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While perfect for balance, and strength training, can doing Yoga for weight loss really work? The short answer is yes and here are my favorite DVD’s that can help you with your goals.
Quick Answer: The 3 Best Rated Yoga DVDs For Weight Loss
First lets take a look at the Yoga for Weight Loss DVD’s, then we’ll talk about how Yoga can help you lose weight.
Best Weight Loss Yoga DVDs
Yoga Weight Loss DVD Reviews
#1 Yoga For Weight Loss DVDs
This popular program by BodyWisdom, packs 35 routines into three CDs to create a versatile, and customizable Yoga experience.
The traditional Yoga for Weight Loss work out plan, is accompanied by the Flow Yoga DVD, which provides exercises geared towards building strength and improving flexibility, as well as the Power Yoga program.
Although this DVD does have options specifically for beginners, it’s also a great tool for someone who knows the basic poses in Yoga, and wants to build on their introductory knowledge. This program is easy to interact with, as it allows you to customize your work out in terms of difficulty and physical goals.
With varying length of time in workouts, and a progressive learning style, this program helps you stay engaged and motivated. In my opinion, this is the best Yoga DVD for weight loss.
#2 Biggest Loser: Weight Loss Yoga DVD
You have undoubtedly heard of the show “The Biggest Loser” where its one of the few times where being a “loser” is good!
Fitness and healthy-living guru Bob Harper, packs this plan with his knowledge about physical fitness and healthy eating.
Bob combines a traditional type workout with exercises like lunges and fuses it with Yoga poses for a calories burning workout that gives you the best of both worlds.
This is a 55 minute total workout if you do the whole DVD but its divided up into 3 separate workouts with each focusing on a different area of the body.
With the Menu options you can pick and choose which you want to do if you are not going to do the whole DVD. Between the workouts there is a 5 minute warm-up and cool down so there are breaks.
The first workout focuses core strength Yoga training with lunges, stretches and planks. Workout two is primarily abs while the third workout is more traditional that can be done with light hand weights for even more of a workout.
What I really like about the Biggest Loser DVD is the fact that the people you are doing the workout with on the DVD are not “perfect” model type actors. They are real people who are not Yoga Masters, their form is not always perfect but that’s what I like about it, you can really relate to them.
This is a tough workout that when you are done with it, you feel tired but great at the same time! You will get great results if you stick with it.
#3 Yoga For Weight Loss for Beginners DVD
This is claimed to be a beginners workout but in my opinion it is a little more of a intermediate level. The first section is mostly beginner focused but with workouts two and three it is helpful if you have some experience. See my Yoga for beginner DVD’s.
Maggie Rhodes will lead you through three separate sections, like I mentioned above, section one is mostly beginner based where she flows through basic poses that vary in length.
It’s an excellent workout, slow enough for beginners to practice their form but fast enough to feel like you are burning some calories.
Section two which is my favorite, is challenging and why I say it’s helpful to have some previous experience with Yoga. This section is a full body workout, you will feel your arms, legs and core burning and your heart racing.
You will feel like you have worked out when you are done! Section three is the “Beyond” and Maggie introduces some light weights and resistance bands into the routines for an even greater workout.
She gives you good instruction into how to do the poses and what I really like about doing Yoga at home with a DVD is you can practice as many times as you want to get it right. You just can’t do that in a class.
This is a well done DVD with good calorie burning routines. As a bonus it is filmed in Antigua on the beach providing a beautiful, tranquil backdrop.
Yes4All Yoga Starter Kit
The Yes4All Yoga Starter Kit is ideal for the beginner who is looking to delve into Yoga fully prepared. This kit provides you with all of the props and tools you will need to perform a thorough work out. The kit includes a mat, foam blocks, Yoga straps, and a Yoga towel.
The cushioned mat and foam blocks ensure that you experience your Yoga workout in comfort, as well as have the ability to properly execute poses. This affordable option will provide everything you need to look like a Yoga expert.
How to Choose the Best Weight Loss Yoga DVD
Yoga is one of the oldest forms of exercise, originating in India almost 5,000 years ago. Originally described in some of Hinduism’s oldest texts, the Vedas, Yoga has evolved from a spiritual ritual, to one of today’s most popular forms of fitness.
Due to its versatility and gentle nature, as well as the ability to lighten moods and build strength, Yoga has easily modernized and integrated itself into workout programs everywhere.
Yoga studios are popular fitness hubs, but Yoga can easily be performed at home, or at the park too. We even have the modern luxury of accessing yoga exercises through apps on our smartphones.
Yoga is a great alternative to more traditional and intensive work out methods because it can cater to a variety of people. Anyone from children to senior citizens can keep up with the various poses, and can follow the versatile work out routines.
Yoga For Weight Loss?
Yoga is used primarily to strengthen, improve coordination, and work on balance, however, it does have weight loss benefits that cannot be overlooked. Although not as effective as intense cardio workouts at burning fat, more gentle forms of yoga will still burn 150 calories an hour.
If you want to take your workout up a notch, more intense forms, such as Bikram (hot yoga), can help you burn up to 475 calories an hour. In hot yoga you practice your routines in rooms heated up to 104 degrees for maximum burn and sweat!
Many people are shocked at the numerous weight loss benefits in yoga. People often ponder how they can lose weight simply by stretching and doing a few poses on a mat. Contrary to these critics, yoga has proven itself numerous times to be an effective weight loss method.
In addition to hot yoga, there are numerous “yoga for weight loss” programs that incorporate poses from different genres of yoga into one program.
These mixed programs often have a time of stretching, a time of challenging poses that take focus and controlled breathing (firming the core), and even a possible cardiovascular focused portion, incorporating yoga poses.
In 2005, the National Cancer Institute ran a study evaluating the weight loss claims regarding Yoga. They found that participants who attended at least one weekly session of yoga were seeing weight loss achievement, while participants who did not attend, actually gained weight.
The American Journal of Managed Care also concluded Yoga promotes weight loss, even when practicing more gentle forms such as Restorative Yoga, which focuses on relaxation and stress reduction.
How Does Yoga Help You Lose Weight?
For one, the calorie burning aspect works exactly as any other work out program. If you burn more calories than you take in, you will lose weight. However, it is also believed that Yoga’s relaxing approach helps to reduce an important hormone called cortisol.
This is what we feel coursing through our bodies when we are stressed out. The Thomas Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia performed studies to show that practicing Yoga decreased levels of Cortisol immediately and significantly.
This is important because cortisol is one of the hormones that helps our bodies hold onto fat, and too much cortisol in our system can make losing weight more difficult. Although Yoga does not have quite the same weight loss impact that more intense cardio focused workouts do.
However, when combined with a healthy lifestyle and proper nutrition, it can help you reach your goals in a more fun and interactive way, than dieting alone.
Though numerous gyms and yoga studios have gotten on board with yoga for weight loss programs, this is also a program that can be taken to the living room. Many DVDs feature creative yogis ready to either introduce you to the world of yoga or help you fine tune your current yoga skills.
Obviously, you cannot do hot yoga at home—but there are many other high quality programs designed specifically for weight loss.
Yoga For Weight Loss Gets Results!
Yoga is beneficial not only because it helps us get our bodies in shape and lose weight, but because it a promotes a healthy mental mindset too. Studies show that our bodies are most successful at weight loss, when our minds are dedicated and focused on our goals as well.
With so many different styles of Yoga to choose from, and the ability to tailor exercises to personal strengths and abilities, Yoga is an ideal option for individuals who wants to lose weight and feel good too.
Hopefully I have convinced you that adding yoga to your weight loss routine will benefit you.
How We Researched
To come up with the top yoga for weight loss DVDs, we researched a variety of sources for reviews such as Best Buy, Walmart, Target and Sears along with our own personal experience.
The authors consulted sources such as online magazines for research and reviews unbiased information.
By using Fakespot.com we tried to eliminate fake reviews and use only genuine ones.
With so many options available, the authors narrowed down the selections by using products they felt were the best value for the money.
The staff authors have a wide and varied background as fitness trainers, yoga instructors and runners. The authors have decades of experience and are eager to share their knowledge with readers.
In order to narrow down the options, we used personal experiences plus recommendations from other trainers and instructors.
Sources
I hope this guide was helpful for finding the Best Weight Loss Yoga DVD to fit your needs. If you want to comment or recommend a DVD I didn’t include, please use my contact form to get in touch.
Have fun and enjoy your workout!
Review Overview
Quality of Yoga Routines
Losing Weight
Value
The Yoga For Weight Loss DVD series is my favorite by a narrow margin. The quality of the Yoga routines will challenge you in ways that other DVD programs do not.