Yoga plays a key role in the betterment of every aspect of life. The Health benefits of yoga are countless. A beautiful aspect of yoga is that there are certain yoga poses that help specifically in weight loss.
As you move ahead in this article, you will get familiar with specific yoga poses for weight loss.
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How does yoga help in weight loss?
The main reasons for overweight are excessive calorie consumption, stress and lack of sleep, and the resulting hormonal imbalance. Yoga helps in controlling all these in a single go. Let’s see how:
Calorie Control
Irrational quantities of food consumption increase weight. People are not aware of this and put on more weight due to such food habits.
Regular practice of yoga also makes one more conscious about what kind of food they consume with the calories it contains. This self-awareness or self-consciousness helps in controlling our food intake.
Sleep regulation
Regulated sleep pattern is the most important aspect for our overall health. Oversleeping causes puffiness in the face and other parts of the body. It eventually leads to weight gain. Less sleep has effects on weight too. Due to sleeplessness, the body feels tired and is strained. So, there are chances of weight gain due to the strain and restlessness. Sleep disturbances affect body posture too. Yoga helps in balancing the mind and hormones and thus in maintaining a proper sleep cycle.
Stress Control
Stress has become a parcel of our life. Be it working professionals or homemakers, no one is able to escape the stress and its side effects. It is difficult for most people to manage stress. Due to stress, people tend to binge eat. It is known as a stress eating habit.
When we are under stress, we prefer consuming sugar-containing food and junk food to relieve ourselves from stress. This is another trigger factor that will result in an increase in weight. Yoga helps in reducing stress levels by releasing happy hormones. This way there are fewer cravings for the consumption of unhealthy food.
Yoga Poses that help in weight loss
The following yoga poses are a simple and effective way to lose weight loss.
The Boat Pose
This pose is known as Naukasana or boat pose. It helps in the toning of the body.
Instructions
- Sit straight on the yoga mat and stretch your legs forward.
- Lift the legs and balance your body weight on your sitting bones.
- Extend your hands corresponding to the floor and point them forward.
- Make sure the spine and knees are not twisted.
- Tighten the abdominal muscles and hold for 30 seconds.
- Inhale and exhale normally while performing the pose.
- Release and repeat the yoga pose five times.
Benefits
- This yoga pose helps in toning the waist and helps in weight loss.
- It also builds up the abdominal muscles, lower back, and leg muscles.
- This yoga pose improves the digestive system and heals gastrointestinal discomfort.
- This pose helps in the stimulation of circulatory, nervous, and other systems.
- This pose builds up abdominal muscle strength.
The Scientific reason behind the weight loss through this yoga pose
The boat pose ensures the involvement of the inclusion of each muscle of the body. It strengthens certain muscles in the body and increases metabolism. From the neck, spine to the glutes this yoga pose helps in decreasing the belly fat. This yoga pose causes the strengthening of certain muscles like hip flexors, abdominal muscles, and adductor muscles. Thus, the Boat pose burns more calories and induces weight loss.
The Cobra Pose
This yoga pose is also known as Bhujangasana. It is a reclining back-bending pose. It is a complete stretching of the body that helps in the flexibility of body parts. It is especially beneficial in strengthening the uterine muscles.
Instructions
- Face downwards to the yoga mat and feet towards the ground with the sole pointing upwards.
- Place hands on the floor straight to the shoulders.
- Slowly stretch the shoulder and bend backward.
- Slowly move your upper torso and point the chin upwards.
- Hold the position for 4 to 5 breaths.
Benefits
- This yoga pose strengthens the spine and stimulates abdominal organs.
- It helps in relieving stress and helpful for breathing issues.
- This yoga pose is beneficial in relieving sciatica pain.
- It helps in toning the buttocks.
- This yoga pose helps in stress relief.
The Scientific reason behind the weight loss through this yoga pose
This yoga pose causes stretching of the upper part of the body thereby reducing fat in the upper parts. The cobra pose concentrates on belly fat.
Wheel Pose
It is also known as chakrasana. In gymnastics, this yoga pose is called a bridge. It is a backbend pose performed to support the strengthening of different parts of the body.
Instructions
- Lay on the back and gradually lift your lower part of the body.
- Fold your knees and take good help on the floor.
- Bend your arms gradually and place the palms on the floor on either side of your head.
- Take a full breath and lift your body totally to frame a curve by squeezing both the legs and the hands.
- Bend your neck bit by bit downwards and gradually come into the pose as shown here.
Benefits
- This yoga pose fortifies the leg muscles and hand muscles.
- It enhances the circulation of blood and prevents tiredness.
- This yoga pose helps in stretching the back and increases the elasticity of the spine.
- It helps in improvising the breathing process by the expansion of the chest.
- This yoga pose helps in increasing energy and gives strength to overcome depression.
- It is also helpful for therapeutic healing for back pains, fertility problems, and breathing issues.
- This yoga pose helps in fortifying the shoulder girdle.
- This pose stimulates pituitary and thyroid activity.
The Scientific reason behind the weight loss through this yoga pose
The wheel pose helps in strengthening the legs and hands. This yoga pose balances the secretions in the body. This balance of secretions leads to better metabolism. It helps in weight loss by decreasing abdominal fat.
Downward-facing Dog pose
It is otherwise called Adho Mukha svanasana. It is a weight holding exercise. The Downward-facing Dog pose gives an incredible equilibrium to body and mind. This pose focuses on both the upper and lower portions of the body.
Instructions:
- Lie down on the floor with your stomach in contact with the floor.
- Lift your body gradually by putting pressure on the limbs.
- Form a mountain-like posture.
- Hold on for quite a while and let the pressure build in the belly.
- Relax and afterward rehash this yoga pose.
- This position should be practiced for at least a minute to see better outcomes.
Benefits
- It helps in the fortifying of shoulder muscles.
- It helps in bringing down the pulse.
- It expands adaptability and develops fortitude.
- It is generally useful for individuals experiencing back pain.
- This yoga pose aids in developing the bloodstream to the brain.
- It helps in the prolongation of the cervical spine and neck. It helps in calming pressure and strain.
- This pose helps in maintaining the body’s activities.
- This yoga pose decreases back pain as the back is strengthened.
The Scientific reason behind the weight loss through this yoga pose
The downward dog pose helps in extending the spine. The development of a little mountain shape gives the arrangement. This prompts pressure develops at the abdomen. Calories are burnt and this aids in weight reduction.
Warrior Pose
It is likewise called Virabhadrasana. This yoga pose shows the capacity to cross the inner self and obliviousness. Different advantages are seen by playing out this posture consistently. It is a usually drilled yoga pose in modern days. This posture assists with raising solidarity to the whole body subsequently helps in the advancement of the body pose.
Instructions
- Stand straight and gradually expand your legs apart.
- Put the legs to and fro on any side.
- Bend the knee of the front leg and let the other leg be corresponding to the floor.
- Then, lift your hands over the head and hold in the position however much time possible.
- Later, change to the opposite side and rehash the posture.
Benefits
- It helps in extending the chest and lungs.
- This yoga pose incorporates extending of the neck, belly, and crotches also.
- This yoga pose aids in fortifying the shoulder muscles and arms.
- This additionally helps in reinforcing lower appendage parts like thighs, calves, and lower legs.
- It improves equilibrium.
- It helps in expanding focus levels.
- It helps in better flow of blood and furthermore upgrades the breath cycle.
- It shows the effect on the quadriceps and hamstring muscles.
The Scientific reason behind the weight loss through this yoga pose
The warrior pose aids in giving appropriate equilibrium and takes care of dependability. On the off chance that you contract muscular strength while performing the warrior yoga present, it will help in conditioning the belly fat and give a level stomach. This empowers significant weight loss in the abdomen area.
Conclusion
There are various poses in yoga. Every pose offers different benefits. Practicing yoga not only gives mental peace it also helps in maintaining body posture. The yoga poses should be performed in the right way to observe their benefits. In case you are suffering from chronic pains, long-term ailments or you are pregnant, make sure to take a doctor’s advice before performing these yoga poses for weight loss.