[Physical]

There is much debate over whether yoga is an activity that can contribute to effective weight loss or not – with strong arguments on both sides of the discussion.

On the one hand, some people believe that because yoga is not a fast paced physical activity it can therefore not be considered a serious weight loss tool. This follows the belief that you must be directly burning calories at a serious rate in order to lose weight.

On the other hand, it can be argued that practicing yoga is a great way to build muscle, tone the body and strengthen the mind – all of which can then contribute to weight maintenance and weight loss.

This misconception of a yoga class predominantly consisting of stretching and seated meditation is perhaps the reason that many people feel that yoga is not an effective way to lose weight. However, if you have ever taken part in a class then you will know that this is not the case!

Yoga requires a commitment to developing both your physical and mental strength, and as this happens your stamina, flexibility and focus will improve also.

The Physical

Yoga consists of hundreds of different asanas, all of which have varying physical benefits. Although it is true to say that some of these poses are more concerned with flexibility than they are with physical strength, this is certainly not true of all of the poses! As you work to hold each pose for longer periods of time you will be building your overall strength and increasing your muscle mass.

As you continue to burn fat and replace it with muscle, you will naturally lose weight and you will also burn more calories when you are not directly engaging in exercise. This is because muscle tissue burns more calories than fat does.

Although the benefits of this can be felt with the majority of different yoga types, you may want to go for a more physically demanding variety to enhance your results and get the most out of your session. Vinyasa Flow, Power Yoga and Bikram Yoga are thought to be the best choices when it comes to yoga for weight loss. This is largely due to their intense pace and challenging poses.

The Mental

When it comes to how yoga can benefit you emotionally to support weight loss, you have to consider the reasons that you are not currently reaching your weight loss goals. Do you make unhealthy, emotionally charged food choices? Are you currently lacking the motivation to lead an active lifestyle? Perhaps you are simply stuck in a fitness rut and need to refresh your mindset to find your focus?

One of the most amazing things about yoga is how it encourages you to look inside of yourself, and to better understand your choices, your thought processes and your understanding of the self. When this begins to happens you will likely develop a greater understanding and appreciation of how you can care for yourself.

This process will often lead people to make more positive choices in terms of their self-care, their lifestyle, their diet and other connected concepts. Recognising negative habits and distancing yourself from them will soon follow, and this can be beneficial for both overall health and reaching desired weight loss goals.

Yoga For Weight Loss

Deciding to embrace yoga as a new part of your workout routine can be an exciting way to mix things up. As well as supporting and boosting your weight loss efforts, yoga can also benefit both your body and mind in other ways, such as keeping your mood up!

[Creative]

Happiness is something that we all want to invite into our lives in abundance whenever possible! However, we often go about doing so in different ways. With each individual step on our journey to happiness, we may discover new and exciting things that help us to reach this goal. We meet new people, embrace new pursuits, and learn more about ourselves and what we are capable of. Some of these things may have a permanent influence on how happy we are, whereas some may turn out to not be as positive.

One indisputable way to create a mindset that enables happiness to thrive is by regularly engaging in exercise.

Some of the most obvious benefits of regular exercise are weight loss, weight maintenance and muscle building. However, there are also many advantages to be enjoyed by both the body and mind in other ways. When you exercise frequently, you will notice that your stress levels are lower, that you are less prone to anxiety and that your mood is better and more consistent. And, all of these things help to create genuine happiness!

Let’s take a look at why this is!

A Dose of Dopamine

When you are engaging in some kind of moderate intensity physical activity, you will stimulate dopamine production in your brain. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is necessary for feelings of happiness and pleasure.

Research* has suggested that our dopamine stores naturally become depleted as we grow older. Therefore, finding ways to continuously encourage the brain to make more dopamine as we age is essential if we are to continue being happy!

Happy Hormones

Getting our stress levels down is something that we can all surely benefit from. The negative effects of leading a stressful life are serious! Stress can make us ill, make us sad, make us irritable – all of which can lead us to treat those we interact with in a different way than we would like to. To put it simply, stress damages our mood and it keeps us from becoming the happiest that we can be!

When you exercise you are actually instigating small amounts of stress to occur within the body as your heart rate rises. This increase in your heart rate causes a change in the levels of hormones that are present, and can therefore have a knock-on effect on your mood.

When you regularly subject your body to small bursts of stress, it becomes much better able to cope with the larger stresses that are encountered in your day to day.

It has been suggested that aerobic exercise is the best way to enjoy the stress-busting benefits of working out, and you can try swimming, running or cycling to get started!

Fuel Your Focus

It is difficult to dedicate much time at all to being happy when your mind is cluttered with thoughts, feelings, worries and anxieties! If you have a busy schedule, or have pressures placed upon you for any reason, then happiness can often take a back seat to getting everything done.

Exercise has the potential to help you clear your mind of all of these stresses, and encourage you to focus more on what is actually important.

How Much Exercise?

When it comes to how much exercise we should be engaging in, there is good news for those who are short on time! One study* suggests that even engaging in a short 20 minute burst of exercise can enhance your mood for the following 12 hours. If this is true, then starting your day with something as simple as a 20 minute run could have a huge impact on how positive the rest of your day is.

At PAMA London we know first hand how fantastic exercise is for health and happiness. With our extensive range of activewear we wish to encourage everyone to get into fitness in a comfortable, stylish and sustainable way. Click here now to check out what’s on sale!