Anyone who has ever attended a Yoga class probably knows what I'm talking about. Normally a large number of the women in Yoga classes have the most amazing bodies ever! Is it really just from Yoga? I went to a Bikram Yoga class yesterday and I was the only person in the room with an out of shape body!
I'm trying to develop a plan to get that body - healthy, lean, toned... and I'm wondering what the best path is. I guess it could be just common sense (eat healthy, exercise, do hot yoga!) but is the yoga the most important part? or just something to do on the side while I focus on better calorie burning activities?
I've often wondered if that look comes only from yoga or not. I used to be friends with my old yoga teacher and I know that she also did karate, kickboxing, miscellaneous calisthenics regularly, was a distance runner and watched her diet very closely. She didn't do simply yoga.
Strength training has helped me more than anything, and I totally count yoga as part of that. I tend to do a lot of power flows.
Or maybe it's the reverse, and many physically fit women are attracted to & feel challenged by yoga, and end up regular attendees at yoga classes?
I think it depends on the individual class, and how comfortable members feel in the group, as I believe uncomfortable members more quickly drop out. Don't underestimate the effects of group dynamics, group mind, social reinforcement & etc. in exercise classes.
I took one class offered through an adult ed program, advertised for beginners, and there were many heavier woman who were just starting to get fit, and a wide assortment of age & bodies. I would say maybe one or two were on their way to the "yoga body" you describe.
The classes at my gym are completely different. This teacher is challenging & has developed a following in our gym & is on her way to developing a following in our geographical area, since she teaches elsewhere. And the women of her following are adept & extremely fit, with the "yoga bodies" you have described. (I am often the heaviest one in class, as I've mentioned elsewhere.) The challenge aspect of the class draws them. It does not work so well for others. There are people who take her class & feel dumpy & awkward & don't come back. It's not that she's not patient, or clear in showing the modifications. I think they get initimidated by the nearly synchronized feel of the action going on around them & feel like they are the only ones who don't "get it." I was intimidated myself, and stayed away for a while, then vowed to overcome my insecurities (a New Year's resolution) & became a regular. I am getting better at it. But I definitely feel slightly out of place & it is my willpower really that keeps me going.
Most people I know that do yoga and that have that wicked yoga body are active in other areas. My roommate, does yoga 6 days a week, but also does at least 3 triathlons a year, as well as several half marathons, and is now on her school's rowing teams, and up until a couple of years ago was on a swim team. She likes yoga for the stretching and how it helps her relax.
The few women I've talked to in yoga classes are involved in some sort of other physical activity as well. Whether it's running or tennis or just going to the gym. I don't believe that yoga alone is responsible for those kick a$$ bodies! I think it helps, but isn't the only thing.
i take a yoga class at my gym every once in awhile, & i notice these bodies you're talking about! a few other friends of mine take yoga as well, but its part of a strict fitness regime.
I have thought the same thing about yoga bodies - instructors and, usually, some college age girls I see there who look like they have a dancers backgrounds - really good posture and the way they carry themselves. I also wondered this about the two pilates instructors at my gym and I was so relieved once I saw both of them pounding it out on the cardio equipment!
Yoga really did build my muscles. Of course, it all depends on the yoga. There's lots of different ways to do it.
I agree with Saef, it may be that yoga is just trendy and attracts women that are into that look already.
I know some (like Bikram) will claim they cause weight loss, I'd be a bit skeptical of that being a big effect.
However, I do think yoga is fabulous for connecting you with your body, making you feel good about it and stop always criticizing it, and putting you in a mental space that makes healthful choices come naturally.
How to get that amazing Yoga body?
