a healthy, balanced and relaxed lifestyle.
