Yes, You Can Lose Weight Doing Yoga: Yoga for Weight Loss

A consistent yoga practice provides many benefits - better sleep, stress reduction, more flexibility, and pain relief. But weight loss? Yes, doing yoga helps you lose weight!

Despite the fact that yoga is low impact, easy on joints, and doable by anyone at any fitness level, practicing yoga strengthens, tones, and will even make you sweat! If you’re doing the right kind of yoga, that is.

Yoga helps people lose weight in many different ways. Depending on how quickly you want to improve your fitness, you may lose weight more quickly than you think!

Here at MyYogaTeacher, our yoga instructors are committed to helping their students achieve their goals, no matter what they may be. They are truly compassionate, caring, and believe in holistic whole body health and wellbeing. If you’re looking for a yoga community that’s tight knit, MyYogaTeacher is the place to be!

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• Radiance! More energy, peace of mind, and better health & fitness

• 42+ daily group yoga classes, 100% live!

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So let’s talk about yoga for weight loss.

The best types of yoga for weight loss

If you’re accustomed to yoga being restorative, calm, and focused almost solely on stretching and lengthening, then you’re probably participating in a yoga practice that won’t help you lose weight.

There are plenty of others that will though!

Vinyasa yoga

A vinyasa is a smooth and seamless transition between poses. Vinyasa yoga includes stringing a series of yoga poses together smoothly with your breath. Your breath is connected to the movements. It is generally fast-paced, and you’ll stay in a constant state of movement.

With less time spent in stationary poses, you’ll quickly build up some heat and even sweat. As the yoga practice progresses, you may find it increasingly difficult to match your breath to your movement. Keep trying though! This is why yoga is called a “practice.”

Depending on your size, weight, and the effort you put in, a one hour vinyasa yoga session can help you burn anywhere from 500-700 calories!

Ashtanga yoga

This modern form of traditional yoga is a dynamic, athletic type of yoga practice. Unlike vinyasa yoga, ashtanga yoga is much more structured and is even more physically demanding. This form of yoga is great for weight loss for that reason! 

One important note about ashtanga yoga is that it consists of a series of levels. Beginners start with the Primary Series and progress after they’ve mastered and memorized it. 

Yep, we said “memorized.” 

Ashtanga yoga is made up of a set of postures that remain the same each time you practice. Vinyasa yoga poses may change from practice to practice. Once again, you can count on burning some major calories during an ashtanga yoga class, anywhere from 400-600.

Power yoga

Power yoga is usually a combination of several styles of yoga, including vinyasa and ashtanga yoga. If you’re looking for yoga for weight loss that changes from class to class and is challenging, power yoga is for you!

This form of yoga also promotes better endurance, improves heart function, and builds strength in ways that other forms of yoga may not. This is because your body is not only always moving, but it’s moving in different ways and different directions each time you practice. So your body doesn’t have time to adjust and plateau like it might with other forms of yoga.

Power yoga is also great for athletes who are searching for the next challenge!

Other ways yoga helps with weight loss

If you have read any of our other articles, you’ll know that we believe yoga is so much more than a physical activity. Yoga is about mental, emotional, and physical health. It’s about bringing harmony to your inner and outer self.

Yoga prevents emotional eating

Food, especially certain types of foods, causes your brain to release serotonin, a feel good chemical. That is why when we’re sad, stressed, anxious, moody, or generally having a bad day, we often turn to food for comfort.

That doesn’t mean our body needs food at that time though! 

A regular yoga practice also causes your body to release feel-good chemicals. And not just serotonin. Endorphins, dopamine, and oxytocin are also released. You are less likely to emotionally eat when you’re already feeling good (or better) after a yoga practice or from using yoga breathing techniques.

Yoga creates self-awareness

Mindless eating is also another reason people gain weight. Snacking during a movie, drinking a soda while you drive, eating when you’re tired or dehydrated. All of these are forms of mindless eating.

A regular yoga practice helps you lose weight because you become more conscious of your body’s needs, more aware of your mental and emotional state. And yoga gives you tools to to replace or eliminate mindless eating. 

Not only that, but you will find that you practice mindful eating more often!

Whether you’re wanting to lose weight for your health, more confidence, just to feel better, or all three, yoga is great for weight loss! 

MyYogaTeacher offers classes specifically for weight loss. And 1-on-1 classes will provide you with a yoga teacher who’s invested in you. Our yoga teachers create plans relating to nutrition, fitness, and whole body wellness for their students! Their goal is to help you reach yours!

Not a MyYogaTeacher member? Whether you’re interested in teaching yoga, starting yoga, or growing in your yoga journey, MyYogaTeacher is a great place to do it!

When you sign up for a 1:1 membership with us you get:

• 102 expert, highly qualified yoga instructors to choose from

• The ability to switch instructors or take classes with only your faves

• Access to unlimited group classes, taught live

• Personalized instruction and work out, diet, and lifestyle plans

• To be a member of a HUGE community of happy yogis from around the world

• Yoga teachers who become friends, who truly care about you!

If you haven’t checked us out already,grab two free 1:1 sessions with your 2-week free trial here