Yoga and weight loss?

[yahoo205]

why do some people seem to lose weight with this, while others not as much? I just can't do a daily yoga practice (which makes me feel great) and have time for much else. unfortunately, my job is extremely sedentary and involves long hours.
i am currently doing bikram3-5x/week and am thinking about branching out into other yoga practices.
any opinions/advice? thanks.

[cathgpo]

I think for many people, myself included, yoga does not include enough cardio to burn calories to assist weight loss. One option would be to alternate your yoga days with cardio (maybe walking, a dance workout, or kickboxing). If you really want to have some yoga each day - maybe add a quick ten-minute yoga to the end of your other workouts. There's a workout called 10 Minute Solution yoga, and you can pick and choose from amongst 5 different quick yoga practices.

Good luck finding what works for you!

[KathAL79]

IMO, there are too many variables to make blanket statements about yoga's relationship to weight loss or not. So much depends upon, say, what kind of yoga you do / what your focus in your yoga practice is, how often / long you practice yoga, what other activities you do, what your general lifestyle is like, what your body responds to, what you eat, how you sleep, what your overall health is and whether or not you have any issues, etc.

That said, yoga practice can lead you to learn a lot about your body and yourself. For some people, this self awareness aids them in making healthy lifestyle choices off of the mat. Or it might give them the insight into habits or issues or perhaps the confidence to make positive changes. For others this means accepting their body as it is and realizing weight loss isn't what they should be focusing on at that moment.

[SimplyGlowing]

I am one of those people who lost weight with yoga only . There is much more to it however. Yoga over time helped me to eat a lot healthier and less then usual. It saves me during severe "PMS times" ( I swear by gentle yoga for bloating and water retention ) . It helped me to really connect with what my body craves and needs on a deeper level. So my point is yoga for me is more than exercise routine . Every now and then I get tired of it and do something else for a change. But nothing ever kept my body slim, firm and fit like yoga does.

[Lauren]

SimplyGlowing~

Not to hijack this thread Would you possibly share what your yoga practice consisted of, i.e., type of, number of days to practice, etc?

My desire for the last few years, has been to just walk and do yoga. (It has always felt good, when I tried it for a few days in a row Yet, fear of weight gain/muscle loss from neglecting strength training.. always stops me.

Thanks

[Demeris]

I've been debating whether or not to post, and I finally decided to give it a go on this thread.

Two years ago I stripped off several dress sizes. I went from a size 18 to a size 8 in nine months. The real reason I lost the weight was cleaning up my eating, BUT I attribute to my kundalini yoga practice my ultimate success.

It wasn't the calories burned or even the breath of fire (which Ravi claims is more aerobic than aerobics). I believe, although I cannot verify it scientifically, that KY worked on my energy systems (meridians, chakras, aura, radiant circuits--all the different energy systems identified by Donna Eden among others) to create emotional balance as well as rehabilitating my energy systems and strengthening them.

Although KY is no longer a daily part of my exercise routine, when I do add in a day or two, not only can I feel a strong difference in my energies, people around me respond to me differently.

[DebP.]

Okay, going out on a limb here too...

After yrs. of doing the greats -- old FIrms, Cathe, Christi and more, I needed to change my workout routine. I had done yoga years ago and took it up again. While I loved Shiva Rea, Rodney and others, I did not feel I was maintaining my ideal wt or getting the cardio training I needed.

Then I began kundalini with Ana and Ravi. I cannot explain why, but my cardio strength, endurance and fat-burning seems to be very much on track again. I have worn my heart monitor during their workouts and I do go up and down quite a bit -- almost like interval training?? I still do the occasional firm or WHFN, but I am mostly enjoying Ana and Ravi and maintaining my ideal wt....

sooooo.....I am wondering about how and why it seems to be working???

[tigerbaby]

Since the door's been open, I too had some bewildering success with Kundalini yoga last year. I was doing kickboxing, Squeeze, some yoga and ab work. My focus was on losing in the lower body. I did this for months and lost minimal weight and inches but was happy with my results anyway. I then added in some Ana and Ravi several months into my rotation and that's when the inches starting falling off to the point where people I worked with were asking me what I was doing. My lung capacity was much improved, I felt balanced and the best part was, my sugar addiction was falling away and my appetite was suppressed. While I have no science myself to back it up, I attribute Kundalini yoga to this and believe in the claims behind it.

[yahoo205]

do you guys just do kundalini or also other yoga? if so, what is your routine like? thanks.
i'm watching the gurmukh one now for the first time and think it looks a little nutty.

[SimplyGlowing]

Lauren,
I used to do yoga about 5-6 days a week ( now it's more like 4-5 cause I mix other things in just for fun ) Not always videos I used to go to local studio where we did hatha yoga, but when I practised home I would use a power yoga videos. So it was a good even mix of more "sweaty" yoga and more relaxing at the studio. I LOVE power yoga , but not always up for it so to speak. I mix kundalini now and then mostly Ravi Ana. I think yoga and walking simply created for each other So I would give it a go if I were you. I have very very active job and do tons of walking every day. So I didn't add anything in my routine. As far as videos that I use ...still my faves are Eoin Finn ( anything , but most of all PYFH and Pure&Simple ) and Kristin Mcgee power yoga ( not the MTV one ) I like yogilates and free videos of Sadie Nardini ( I find them on youtube ) . Reading all these posts made me try more Kundalini now , so we'll see.
HTH