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calories burned
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easternsun
Posted 2005-02-01 9:32 AM (#15856)
Subject: calories burned


i am curious if anyone knows how many calories we burn in yoga practice.

what would be the average burned in hatha, astange, bikram, etc.....any ideas?

lets use a one hour class as and example.

i suppose it depends on the asanas practiced and how long each was helo....

any thoughts?
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Posted 2005-02-01 10:23 AM (#15858 - in reply to #15856)
Subject: RE: calories burned


You're correct in your hypothesis Kira--the rate depends on gender, duration, movement involved, weight of the person, and a host of other variables--for me, at 6'1", 200lbs, doing vinyasa flow ashtanga--I figure around 500 calories for the period.
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YogaGuy
Posted 2005-02-01 10:54 AM (#15860 - in reply to #15856)
Subject: RE: calories burned


Sonic Yoga did a study at Adelphi University and they found:

"Sonic Yoga is also the only style of yoga proven in a major university study to burn 7-9 calories a minutes during our advanced standing sequence and provide a powerful aerobic and anaerobic effect."

So that's between 420 and 540 for an hour of an "advanced standing sequence." The sequence and pacing that they used can be found on their "Turbo Flow" DVD. It's really fast paced and challenging-- i.e. not your average yoga class. Your average yoga class is slower and less intense.

The seated portions of class are usually less calorie intensive, so you have to discount the time for seated postures and sivasana and meditation/pranayama.

So for a 60 minute class that is mostly standing vinyasa at a fast pace, I would say the upper limit is probably 540.

I would say an ashtanga class is less because the pacing is slower and the standing sequence in the ashtanga series is not as rigorous. Although the seated sequences are extremely challenging and intense if you do all the jumpbacks and jumpthroughs.

For a bikram class I'm sure you sweat a lot more water, but the calorie usage is considerably less because you are not recruiting the same amount of muscle fibres. Also you are not heating yourself, the room is heating you. Therefore you are not doing the same amount of work (read below if you don't understand the distinction). Furthermore, bikram classes are not as cardio intensive and don't follow strict ujjayi breathing which will increase your VO2Max.

For most other styles, the most calorie intense part of class will usually be the surya namaskar. After that it's hard to say since there is no real set script for what other classes may or may not include.

General rules to consider about calorie burning:

Calories are units of energy. It is a measure of how much energy it takes to raise a gram of water one degree centigrade.

Generating heat and therefore sweat is a sign of calorie usage. However, if the heat is from an external source, your body in not burning the calories--the heater is.

Muscles use energy. The more muscles you use, the more energy you use.

Your biggest muscles are in your legs and butt. The more you use your legs and butt, the more energy you use.

If you use your whole body, you burn more calories than if you use half your body. Poses like Chattarunga and plank and vasistasana use your whole body.

Deeper breathing correlates to increased oxygen delivery to the muscles. Increased oxygen conversion correlates to increased calorie usage. IE--Ujjayi breathing is good for you.



Edited by YogaGuy 2005-02-01 10:58 AM
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Bay Guy
Posted 2005-02-01 12:42 PM (#15867 - in reply to #15860)
Subject: RE: calories burned



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YogaGuy - 2005-02-01 10:54 AM


General rules to consider about calorie burning:

Calories are units of energy. It is a measure of how much energy it takes to raise a gram of water one degree centigrade.

Generating heat and therefore sweat is a sign of calorie usage. However, if the heat is from an external source, your body in not burning the calories--the heater is.

Muscles use energy. The more muscles you use, the more energy you use.


Deeper breathing correlates to increased oxygen delivery to the muscles. Increased oxygen conversion correlates to increased calorie usage. IE--Ujjayi breathing is good for you.



A couple comments on this:

The definition of calorie above is correct, when calorie is used in its scientific sense (i.e.,
4.186 joules). However, a dietitian's Calorie is actually one kilocalorie, i.e., 4186 joules.
When we refer to exercise burning Calories, we mean kilocalories. IMHO, this is another
reason to stick with SI units.

If you actually calculate the heat transfer rates in hot yoga, you'll find that you
are absorbing something like 50 W from the hot room, as compared to your
internal heating rate which will be something like 300 to 500 W depending how
hard you are exercising. So, you still burn quite a few Calories doing hot yoga.

Oxygen is necessary for the conversion of stored energy (e.g., ATP) to work or heat,
but its presence alone doesn't cause that conversion. You have to be exercising
for something to happen. Keeping your blood oxygenated (by breathing well) helps
the conversion.


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YogaGuy
Posted 2005-02-01 2:16 PM (#15869 - in reply to #15867)
Subject: RE: calories burned


Bay Guy - 2005-02-01 12:42 PM


A couple comments on this:

The definition of calorie above is correct, when calorie is used in its scientific sense (i.e.,
4.186 joules). However, a dietitian's Calorie is actually one kilocalorie, i.e., 4186 joules.
When we refer to exercise burning Calories, we mean kilocalories. IMHO, this is another
reason to stick with SI units.

If you actually calculate the heat transfer rates in hot yoga, you'll find that you
are absorbing something like 50 W from the hot room, as compared to your
internal heating rate which will be something like 300 to 500 W depending how
hard you are exercising. So, you still burn quite a few Calories doing hot yoga.

Oxygen is necessary for the conversion of stored energy (e.g., ATP) to work or heat,
but its presence alone doesn't cause that conversion. You have to be exercising
for something to happen. Keeping your blood oxygenated (by breathing well) helps
the conversion.




Excellent points, Bay Guy. Thanks for the clarifications. Although I stand by my theory that that you will burn less calories in Bikram classes because you simply are not recruiting the same amount of muscles. I find Bikram to be very light work for the muscles in comparison to vinyasa and ashtanga yoga.

I'm sure some Bikram people will want to dispute this. Go ahead. But calorie counting is not necessarily how you should pick your yoga classes.

I think you should use other factors when determining your style of choice.

Speaking from a purely physical standpoint, people should consider how well balanced a class is in terms of balance, strength, flexibility and breathing techniques. Furthermore, if your major concern is calorie counting, you should consider other forms of exercise that are more calorie intensive. Sprinting/running, rowing, swimming are also very good activities for the calorie conscious.
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easternsun
Posted 2005-02-02 1:58 AM (#15896 - in reply to #15856)
Subject: RE: calories burned


great answers! much appreciated.

i read something yesterday which claims hatha yoga burns 160 calories...that seemed a bit on the low side. so i thought i would ask!
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YogaGuy
Posted 2005-02-02 10:02 AM (#15910 - in reply to #15896)
Subject: RE: calories burned


easternsun - 2005-02-02 1:58 AM

great answers! much appreciated.

i read something yesterday which claims hatha yoga burns 160 calories...that seemed a bit on the low side. so i thought i would ask!


First, the name "Hatha" yoga is often used to denote very peaceful and meditative yoga, poses held for a long time and lots of deep ujjayi breathing: i.e. no vinyasas. However, those of us that are veterans of this site and are "in the know" realize that "Hatha" is the umbrella term that refers to the physical practice of yoga, the asana practice, and encapsulates all physical styles: vinyasa, bikram, ashtanga, anusara, etc.

Second, a slow meditative class where poses are held for a long time, a "hatha" class, isn't as likely to get the heart pumping and therefore, not as likely to burn as many calories. So 160 doesn't sound low at all. I bet most of that is from the sun salutations. After that you are probably not burning a lot.
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easternsun
Posted 2005-02-03 2:33 AM (#15985 - in reply to #15860)
Subject: RE: calories burned


YogaGuy - 2005-02-02 12:54 AM



Generating heat and therefore sweat is a sign of calorie usage. However, if the heat is from an external source, your body in not burning the calories--the heater is.

Muscles use energy. The more muscles you use, the more energy you use.

Your biggest muscles are in your legs and butt. The more you use your legs and butt, the more energy you use.




i was thinking about this thread today while i was sitting in the sauna....i have a love/hate relationship with the sauna

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easternsun
Posted 2005-02-03 2:42 AM (#15986 - in reply to #15910)
Subject: RE: calories burned


YogaGuy - 2005-02-03 12:02 AM

Second, a slow meditative class where poses are held for a long time, a "hatha" class, isn't as likely to get the heart pumping and therefore, not as likely to burn as many calories. So 160 doesn't sound low at all. I bet most of that is from the sun salutations. After that you are probably not burning a lot.


interesting stuff. i would think that my "hatha" practice which is between 1 and 2 hours burns more calories than that....when i am at my "edge" - i feel the burn, oohh i feel the burn! not the same, i know.

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YogaGuy
Posted 2005-02-03 9:26 AM (#16002 - in reply to #15986)
Subject: RE: calories burned


easternsun - 2005-02-03 2:42 AM

interesting stuff. i would think that my "hatha" practice which is between 1 and 2 hours burns more calories than that....when i am at my "edge" - i feel the burn, oohh i feel the burn! not the same, i know.




I love the sauna too. I must go soon.

Calorie talk is very small picture. You have to keep focused on the big picture. Maybe your practice burns more, maybe it burns less. Doesn't matter so much in the big picture. If you are really calorie conscious, then go for a run.

As for your hatha practice, it depends on a lot of factors. At least with sun salutation or vinyasas you can measure force (weight), distance (height) and time to calculate how much work is being done, but when holding a static pose, the math is harder.

Obviously a pose like utkatasana burns more calories than paschimotanasana. You can be at your edge in both and feel some burning, but the calorie usage will vary. These things shouldn't concern you too much though (at least not during practice, in the sauna you can ponder all this stuff). You should practice and enjoy. You should consider not so much the little picture of how many calories am I burning now, but the big picture of how is my yoga practice helping me. Am I at my edge? Am I doing the pose correctly? Am I breathing? etc?

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easternsun
Posted 2005-02-05 3:26 AM (#16126 - in reply to #15856)
Subject: RE: calories burned


actually, here is the real deal:

i am one of those people who has to be careful to make sure i eat ENOUGH calories. so i have been messing with a calculator this week to try and figure out how many calories i need to eat.

i used to be too thin, quit my job of ten years (dancer), went to india, studied yoga and got fatter. not much but 5 kilos in six months. most of it is gone now. i knew how to eat when i was a dancer - i knew that six days a week i would be burning mad calories.

post india, i was running 6 km, four days a week but i couldnt keep it up without wasting muscle. so i want to start running again, and i want to make sure i eat enough to be healthy.

i hope this makes sense



i really appreciate the insight!
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tourist
Posted 2005-02-05 10:04 AM (#16144 - in reply to #16126)
Subject: RE: calories burned



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Oh now I see why you were keeping this quiet. It is hard to get understanding from those of us regular folk who pack on the pounds at the mere mention of food You must hear a lot of people saying how much they envy you this "problem"! Well, if you go by what the Hollywood stars do (and who wouldn't? ) I heard that Hilary Swank ate tons of egg whites while she was bulking up for the boxing movie she just did and Rene Zellwegger consumed litres of flax seed oil to become the chubby Briget Jones. Both sound revolting but hey, they did it for the sake of their art!
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Posted 2005-02-05 10:15 AM (#16148 - in reply to #16144)
Subject: RE: calories burned


Speaking of Hilary Swank, "Million Dollar Baby" was a good flick--Ole Clint is aging gracefully if not well--Morgan Freeman was outstanding.
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YogaGuy
Posted 2005-02-05 10:29 AM (#16150 - in reply to #16126)
Subject: RE: calories burned


easternsun - 2005-02-05 3:26 AM

actually, here is the real deal:

i am one of those people who has to be careful to make sure i eat ENOUGH calories. so i have been messing with a calculator this week to try and figure out how many calories i need to eat.

i used to be too thin, quit my job of ten years (dancer), went to india, studied yoga and got fatter. not much but 5 kilos in six months. most of it is gone now. i knew how to eat when i was a dancer - i knew that six days a week i would be burning mad calories.

post india, i was running 6 km, four days a week but i couldnt keep it up without wasting muscle. so i want to start running again, and i want to make sure i eat enough to be healthy.

i hope this makes sense



i really appreciate the insight!



I'm gonna throw some novel ideas out at you, so sit down. First, running distances of 6km several days a week is catabolic, i.e. it burns muscle. That's why many runners are not only thin, but weak too. Marathoners, triathletes and other endurance athletes look rather emaciated. If that's what you are going for, then you are on the right track. If however, you want to keep muscle and look athletic and also be strong, then you have to consider training accordingly.

Anaerobic activities such as sprinting are good at developing speed, strength and muscle as well as conditioning your cardio resperatory system. Sprinters look different than milers and marathoners because they train anaerobicly. Gymnasts look different than yogis because they train anaerobically. The crossover from anaerobic to aerobic is much greater than the crossover from aerobic to anaerobic. I know many people that have switched their weekly running to shorter anaerobic runs and have made bigger gains on their weekend distance runs. Similarly I know many peopel that have practiced gymnastics that can easily adapt to yoga. However, the opposite is not true. Most marathoners would not improve on a weekly sprint challenge by doing weekly distance runs and most yogis would not easily achieve vaults or swings on the bars.


Okay, what does this have to do with you, Kira? Counting calories is a very small part of the picture. The picture includes: how you are training and for how long; what you are eating and how much.

If your concern is losing muscle you have to focus on hypertrophy and a protein rich diet. Avoid catabolic activity such as extended runs. Consider running 2 miles at 1/4 mile (400m) sprints (ALL OUT!!!). That's 8 sprints. Rest in between as long as it took you to run the previous sprint. So if your first sprint was 1:10, then rest a 1:10. Then sprint again, rest again. Equal work, equal rest. 8 rounds of that is extremely challenging. You probably won't be able to complete it (I doubt I could today). Do that twice during the week and then run a 6k on the weekends and after a few weeks you'll start to see changes. After a sprint workout like that you'll probably be starving. Eat as much as you can but try to keep focused on lean proteins (chicken, fish, soy) and monounsaturated fats (olives, avocados, almonds, etc).

Continue your yoga practice and don't worry so much about the calories. You'll be putting on muscle and losing fat.

Good luck.

For more reading you can visit www.crossfit.com that's where I pick up some of my crazy theories.
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easternsun
Posted 2005-02-05 11:02 AM (#16153 - in reply to #16150)
Subject: RE: calories burned


tourist: yes, i try to keep it on the down low....dont get me wrong - i love food!, love eating, and have a voracious appetite. i have just always been the one every tries to feed!

if it is any encouragement to anyone, i like my body so much better in my 30`s than i ever did in my 20`s!! yoga has played a big part in that...move over mtv booty dancers, babys got BACK! (my friends often joke about how for the first time in my life - i have an ass!)

keith, my virtual personal trainer. thanks for the link and the explanation. everything you said makes perfect sense.

in the good old days, i used to just drink beer for extra calories my problems is that i dont eat meat, have soy and nut allergies. time to start eating eggs again! i have been trying the vegan thing again recently - feel better mentally for doing it, but just cant seem to eat enough. i am almost always hungry and i eat atleast 4-5 times a day. i have a hard time in savansana not dreaming about what i am going to eat as soon as i get up!!

one reason i love the runs - i meditate while i am running. sounds crazy, but it is fabulous!

will try it your way next week - i will report back

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tourist
Posted 2005-02-05 3:31 PM (#16162 - in reply to #16153)
Subject: RE: calories burned



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Dreaming in savasana - I just taught two classes and during both savasanas I was day dreaming about the chicken scallopini I brought home from a restaurant dinner last night. Got home and that skunk I live with had EATEN it! If he thinks I am sharing one bite of the tiramisu, he's got another thing coming...
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easternsun
Posted 2005-02-06 1:05 AM (#16176 - in reply to #15856)
Subject: RE: calories burned


atleast he didnt eat both!
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