How many calories does one hour of yoga burn? You can expect to burn somewhere between 180 and 460 calories in one hour of yoga. The exact number changes a lot. It depends on many things. The style of yoga matters a lot. Your body weight also makes a big difference. How hard you work during the class changes it too. There is no single number for everyone. But we can talk about the average calories burned yoga session for different styles and people.
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Why the Number of Calories Changes
Finding the exact number of calories burned per hour yoga is tricky. It is not like running on a treadmill where a machine tells you. Many things affect how much energy your body uses. Your body needs energy to do anything. This energy is measured in calories. When you move, you use more energy. Yoga makes you move. But how you move in yoga is different from other exercises.
Grasping How Different Yoga Styles Burn Calories
Different kinds of yoga make your body work in different ways. Some styles are very slow and gentle. Some are fast and make you sweat a lot. This means the yoga calorie burn by style changes a lot. Let’s look at a few popular types.
Hatha Yoga Calorie Burn
Hatha yoga is often a slower kind of yoga. You hold poses for a few breaths. You move from one pose to the next gently. It is good for learning basic poses. It is also good for stretching and relaxing. Because it is slower, the Hatha yoga calorie burn is usually lower than faster styles.
For a person weighing about 150 pounds, one hour of Hatha yoga might burn around 180-240 calories. If you weigh more, you will likely burn a bit more. If you weigh less, you might burn a bit less.
Vinyasa Flow Calorie Burn
Vinyasa yoga links breath with movement. You move smoothly from one pose to the next. It often feels like a dance. Classes can be quick and active. Your heart rate goes up more than in Hatha. This makes the Vinyasa flow calorie burn higher.
For that same 150-pound person, one hour of Vinyasa flow could burn about 300-400 calories. If the class is faster or has more difficult poses, you might burn even more.
Hot Yoga Calorie Expenditure
Hot yoga is done in a heated room. Bikram yoga is a well-known type of hot yoga. The heat makes you sweat a lot. It can make the poses feel harder. Your body has to work harder to cool itself down in the heat. This extra work adds to the calorie burn. The hot yoga calorie expenditure can be quite high.
In a hot room, a 150-pound person doing one hour might burn 350-460 calories or more. Be careful in hot yoga. Drink plenty of water. Listen to your body. The high calorie number is partly from your body trying to cool down.
Other Yoga Styles
There are many other types of yoga.
- Ashtanga Yoga: This is a set series of poses. It is very physical and flowing. It burns a lot of calories. Similar to Vinyasa, maybe even more.
- Power Yoga: This style is more like a fitness workout. It is often fast and strong. It can burn a lot of calories, similar to Hot Yoga or higher Vinyasa.
- Restorative Yoga: This is very gentle. You use props like blankets and bolsters to hold poses easily. You focus on relaxing. It burns very few calories, similar to just resting quietly.
- Yin Yoga: You hold poses for a long time (several minutes). It stretches deep tissues. It is slow and quiet. It burns a low number of calories, maybe a bit more than Restorative but still low compared to active styles.
Here is a simple table showing estimated calories burned for one hour for different body weights and yoga styles. These are just estimates. Your actual burn may be different.
Table: Estimated Calories Burned Per Hour of Yoga
| Yoga Style | 130 lbs Estimate (Calories) | 150 lbs Estimate (Calories) | 180 lbs Estimate (Calories) | 200 lbs Estimate (Calories) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hatha Yoga | 150-210 | 180-240 | 210-280 | 230-310 |
| Vinyasa/Flow | 250-340 | 300-400 | 360-480 | 400-530 |
| Hot Yoga | 300-390 | 350-460 | 420-550 | 470-610 |
| Restorative/Yin | 100-140 | 120-160 | 140-190 | 160-210 |
| Power Yoga/Ashtanga | 300-420 | 350-490 | 420-590 | 470-650 |
Note: These numbers are approximate. They can vary based on class specifics and your personal effort.
Things That Change Your Yoga Calorie Burn
We said many things affect how many calories you burn in yoga. These are the factors affecting yoga calorie burn. Knowing these helps you understand why your number might be different from someone else’s.
Your Body Weight
This is a big one. A heavier person uses more energy to do the same pose or movement than a lighter person. Think about carrying a heavier backpack while walking. It takes more energy. Your body weight works the same way. The more you weigh, the more calories you burn doing yoga, or any activity.
Yoga Intensity and Calorie Burn
How hard are you working? This is the yoga intensity and calorie burn link.
* Are you holding poses strongly?
* Are you moving quickly between poses?
* Are you challenging yourself?
* Are you sweating?
A gentle, slow practice burns fewer calories. A fast, strong practice where you feel your muscles work and your heart beat faster burns more. Even in the same style of yoga, one class might be harder than another.
How Long You Practice
This is simple. The longer you do yoga, the more calories you burn. An hour burns twice as much as 30 minutes, roughly. Calories burned per hour yoga is a standard way to measure, but the total burn depends on the total time.
Your Body’s Engine (Metabolism)
Everyone’s body uses energy a bit differently. This is called your metabolism. Some people naturally burn a bit more energy even when resting. This can slightly affect how many calories you burn during exercise too. Your fitness level also plays a role. If you are new to yoga, your body might work harder (and burn more calories) than someone who has done it for years and finds the poses easier.
The Room Temperature
Doing yoga in a hot room clearly increases hot yoga calorie expenditure. Your body uses energy to try and cool itself down. This adds to the total calories burned.
How Well You Do the Poses
Are you just going through the motions? Or are you really engaging your muscles? Holding poses with correct form and muscle engagement burns more calories than just standing there loosely. Deepening stretches or adding small movements within a pose also increases the work your body does.
How to Estimate Calories Burned Yoga
You cannot get a perfect number without special equipment. But you can estimate calories burned yoga.
Many fitness trackers (like smartwatches or fitness bands) try to guess how many calories you burn. They use information about your heart rate, your weight (which you enter), and the type of activity you tell it you are doing. These are helpful for getting a general idea. They are not always perfectly accurate for yoga because yoga intensity changes a lot.
Another way is to use online calculators. You put in your weight, the time you did yoga, and the style of yoga. These calculators use average numbers (like the ones in the table above) based on research about how much energy different activities use. They often use something called MET values (Metabolic Equivalents). A MET value is a number that shows how much more energy an activity uses compared to just sitting quietly. Sitting quietly is 1 MET. Hatha yoga might be around 2.5 METs. Vinyasa might be 4 METs. Hot yoga might be 5 METs or higher. The calculator uses these METs, your weight, and the time to give you an estimate.
To estimate calories burned yoga:
1. Know your body weight.
2. Know how long you did yoga.
3. Know the style and roughly how hard it was (intensity).
4. Use a fitness tracker or an online yoga calorie calculator.
Remember, these are just estimates. Do not get too focused on the exact number.
Yoga for Weight Loss Calories and More
Can yoga help you lose weight? Yes, it can. The calories burned per hour yoga do help. Burning more calories than you eat is a key part of losing weight. If you do energetic yoga often, it adds up.
For example, if you do three hours of Vinyasa yoga each week, you might burn an extra 900-1200 calories a week. Over time, this can help with weight loss.
But yoga for weight loss calories is not the whole story. Yoga helps in other ways too:
* Builds muscle: Some yoga poses build strength. Muscle burns more calories than fat, even when you are resting.
* Reduces stress: Stress can make some people gain weight or find it hard to lose weight. Yoga is very good at lowering stress.
* Makes you more aware: Yoga teaches you to pay attention to your body and mind. This can help you make healthier choices about eating and moving throughout the day.
So, while yoga might not burn as many calories per hour as running or jumping rope, it still burns a good amount. And its other benefits make it a great part of a healthy lifestyle that supports weight loss.
Getting More Calories Burned Per Hour Yoga
Want to increase the calories burned per hour yoga you do? Here are some simple ways:
- Pick a faster style: Choose Vinyasa, Power Yoga, or Ashtanga more often than Hatha or Yin.
- Add intensity: In any class, work a bit harder. Push deeper in poses if it feels right. Hold poses strongly. Move with energy.
- Stay for the whole class: Make sure you are doing yoga for the full hour or whatever the class length is.
- Do more yoga: Practice more days a week. More time doing yoga means more total calories burned.
- Try hot yoga: If you can handle the heat and it feels safe for you, hot yoga increases the burn (hot yoga calorie expenditure).
Even making small changes can increase your yoga intensity and calorie burn.
Yoga Gives More Than Just Calorie Burn
While knowing about calories burned per hour yoga is interesting, remember why most people do yoga. It is not just about burning energy.
Yoga helps you:
* Become more flexible.
* Build strength and balance.
* Feel less stressed.
* Improve your mood.
* Sleep better.
* Feel more connected to your body.
These benefits are huge for your health and happiness. Thinking only about the calories burned misses a lot of what makes yoga special and good for you.
In Summary: How Many Calories Does One Hour Of Yoga Burn?
To answer how many calories does one hour of yoga burn, know it is not a fixed number. It changes for everyone and every class.
* Average calories burned yoga session for a 150-pound person can range from about 120 (Restorative) to 460 (Hot Yoga) or even more (Power Yoga).
* Hatha yoga calorie burn is moderate.
* Vinyasa flow calorie burn is higher.
* Hot yoga calorie expenditure is highest among popular styles due to heat.
* Factors affecting yoga calorie burn include your weight, the class intensity, how long you practice, and even the room temperature.
* You can estimate calories burned yoga using online tools or fitness trackers.
* Yoga for weight loss calories is helpful, but yoga offers many other important benefits too.
Focus on finding a style of yoga you enjoy. Practice regularly. The benefits for your body and mind are often more important than the exact number of calories you burn in one class.
Frequently Asked Questions About Yoga and Calories
How many calories does yoga burn compared to walking?
Walking speed changes calorie burn. Brisk walking might burn 250-400 calories an hour (for a 150-pound person). Hatha yoga burns less than this (180-240). Vinyasa or Power yoga can burn about the same or more (300-400+). Hot yoga can burn more than walking. It depends on the type of yoga and how fast you walk.
Does gentle yoga burn any calories?
Yes, even gentle yoga burns calories. Your body uses energy whenever it is not completely at rest. Restorative or Yin yoga burns fewer calories than active styles, maybe 100-160 per hour for a 150-pound person. This is similar to a very slow, gentle walk.
Is yoga good for weight loss if it doesn’t burn lots of calories?
Yes, yoga is good for weight loss, but not just because of the calories burned during the class. It helps by building muscle (which burns calories at rest), reducing stress (which can affect weight), and improving your mind-body connection, which helps you make healthier food choices. It is best used with other exercise and healthy eating.
Does weightlifting burn more calories than yoga?
Generally, yes. Weightlifting often burns more calories per hour than most yoga styles, especially if you lift heavy weights or do circuit training. Weightlifting also builds more muscle mass, which increases your resting calorie burn. However, vigorous Power Yoga or Ashtanga might be close to moderate weightlifting in calorie burn.
How can I know exactly how many calories I burned?
You cannot know exactly without lab equipment. Fitness trackers give you an estimate using your heart rate and other data. Online calculators give you an estimate based on averages. These tools are helpful for getting an idea, but the number on your watch is not a perfect measure. The important thing is that you are moving your body and getting the health benefits.
Does holding yoga poses longer burn more calories?
Yes, generally holding poses longer, especially challenging ones, makes your muscles work more. This can increase the yoga intensity and calorie burn compared to moving quickly through poses. It uses more energy to keep your body still and strong against gravity.
Does sweat mean I burned more calories?
Sweating helps cool your body down. You sweat more in hot rooms (like hot yoga) or when you work very hard. Sweating is a sign that your body is working and likely burning calories. But sweating a lot in a hot room doesn’t only mean you burned calories from exercise. It also means your body used energy to manage the heat. You can burn calories without sweating a lot, and you can sweat a lot without burning a huge number of calories (like just sitting in a sauna).