Questions on Yoga as replacement for weights?
worldtraveller321
Posts: 150 Member
Hi there. i started back doing yoga stretches as for recovery from my main sport.
I ask can one use yoga as good means to strengthen up the Core and ABs more?
can one use Yoga as a replacement to lifting weights? in general to just keeping healthy and good fitness, not really up to getting body builder physique
competitive cyclist somewhat so just looking at more fun ways to get the strength (non bike) workouts in. thanks
I ask can one use yoga as good means to strengthen up the Core and ABs more?
can one use Yoga as a replacement to lifting weights? in general to just keeping healthy and good fitness, not really up to getting body builder physique
competitive cyclist somewhat so just looking at more fun ways to get the strength (non bike) workouts in. thanks
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Replies
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Yoga would be good to strengthen your core if it involves those type of poses. It involves strength to hold those poses, but it's not a substitute for weight lifting. It's more like a supplement, for flexibility and injury prevention.0
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htimpaired wrote: »Yoga would be good to strengthen your core if it involves those type of poses. It involves strength to hold those poses, but it's not a substitute for weight lifting. It's more like a supplement, for flexibility and injury prevention.
This.. yoga is great for my flexibility and all of those tiny stabilizer muscles, yoga is not great for gaining strength beyond a certain point, increasing lean mass beyond a certain point, etc.
It would be entirely sufficient if increasing strength beyond what you can accomplish with bodyweight exercises (which can get you pretty far, mind you) or optimal hypertrophy aren't really part of your end goal, which it seems they might not be based on your op.0 -
Plyometrics are designed for strength too. The power you can get from strength training is hard to give up. Especially when it helps you in your sport. Deliberate jumps, throws and sprints--explosive movements are a nice alternative to weights.0
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Sure.0
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Yes, yoga built muscle mass in my upper body. Arms and back gained muscle more than my legs. That was coming from a background of running, aerobics, very light weights.
I have seen muscular guys in yoga, but also skinny guys who were very strong (in terms of being able to do press handstands, pushups, hold themselves in crazy positions with one arm and core strength - not strong like lift a car.) without much visible muscle, and people (usually women) who look fat and are strong in the same way.
It's like doing adagio calesthenics. Push ups and lunges and planks and stuff but no jumping jacks.0 -
Especially vinyasa yoga, which is a pretty active body weight version. But it would probably stall after a while0
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It depends on you, your goals, and what kind of yoga.0
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Power yoga will build some muscle0
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It isn't really a substitute, not that it is not good and won't build some strength.0
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Absolutely. Yoga can build strength in core especially if your doing inverted stances. They are basically a variation of hanging leg raises which are one of the top core/ab builder.worldtraveller321 wrote: »Hi there. i started back doing yoga stretches as for recovery from my main sport.
I ask can one use yoga as good means to strengthen up the Core and ABs more?
can one use Yoga as a replacement to lifting weights? in general to just keeping healthy and good fitness, not really up to getting body builder physique
competitive cyclist somewhat so just looking at more fun ways to get the strength (non bike) workouts in. thanks
I have some new amazing rips in my my V-cut that are revealing after my most recent bulk.
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Yoga has some strength elements, but it's not a complete strength program. A couple key points:
- Yoga has a lack of pulling exercises, since there is nothing to pull. A good strength program balances pulling with pushing exercises, but yoga mostly involves the pushing muscles (chest, shoulders, trcieps, abs), and undertrains the pulling muscles (upper and lower back, biceps, grip). This can lead to imbalances which can affect functionality.
- Yoga does not train lifting ability, meaning the specific coordination skills of lifting objects. For example, if you need to pick up a heavy box or a couch without injuring yourself, deadlifts will much better prepare you for that than yoga. Injuries outside the gym are often from unexpected or undertrained movements and situations.
By the way - if you mostly do biking and yoga, i would also add some agility work to round out your fitness program. Agility is important for injury prevention and also for sports, plus it strengthens bones in ways that both yoga and strength training do not.
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DDP yoga
It ain't yo mama's yoga!0 -
thanks0
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Cherimoose wrote: »
- Yoga has a lack of pulling exercises, since there is nothing to pull.
That is subjective to what kind of yoga. There are resistance bands and straps that can be used for pulling and/or stretching of arms and legs.
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Cherimoose wrote: »
- Yoga has a lack of pulling exercises, since there is nothing to pull.
That is subjective to what kind of yoga. There are resistance bands and straps that can be used for pulling and/or stretching of arms and legs.
My thought exactly.0 -
Ashtanga yoga is amazing0
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I think pulling occurs. Pulling could be raising up from a backbend or possibly through isometric holds. Perhaps it can be characterized as stretch-pull.0
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Sure why not?
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amyrebeccah wrote: »Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »Cherimoose wrote: »
- Yoga has a lack of pulling exercises, since there is nothing to pull.
That is subjective to what kind of yoga. There are resistance bands and straps that can be used for pulling and/or stretching of arms and legs.
My thought exactly.
I've taken dozens of different types of yoga class and have instructors in my family. I love yoga. But using a band to enable stretches of arms and legs (which is how I've often seen bands used in yoga) does nothing to work pulling muscles in the way cherimoose is talking about. Adding resistance bands and strength pulling exercises is a variation on yoga, not classic yoga. So if you want to tell the OP that a complete strength workout will come from yoga, I would just add that qualifier.
Nobody stated that "classic" yoga is a complete strength workout, only that certain type of yoga can build strength with the goals in mind the OP has stated.0 -
amyrebeccah wrote: »amyrebeccah wrote: »Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »Cherimoose wrote: »
- Yoga has a lack of pulling exercises, since there is nothing to pull.
That is subjective to what kind of yoga. There are resistance bands and straps that can be used for pulling and/or stretching of arms and legs.
My thought exactly.
I've taken dozens of different types of yoga class and have instructors in my family. I love yoga. But using a band to enable stretches of arms and legs (which is how I've often seen bands used in yoga) does nothing to work pulling muscles in the way cherimoose is talking about. Adding resistance bands and strength pulling exercises is a variation on yoga, not classic yoga. So if you want to tell the OP that a complete strength workout will come from yoga, I would just add that qualifier.
Nobody stated that "classic" yoga is a complete strength workout, only that certain type of yoga can build strength with the goals in mind the OP has stated.
I'm glad inversions have helped your v-cut. If you want to say "yoga builds strength, but it's potentially unbalanced strength unless you add in elements that are not yoga", then that sounds good to me.
There are ways to build strength in a balanced manner through certain types of yoga as well. So I disagree one must have elements other than yoga. I do agree a mixture can be beneficial, just not a must.
It's a given that a balanced strength regime is ideal for any means of training, hence why I didn't feel the need to want to say it.
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Sure, if that's what you're going for. Even as a yoga enthusiast, I would have to agree on that yoga does not usually involve "pulling" type training. You asked about core - which it can do, if you focused on that.
Because I've been asked this question before, I went to get strength tested at the University of Texas Kinesiology department. I do not lift weights. I do cardio and yoga. I was in the 98th percentile in leg and ab strength and 66 percentile on the bench press - so I don't really see the point of adding weights to my fitness routine.0 -
amyrebeccah wrote: »Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »Cherimoose wrote: »
- Yoga has a lack of pulling exercises, since there is nothing to pull.
That is subjective to what kind of yoga. There are resistance bands and straps that can be used for pulling and/or stretching of arms and legs.
My thought exactly.
I've taken dozens of different types of yoga class and have instructors in my family. I love yoga. But using a band to enable stretches of arms and legs (which is how I've often seen bands used in yoga) does nothing to work pulling muscles in the way cherimoose is talking about. Adding resistance bands and strength pulling exercises is a variation on yoga, not classic yoga. So if you want to tell the OP that a complete strength workout will come from yoga, I would just add that qualifier.
I'd argue that classic* yoga is not what you'd want for bodyweight exercises anyway, but styles that were influenced by the British colonial times, such as Ashtanga vinyasa and Power type styles.
* Patanjali, Hatha Yoga Pradipika, Upanishads, etc.
http://www.yogajournal.com/article/philosophy/yoga-s-greater-truth/0
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