Yoga and weight loss****Update***

[Jdbsfw]

If you’ve never really lifted weights before you likely would see immediate results, within a couple of weeks anyway. Do some trap bar deadlifts (“safer” than traditional deads) and some lat bar pull downs (not behind the head) either squats or leg presses (squats preferably) and some sort of chest and shoulder press and you will be amazed

 

[kirstenb1]

Your age has something to do with weight loss. The older you are, it is a lot harder to loose weight. Yoga will make you stronger, especially in your core, since most moves deal with the core.
I belong to my local YMCA and we have a lot of Les Mills classes. I take a core class called CRX once a week, and it really helps my back. Strengthening your core is key. I also take a Kick boxing class which is called Body Combat, lift twice a week with weights-Body Pump and a spin class for 30 minutes twice a week. It helps to change up your work out too. Your body will get used to doing the same exercises, so it is good to change up routines. Plus, they say to loose weight, 80% is what you eat, exercising is only 20% beneficial. Download MyFitnessPal, it is free and it will tell you how many calories you need in a day to loose weight, after you put in all your info.

With the exception of spin, I take the exact same classes!! I love them! Our CX Worx is only 30 minutes, and all core, so I throw in 30 cardio that day. OP, think about taking group classes. I absolutely hate weightlifting, yet I do it 2-3 times a week in Body Pump or RIP. Body Combat is my favorite cardio/core blasting workout. I have tried Yoga, but I need something that moves at a fast pace.

 

[Tattylou]

I exclusively did Bikram yoga for about 2 years at one point in my life (5 days/week) and I was in the best shape of my life without changing anything of my diet. I lost pounds and inches. Before I got into Bikram Yoga, I used to do weights and spin classes so I had been active prior, but the Bikram took my body to new levels. Sadly, once I had babies, it was hard to fit the Bikram in regularly when they were tiny and then the studio near my house closed. Bikeam is 26 postures done in an hour and a half in about 100 degree room (literally 100 degrees). I've done lots types of hot yoga in my life, but nothing made the changes in my body that Bikram did.

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

With the exception of spin, I take the exact same classes!! I love them! Our CX Worx is only 30 minutes, and all core, so I throw in 30 cardio that day. OP, think about taking group classes. I absolutely hate weightlifting, yet I do it 2-3 times a week in Body Pump or RIP. Body Combat is my favorite cardio/core blasting workout. I have tried Yoga, but I need something that moves at a fast pace.

LOVE Body Pump.

 

[Miffy]

Have you looked into intermittent fasting? There are several different approaches to it and one might work for you.

 

[AnnaFloridaLover]

I'm 51. I do high intensity interval cardio at least three times a week. I also lift weights three times a week, sadly no more than 30 pounds. The weights have toned my thighs and arms where cardio couldn't. Yoga I do at least twice a week for an hour. Yoga is amazing for your body but you won't lose much weight doing it (in my experience).

I usually stick to the Beach Body videos and now subscribe to Beachbody on demand. They really do have the best of the best home exercise videos out there.

Diet and exercise together. Whole foods and I don't cook with any kind of oil. Stir frys for dinner with mushrooms, spinach, onion, green peppers, garlic, soy sauce and any other kind of green veggie. Celery, bok choy, broccoli, cauliflower, grated ginger. Basically any veggie you have in your fridge or you want to add. Use water when needed instead of oil. The fat you eat is the fat you wear.

Breakfast is oatmeal with half a banana and a kiwi or with frozen fruit, depending what I have. Or a green smoothie in my Vitamix containing spinach or kale, cucumber, apple, lemon, ice, water, parsley, or whatever veggies I have on hand.

Lunch is a HUGE salad of mixed greens, chopped apple, cucumber, kale, red peppers, cherry tomatoes, parsley or whatever salad stuff I have in my fridge. For salad dressing squeeze a whole lime into greens and mix. Top about 5 tbsps of hulled hemp seeds. Delicious and almost zero fat.

Berries and watermelon are extremely healthy too. I usually eat one or two pieces of fruit a day and the rest of my diet is veggies since most fruit contains a lot of sugar.

Potatoes are great, no oil or butter, roasted on parchment paper for crispness with parsnips, Brussel sprouts, onions, carrots, beets.

I also cook tofu quite a bit and I don't eat bread or rice for the most part. About once a week I will eat quinoa.

This way of eating for me is a lifestyle not dieting. I don't have to weigh anything eating like this. Basically I eat as much as I want. Moderation dieting has never worked for me, nor counting calories or weighing food.

Eating and exercising this way has allowed me to maintain a slim, toned (for 51) figure.

 

[lorilclevelandrn]

Reformer Pilates!!!

 

[Disneylovingmomof2]

I did a lot of yoga in my 20s and was in great shape. Since then I’ve had two babies and am just recently getting back into yoga (I am noticing a difference already with just one flow class a week). I lift weights, don’t do much cardio (if I do I try to make it hiit). I personally hate running! I ride my bike and try to walk as much as possible. You say you gained a lb but how do your clothes fit? I try not to worry too much about the number bc I don’t lose a lot in actual lbs but I can tell bc of my clothes and how I feel. The weights keep me pretty heavy in general bc of muscle mass.
I also don’t diet or do calorie deficits like that. I try to stick to eggs, avocado, tuna, fruits, veggies, oatmeal, etc in general but I eat snacks and have taco nights/pizza nights and wine when I want. Honestly a constant calorie deficit will impact your metabolism. Intermittent fasting may help but I have friends who say they never noticed a significant difference. You would have to try and see if it works for you. Have you tried any proteins or bcaa supplements? Collagen?
ETA- sorry I just realized you said your clothes don’t feel different. Honestly if it were me I’d cut the running and the huge calorie deficit and do yoga/weights, high protein and try out some supplements.

 

[Sabeking]

If you’ve never really lifted weights before you likely would see immediate results, within a couple of weeks anyway. Do some trap bar deadlifts (“safer” than traditional deads) and some lat bar pull downs (not behind the head) either squats or leg presses (squats preferably) and some sort of chest and shoulder press and you will be amazed

When I was training for marathons I was constantly doing weights. I would run 5 miles to the gym; do a boot camp class with weights and then run 5 miles home. I haven’t done weights in a few years. I guess I just have slowed down too much and need to get back to my old routine somewhat.

 

[Sabeking]

Have you looked into intermittent fasting? There are several different approaches to it and one might work for you.

I will look into this for sure!

 

[Sabeking]

I exclusively did Bikram yoga for about 2 years at one point in my life (5 days/week) and I was in the best shape of my life without changing anything of my diet. I lost pounds and inches. Before I got into Bikram Yoga, I used to do weights and spin classes so I had been active prior, but the Bikram took my body to new levels. Sadly, once I had babies, it was hard to fit the Bikram in regularly when they were tiny and then the studio near my house closed. Bikeam is 26 postures done in an hour and a half in about 100 degree room (literally 100 degrees). I've done lots types of hot yoga in my life, but nothing made the changes in my body that Bikram did.

What is Bikram yoga??

 

[tinkerdorabelle]

Totally agree with weight training. My husband had me doing weight training with him starting over 25 years ago and I really do not diet or struggle with my weight. I'm not a big sugar eater tho but I attribute it mostly to always having done weight training. Muscle burns more calories that simple. But, do not get so hung up on the scale as muscle weighs more. I am also in my 50s. I also do yoga for many reasons and love it and highly recommend it.

 

[Christine]

Totally agree with weight training. My husband had me doing weight training with him starting over 25 years ago and I really do not diet or struggle with my weight. I'm not a big sugar eater tho but I attribute it totally to always having done weight training. Muscle burns more calories that simple. But, do not get so hung up on scale as muscle weighs more so u may not realize u are burning fat. I also do yoga for many reasons and love it.

I agree with you on this with the muscle. I am 54 years old now and keep wishing I could get into weight training. I absolutely believe that AGE, in and of itself, is not what makes weight loss slow down but the decrease in muscle mass that comes along with it. Once a woman is in the late stages of peri menopause or goes into menopause finally, the estrogen and testosterone drops and the natural decline in muscle mass speeds up. I have noticed a huge difference in my body over the last 2 years since menopause kicked in. It's not that I had two birthdays. It's that the lack of hormones are taking their toll. I know the answer for me is to increase muscle mass.

And this comment is not attributable to tinkerdorabelle who I've quoted here, but I spend a lot of time reading the forums on MyFitnessPal. While there is a lot of people with bizarre theories posting on there, there are a lot of knowledgeable people on there with nutrition and science backgrounds. One thing that they all agree on is that there really isn't a starvation mode caused by restricting calories. At least not in the way that we are thinking. Yes, when you restrict calories, your body shifts over to a different way of finding fuel but you won't ruin your metabolism or stop losing weight. If that were the case, anorexics would never get down to 80 lbs and go into crisis. But, you can restrict yourself in such a way that you are eating unhealthy and you aren't losing excess weight but losing muscle mass more than you should. Once you lose muscle mass, your efforts to lose weight get harder and harder because you are then burning even less. Yo-Yo dieting makes it worse because each time you are on the downside of the yo-yo, you continue to lose muscle. It does impact your weight loss but not in the way that you think.

Some of the longest living populations have been found to have fairly low calorie daily diets. As you age, even lifting weights, you have less muscle mass than a 20 year old (unless your are dedicating a lot of your day toward building muscle), so you actually require less calories to live and NOT gain weight. It's a sad fact because, unfortunately, I don't think the appetite disappears.

I spent considerable time last year doing "healthy" almost vegetarian eating without counting calories. I have a large appetite and yes, I gained weight eating veggies and salads because I can eat a lot. I find that I have to have a combination of both where I watch my calories too. Right now, at 54 and 149 pounds (5'7") I am eating about 1600 calories a day. Can you believe I am not losing weight on that, I am just maintaining. 20 years ago, that would have resulted in a significant weight loss for me. But I am older, much less muscle mass, and extremely sedentary with my desk job. I know what the answer is for me (increasing muscle mass and movement) in order to get my weight to about 140, which is perfect for me.

 

[tinkerdorabelle]

I agree with you on this with the muscle. I am 54 years old now and keep wishing I could get into weight training. I absolutely believe that AGE, in and of itself, is not what makes weight loss slow down but the decrease in muscle mass that comes along with it. Once a woman is in the late stages of peri menopause or goes into menopause finally, the estrogen and testosterone drops and the natural decline in muscle mass speeds up. I have noticed a huge difference in my body over the last 2 years since menopause kicked in. It's not that I had two birthdays. It's that the lack of hormones are taking their toll. I know the answer for me is to increase muscle mass.

And this comment is not attributable to tinkerdorabelle who I've quoted here, but I spend a lot of time reading the forums on MyFitnessPal. While there is a lot of people with bizarre theories posting on there, there are a lot of knowledgeable people on there with nutrition and science backgrounds. One thing that they all agree on is that there really isn't a starvation mode caused by restricting calories. At least not in the way that we are thinking. Yes, when you restrict calories, your body shifts over to a different way of finding fuel but you won't ruin your metabolism or stop losing weight. If that were the case, anorexics would never get down to 80 lbs and go into crisis. But, you can restrict yourself in such a way that you are eating unhealthy and you aren't losing excess weight but losing muscle mass more than you should. Once you lose muscle mass, your efforts to lose weight get harder and harder because you are then burning even less. Yo-Yo dieting makes it worse because each time you are on the downside of the yo-yo, you continue to lose muscle. It does impact your weight loss but not in the way that you think.

Some of the longest living populations have been found to have fairly low calorie daily diets. As you age, even lifting weights, you have less muscle mass than a 20 year old (unless your are dedicating a lot of your day toward building muscle), so you actually require less calories to live and NOT gain weight. It's a sad fact because, unfortunately, I don't think the appetite disappears.

I spent considerable time last year doing "healthy" almost vegetarian eating without counting calories. I have a large appetite and yes, I gained weight eating veggies and salads because I can eat a lot. I find that I have to have a combination of both where I watch my calories too. Right now, at 54 and 149 pounds (5'7") I am eating about 1600 calories a day. Can you believe I am not losing weight on that, I am just maintaining. 20 years ago, that would have resulted in a significant weight loss for me. But I am older, much less muscle mass, and extremely sedentary with my desk job. I know what the answer is for me (increasing muscle mass and movement) in order to get my weight to about 140, which is perfect for me.

You seem very smart with this and I think you will do well. I totally agree it is absolutely harder now after I turned 50 and went into menopause to keep the muscles toned the way I had in the past, and have seen muscle mass loss, but I started early with it, probably would never had gone into weight training if it weren't for my husband who did it. And yoga does wonders for me. I think also stress makes you gain weight which the imbalances that go on in your body with your hormones, etc., and yoga can really help with that, and toning. There is also weight bearing with yoga. Also with recovery as it brings blood and circulation into places you don't really go with many workouts. Make sure you get enough protein, that is key to building and keeping muscle mass, that can be an issue for me as I'm not a huge meat eater myself. I also recently went to the doctors and he said I had a huge vitamin D deficiency to the point that she gave me a prescription for it. I'm an outdoors person, we also like to bike ride, kayak, take walks, etc., so this really surprised me but this past winter was rough where I live. I think that things like that also get thrown off with menopause at least in my case, so make sure you get all your vitamins you're supposed to also. Not every one thing works for everyone as everyone's body's are different, you have to learn your own body and the changes occurring with menopause, and you seem to be really good in that area.

 

[Tattylou]

What is Bikram yoga??

It's 90 mins in heated room, 26 postures. A man named Bikram sort of copy righted this particular series of postures. Some yogis think he's greedy. I just know it worked for me. You can Google Bikram yoga.

 

[loves to dive]

It is possible to over exercise, under eat and gain weight. As others have said, your body is an amazing thing and it is going to do everything it can to hold on to body fat to survive. It's a delicate balance and alas, as we get older it's needs change, our metabolism change and it gets harder to get that balance, and if you are a woman it sucks big time. I was in the best shape of my life at 50, we went on a dive trip to Saba and on my 50th birthday I wore a string bikini and it looked good. As I've aged, I've found I can't work out as intensely as I used to, my body just won't let me. I blew out both of my knees jogging so my cardio now has to be walking, which is probably better for me to start with. I can't work out 6 days a week like I used to, now it's 3 days a week, those rest days are important. I eat smaller meals than I ever have, again as we get older we don't usually want big meals and I know I get full easier. I mix up my workouts and make sure I get cardio, strength, some sort of ab work and some sort of yoga type stretching in every week. I'm 61 years old and am heavier than I was at 50 but can still keep up with my 37 year old son when we go to WDW, still lug my own dive equipment around. It does take longer to get out of bed every morning since I have to lay there and stretch all the different aches and pains out of my body and decide what is going to hurt worse that day. Just move your body, eat less but not too much less and eat healthy and don't worry about the scale and the size of your clothes.

 

[morgan98]

I'm 51. I do high intensity interval cardio at least three times a week. I also lift weights three times a week, sadly no more than 30 pounds. The weights have toned my thighs and arms where cardio couldn't. Yoga I do at least twice a week for an hour. Yoga is amazing for your body but you won't lose much weight doing it (in my experience).

I usually stick to the Beach Body videos and now subscribe to Beachbody on demand. They really do have the best of the best home exercise videos out there.

Diet and exercise together. Whole foods and I don't cook with any kind of oil. Stir frys for dinner with mushrooms, spinach, onion, green peppers, garlic, soy sauce and any other kind of green veggie. Celery, bok choy, broccoli, cauliflower, grated ginger. Basically any veggie you have in your fridge or you want to add. Use water when needed instead of oil. The fat you eat is the fat you wear.

Breakfast is oatmeal with half a banana and a kiwi or with frozen fruit, depending what I have. Or a green smoothie in my Vitamix containing spinach or kale, cucumber, apple, lemon, ice, water, parsley, or whatever veggies I have on hand.

Lunch is a HUGE salad of mixed greens, chopped apple, cucumber, kale, red peppers, cherry tomatoes, parsley or whatever salad stuff I have in my fridge. For salad dressing squeeze a whole lime into greens and mix. Top about 5 tbsps of hulled hemp seeds. Delicious and almost zero fat.

Berries and watermelon are extremely healthy too. I usually eat one or two pieces of fruit a day and the rest of my diet is veggies since most fruit contains a lot of sugar.

Potatoes are great, no oil or butter, roasted on parchment paper for crispness with parsnips, Brussel sprouts, onions, carrots, beets.

I also cook tofu quite a bit and I don't eat bread or rice for the most part. About once a week I will eat quinoa.

This way of eating for me is a lifestyle not dieting. I don't have to weigh anything eating like this. Basically I eat as much as I want. Moderation dieting has never worked for me, nor counting calories or weighing food.

Eating and exercising this way has allowed me to maintain a slim, toned (for 51) figure.

This is similar to what I follow for a workout routine. The cardio I do is never more than 30 minutes, but very high intensity at different speeds, inclines, etc. to max out my heart rate, recover some, and peak again. When I am done, you can wring out my shirt and I am hot for a good 90 minutes afterwards. I alternate that with weights and the highest I use is 30 pounds too. I am 48 and also toned for my age.

We do eat fish, chicken and modest portions of red meat (not regularly) and really do balance carbs (more whole grains) and lots of fruits and vegetables. At home, we eat very little processed food. However, at work, I try to make the best choices I can with what is offered for meals. (I have a position with regular lunch meetings and some dinners). However, I do enjoy a bit of other things too.

I loosely follow the Body For Life program and have for about 14 years now. This has become my life style. If I do feel like I am a bit off track, eating more protein and paying more attention to carbs and sugar does help.

ETA: I tried a bit of yoga probably 5-6 years ago, and quite frankly hated it. I am no really that coordinated and am uncomfortable in class settings. However, finding something you like and that challenges you, that you can stick with makes a huge difference.

 

[AnnaFloridaLover]

This is similar to what I follow for a workout routine. The cardio I do is never more than 30 minutes, but very high intensity at different speeds, inclines, etc. to max out my heart rate, recover some, and peak again. When I am done, you can wring out my shirt and I am hot for a good 90 minutes afterwards. I alternate that with weights and the highest I use is 30 pounds too. I am 48 and also toned for my age.

We do eat fish, chicken and modest portions of red meat (not regularly) and really do balance carbs (more whole grains) and lots of fruits and vegetables. At home, we eat very little processed food. However, at work, I try to make the best choices I can with what is offered for meals. (I have a position with regular lunch meetings and some dinners). However, I do enjoy a bit of other things too.

I loosely follow the Body For Life program and have for about 14 years now. This has become my life style. If I do feel like I am a bit off track, eating more protein and paying more attention to carbs and sugar does help.

ETA: I tried a bit of yoga probably 5-6 years ago, and quite frankly hated it. I am no really that coordinated and am uncomfortable in class settings. However, finding something you like and that challenges you, that you can stick with makes a huge difference.

Some yoga programs are better than others and I've found a few that I really love. There are a few moves I can't do but I just do something else. I only do yoga in my exercise room with dvd's or Beachbody on demand since I'm another one not comfortable in a class setting. P90X Stretch is an older video but one of my favourites and my body feels amazing afterward.

 

[Klayfish]

One thing that they all agree on is that there really isn't a starvation mode caused by restricting calories. At least not in the way that we are thinking. Yes, when you restrict calories, your body shifts over to a different way of finding fuel but you won't ruin your metabolism or stop losing weight. If that were the case, anorexics would never get down to 80 lbs and go into crisis. But, you can restrict yourself in such a way that you are eating unhealthy and you aren't losing excess weight but losing muscle mass more than you should. Once you lose muscle mass, your efforts to lose weight get harder and harder because you are then burning even less.

Yes, exactly. You put a lot more detail into the post than I had. When I say go into "starvation mode", what you have above is exactly right. Of course, someone who actually truly starves themselves, like an anorexic, will lose weight. But as you said, it'll be muscle and your body shifts to trying to protect itself. But people who just do a deficit and stay with that non-stop get that law of diminishing returns, due to exactly what you described. At first, weight loss can be rapid if a person is really heavy, but then it'll grind to a halt over time.

Very well said. Muscle burs a lot of calories. Weight training is a fantastic way to help stay lean. Nothing at all wrong with yoga...except that I'm about as flexible as a steel rod. It just won't do a ton for weight loss.

 

[PollyannaMom]

A friend of mine has suggested yoga a few days a week. Anyone have experience with yoga and weight loss?

I don't think yoga itself burns a lot of calories, but I do think it will help in other ways, like this:

I think also stress makes you gain weight which the imbalances that go on in your body with your hormones, etc., and yoga can really help with that, and toning.

Stress is a huge reason some people gain weight, and also a reason that they lose sleep. - And being tired definitely increases your appetite!

I also find that when I make time for yoga, my body feels better in general, and that translates into more "natural exercise" - I'm more likely to take the stairs instead of the escalator, get up and play with the kids at family parties...that sort of thing. It just ups the activity in my normal day.