yoga and pilates!

Yoga – One of the great things about yoga is it provides little cardio benefit while also keeping your body calm and sound during your workout.  A 50-minute hatha class will burn about 145 calories.  A different form of yoga, a power yoga class, can burn about 250 calories. In a recent study, after eight weeks of doing yoga three times a week, participants boosted their total body flexibility by an average of 24 percent and lost an average of 3 pounds. After doing yoga for a couple of weeks, you will also be able to see changes in your strength and balance.  Yoga is an amazing workout because it can help you achieve inner peace. Yoga has been shown to lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol, even after one session.

Pilates – Pilates is another great workout for women. During a 50-minute beginner workout you can burn about 175 calories, and between 255 and 375 calories for more advanced classes. Although this workout isn’t known for helping women lose weight, pilates tends to be better at strengthening the abdominal muscles, and up to 310 percent more effective at tightening the hard-to-target obliques. This is an excellent workout if you are looking to tone and strengthen your body before summertime. Pilates and Yoga are very similar in style and workout.  The main differences are the different movements and stretches during the workout. 

If you are interested in either of these workouts, you should look into taking a class at your local gym or buying a couple different pilates or yoga dvds.