7 Reasons Why a Yoga Workout is Better Than the Gym

Yoga a workout that promotes weight loss, prevents and manages health problems, and uplifts your stamina and spirit.

Nowadays, people can choose an abundant of workouts that suit their personality, lifestyle, fitness and even finance. Little are some aware that yoga is a workout that blends numerous benefits, from soothing your mental state to boosting up your physical agility.

Even though it varies from person to person, but many have become over-saturated with plain exercise machines. Gym mainly helps with structuring and styling up bodies. So this sweat-overwhelmed, crowd-cramped place is merely useful for people who are aiming to pump up the muscles. Yoga not only does that but it helps you lose weight, improves flexibility and pain tolerance amongst other things. Without further ado, here are the top seven reasons why you should opt for yoga than the gym.

Yoga is a full body workout

Yoga is the most efficient body workout designated to keep you both in shape, tone your body and muscles naturally, and enhance your mind and spirit. The fact you are able to truly focus on yourself and infuse your spiritual energy is something that could never be achieved in the gym. With so many different poses yoga targets each and every muscle in your body.

Depending on the poses you are doing here are some examples for each muscle group:

• Arms: Poses like the ‘’crane’’ or the ‘’crow’’ are very challenging for your arms as you are supporting your full body weight.
• Core: Almost every pose targets the core. More prominent ones are the very popular ‘’plank’’ and the ‘’boat’’ pose.
• Back: Our back is our biggest muscle group so it’s not surprising that many poses target your back. Poses like the ‘’downward-facing dog’’, ‘’child’s’’ pose and the ‘’cow‘’ pose all help improve and stretch your back muscles. Yoga is widely recommended as one of the best solutions for your lower back pain.

Yoga fights off stress

You are probably aware that any form of workout can help you relieve from stress and agitation.

Consequently, since working out helps us calm our nerves, going to the bustling and hectic gym can create an opposite effect. Gyms being constantly crowded with loud music playing can make the exercise environment daunting and nerve-wracking. People who practice yoga on a daily basis have reported that they live an utterly stress-free life. Unlike with gym, where you are pressured to either lose weight or pump up muscles, doing yoga will help you soothe your emotions, improve your well-being, and helps you clear out the clutter from your mind.

Yoga can be done anywhere

Unlike in the crowded and jammed space, yoga is a type of exercise that can be done anytime, anywhere. The most fantastic thing is that the only equipment you need is a quality yoga mat and you can do your mindful routine anywhere you desire. Whether you opt for the comfort of your living room, or you want to get connected with nature and go outside in your backyard, you only need to carry your mat. Whereas the gym requires complete equipment, weights, accessories, and proper space. Plus, you can bring your yoga mat with you on your travels. If you are skiing in the mountains or relaxing on the beach on a summer holiday, you can always find time to do yoga!

Yoga acts as a pain reliever

Yoga is done at a slower pace, and you are the one who controls the rhythm and the form of the workout.

In many sporting activities, there is bound to be some kind of injury from time to time. For people who are keen gym-goers, injuries, muscle souring, pains, and aches are an inevitable part of the workout. Maybe they are fond followers of the saying “no pain, no gain”, but that is not always productive. Some aches and injuries can lead to far greater bodily troubles, even leading to not being able to do any form of workout at all. Therefore, the gym only increases the pain rather than relieves you from it. The living proof of this is Täo Porchon-Lynch a 100-year young lady that proves that with a correct lifestyle you can still practice yoga at a ripe age.

Yoga is super efficient

One very common taboo is that you cannot get the same results with yoga as with doing a workout at the gym. In the gym, you need to spend hours and hours doing one exercise at a time, focusing on one muscle group. Then after a certain period, you can continue on the next muscle group and so on. Yoga has been here for around 5,000 years so we could say it had time to develop in a way that everyone can find what they need. With over 100 forms it covers every possible muscle in our body.

One of the most popular ones are:

• Hatha: This is the one that we all think about when we say yoga. The basic movements and breathing techniques that are a good starting point for anyone.
• Vinyasa: “Those who flow as life flows know they need no other force.” Lao Tzu

A series of more advanced poses that flow right into each other.

• Power: High-intensity yoga that builds muscle
• Bikram Yoga (Hot yoga): Series of 26 challenges performed in a room with a raised temperature.

Yoga is for everyone

Even though some people might not reckon this as an important factor, the fact that there is no age barrier to doing yoga is more than fantastic. You are the one who sets the limits, so it can be as easy and difficult as you make it. The gym is more for people who are willing to engage in vigorous and physically demanding training, whereas yoga can be practiced by anyone. Even the fitness level is irrelevant.

Yoga improves concentration

In order to properly do yoga you need to breathe in deeply and mind the surroundings. That requires patience and full concentration. By focusing on your poses and shutting off your mind from the outside world, you can experience every small activity and muscle movement that your body does. As you improve your concentration by doing yoga, you will notice an increase in your ability to handle your day to day problems.

All things considered, yoga is a complete body workout, that could help you prosper in more ways than just your physical look.