Weight Loss with Yoga

A few fans of this page have requested infos on weight loss with Yoga. Here a few guidelines:
- Any Hatha Yoga practice can be helpful: Yoga helps to get in tune with the intelligence of your body. If you practice Hatha Yoga at least 15-20 minutes daily you will notice that you will like what is good for you.
- Some Hatha Yoga exercises can reduce appetite. Among those are Sitali Pranayama , Sarvangasana (shoulderstand), any concentration on "Kantha Kupa", the throat
- Some Hatha Yoga exercises can reduce "Kapha", a term from Ayurveda, and increase metabolism. Especially Ujjayi breath (gentle contraction of the throat when inhaling and exhaling) as much as possible is helpful. Kapalabhati also activates body metabolism: If possible, slowly increase to 3-5 rounds 100-200 exhalations each
- Sun salutation itself burns fat. You can increase to 5-12 minutes of Surya Namaskar daily
- Some Hatha Yoga variations strengthen the big muscles and especially the abdominal muscles. See http://my.yoga-vidya.org/video/surya-namaskar-yoga-sun, http://my.yoga-vidya.org/video/strengthen-your-abdominal

A good routine for weight loss could consist of
- 3-5 rounds of Kapalabhati, 100-300 exhalations
-5-10 rounds of alternate nostril breathing, integrate Ujjayi breath
- 10 rounds of Sitali
- 5-12 minutes of Sun Salutation
- Abdominal muscle exercises
- Shoulderstand, plough, fish with concentration on the throat
- Forward bend with concentration on the abdomen
- Inclined plan
- Cobra
- Spinal twist with concentration first on the navel, then on the throat, then on top of the head
Final relaxation.

With such a large number of individuals swinging to yoga for weight loss purposes, it can be anything but difficult to dismiss what yoga is truly for…

The practice of Yoga affects our whole body and our whole being. On the physiological level, it helps to lose weight because yoga offer a broad spectrum of workouts that stimulate our metabolism and in that way it helps to discard wastes and toxins which aid the process of weight loss. However, if we do not lose weight, we at least do not gain any additional pounds. What is unique about Yoga is that the amount of weight we lose is individually different. Yoga helps us to lose and maintain the weight that suits our individual physiology. Everybody is unique. We may have the same organs and we may live a similar life style, but the physiological processes in our individual bodies may be variations of the same process. For example some people eat a lot and do not gain weight, while others gain weight by only looking at food.... Yoga detects the pattern that is inherent in a body and tries to promote that which will help the body to live and function in the best possible way. Therefore Yoga leads us to the weight that is best for our system which can be individually different because not everyone is the same.

The fact that Yoga practice connects our body with our mind and spirit helps individuals to become mindful and aware of their feeling of well-being. This purifies and transforms people to live a more healthy life with better nutrition and an overall better health. So people learn to make better choices in life. You learn to appreciate your body and gain awareness as to what it needs to stay healthy. This also controls your appetite. So weight loss happens on several subtle levels of our body, mind and spirit.

Weight loss is caused by many factors. To achieve weight loss, it would be good to perform Yoga as a dynamic flow of postures that keep the heart-rate elevated during practice. This makes you sweat, burn fat and lose weight. We can do this by performing simple Asanas and variations or just the Sun Salutation. There are so many ways. But the key is to keep the heart rate up during the workout.

Our muscles contribute to a great deal to our weight loss. Therefore it is good to work a lot with the big muscle groups such as the quads, the trapezius, pectoralis major, the oblique muscles, abdominal muscles etc. The reason is that when we work on these big muscles groups, our workout become more intense on a physiological level and the process of weight loss is intensified.

One of the great attributes of Yoga is that it does not lead to a hypertonicity of our muscles. Yoga practice makes the muscle tissues more supple and sol like. So Yoga helps the muscles to be strong and firm yet they do not become hypertonic. That is very important, because muscle health depends on their sol like structure that prevents muscles from becoming ischemic or lacking blood.

It is so important that muscles maintain their fluid nature because when blood flow well through the muscle tissues then a healthy transport of nutrients, water, sugar, oxygen and proteins is possible. Our blood also contributes to the removal of wastes and toxins and it also transports white blood cells to combat infections. Therefore, sol-like muscle tissues contribute to our healthy metabolism, and Yoga practice plays a major role in keeping all our body structures well toned - but not tight -, supple and fluid. This condition is very necessary to lose weight and to keep the ideal weight that suits an individual’s physiology.

Finally, Yoga helps us to discard the weight and the toxic nature of negative thought patterns. We work from the gross level of the physical body and move on to the subtle levels of the mind and spirit. Therefore, Yoga helps us to purify our physical body and it paves our way to our higher Self. So in Yoga, weight loss occurs on many levels. It is not just about losing pounds of fat, but about being who we are and becoming aware of our goal in life: Discovering our dharma is an outcome of the process of purification on all levels. As we cultivate our dharma, things fall in place, our health and our feeling of well-being balances itself out and we feel happy and content within. Even the life around us improves because Yoga affects the world as well. It is a Yagna or a Homa that not only purifies the one who is performing it but also all beings around it. Therefore, Yoga not only leads to physical weight loss, but it affects our whole being in ways that words cannot really express.

Nevertheless, how much we gain from our Yoga practice depends on our regular practice. Consistency is the key. We need to practice regularly without craving for anything. We have to practice in a spirit of Nishkam Karma and not crave for a sexy body with beautifully toned muscles, name and fame, money or whatever our egos may desire.

I do not mean to say that we should not have any goals. Goals can be a very motivating source of energy that helps us to focus, and the desire to lose weight is a very important realization because access weight stresses all body systems and creates too many complications within the body. However, what I mean is that we can attain the best results when we are not so hung up with our wish to achieve our goals by constantly thinking about them and not relaxing while practicing Yoga because then Yoga would not happen.

When we constantly think of the movement or whatever we want to achieve by practicing Yoga, then at some point our mind gets deluded and we lack clear vision. It is like clouds that cover our awareness of the reality of the Oneness that is within and without. That is when Yoga does not happen. But, when we relax and practice Yoga with true devotion, then Yoga happens, and when it happens, it takes care of our physiological and spiritual well-being.

We need to have faith in the fact that when we practice Yoga, we are taking action in a very positive, wholesome and holy way. Faith does not make everything simple or easy, but it unravels all the possibilities that Yoga offers us to prosper within our own evolution.

www.blood.it

Replies

Chrysalis Yoga December 20, 2017 at 11:33am

Yoga has many health benefits: from removing constipation to relieving neurological disorders. You probably knew that yoga can help you calm the mind, but did you know that yoga can also improve your mental health? Amazed? Well, you should be! Read this post and find out how yoga can help boost your mental well-being and help you overcome anxiety and stress.
Stress and anxiety are the main reasons behind many kinds of disorders affecting your mental health and you need some remedy that can help you rid yourself of these unwanted conditions.
Sandeep Panday September 1, 2017 at 9:10am

Hello everyone, extra fat in body never good for health. I agreed with above post on weight loss by yoga. It has always in the discussion that "Can Yoga practice help to lose weight?" and the majority of people have not believed yoga can help to lose weight till it has not proved. Yes Yoga has well-proven practices & techniques to cut the extra fat from the body. Here is resource [ https://goo.gl/cFRWj8 ]

5 Yoga Poses to Lose Weight

With such a large number of individuals swinging to yoga for weight loss purposes, it can be anything but difficult to dismiss what yoga is truly for…
Nimba Nature Cure Village August 31, 2017 at 3:15pm

One can burn fat, build their muscle to get more flexibility using some Yoga posesas well as the Aqua Yoga.
for weight loss. For more details on Aqua Yoga, visit, https://www.nimba.in/yoga-and-meditation.html
babbu June 23, 2010 at 10:36am

- hatha yoga is wonderful, but it is not a clear description. It really means poses and breath and the qualifications vary greatly for teachers. Many recommend Iyengar or Anusara yoga as good places to start because they teach alignment, have well trained teachers and tend to be very safe. Definitely take some classes. You will find it increases your energy and you will get to know yourself bette[url=http://www.sivanandabahamas.org/yoga-retreat.htm]yoga retreat[/url]
haripriya_deepa June 23, 2010 at 9:34am

The practice of Yoga affects our whole body and our whole being. On the physiological level, it helps to lose weight because yoga offer a broad spectrum of workouts that stimulate our metabolism and in that way it helps to discard wastes and toxins which aid the process of weight loss. However, if we do not lose weight, we at least do not gain any additional pounds. What is unique about Yoga is that the amount of weight we lose is individually different. Yoga helps us to lose and maintain the weight that suits our individual physiology. Everybody is unique. We may have the same organs and we may live a similar life style, but the physiological processes in our individual bodies may be variations of the same process. For example some people eat a lot and do not gain weight, while others gain weight by only looking at food.... Yoga detects the pattern that is inherent in a body and tries to promote that which will help the body to live and function in the best possible way. Therefore Yoga leads us to the weight that is best for our system which can be individually different because not everyone is the same.

The fact that Yoga practice connects our body with our mind and spirit helps individuals to become mindful and aware of their feeling of well-being. This purifies and transforms people to live a more healthy life with better nutrition and an overall better health. So people learn to make better choices in life. You learn to appreciate your body and gain awareness as to what it needs to stay healthy. This also controls your appetite. So weight loss happens on several subtle levels of our body, mind and spirit.

Weight loss is caused by many factors. To achieve weight loss, it would be good to perform Yoga as a dynamic flow of postures that keep the heart-rate elevated during practice. This makes you sweat, burn fat and lose weight. We can do this by performing simple Asanas and variations or just the Sun Salutation. There are so many ways. But the key is to keep the heart rate up during the workout.

Our muscles contribute to a great deal to our weight loss. Therefore it is good to work a lot with the big muscle groups such as the quads, the trapezius, pectoralis major, the oblique muscles, abdominal muscles etc. The reason is that when we work on these big muscles groups, our workout become more intense on a physiological level and the process of weight loss is intensified.

One of the great attributes of Yoga is that it does not lead to a hypertonicity of our muscles. Yoga practice makes the muscle tissues more supple and sol like. So Yoga helps the muscles to be strong and firm yet they do not become hypertonic. That is very important, because muscle health depends on their sol like structure that prevents muscles from becoming ischemic or lacking blood.

It is so important that muscles maintain their fluid nature because when blood flow well through the muscle tissues then a healthy transport of nutrients, water, sugar, oxygen and proteins is possible. Our blood also contributes to the removal of wastes and toxins and it also transports white blood cells to combat infections. Therefore, sol-like muscle tissues contribute to our healthy metabolism, and Yoga practice plays a major role in keeping all our body structures well toned - but not tight -, supple and fluid. This condition is very necessary to lose weight and to keep the ideal weight that suits an individual’s physiology.

Finally, Yoga helps us to discard the weight and the toxic nature of negative thought patterns. We work from the gross level of the physical body and move on to the subtle levels of the mind and spirit. Therefore, Yoga helps us to purify our physical body and it paves our way to our higher Self. So in Yoga, weight loss occurs on many levels. It is not just about losing pounds of fat, but about being who we are and becoming aware of our goal in life: Discovering our dharma is an outcome of the process of purification on all levels. As we cultivate our dharma, things fall in place, our health and our feeling of well-being balances itself out and we feel happy and content within. Even the life around us improves because Yoga affects the world as well. It is a Yagna or a Homa that not only purifies the one who is performing it but also all beings around it. Therefore, Yoga not only leads to physical weight loss, but it affects our whole being in ways that words cannot really express.

Nevertheless, how much we gain from our Yoga practice depends on our regular practice. Consistency is the key. We need to practice regularly without craving for anything. We have to practice in a spirit of Nishkam Karma and not crave for a sexy body with beautifully toned muscles, name and fame, money or whatever our egos may desire.

I do not mean to say that we should not have any goals. Goals can be a very motivating source of energy that helps us to focus, and the desire to lose weight is a very important realization because access weight stresses all body systems and creates too many complications within the body. However, what I mean is that we can attain the best results when we are not so hung up with our wish to achieve our goals by constantly thinking about them and not relaxing while practicing Yoga because then Yoga would not happen.

When we constantly think of the movement or whatever we want to achieve by practicing Yoga, then at some point our mind gets deluded and we lack clear vision. It is like clouds that cover our awareness of the reality of the Oneness that is within and without. That is when Yoga does not happen. But, when we relax and practice Yoga with true devotion, then Yoga happens, and when it happens, it takes care of our physiological and spiritual well-being.

We need to have faith in the fact that when we practice Yoga, we are taking action in a very positive, wholesome and holy way. Faith does not make everything simple or easy, but it unravels all the possibilities that Yoga offers us to prosper within our own evolution.

www.blood.it
Gita May 19, 2010 at 8:27pm

"Wenn wir in irgendeinem Bereich eine zwanghafte Angewohnheit haben,sollten wir, anstatt zu denken, wie schrecklich wir sind, erkennen, dass es in unserem Bewußtsein eine Notwendigkeit für diesen Zustand gibt,Sonst würde er nicht vorhanden sein.
Übergewicht hat schon immer Schutz bedeutet. Wenn Du Dich unsicher oder ängstlich fühlst,polsterst Du Dich mit Schutz. Die meisten von Euch verbringen ihre Zeit damit, wütend auf sich zu sein, weil sie dick sind, und haben Schuldgefühle wegen des Essens...Es gibt etwas in Deinem Leben, das Dich unsicher macht. Du kannst 20 Jahre gegen das Fett kämpfen und noch immer dick sein, weil Du Dich nicht mit der Ursache befasst hast. Wenn Du übergewichtig bist, solltest Du das Gewichtsproblem beiseite legen und Dich mit dem anderen Problem zuerst befassen, mit dem Muster, das sagt:` Ich brauche Schutz. Ich bin unsicher`. Werde nicht wütend, wenn Du zunimmst, denn unsere Zellen reagieren auf gedankliche Muster.Wenn das Bedürfnis nach Schutz nicht mehr vorhanden ist oder wenn wir anfangen uns sicher zu fühlen, wird das Fett von selbst wegschmelzen. Beginne zu sagen: Ich hatte früher ein Gewichtsproblem``. Du wirst anfangen, das Muster zu ändern. Was Du heute denkst, wird anfangen, Deine neue Figur zu erschaffen."
Auch eine Sicht der Dinge entnommen dem Buch von Louise Hay: Herzensweisheiten

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