If you think yoga is all about stretching, you’re wrong. Yoga postures require a balance of strength and flexibility. Many poses use the combination of body weight and moving your muscles differently than you’re accustomed to strengthen your muscle fibers.
Yoga won’t bulk you up like weightlifting, but it will make you stronger and give your muscles a toned appearance.
In a study performed in China, a group of adults practiced hatha yoga for 12 weeks to see how it affected their health. At the end of the 12-week period, both genders saw improvements in upper and lower body strength.
Yoga postures build the large muscle groups people tend to focus on in the gym. They also strengthen smaller, often ignored muscle groups that fine-tune your balance and posture. For example, balancing poses like tree pose and halfmoon strengthen your ankles. Arm balances make stronger wrists, arms, shoulders, and core.
Yoga is a fantastic solution for anyone who wants to build overall strength.
You don’t need fancy equipment to start and can practice in your own home.
Which type of yoga is best for strength training?
Most types of yoga build strength, but some are better than others. If you want to get stronger, you should look for classes that will challenge your body. Here are some excellent yoga styles to try.
- Ashtanga
- Power yoga
- Vinyasa
- Iyengar
- Hatha
- Yoga drills
Yoga poses to build strength
Here are just a few poses for you to try.
- Warrior I
- Warrior II
- Chair pose
- Boat pose
- Locust pose
- Chaturanga
- Plank
- Crane pose
You can increase the strength-building effects of these poses by holding them for longer periods of time or repeatedly moving in and out of them.
Practicing sun salutations A and B will also assist you in getting stronger.
Mental Strength
Besides making you stronger physically, yoga helps you build mental strength. Every time you tackle a difficult pose, every time you fall and get back up and try again and every day you commit to taking some time to practice builds mental strength that helps you in your daily life off the mat. Yoga is more than a physical practice. It’s a spiritual practice that connects you to other beings and gives you a clear honest view of yourself. That’s the most profound benefit of yoga.
Yes, regular practice will make your body stronger, but it will also make your mind and spirit stronger and more resilient. That is a wonderful reason to start a yoga practice.
Watch the video with Kino below for a short strength-building yoga sequence you can try at home.
If you’re interested in more yoga classes to make you stronger join Omstars to get access to our strength challenges and yoga drills classes.