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There are many misconceptions about purpose and benefits of yoga. One that I hear most often is that yoga's main benefit is improved flexibility and ability to relax, providing that you use right meditation techniques. Many people do not believe that yoga can help them to lose the weight.

It is true that in most forms of yoga the exercises should be performed slowly and most poses ("asanas") are supposed to be hold for at least three to five long breaths. In no way yoga class tempo would resemble the high energy, high speed tempo of aerobic class, where you virtually lose the breath, trying to keep up with the beat (and instructor). So "no pain, no gain"? WRONG.

From my own experience, I was able to get from size 12 to size 8 in less than 6 months, by simply attending one-two yoga classes a week. The results in pounds are 8 pounds lost. True, it is not even close to all these miracle pills that you can read about. But the best thing that even in the weeks when my scale told me "no progress", people kept complimenting me on the successful weight loss. And, even though two occasional drinks bring the scale back, it's coming down in a day or two. What's the trick?

The truth is simple by performing yoga asanas and sequences you train all groups of muscles in your body, including those that are usually neglected. You may not lose the pounds, but now you'll get muscles weight, not fat weight. With this comes better body definition (and less inches), even when your scale stubbornly stays on the same place.

A couple of added benefits gained strength, flexibility and balance that I can really feel and use in my day-to-day life, more energy in the mornings ( I even stopped to drink those second and third cups of coffee, because I don't need this artificial adrenalin that much).

As for the specific yoga positions to speed up the weight loss, I really believe that as long as you follow the instructions, be it in the class, or on video, the weight loss will be evident in the long run. All yoga sequences are structured in such a way, as to provide the most benefits to the body (warm up, Sun Salutation, upper body, lower body, stretch, relaxation) the logic of these sequences is result of thousand years' thoughts. You just have to go with the flow and to do your best.

Again, to achieve the best results, it's better to attend classes, where an instructor would be able to help you to adjust the pose, to breath and move correctly and enjoy the whole process.

Learn more about this author, Elena Yampolsky.
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