Can Fat People Practice Ashtanga Yoga? (Explained!)
Ashtanga is known as one of the forms of yoga that require the most physical effort. Its most traditional form involves a very long sequence of postures with a vinyasa between each; for this, you have to be strong and enduring.
Fortunately, the Mysore style Ashtanga Yoga is a variation that allows everyone to practice according to their level, going at the rate of their breathing and their capacities, making it a great choice if you are overweight.
Fat people can practice Ashtanga Yoga without fear as it goes far beyond physical considerations to focus on loving oneself and others. Working at your own pace with caring people helps you muscle your body and burns unwanted fat.
Ashtanga Yoga also promotes flexibility, keeps you from injury and pain, reduces stress and depression, and improves breathing.
This article explains why fat people can practice Ashtanga Yoga and what are its different benefits.
Let’s go!
How to start yoga when overweight
If you are overweight and interested in starting a yoga practice, it’s important to remember that yoga is for everybody and that any physical activity can be modified to meet your needs and abilities.
Here are a few tips to help you get started.
Start slowly
It’s important to ease into your yoga practice and not try to do too much too soon.
Begin with shorter, gentler classes and gradually increase the intensity and duration of your practice in the yoga studio as you become more comfortable and confident.
Find a yoga class that’s right for you.
Look for yoga studios that are specifically designed for beginners or for people who are overweight.
You may also want to consider private or semi-private classes, which can provide a more personalized approach to your practice.
Modify poses as needed
Don’t worry about trying to do every pose perfectly.
If a pose is too difficult or uncomfortable, you can modify it or use props such as blocks or straps to make it more accessible.
Talk to your instructor
If you have any concerns or injuries, be sure to let your instructor know before class.
They can help you modify poses or provide alternatives that will be safe and effective for you.
Be patient and persistent
Yoga is a practice that requires patience and persistence.
It may take time to see progress, and that’s okay.
Remember to be kind and compassionate with yourself and to celebrate your progress and accomplishments, no matter how small.
The practice of Ashtanga yoga strengthens and sculpts the body
Focusing on muscle training, Ashtanga yoga develops your physical strength.
Its effectiveness is evident in the muscles of the trunk and the upper part of the body.
Following this practice then helps to rejuvenate your body, making it more robust, more toned, more flexible, and better sculpted.
Its poses mainly work on core and upper body strength
By practicing Ashtanga yoga, your arms and shoulders become firmer and more toned. According to a study conducted in the United States in 2004, this practice can increase core and upper body strength.
This study involved 26 participants aged 20 to 58 who signed up for six weeks of yoga classes. Half did Hatha yoga, while the other group did Ashtanga yoga.
Results showed an improvement in the core and upper body strength in people of both groups. However, Ashtanga yoga has given much better results since it is a more physically demanding practice.
Ashtanga yoga positions build strength
In his book “Ashtanga yoga: the practice manual,” David Swenson says there are sixty vinyasas in the primary series of Ashtanga yoga (this is the flow achieved between each posture).
This teacher is one of the very few who have learned the complete Ashtanga as originally taught in Mysore.
Most movements require you to maintain your body weight solely on your hands. In other cases, you are balancing on one leg. These kinds of positions build a ton of strength in your core and increase your overall body strength.
Ashtanga yoga promotes muscle development
The Ashtanga yoga opening series features many contortions poses named sun salutations.
Many of them, such as the mill churning pose (Chakki Chalan), the bridge pose (Setu bandha), or the downward facing dog (adho mukha svanasana) are physically demanding and require core and arm strength.
With asanas, fat people can see their stamina gradually improve, while their abdominal muscles become stronger. Certainly, some might mistakenly think that when the body has too much fat, some athletic performances are unthinkable.
But, as you advance in the practice of Ashtanga yoga, the required level of strength becomes easier to achieve, because while performing these movements, muscles are growing all over your body.
Ashtanga Yoga helps you burn fat effectively
The stubborn fat from the belly and other parts can disappear within a few months of practicing Ashtanga because it increases your body heat.
Likewise, your body’s metabolism activates and improves digestion as you become more aware of your eating and drinking habits.
Being able to perform the asanas at your own pace encourages you to engage in regular physical activity, which allows you to get back into shape quickly.
It rebalances your endocrine system
Each asana has beneficial effects on a particular area of your body, at the muscular, nervous, and hormonal levels. Therefore, if your excess weight is related to a hormonal imbalance, Ashtanga yoga exercises are an excellent solution to rebalance your body.
Specific postures such as the locust pose (Shalabhasana) or the bridge pose (Setu bandha) are more recommended for people who want to lose weight.
Usually, you just need to talk to your yoga teacher about it to choose the best postures for your condition.
It helps you develop discipline
“The man who is sick can practice. The man who has no strength can practice. Except the lazy; lazy people cannot practice Ashtanga yoga, ”says Sri K Pattabhi Jois.
This is indeed one of the practices where you will see results, as long as you practice regularly. You can build strength if you just keep practicing.
The best way is to practice Ashtanga yoga six days a week, but those who find this rhythm too intense can practice at least twice a week.
Regular practice of Ashtanga yoga helps to maintain a stable weight and also teaches you to eat healthily.
After a few classes, it may become evident that your energy levels are low, motivating you to regulate your diet.
It promotes weight loss in young people
In 2009 in the United States, a study of 14 participants aged 8 to 15 years demonstrated that Ashtanga yoga could improve weight management and the well-being of children and teenagers.
They all had one of the following risk factors for type 2 diabetes: overweight, Hispanic / African American ancestry, and a first-degree relative with type 2 diabetes.
According to the results: “Most participants lost an average of 2 kg after a 12-week program, which is consistent with other weight loss programs”.
They took an Ashtanga yoga class three days a week for three months. Each session was approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes long and included a modified Ashtanga yoga sequence, pranayama, and meditation.
Ashtanga Yoga improves weight management and well-being
Because Ashtanga yoga encourages a healthier lifestyle and diet without requiring drastic changes, it promotes better weight management.
Mysore style Ashtanga Yoga induces gradual changes, allowing everyone to go at their own pace, which can be very encouraging for getting into physical exercise and staying motivated when overweight.
Positions that induce gradual changes
No matter your weight or waist size, none of these barriers prevent you from exercising the activity.
This study on 60 females with a waistline of 88 cm proves that practicing yoga can be recommended in women suffering from abdominal obesity as a weight loss program.
According to prejudices, some asanas can be very complex, especially for people who have extra pounds.
Even though practicing Ashtanga yoga requires a healthier lifestyle, it does not need radical changes in your lifestyle. As you progress, you may be able to try more challenging positions.
Practices that motivate exercise
In the Mysore Style Ashtanga yoga, instructors vary according to the physical abilities of their students. This way, you can start your practice at an ideal level for you and avoid feeling frustrated with the difficulty of specific postures.
Ashtanga yoga is perfect for overweight people, as progress is made gradually to achieve the highest possible degree of strengthening, flexibility, and balance.
This is essential to stay motivated when you have extra pounds and want to start sports without going to a club.
Ashtanga Yoga allows you to stay balanced and achieve your goals
Ashtanga Yoga poses are performed in order, with a specific role. The practices help you clean your exterior and interior, interact with the world around you, and connect with your spirit.
This balance is helpful when you set an important goal like losing weight.
In addition to being an exercise, Ashtanga Yoga is also a spiritual strengthening activity that allows you to work on your will strength. It gives you moments of concentration and meditation during which you can encourage yourself to move forward.
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Ashtanga yoga helps overweight people gain flexibility and prevent injury
When fat persons practice Ashtanga yoga safely and consciously, they develop a more robust and flexible body that is less prone to accidents and injuries.
Ashtanga yoga requiring many folds of the body forward promotes better bone formation, makes the body more flexible, and relieves back pain.
Postures that increase the flexibility of the trunk
According to this study conducted in the United States in 2004, Ashtanga yoga can increase flexibility. During the study, 12 participants with an average age of 21 were separated into two groups.
One group attended 25 Ashtanga yoga classes over 15 weeks, while the other just witnessed and did not practice.
Ultimately, the results showed that the trunk of the people who benefited from the classes had gained flexibility, while their upper body muscles were more enduring.
Excess weight causes mechanical stress on your joints
The joints of fat or obese people are more stressed. The pressure exerted, especially on the lower body (knees, ankles, hips), is more significant, which can cause crushing or stretching of the articular cartilage and ligaments.
So when obesity is accompanied by reduced physical activity, your joints are also weakened since the muscles support and protect the joints.
Likewise, excess fatty tissue around your joints generates inflammation that slowly damages your cartilage matrix.
Ashtanga yoga reduces joint and back pain
The primary Ashtanga series includes postures aimed at stretching and strengthening muscles, especially those of the lower back.
And since the same positions are performed every time you walk, keeping those muscles flexed (and strengthened) helps reduce lower back pain.
By gradually improving your flexibility, these practices also help you preserve the joints of your whole body; it is a kind of regular physical activity.
Ashtanga yoga helps reduce stress and mental clutter associated with obesity
According to a study in 2017 in Canada, Ashtanga yoga can be used to improve psychological well-being.
Deep breathing and moving your body from pose to pose during Ashtanga yoga helps you become calmer, which over time frees you from the anxiety and depression caused by being overweight.
There is a link between depression and overweight
According to a study conducted by researchers at Aarhus University Hospital (Denmark), the relationship between body fat and depression is very real.
The study’s results show that being overweight by about 10 kilograms would increase the chances of developing depression by 70%. Low self-esteem and a negative self-image are the engines of depression.
The study also shows that it is not because of the overweight itself (or its location in the body) that the risk of depression increases; it is instead a psychological consequence in the fat person.
Therefore, by practicing Ashtanga yoga, you can purify and calm your mind, relieve stress and reduce anxiety, and alter patterns of unwanted behavior, such as overeating in times of panic.
Practices that improve symptoms of depression and anxiety
The study carried out in Canada in 2017 involved 31 participants who had to do Ashtanga yoga twice a week for nine weeks.
Ashtanga yoga promoted “considerable improvements in symptoms of depression and anxiety, self-esteem and dimensions of interpersonal functioning related to assertiveness, attention to one’s needs, and the ability to connect.”
Ashtanga Yoga has an impact on the subconscious. Boosting your concentration helps decrease your stress hormone and increases the one related to well-being.
A discipline that takes you out of your comfort zone and builds your confidence
If you are fearful of risk, practicing Ashtanga yoga will allow you to step out of your comfort zone.
Nothing like it to boost your confidence and face a slight depression! Thanks to these practices, you can smoothly resume a more active life, regain tone and serenity.
Having the flexibility to move at your own pace, breathe, take care of yourself and enjoy it’s priceless.
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Ashtanga yoga helps improve your breathing and positively affects your blood pressure
A study carried out in the United States in 2005 found that Ashtanga yoga can improve autonomic homeostasis and respiratory function. The breathing movements performed are also an effective cardio workout to improve your heart rate.
In Ashtanga yoga, yogis practice a breathing technique called Ujjayi.
This causes the glottis at the back of your throat to contract slightly to mimic the sound of the ocean as you inhale and exhale through your nose.
Ashtanga Yoga breathing technique lowers blood pressure over time
The study conducted in the United States in 2005 involved 48 participants divided into two groups.
One group practiced a modified version of Ashtanga yoga twice a week for six weeks, while the other just played the role of bystander and did not practice yoga.
In the end, people in the Ashtanga yoga group showed “important improvements in mood, energy, fatigue, quality of life, and sleep, as well as short-term memory.”
Ashtanga yoga provides an effective cardio workout
Ashtanga is an ideal cardio workout to get back in shape and manage your weight. Done at a fast pace, its long, slow, deep breaths can effectively raise your heart rate.
Indeed, the sequences of Ashtanga postures are carried out continuously and quickly, while the dynamic flow of asanas (poses) can give a feeling of intensity.
Those in search of more vigorous yogic practices will find their account there.
Consistent vinyasas between each position help maintain your heart rate throughout the practice.
In doing so, you not only develop your strength and flexibility, but your cardiovascular system also benefits.
Conclusion
Ultimately, fat people can practice Ashtanga Yoga very well regardless of prejudices about their low level of strength or excess fat.
Positions of Ashtanga Yoga tone strengthen and muscle the body, ridding it of fat, allowing overweight people to be more flexible, free from injury and pain.
Promoting psychological balance, its asanas help reduce stress linked to excess weight and effectively burn unwanted fat.
Since the Mysore style Ashtanga Yoga allows everyone to learn at their own pace, it helps you better manage your weight. At the same time, its breathing technique lowers your blood pressure and preserves your cardiovascular system.
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