My Yoga for Life » Yoga can help you lose weight

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I found this article on one of my favorite sites, Yoga Journal. I thought it would shed some light on how Yoga can help you lose weight.

Yoga is so much more than a weight-loss program, but it has helped many people shed extra pounds, even some who have spent years trying to slim down in other ways without success. Studies show that a complete yoga program—asana, breathing techniques, and meditation—can peel off the pounds.

How does yoga do it? Well, the most obvious explanation is all the calories burned practicing asana, especially in vigorous yoga classes. Still, many students lose weight even when their yoga practice is gentle and doesn’t burn that many calories.

LESS STRESS A less obvious explanation is that yoga helps reduce stress. In response to stress, levels of the hormone cortisol rise; for people who continue to worry, those levels can stay high. Elevated cortisol levels not only stimulate eating, they ensure that any additional calories are efficiently converted to fat. Worse, under the influence of cortisol, that fat tends to get deposited in the abdomen, a particularly unhealthy place. Big bellies are linked to insulin resistance—a precursor to Type 2 (adult-onset) diabetes—and heart disease. By combating stress, yoga helps normalize cortisol levels.

Continue Reading at Yoga Journal