Does Yoga Count As Cardio?

Yoga — originally starting out in Indian culture a long time ago — is the practice of spiritual and physical  exercise, and you have almost definitely heard of it. Let's be honest, yoga has been growing in popularity and demand in North America over the last 15 years. It went from people knowing virtually nothing of it and the physical and mental benefits, to a point where you could spot a yoga studio in practically every town. Yoga has gained so much popularity by being a holistic, simple, and overall good physical activity for anyone, no matter who you are.

Of course, with its supporters also come the critics; asking is yoga strenuous enough to be considered adequate physical activity? Does yoga fit in as with resistance training or cardiovascular training?

We'll be taking a look at that today. Understanding both the pros and cons, advantages and drawbacks of yoga can help to answer these questions. Read on to know everything you need to know about yoga.

Yoga's original design

Are you looking to lose weight? If so you're probably in the wrong place. Yoga's purpose was never to help people lose weight so they could look like their favorite models or movie stars. If this is your intention, yoga may not be the best option for you as there are many other ways to lose weight. In reality, Yoga was originally made to enhance and align the spirit with ones physical self.

Yoga was developed over thousands of years and continues to evolve to this day. Today, westerners have chosen to separate and categorize yoga poses to make sense of them all from a western perspective. For example, kundalini is used for meditative purposes while “power” yoga is described as the resistance training of yoga. All of these branches of yoga come together to achieve essentially the same goal: better spiritual and physical health.

Known Advantages of yoga

For many people, exercise is more than about just one goal they have in mind. Typically, there is one catalyst which keeps people coming back to exercise, supported by several other, smaller reasons which they know are important as well. For example, weightloss is often a primary reason to get active, but most people also want to reduce blood pressure, reduce health risks, and improve energy. Fortunately, yoga is one of those activities which can help with diverse goals.

These are some of the advantages from engaging in various types of yoga for a consistent period of time:

• Yoga is an effective de-stressor

• Yoga improves flexibility at the joints (helping to reduce joint pain, back pain, etc.)

• Yoga helps to relax muscle and tendon tension (helping to reduce muscle pain, knots, etc)

• Yoga improves mental health; this is a side effect of meditation and exercise

• Yoga helps to improve sleep quality

• Yoga can be used as a part of a weight loss plan

• Some forms of yoga can help to improve muscle strength

• Yoga is low impact, and safe for those with bad joints, etc.

Know Drawbacks Of Yoga

Some of the drawbacks of yoga evolve around the sudden growth and creation of an industry around yoga:

• Teachers are less trained than ever before (certifications don't take years as they once did)

• There are so many styles of yoga, it is difficult to find the right one for your goals

• Yoga usually requires supervision in a class format (often overcrowded)

  Read more: Prenatal Yoga - Is Yoga in Pregnancy Safe?

• Yoga alone is not enough activity to effectively lose weight

• Overcrowded group classes leave lots of room for error and injuries

• Yoga will minimally improve cardiovascular endurance

Will yoga help with weight loss?

Yoga certainly can be a part of a weight loss program, because it is considered a physical activity, and it is very good for health if done correctly.

Yoga is not really a cardiovascular exercise, nor is it a resistance exercise. It is actually somewhere in between. Many yoga lovers may argue that they “feel the burn” while performing yoga poses, and they may very well be feeling their muscles work. The best way of gauging how hard one is working is to check your heart rate. Take your pulse while jogging versus during yoga. The harder you work, the faster the pulse will be.

At rest, your heart rate should be between 60 and 80 beats per minute (bpm).

Depending on age and level of fitness, a low intensity workout can raise the heart rate to 100 to 120 bpm while a moderate to high level of intensity looks more like 150 to 170 bpm.

The higher the heart rate, the greater the consumption of oxygen. This means more energy is being metabolized and burned, and more calories being consumed. The harder and longer you push this system, the more efficient it becomes at absorbing oxygen and utilizing energy. This is how the cardiovascular system is trained and improved.

With yoga, this may never happen because it is low intensity. However, yoga is great to 2 or 3 times per week, and supplements a weight loss program well. Yoga helps to maintain core strength and stability, which contributes to a healthy overall body, aiding with weight training and cardiovascular training. Adding yoga to your program will keep you at peace, flexible, and happy!