DELHI Delhi: With the presence of yoga on social media claiming it helps in weight loss, it is important that we consider the evidence behind these claims. While there are many other health benefits associated with regular yoga practice, the evidence is mixed on whether or not it helps you lose weight, as well as some caveats that are worth mentioning. Our yoga expert, Kat Bailey, has been teaching yoga for over 10 years and has completed various yoga teacher trainings over the years. She comments, “One of the many questions I get asked as a yoga teacher is, does yoga help you lose weight?
Moving your body is always helpful in any weight loss journey and yoga is great for this. While how many calories you burn will depend on how many dynamic movements are involved in the yoga practice you do, yoga can help you be present with your body in a way that gives you a sense of clarity. This clarity and mental focus can help us stick to our goals and become more aware of how we live our lives. This ultimately has an impact on the food we eat and the lifestyle we choose, all of which helps us lose weight more holistically.”
Let's take a look at the pros and cons of including yoga in your weight loss journey to find out if it can really make a difference and if yes, how it can help. If you're tempted to practice, be sure to grab one of the best yoga mats. Harvard Medical School recognizes the holistic benefits of yoga beyond the mat. They found that people who practice yoga eat more mindfully, meaning they are more present when eating. These findings are supported by a recent study published in the journal Obesity Science & Practice, which found that women who participated in yoga for 24 weeks following a behavioral weight loss treatment reported fewer dietary lapses than a control group. However, Harvard Medical School found that years of practice and length of sessions performed per week were associated with participants' mindful eating scores. This suggests that yoga is not a quick way to help you lose weight and that it probably requires years of consistency to see these effects. Researchers also found that people who practiced yoga for at least 30 minutes once a week over a period of at least four years had less weight gain during middle adulthood. However, among those who were overweight, researchers found that they actually lost weight. As a result, it seems that yoga can help you lose weight but it is a slow process.
Interestingly, a recent study published in PLOS One looked at the implementation of yoga into a weight management program following weight loss treatment. The treatment groups followed a behavioral weight loss program and did 2 weekly sessions of yoga for 12 weeks. They found no difference between the treatment groups in terms of their weight loss after 6 months. But more importantly, they found that people who lost more than 5% of their initial weight were able to lose significantly more weight after 6 months. This may indicate that yoga serves as a good supplement for people who have already lost a considerable amount of weight, and not for those who are just starting their weight loss journey.
Some yoga exercises are more gentle and others involve more flow and dynamic movements, it can be difficult to know if they help you burn all the calories enough to actually help you lose weight. Is necessary. We already know that if we move more, we burn more calories. However, our body weight can fluctuate quite dramatically from one day to the next due to aspects such as hormones, the amount of sleep we sleep, injury and water retention levels. To lose weight, Harvard Health Publishing says we must eat fewer calories than we burn to create a calorie deficit. An article from Harvard Medical School suggests that weight loss basically depends on simple math. Since one pound of body fat stores 3,500 calories, we would need to reduce 500 calories per day to lose one pound of body fat per week.
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