Yoga is a spiritual science of self-realization that has countless health benefits ranging from lowering stress levels to lengthening spines, and it’s no wonder that it’s attracting more students than ever before.

In an age when most of us are looking to see smaller numbers on our scales, it doesn’t come as a surprise the fact that people are turning to this ancient discipline to help battle excess weight. Let’s see if Yoga can help with excessive pounds.

Brief History of Yoga

What Is Yoga?

Yoga is recognized as an ancient system of philosophies, practices, and principles derived more than 2500 years ago mainly from the Vedic tradition of India and the Himalayas. The system recognizes a multi-dimensional nature of the human being, and it primarily relates to nature and the mind, based on self-enquiry and experiential practice.

In Yoga, the mind, the breath, and the body are seen as a union of the multidimensional aspects of every human being. The system and its various techniques cultivate the experience of the union which leads to the greatest integration of the being, to internal peacefulness and also to the clarity of the mind. It is designed to cultivate both happiness and physical health, and also a sense of self-awareness and higher consciousness.

Yoga believes in the health and the well-being (emotional, physical, social and mental) achieved through the regular practice of various techniques that include movement and postures, breathing exercises and obviously breath awareness, concentration and relaxation, meditation and self-inquiry.

The approach of life proposed by Yoga involves valuing harmony and balance within ourselves and with each other.

Yoga, From Ancient Hindu Scriptures to the Modern Westernized Practices

Most people are aware of Yoga’s Indian religious and spiritual roots, but unfortunately, they tend to get washed out by the modern manufactured and simplified versions of Yoga.

Ancient Times

Medieval Times

During the medieval era, various schools of Yoga emerged. Bhakti Yoga is a spiritual pathway within Hinduism which appeared in this period and this type focused on love and devotion toward God. Tantra Yoga was a genre that emerged in the 5^th century exhibited in ancient Buddhist, Jain, and Hindu traditions and it involved self-deification (the practitioner’s goal is to become the deity that has been another’s object of meditation). Today’s Westerners have associated Tantra Yoga with sexual practices, and they weren’t wrong because some Tantric beliefs involved sexual relations which led to an excellent level of consciousness. Hatha Yoga appeared in the Buddhist texts around the 8^th century, and it was a combination of breathing, body postures, and meditation, being possibly the closest to what we associate today with Yoga.

Modern Times

Today, in the Western world Yoga is seen mostly as an exercise class to take at the gym, as something that can make the muscles sore for days and that can distress you. But knowing a little bit about Yoga’s ancient spiritual origins which have outlasted thousands of years will allow us to understand this practice better and to cherish it more.^[1]

Health Benefits of Yoga

Benefits within and outside the body:

Emotional benefits:

Benefits for the body’s chemistry:

Exercise benefits:

Benefits for preventing disease:

Benefits for reducing various symptoms in case of some health issues:

Yoga and Weight Loss

Most excess weight is not only a matter of too many calories taken for the calories spent. Most weight gain is just symptomatic of some serious underlying causes therefore when each of these health areas listed below becomes imbalanced; then they’ll turn into major cases of excess weight. If the right yoga postures are practiced then the causes of excessive weight will be eliminated, and the benefits for your body will start to show. The weight gain will be quickly shed, and the overall healthy will be restored long-term.

11 Ways in Which Yoga Promotes Weight Loss

1. Stimulating the vital force of your liver

Our liver has many essential functions which include the fact that it is a very powerful detoxifier and cleanser, it purifies the blood, it processes fats and so on. If it is healthy and active, then it will be able to dispose of bad fats and also to put the right fats to work. The liver gives us energy by storing the glucose and by stimulating the making of coenzyme Q10 which powers our muscles. With the help of certain Yoga postures, you can strengthen the vital force of the liver’s functions in the most profound ways.

The most appropriate postures for the liver’s health are backbends:

2. Activating the thyroid gland

The thyroid secretes hormones that regulate our metabolism are one of the essential factors that define whether we have an accelerated metabolism that burns lots of fats or a slow metabolism is the thyroid and its activity. Most people who suffer from weight gain have hypothyroidism which means that the gland has a low production of hormones.

Here are some postures to correct this health issue:

3. Creating the right pH balance by alkalizing the body

If the body has a low pH, this means that it is too acidic and it will attempt to protect itself from the acid by storing fat and also by using it as a buffer. This can be very dangerous because the visceral fat (the fat inside the organs) will accumulate within the arteries and the veins and will cause the narrowing of the passage available for the blood. This will cause the gradual obstruction of the blood vessels’ activity. As a result, the heart will be forced to overwork to maintain the blood circulation. This can lead to the heart’s exhaustion and heart attacks – arteriosclerosis. So, we can see that the body’s pH is critical and the ideal one is around 7.35. People struggling with overweight have a very acidic pH.

The best postures which can increase alkalinity are:

4. Finding the proper balance between the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system

Most overweight people’s bodies are under lots of stress. Their nervous system is under a lot of pressure due to their lifestyle choices. They usually sit at a desk out of the sun and under neon lighting, and they breathe air-conditioned air, instead of fresh, oxygen-rich and clean air. Instead of being in nature, they stare at a computer all day long (unfortunately, most of us do the same) and they often feel rushed to meet their deadlines. If the nervous system is lots of stress, this will cause several chain reactions also for the rest of the body. Our bodies need to be relaxed and soothed, and this requires an optimal balance between the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system.

The best Yoga postures, in this case, are the following:

5. Activating the internal heat of the nervous system

Lots of people have the wrong impression that by attending a hot Yoga class, they are going to lose weight but this couldn’t be further from the truth. The warmth of the body must be created through generating internal heat by creating nerve length/tension, and this will cause the body to feel warmer. Such a thing can be achieved by drawing the chin towards the chest in forwarding bends this way lengthening the femoral nerve and also the spinal nerves. The heat will burn up, and it will also purify visceral fat and subcutaneous or superficial fat.

Here are the best Yoga postures to achieve this:

6. Reducing stress.

Yoga has proven to be an effective method of treating anxiety and of lowering stress levels, and this has a tremendous impact on the ability to shed pounds. If the cortisol levels are too high because you are stressed, it won’t matter how much you deprive yourself of food because you are not going to lose weight.

7. Moving the body with strength

Any position in Yoga which requires you to be active as you lengthen or shorten your muscles will help you with your weight loss. This is because our muscles are active tissue which consumes fat as fuel. If we build strong muscles, they will end up eating our fat stores even when we are resting. This is the reason for which strength work is very beneficial for weight loss.

Arm balancing postures are great for this because they engage all muscles not just the shoulders or the arms but also the legs and the abdominals. Here are some appropriate postures:

8. Getting your heart rate up

Most of us think that getting the heart’s rate up by doing jogging is the best possible way to lose excess weight but research has shown that this is a misconception and not a great way to lose weight at all. This could make a stressed, nervous system even more exhausted, and it could lead to adrenal fatigue (a term applied to a collection of nonspecific symptoms, such as body aches, fatigue, nervousness, sleep disturbances and digestive issues). The best thing you can do to lose weight is getting the heart rate up for a short burst and then dropping it back down and so on. This can be achieved through an appropriate yoga practice.

Starting in a standing position at the front of your mat, you should do two slow rounds of sun salutations (Surya Namaskar), and then you should come back to the standing position and connect your heart with your palms together and your eyes closed. You should repeat this again at a faster pace and continue a few rounds. This way, you’ll have your heart at an optimum level without getting tired as you do from doing jogging.

9. Cleansing the colon

Sometimes we have food matter blocked up into our colons, and this makes them very bloated, and severe bloating can appear as overweight or even as obesity. If this condition is left untreated, it can lead to blood poisoning and then to various diseases.

You might have heard the saying that “disease begins in the gut”. This is true and, for instance, some people who consume lots of meat or individuals who suffer from constipation shouldn’t do any inversions because the bad blood will rush to higher organs and it will also disturb the mind. Instead, such cases might need colonic irrigation. Drinking clean water free of chemicals is vital because it will help flush the waste away and it will maintain the intestinal flora healthy.

10. Encouraging sound sleep

Studies have shown that sleep deprivation can affect the production of leptin a hormone that tells our brain when we feel hungry or not, and it slows the metabolism accordingly. It can put us very fast on the track to obesity. The meditative qualities of Yoga can help create a quieter mind, and this is the foundation for a good night’s rest. You should try a few restorative poses before going to bed for a restful slumber.

11. Teaching us discipline

A few months of practicing Yoga will make us notice the mental aspects including focus, calmness, clarity and restraint and these will come to define our common mental state. Such sense of discipline and mindfulness are essential for a successful weight loss, especially when it comes to our eating habits. As our mind and bodies will become more in tune with one another, we’ll notice a lack of interest in unhealthy foods and this is crucial if we want to lose excess kilos.

Advice for Eating Like a Yoga Expert

Conclusion

All the Yoga postures that we’ve suggested should only be practiced under the guidance of a good Yoga teacher. When they are used consistently and regularly and also combined with healthy eating habits, they will help balance the body and the mind, quickly restoring the practitioner’s health.

When you’re thinking about losing excess weight, you should think big picture and consider not only your physical body but also the mind and spirit. Yoga teaches us self-awareness which is vital for long-term changes.^[3]

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