Yoga and Weight Management

Weight Management

Preoccupation with weight control is reaching new heights as the obesity crisis is
approaching epidemic proportions. The prevalence of adults who are officially considered
to be overweight is at an all-time high. Approximately 65% of American adults are
overweight, and around 30% are officially obese. The danger in being overweight comes
from the complications of carrying excess weight, which include increased risk of developing
heart disease, diabetes, cancer, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. People
often look toward fad diets or quick solutions in order to lose weight, but it is often long term
lifestyle changes involving sensible dietary changes and exercise that help to
support lifelong weight management.

As weight control becomes an ever-larger concern, more attention is being directed
toward the effects of yoga on long-term weight management. When people begin
taking up yoga, they often notice that they are able to lose weight through a regular
practice.

Yoga and Weight Management

Most of the evidence for the effects of yoga on weight loss is anecdotal or experiential.
Yoga teachers, students and practitioners across the country find that in their own bodies,
or with their students, yoga helps to support weight loss. Many teachers specialize in yoga
programs to promote weight management and find that gentle yoga practices often
help support weight loss. People do not have to practice the most vigorous forms of yoga
to lose weight. Many teachers find that yoga encourages development of a positive selfimage,
as more attention is paid to nutrition and the body as a whole. The positive effects
of yoga on weight may also have to do with reducing stress.

Stress is a significant factor for many people in an effort to maintain healthy weight.
Current research shows that chronic exposure to stress hormones stimulates weight gain,
particularly in the abdominal area. One of the benefits of a yoga practice in weight loss
is through reducing stress. Although this is an effect that has not been directly studied in
experimental research, yoga practice, especially techniques which focus on reducing
stress, can be an important component to a long-term weight management program.

So far, there has not been much research directly examining the effects of yoga on
weight loss. But a recent paper was published in the journal Alternative Therapies in
Health and Medicine which investigated the relationship between yoga practice and
weight management. In a lifestyle study of 15,500 adults in their 50s, researchers collected
information about 10 years of participants’ weight history, physical activity, medical
history and diet. The authors of the study found that regular yoga practice was associated
with decreased incidence of age-related weight gain; this was even more notable
in people who were overweight. This finding warrants further investigation of the issue, but
provides some motivation for teachers, students, and scientific researchers to continue to
explore yoga as part of a weight-management program.

Study citation: Yoga Practice is Associated with Attenuated Weight Gain in Healthy, Middle-Aged Men
and Women. By Alan R. Kristal, Alyson J. Littman, Denise Benitez and Emily White. Published in Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, July/Aug 2005, 11(4), pgs 28-33.

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