Exercise has made it to the good books of people for all the right reasons. The advantages of exercising are myriad! From taking care of your body shape to boosting your overall health, physical workout has something for everyone. While most people take to exercise when they are looking forward to lose some weight, there are a lot many people who focus on workout so as to better their health.

While exercise is a sure shot solution for weight problems, in certain cases when the weight is related to stress or some hormonal problem physical workout fails to deliver the desired result. Another limitation of exercise is the weight and the BMI of the person.

An overweight person with a low bone density cannot exercise as much as a person who weighs less. Irony has it that those who need to benefit the most from exercise end up benefiting the least from it. Nonetheless, every fitness expert must teach that it’s not the intensity but the consistency that people should rely on when it comes to exercise.

Another complaint that a number of people have against exercise for weight loss is the lack of time they get for it. It is in fact evident from this statement that this is not a complaint against exercise, but against their own lack of discipline. Being focused on your goal is extremely important if you are serious about shedding kilos. Consistency is as important as discipline. Well, now that you have cultivated discipline in your routine, you probably need some amount of motivation as well. Keep a Tee-shirt that you want to fit it and try wearing it daily. Remind yourself that you have to challenge yourself to be able to wear it. This is one of the best ways of boosting your moral. Or, you could also write the words ‘LOSE WEIGHT NOW’ in front of your mirror and on the refrigerator.

Cardios are highly recommended for those who are looking forward to gain some vigor apart from losing weight. If you too are exercising for weight and inch loss, this article can be of great help. But first, let’s discuss some of the common reasons why people put on weight.

1. Sedentary Lifestyle: People who move around throughout the day are leaner than those who keep sitting all day long. One of the major culprits of weight gain is a sedentary lifestyle.
2. Stress: If you are one of those people who pile up kilos but are not careless about your diet and workout, probably stress is causing your weight gain. This kind of weight loss can be reduced to some extent by meditation.
3. Overeating: This is one of the main reasons why a number of people end up gaining a lot of belly fat. So, cutting down on excessive food intake and the extra calories, should be something that you should stop almost immediately.
4. Heredity: Another cause that you can’t ignore when it comes to weight problems is hereditary causes. In case you find it difficult to lose weight, it might be because your blood group is averse to weight loss. However, don’t blame it all on the genes. 

EXERCISING FOR WEIGHT LOSS

May be you have to lose excessive fat from your thighs or upper arms while all you need to do for your stomach is to tone it up. If you don’t have the time to join a gym, listed are a few exercises that can help you with weight loss:

1. Ab Crunches: You need a mat for this one as you have to do this exercise on the floor. Lay down flat on the floor and put your hands under your head in a way that the elbows are parallel to each other. Now gently bring your head towards your stomach. Your feet should be firmly on the ground and knees folded in the air.
2. Squats: The perfect exercise for the butt and the thighs, squats can help you lose 50 calories in 15 minutes. Depending on the intensity of squats, you will need to increase or decrease the number.
3. Weight Lifts: A note here – the exercises that you do with weights need to be done very carefully. If you are doing lifts for the biceps, you should be careful about not mixing the exercises with those that are done for building triceps.
4. Yoga: Extremely popular amongst people of all ages, yoga asanas hold the power to cure a lot many physical ailments as well as weight issues. The best thing, you can learn yoga all by yourself just by reading a few books and watching a few video tutorials.

Everyone can benefit from exercising in some way or the other. It is important, however, to be able to reap the most out of your exercise regime that you consult a fitness expert who is able to chart out a weight loss exercise program and a good schedule for you.

Yoga has been one of the most effective ancient art and science to have benefitted innumerable lives in all times. It was brought out by a great Indian Rishi---Patanjali Maharishi, who laid its framework. This age-old practice has been adopted globally and its results have always been obvious.

 In today’s fast-paced life, people look up to Yoga as something that not only helps them maintain a lean, healthy body but also mind. The inter-link between mind and body have never been denied, a healthy body has a healthy mind and vice-versa. Because of the same reason, the effects of yoga have been far reaching and beyond comprehension at times.

Practicing yoga not only helps people lose but those who seek for gaining weight can also take its refuge as it works to bring the body at an optimal functioning and corrects whatever is not in line with its optimal functioning. 

Yoga has enormous benefits. It does not need any equipment and can be practiced by anyone of any age. It can be practiced in the privacy of your own home on daily basis. It is the best and simplest of option for those who wish to lose weight or stay fit. It has no side effects and its results are long lasting. In this article, let us discuss how yoga helps in weight loss.

Yoga involves enormous minor—major asanas (postures) in standing, sitting and/or lying positions. For convenience, let us segregate them under 3 headings: stretching; bending; and twisting poses and find how yoga for weight loss works.  

Stretching Postures

There are various postures that include stretching of various parts of the body and hence not just provide strength to them but also burn the fat in those portions and tone them.

The top standing postures that help stretching are Tadasana (Mountain Pose), Veerabhadrasana (Warrior Pose), and Garudasana (Eagle Pose). Tadasana not only helps in stretching of overall body but also helps in increasing height. Veerabhadrasana helps stretching of arms and torso. It not only helps keep the back healthy, but helps the stretching of belly, chest, and arms. On the other hand, Garudasana helps in stretching and toning of arms and thighs.

Top sitting postures that help stretching are Gomukhasana (Cow Pose), Singhasana (Lion Pose), and Kaagasana (Pigeon Pose). While Gomukhasana helps in the stretching and toning of shoulder muscles, arms and upper back, Singhasana helps in toning of thigh muscles as well and Kaagasana helps maintaining balance. Singhasana also helps in improving focus and confidence that indirectly affects the person’s overall attitude.

The lying posture is Naukasana (Boat Pose). It helps in stretching the arms, torso, thighs and calf muscles.

Bending Postures

 A number of bending postures are there as well that help in more stretching and toning of various muscles. All bending postures involve stretching, however, for convenience, let us discuss them separately.

Some important bending postures in standing position are side-bend asana,  trikonasana, and padahastasana. The former helps in reducing the fats on the sides of the waist and the latter helps not only in reducing the fat but also in toning and stretching the waist line and thighs. Padahastasana helps in stretching of arms and reducing the fat on the belly.

In the sitting position, some bending posture includes pashchimottanasana. It works wonders in stretching arms, spine and legs and hence helps in their good exercise. This asana also helps greatly in reducing the extra fats of the belly.

The bending postures in lying position are setu-bandh asana (Bridge Pose), Mandukasana (Frog Pose), Dhanurasana (Bow Pose), Pavanmuktasana (Wind-releasing Pose), Halasana and Sarvangasana.  Setu-bandh asana gives an excellent massage to the thighs and lower back. Manduasana and Dhanurasana help greatly in getting rid of extra belly fat quickly. They also improve digestion which further helps in proper regulation of food and hence reduced weight gain. Pavanamuktasana helps in healing of gastritis and proves to be a great asana for saying good bye to belly and thigh fats. Halasana and Sarvangasana help in overall toning of the body and increase the circulation of blood in it. It quickens the metabolism and hence leads to better health as well.

Twisting Postures

Not many asanas include twisting which is another important part of yoga that helps in getting rid of belly fat and improving digestion.

In the standing postures, the most important twisting posture is Kati-chakrasana. This asana makes sure that the waist bends in a way that churns the stomach properly and improves digestion. It keeps the waist flexible and supple and helps removing extra fat.

In the sitting postures, the most important one that involves twisting in Ardhamatsyendrasana. It is another most wonderful asana to increase flexibility of the spine and waist and remove extra fat from belly and thighs.

All these asanas in yoga for weight loss, however, may require guidance from a professional yoga practitioner at least initially. Their effects remain visible within short duration and their success guaranteed. Yoga is the simplest, most effective and natural way to the body in shape and health. 

“Can Yoga help me lose fat?” I asked in a worrying voice to the instructor at the place where I was to enroll for yoga. I was worried because long before my friends suggested to take yoga, I had tried every other doctrine in an attempt to lower my weight and lose fat, alas – all of them in vain! “Yoga can certainly help you lose fat, not only temporarily but permanently” came the prompt reply. Reassured by the instructor, I thought there is nothing to lose really and so I enrolled in yoga for weight loss, still skeptical about the effectiveness of yoga.

Next morning I showed up in my new yoga pants with my yoga mat, and so the journey began. “Relax your muscles” my instructor told me. He explained in detail that human body muscles become stuff due to inactivity and lack of effort by our muscles. This muscle inactivity leads to stress on the joints and cause joint pains. The muscle, joints and the tendon work together to perform an activity. For example the thigh muscle, the knee joint and the tendons connecting the muscle with the bones work in tandem when we walk. If the thigh muscle or Quadriceps femoris as scientifically know becomes weak, then the load falls onto the knee joint causing pain and in extreme cases tendonitis – which is swelling of the tendon due to excessive load.

Yoga for weight loss, be it of any style, engages muscle groups as we perform “asana” which means to assume certain body position. During these positions, specific muscles are targeted and hence increases mobility of the body.“So mobility of muscles is a good thing” I thought, “but what about calories burnt?” After all calories burnt directly relates to weight loss. Calorie is basically unit to measure energy. When we eat food we intake energy. This energy is then spent by the human body when we perform any physical activity such as walking or swimming. Even when we don’t perform any physical activity some energy is spent which is decided by the metabolism of our body. The excessive energy is get deposited and stored as fat that contributes majorly towards weight gain. It is important to focus on weight loss by fat burning.

Yoga burns nearly 175 calories per hour, when compared against other aerobic other aerobic exercises such as running that burns 600 calories per hour, it might appear that yoga is ineffective. However, we should take into account that it is rather difficult to run for an hour at the same speed than it is to do yoga for an hour. Hence doing yoga can sufficiently increase heart rate – required to consume sugar flowing in the blood stream and supplement the sugar supply by breaking down fat, and put strain onto muscles – hence strengthening them.Nearly 21 million people in USA alone, actively participate in yoga. They spend more than $10 billion a year on classes and products (including equipment, clothing, retreats and videos). The majority of yoga practitioners cite general wellness, stress management or weight loss as one of their primary motivations for taking up the practice.

There is a special form of yoga, called the hot yoga or the power yoga that helps in faster burning of calories. This form of yoga is performed in hot and humid climatic conditions. In colder climate the human muscle contracts and does not perform to its capacity. Hot and humid conditions trigger calorie burning heart rate, mobility of muscles by loosening them, and sweating – which is a sign of the body breaking down sugar. This decrease in the sugar level in blood is compensated by breaking down fat stored in the body to replenish the sugar.

The more important benefit of yoga however is spiritual. “Yoga helps you adapt into a new lifestyle where the mind and body work towards wellbeing” explained my instructor.

He added that weight gain can make any person harsh on himself. Self-judgment is a common thing issue one faces. Yoga proves as an effective intervention here. It helps in counteracting by creating a positive and safe environment in order to facilitate reconnection with our bodies and put to rest the counterproductive messages that erupt in our minds. Also, getting engaged in physical activity (read asana practice) helps foster a greater sense of self control that translates into a more disciplined life.

Looking at it from physiological angle, there are certain styles of yoga that would be more appropriate for people specifically seeking weight loss. For instance, there is a Vinyasa-style asana where poses are linked together by breath and movement. This style builds heat that potentially result in burining comparatively more amount of calories. This style of practice can be supplemented with other aerobic exercise that you may be already involved in such as swimming, biking, walking or running.

So after listening to my instructor can I confidently tell him that yoga practice will help me lose weight? Well, yes.

Power yoga is a term we often get to come across with these days. What is it exactly? Is it any different from the traditional yoga? What is its methodology? What are its benefits? We would deal with all these questions in this article at length. 

Power yoga is a modern way of yoga that is modeled on the traditional framework of Hatha Yoga of the East. It includes vigorous movements and is most focused on fitness. Power yoga for weight loss involves much more workout than that involved in traditional yoga. It is primarily based on Hatha Yoga, however, its movements and poses may widely vary from the former. A lot of sweating occurs in the process and calories burn more rapidly than ever. Hence, most of the times people who wish to lose weight as fast as possible usually take it up. The result is a more flexible and leaner body. There are various reasons why power yoga is quite efficient in weight loss.

1. Increases metabolism rate

• Due to increased pace of movements, the extra activity causes the metabolism of the body to pick up pace. This leads to not just the digestive system picking up pace, but also get rid of many other problems related to food indigestion.
• A high metabolism rate determines the extent of acidic content in your stomach which in turn is directly proportional to the speed with which you digest the food you took in your system. The faster the rate of metabolism, the lesser the storage of fats in your system will be.

2. Keeps your heart healthy

•  Due to increased rate of movements and their vigor in power yoga, your blood circulation increases considerably. This increases the need of blood in the entire body, to match which the heart pumps more blood to every part of the body. Hence, this helps in improving the cardiovascular system without putting extra pressure on the body. Not just that, it also helps in maintaining the body heat at an optimum level.   
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3. Improves the working of gastrointestinal tract

• The poor the gastrointestinal (GI) tract is, so is the digestive system of the body. Various exercises that help in stretching the stomach and bending the back improve the functioning of the stomach and liver. This improves the functioning of both and hence improves digestion facilitating a better out-throw of toxins and undesirable material off the body. In addition, it reduces the fats on the belly.
• The 3 types of bandhas (locks) help in maintaining and retaining the vital force in human body. These locks increase vitality and help in toning up the abs.

4. Brings flexibility and suppleness to the system: 

• In today’s fast-paced life, developing problems like cervical and slip disc have become common. They are caused due to weight gain or lack of movements in that particular body part. Various back-bending exercises and stretching exercises in power yoga help in bringing movement and hence flexibility to the spinal cord and reducing fat deposits of the body which further helps in maintaining a healthy body. Hence problems like joint pains, back pains, cervical and so forth can be easily dealt with and cured by power yoga.  

5. Adds strength to body and mind: 

• All the poses of power yoga are, to varying degrees, muscular endurance exercises. When we think of such enduring exercises, we think they will make us tough. However, there is difference in being strong rather than hard, or tough. The power yoga postures involve exercises that include the workout of the muscles and build strength. They bring strength to out muscles, tissues and tendons bringing an overall strength in out musculoskeletal system.
• It not only works on the body, but also involves mental steadiness and mindfulness. Exercises done with mindfulness result in lining up of the body, mind and spirit in such a way that leads to a healthier lifestyle that is beyond our imagination, with a leaner but stronger body.

6. Activates thyroid gland: 

•  Most of the times, people put on weight due to malfunctioning of this gland that may lead to either of the two: hypo- or hyperthyrodism. Hypothyroidism leads to excessive weight gain. Thyroid problem usually occurs due to excessive stress due to which the secretion of thyroid suffers and leads to imbalance. Power yoga not only helps in combating it through exercises, but also leads to mental steadiness by reducing stress. This prevents any further hormonal imbalance and helps you lead a healthier life and maintain optimum body weight.  

There are various posters in power yoga for weight loss that help in stretching and twisting on the waist. It improves the function of liver that further helps remove undesirable toxins from the body. Most of the toxins and pesticides are tightly held with fatty tissues of the body so their toxicity can be diluted.  When these toxins are removed, no need of fat cells remains in the body either and hence a healthier and leaner body results.