Hi, Fitness fans, I’ve done a lot of stories on yoga, but this is the first time I’ve heard someone say it actually burns fat.  But if you’ve ever taken a yoga class you realize pretty quickly that it’s not just sitting around chanting and trying to find your ora.. It’s hard work.  So, it makes sense, if you’re trying to lose weight, your yoga class may be helping you more that you know.

Yes yoga is about balance and relaxation type poses like upward facing dog or the popular tree pose. But Mandarin Oriental Miami Spa Yoga instructor Missy Fellman says the workout is finally getting the credit it deserves for helpful people achieve their fitness goals on many levels. “First I would say stress release. Yoga is wonderful for releasing stress. Second yoga is a discipline. And when you are disciplined you also can be disciplined in your life and the foods that you eat. And third there are quite a few types of new yogas out there now. Power is one of them and it uses a lot of energy and a lot of sweat and you lose weight through the aerobic and the metabolism burning.”

By getting into sometimes difficult positions that use a lot of different and major muscle groups, and using different levels from up to down, and moving through the positions quickly, you elevate your heart rate while strengthening muscles, putting power in yoga.

Other yoga weight loss benefits:  Yogic breathing, when done properly, can boost metabolism.Body awareness can lead to better eating habits even gentle yoga exercises that don’t burn a lot of calories can lower levels of cortisol, the stress hormone that has been linked to weight gain.  Plus you can sound very trendy when you tell your buddies you’re headed to yoga class… only you will know you’re really off to burn some calories.

Bonnie.