Is yoga strength training? Depending on the style that you practise, yes — however its suitability also depends upon your fitness goals. Light yoga won’t build strength and get you ready for a power-lifting competition however the muscle-building yoga styles can offer the benefits of regular strength training. The more strenuous, muscle-building styles of yoga could very well be considered to be strength-training activities, as long as these are targeting the muscles in your whole body.
If there’s one authority that you should be consulting on how much you need to exercise to remain fit, it’s the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in the United States, which releases a new collection of physical activity guidelines every couple of years. Those guidelines are based on the most up-to-date exercise science, and the 2015-2020 edition recommends strength-training all your main muscle groups two times per week.
If you dive a bit deeper into the extended version of the HHS guidelines, you’ll find that “some yoga postures” are mentioned particularly as an option for strength training. So if you’re doing the correct type of muscle-building yoga then yes, it can count as strength training regarding health purposes.
Not All Yoga Styles Are Created Equal
This is what part of what draws many yogis to the practice in the first place. If your practice resolves around a gentle and restorative style such as yin yoga or Kripalu yoga, then strength-training won’t be among the advantages it can offer. However if you’re doing a more strenuous style like Hatha yoga, Ashtanga yoga or power yoga, you’ll be developing muscular strength and endurance.
That doesn’t mean that you should stop doing gentle yoga. Gentle styles might be a better fit for some bodies, lifestyles as well as spiritual attitudes as opposed to the vigorous styles — and they can offer many of the potential benefits of yoga spelled out by the National Centre for Complementary and Integrative Health. These include stress relief; improving sleep and emotional balance; better emotional health and resilience; managing anxiety and depression; increased flexibility; and more.
Can Yoga Really Build Muscle?
When you do yoga asanas, you’re putting your body in positions and orientations which you ultimately need to support with your muscles. So ultimately you are lifting weights. The consequence is that you are able to increase muscle tone and definition — and even muscle size — with yoga. However because you’re limited to “lifting” your own body weight, it may take a lot more skill, time, and determination than it would with lifting weights.
Asanas To Help With Building Muscle
Four-Limbed Staff Pose (Chaturanga Dandasana)
It really doesn’t do you a lot of good for you to put so much effort into your triceps if your shoulders will give out in a number of years. Assuming that your alignment in great, you aren’t able to beat Chaturanga when it comes to arm strength in addition to shoulders, back, and core. It is basically a mindful push-up and you are able to treat it as such. Rather than one Chaturanga, try doing five in a row and then back to Plank each time. Also, you can also hold the low position or include an extra Chaturanga after your Upward Facing Dog in a classic vinyasa. As with Plank, dropping your knees to the mat is a wonderful option for beginners.
Cobra Pose (Bhujangasana)
The Low Cobra is much more than just a stepping stone to Upward Facing Dog. It provides the rare opportunity to tap into the muscles which are underused in your back. In order to make the most of Cobra’s strengthening potential, you first need to take a solemn vow not to cheat this asana.
When we say that you need to lift your chest up as high as possible, all of a sudden individuals begin pressing into their palms as well as straightening their arms and yes, their chests do come up higher, however they haven’t utilised their back muscles at all.
So first of all reconcile yourself to the idea that your Cobra is going will need to be pretty low. You are going have to make sure that your elbows bending straight back and not putting any pressure into your hands to assist you to lift up.
Warrior Ii (Virabhadrasana Ii)
This standing asana strengthens your legs, core, arms as well as back. In order to get the most strengthening power out of this asana, set yourself up with the best possible alignment. After this, go for a longer hold time, possibly up to ten breaths.
Your foot alignment, with your front heel lined up with the back arch, makes this a little of a balance, necessitating core strength in order to steady the wobbles. You will actually feel some muscle fatigue in your front thigh when you deepen your front knee sufficiently to bring the thigh parallel to the floor. Holding your arms outstretched also works the biceps and deltoids.
Contact Trifocus Fitness Academy
Keen on learning more about yoga? If you are then you need to do our Yoga Instructor Course. Follow this link to find out more.
