Yoga vs Pilates

ackeebee

What is the difference and which is better? I have done pilates a few times but can't imagine how different yoga would be. I have not done the pilates class since i bought my hrm so am also curious to know how much calories i am expected to burn.

MzBug

Both yield a low # burn. From what I can tell (did yoga decades ago) from just starting pilates, yoga has more on your feet moves and pilates has more on the floor work. I just started so, I may be incorrect.

iamvillanueva

Both are great for your core, but pilates definitely focuses more on your core. While yoga engages your core constantly, you also can get a great arm/shoulder & quad burn. I noticed that I was able to hold difficult arm balances in yoga after I took pilates regularly because my core was stronger. Yoga works more on your flexibility and body awareness than pilates. It's hard to say which is better. If I could only do one for the rest of my life, I would pick yoga. I think they benefit each other, so I try to take one pilates and one yoga class every week (if I can fit it into my crazy schedule).

zumbawhit

I attend a Yogalates class at my local Y twice a week. I love it! It's really cool the way that she combines the best of both worlds. I feel like I'm getting overall toning by combining the two. But definitely I can always feel it in my core the next day. I find that the pilates part make me burn more cals than the yoga part simply because there is more movement, however, I love the stretch that my body gets from the yoga and I know I would miss it if it were to be taken from the class. It's a great change of pace after all the high-impact exercise that I would normally do.

yoginimary

What do you want to get out of it?

Pilates will be more like a traditional exercise class with extra stretching.

Yoga classes vary widely: everything from yoga flow with a rock soundtrack to breathing exercises with strong philosophical overtones.

ackeebee

@ marywilldiet, i am interested in overall toning. at first i found the pilates class very boring but after the 3rd class it wasnt too bad.

thanks everyone for your comments.

Lyadeia

Do you have PiYo in your area? It's like a fusion of both with a cardio effect so you do burn some calories in that one while strengthening and working on flexibility.

ackeebee

Do you have PiYo in your area? It's like a fusion of both with a cardio effect so you do burn some calories in that one while strengthening and working on flexibility.

apart from just plain yoga and pilates, my gym offer the foll classes (none of which i have had the chance to attend due to schedule). not sure if any of them are similar to what you mentioned?
- stott pilates
- acro yoga
- power chi yoga
- hatha yoga

girlinahat

I read somewhere a while back that yoga just beats pilates in terms of exercise and 'toning'. Pilates focusses on core work, and I tend to find it focusses on individual muscles, whereas yoga can work on a group of muscles at once.

yoga classes can be very different. I took a different yoga class last night, which was more traditional - poses followed by counter poses followed by relaxation, repeat cycle. My usual class is a bit more dynamic and I find i am being stretched more because it is constant.

before i started yoga, I never thought I would ever be able to do the forward bend thing head on the knees. now i can see it is entirely possible (not there yet). I haven't worked out a practical USE for that trick yet mind.....

yoginimary

acro yoga is fun, as long as you don't mind touching other people - usually the poses are done in pairs. If you've ever played "airplane" with a kid - where you lie on your back, feet in the air and the kid gets on your feet and you lift them up in the air? It's like that kind of contact.

hatha yoga is a catch all term. All physical yoga is hatha yoga. Usually at a gym it means that the class will be fairly low key and gentle.