Hot yoga for weight loss?

  • Has anyone tried hot yoga for weight loss? I'm taking my first class tomorrow. According to some websites, one 90-minute hot yoga session can burn between 500 to 1000 calories depending on one's fitness level.

    I just incorporated my new diet plan of roughly 1200 to 1400 calories per day coming from veggies, fruits, whole grains, dry/cooked beans, and fish. I want to know if anyone has successfully lost weight soley by doing hot yoga several times a week.

    I don't want to burn myself out with all these new changes, so I figured taking up hot yoga won't be as intimidating as taking up zumba or spin classes. We'll see though...

    I'd love to hear from anyone who has tried hot yoga and what he/she thought of it.
  • Neither. Those are primarily for toning up and stretching.

    If you want to lose weight you need to do cardio, and lots of it.
  • Yoga only? I don't think so. As a combination of cardio, yeah. Although some studies have suggested frequent yoga goers have less body fat because of the mind body connection.
  • Someone in the calorie counters was doing hot yoga and had lost weight doing that with calorie counting.

    A friend of mine does the hot yoga and she loves it. She says she sweats like crazy, but I'm not sure how much she burns doing it...she says she feels refreshed afterwards so that's why she does it.

    Remember though, exercise is not for weight loss. You exercise to get fit and make yourself healthier. You control your diet for weight loss.

    Quote: Neither. Those are primarily for toning up and stretching.

    If you want to lose weight you need to do cardio, and lots of it.
    No. As long as you create a calorie deficit than you should lose weight. You don't actually need to exercise.
  • some say you can lose weight with just diet alone. so you can probably lose weight with diet and yoga. unless you are sure you are burning 500-1000 extra calories doing the yoga, just don't eat back those calories!

    Quote: Yoga only? I don't think so. As a combination of cardio, yeah. Although some studies have suggested frequent yoga goers have less body fat because of the mind body connection.
    I heard this too, it helps you be more aware of what you are eating. Plus it helps reduce stress which can be a trigger for over eating. I've also heard some poses help stimulate the thyroid. I don't know if any of this true though
  • I went to hot yoga. I didnt find it did anything. The room wasn't 'hot' or like a sauna like I expected. I expected it to make me sweat.

    It was more that they put the heating on and a few stretches later I just left sleepy.

    It wasn't for me, but I'm not a pilates and yoga person Ive tried both and didnt find it did anything - Some find it works, Kate Winslet apparently loves pilaties!

    But personally I prefer to tone by doing floor exersizes, where it can feel my muscles working and building and different types of sit ups etc.

    However - If you go and dont like it try somthing else! Best to try everything once - maybe you'll really like it. Coupled with cardio it may be right for you let us know how it goes!
  • I have to say that I LOVE bikram yoga and encourage you to give it a try. At my current weight/ age, high impact exercise is quite uncomfortable. Even standard yoga was too hard because in many poses I was unable to support my body weight. In bikram there is a specific set of poses and I found them easily adaptable to all fitness levels. The room is heated to 105 degrees - you sweat buckets!

    Personally for me WL was moderate, I lost ~10 lbs in 6 weeks and I was going 2-3 times a week. The big bonus for me was how I felt. I have problems with depression/fatigue and while I was doing bikram regularly my symptoms improved dramatically. I had tons of energy, increased mental clarity, I felt AMAZING. And though I had been losing weight consistently for more than 6 mos, I got the most compliments from family/friends/coworkers during that time - I felt as if I radiated health

    I had to take a break unfortunately because finances are tight and it is expensive I hope you give it a try and let us know what you think. I do other forms of exercise, walking/hiking, fitness videos because I should but bikram was one of the few activities that I actually looked forward to and I hope you have a similar experience.
  • Anything that builds strength/muscle helps with weight loss if you calorie count along with it. I'm doing yoga twice a week, cardio 3 times a week and strength training 2 times a week. Cardio for my heart, yoga for limbering up and loosening tight muscles and strength training to strength my muscles and build more muscle to burn more fat. All of them burn calories when I doing them. Some more than others, but it sure beats sitting on the couch which is what I would be doing otherwise!
  • Hot yoga has several benefits, but in regards to losing weight if you do it alone you will lose weight but at a slower rate then lets say.. running. But the feeling youll get after doing hot yoga is undeniable.. its so refreshing and motivating.. you feel so light and like you accomplished something fitness wise. Its great.. def keep an open mind, and drink lots of water before hand and something with electrolytes (coconut water! yum) afterwards. Happy yogaing.
  • Hi Freebird.........
    I am now sharing with u my experience.........

    Hot yoga exercise is an extensive design of yoga exercise where a series of 26 standard yoga exercise poses and breathing workouts are done in a heated studio. Sweating is an understatement: the course is run in spaces blasted with 38 degrees Celsius and 40 % moisture. Of course ... it's definitely hot.

    The question that hot yoga exercise is useful for fat burning? Yes, If you could jump at all that is, well. The very genuine danger of dehydration throughout this extensive course indicates you should bring fluid with you.

    If you do hot yoga frequently enough because it would be classed as energetic workout, Weight loss from hot yoga exercise is most likely. To genuinely support weight loss with hot yoga exercise you 'd require to be exercising at least two times a week.

    Even with its weight loss perks, hot yoga exercise is not for everybody. you'll either like it or dislike it.

    If you are a future yogi then just give it a try. When you have actually reached a great level of physical fitness, I 'd state hot yoga exercise is a course to try. If you have any medical problem then I would recommend you should just avoid it.
  • There are different kinds of hot yoga - and some of them aren't actually very hot. Bikram yoga as mentioned above is the only one I've ever tried and it is HOT. 105F. Most people who do Bikram lose weight (as long as you don't eat back your calories).

    I did A LOT of Bikram last year. I lost a dress size, but I GAINED weight (not much). This does happen to some people. I wasn't watching what I was eating and I probably ate more (but better - you tend to want more healthy food). My abs were ROCK SOLID - as in 'Go ahead, hit me in the tummy - it won't hurt' - rock solid.

    There are all kinds of crazy estimates about how many calories it burns (like one I saw was 1100 at my weight - I personally don't believe that). And it does make your heart race, so there are some cardio benefits. But it depends on your fitness goals whether it's enough exercise.

    As mentioned above you must drink plenty of water as you can dry out. And funnily enough you can have water weight gain as your body tries to hold onto water if you don't drink enough.
  • I do hot yoga (Bikram-style) 4 times a week.

    Following Weight Watchers has caused me to lose weight.

    Doing hot yoga has completely changed the shape of my body and toned it so I literally look 10-15 lb lighter than I am.

    Yes, I do burn a lot of calories during hot yoga, but I never eat them back.

    It works for me!
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    I'd sincerely appreciate if you could kindly please share your thoughts.
  • Yoga is a good way if you want to start slowly. So you can get used to beeing active on a regular basis.
  • Any activity that accelerates your heartbeat helps you burn calories, which eventually results in weight loss. Even if one is not running or jumping, hot yoga is one of the most effective ways to burn calories. So, any fast-paced movements added to the hot yoga class will result in significant calorie expenditure.