5 Best Yoga Poses For Fat Burning

And to tie in with my earlier post about a free fat-burning webinar offered by Dr. Nikolas Hedberg, here’s an excerpt from an article at Gaiam.com by Philip Knox & Devin Thomas about the top 5 fat-burning yoga poses…

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Can you use yoga for weight loss? Yes! Losing weight isn’t easy for anyone but, with the right attitude, you can make a real difference in how you look and feel. These fat-burning yoga poses will help kick-start your metabolism and build up lean muscle-tone. For some extra advice, check out Gaiam’s Quick Start Yoga for Weight Loss. This informative DVD is a useful part of any positive-thinking weight-loss program.

Wind-Releasing Pose

This fat-burning yoga pose is great for targeting your abdominal area.

  • Lie down on the floor and bring your knees up to your chest with your ankles together.
  • Clasp your arms together over your knees as you bring your head up off the floor.
  • Breathe deep as you feel the stretch work your abs, then relax slowly.

Cobra Pose

Even beginners can get good results from this simple yoga pose, which works to firm the buttocks and tone the abs.

  • Lie face-down on the floor, with the tops of your feet flat against the ground.
  • Press your legs and hips down. Place your hands under your shoulders, plams down and fingers spread apart.
  • Press into your hands, lifting your head, chest and upper back off the mat. Keep your gaze forward and up and your shoulder blades down and back.
  • Push back your shoulders and feel the stretch spread evenly along the length of your spine.
  • After a few deep breaths, relax to a prone position on an exhale.

Bow Pose

This advanced yoga pose can really burn fat while toning your arms, legs and abdominal area.

  • Lie down on your stomach, bend your knees and reach around to grab your feet.
  • Pull in your stomach and extend your feet upward, raising your upper body at the same time. Keep your shoulder blades down and back.
  • Hold for several breaths, then relax.

Side-Stretch Pose

This yoga pose can help raise your heart-rate and burn calories.

  • Stand with your feet slightly wider than hip width apart.
  • Rotate your torso and turn both your feet to the right. Keeping legs straight, exhale and hinge over your right leg until your torso is parallel to the floor, reaching your hands to the ground (if you can’t touch the floor, you can rest them on a block).
  • Hinge further with each exhale, moving your torso closer to your right thigh.

Remember to keep breathing, then relax and repeat in the opposite direction.

Warrior I Pose

This yoga pose can work your abs, thighs and arms, and is most effective if used as part of a sequence like Sun Salutation.

  • Standing straight, step your left leg 4-5 feet to the left, then rotate both feet and your torso toward the left.
  • Bend your left knee over your toes while keeping your right leg straight.
  • Raise both arms high above your head with your fingertips pointing upward, looking up at your hands.

 

Also, check out this video on yoga conditioning for weight loss:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWq3azgIVuM&RMID=Life_2014_02_26&RRID=11842559

And if you’re reading this before June 11th, be sure to read my previous post about a free fat-burning webinar hosted by Dr. Nikolas Hedberg. And even if you’re reading this after that date, the webinar may be archived and available through replay, so check it out.

Want more yoga? Check out this post on 12 poses to unkink you after spending too much time sitting at your desk.

Salud!

p.s. Be sure to subscribe to Self-help Health so you don’t miss any future posts, and tell your friends to do the same. Also check out my website’s To Your Health page and Evolution Made Easier blog for more helpful health tips, tools and information.