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Looking for the best and most effective yoga asanas for weight loss? Look no further!
Many people think that yoga is not a good choice for weight loss. People tend to think that in order to lose weight, you have to be doing something more challenging, like running at a fast pace or lifting heavy weights.
We’re here to tell you that’s far from the truth!
Just because yoga is low-intensity doesn’t mean it won’t be effective. And not just in weight loss!
Yoga has so many benefits, I could talk about them all day. To name a few:
- Improves posture;
- Reduces stress;
- Helps you sleep better;
- Improves flexibility;
- Soothes back pain;
- Works your abs;
- And so much more!
The best part is that it’s a great form of exercise for all shapes and sizes. In fact, we have an article featuring the best yoga poses for plus size women here.
Not to mention, yoga also greatly lowers coritsol (the stress hormone that causes weight gain) levels. And lowering cortisol will help you lose weight naturally.
I think you will now agree with us that yoga is freaking amazing! That being said, let us present the 21 best yoga asanas for weight loss.’
21 Yoga Asanas For Weight Loss:
1. Downward Dog
Benefits: Great for toning your whole body, but especially your arms and biceps. Also stretches our your legs.
Note: Make sure you are pushing through your hands and feet. Try to push your armpits outward.
2. Plank
Benefits:Â Especially good for working your core. Also gives you better posture, improves balance, and increases overall muscle definition.
Note:Â Make sure you are forming a straight line with your back and neck. Don’t arch your back or let your hips fall down!
3. Upward Facing DogÂ
Benefits:Â It awakens your upper body strength and opens your chest.
Note:Â Make sure you’re pressing into the ground with your hands and top of feet, while lifting your knees off the mat.
4. Boat Pose
Benefits:Â Strengthens your abdomen, hip flexors, and spine. One of the best poses for building strength and balance in your core.
Note:Â Keep your spine straight and don’t let your lower back sag. If it’s too difficult, you can slightly bend your legs.
5. Crescent Lunge
Benefits:Â Stretches your legs and hips, while also opening your chest and shoulders and creating stability and balance.
Note:Â Make sure your front knee does not move past your ankle.
6. Chair
Benefits:Â Strengthens your thighs and ankles, while toning the butt, back, and shoulders. Known to be therapeutic for flat feet.
Note:Â Make sure about 80% of your weighted is shifted on your heels. Don’t forget to breathe!
7. Warrior II
Benefits: Strengthens the legs, opens your hips and shoulders, increases stamina.
Note:Â Make sure your front knee does not move past your ankle and keep your torso open.
8. Balancing Table Pose
Benefits:Â Just as the name suggests, this pose really challenges your balance but also strengthens your back, shoulders, and legs.
Note: Make sure you are raising the opposite limb (if you’re raising your right arms, then you should be lifting your left leg).
9. Bridge Pose
Benefits:Â Stretches out the upper body, while strengthening the lower body. Also calms the brain and improves digestion.
Note:Â Press your weight evenly on both feet and do not let them roll over to the outer sides.
10. Side Plank
Benefits:Â This yoga pose strengthen your core, legs, arms and wrists, but also really improves your balance and concentration at the same time.
Note: Don’t let your hips drop and make sure you’re always engaging your core muscles in this pose.
11. Garland Pose
Benefits:Â Great hip-opening yoga pose that tones the abdominal muscles.
Note:Â Keep your spine straight and try not to lift your heels off the floor.
12. Reverse Table Top
Benefits:Â Stretches out the front side of your body, while strengthening the arms, wrists, and legs.
Note:Â Make sure your knees are in a 90-degree angle, your wrists are directly under your shoulders, and your neck is neutral/
13. Four-Limbed Staff Pose (Low Plank)
Benefits: This challenging yet extremely beneficial yoga pose is great for strengthening your arms and waist as well as developing core stability. Not to mention, it helps prepare for more advanced yoga poses.
Note: Start in a downward dog pose, then flow into a high plank ant then do the four-limbed staff pose.
14. Triangle Pose
Benefits:Â Tones the legs, while opening the chest and shoulders. Great for reducing stress and relieving lower back pain.
Note: Make sure your heels are aligned with each other. Also, don’t let your torso drop forward.
15. Half Moon Pose
Benefits: Works your leg and ankle strength, while challenging your stability and balance.
Note: Make sure most of the body’s weight is on the standing leg and don’t lack the standing leg!
16. Shoulder Stand
Benefits:Â Strengthens the whole body, while calming the mind, and helping relieve swollen legs or a headache.
Note:Â You should not feel any pressure in the head, ears, eyes or throat!
17. Lord of the Dance
Benefits: Helps develop flexibility as well as strengthens your ankle, legs, thighs, hips, abs, and chest.
Note:Â Make sure to lift your hip and pubic to avoid strain. Also, try to keep the lifted ankle flexible to prevent cramps in the thigh muscles.
18. Crow Pose
Benefits:Â Extremely good for toning your arms and abdomen.
Note:Â Try to keep yourself tucked tight with your heels close to your butt.
19. Upward Plank
Benefits:Â Strengthens the wrists, arms, and legs, while stretching out your front ankles, chest, and shoulders.
Note:Â Make sure you don’t let your hips drop as well as keep your head in line with your body.
20. Wheel Pose
Benefits:Â Amazing chest-opener that helps strengthen the arms, shoulders, and legs.
Note:Â Keep your feet parallel and don’t let them turn out. Also make sure to get into the pose slowly and don’t push yourself too hard, as you could injure your spine if done too fast or incorrectly.
21. Superman Pose
Benefits: Stretches but also strengthens your chest, arms, legs, and especially your shoulders and glutes.
Note:Â Do not bend your knees or shrug your shoulders.
And there you have it! 21 yoga asanas for weight loss. Please be careful and make sure you are doing them correctly to avoid injury.
If you enjoyed this blog post about yoga for weight loss, you’ll love this flat tummy yoga workout!
However, if you’re trying to lose weight, you need to know that no matter how much yoga you do, if you don’t follow a diet plan, you won’t reach any real results.
The main part of weight loss is nutrition. And the reason many people, unfortunately, fail in their weight loss journey is that they either exercise or follow a diet plan.
But only by combining exercise with nutrition will you really lose some weight!
So only once you’ve got the nutrition down and are following a proper weight loss diet can you begin using yoga for weight loss.
Not sure what your nutrition should look like for weight loss? We’ve go you covered.
Check out the 20 POUNDS LIGHTER IN 3 WEEKS challenge.
I teamed up with a professional weight loss coach and we created this challenge specifically for women looking to lose weight at home.
The bundle includes a main guide, explaining how and why you gained weight in the first place, a diet guide, an activity guide, and daily checklists, which make the whole challenge super easy-to-follow and easy-to-understand.
But we haven’t even told you the best part yet… YOU DON’T HAVE TO WORK OUT!
Yes, that is correct. There are no workouts whatsoever in this challenge. The only physical activity that you will have to engage in is walking. And after just 21 days, you could be up to 20 pounds lighter!
While you will still get amazing results without working out, adding in some toning yoga poses surely won’t hurt! It’s totally up to you.
However, what is crucial for weight loss is nutrition. Without proper nutrition – you will not see results.
So, if you’re ready to stop searching for answers online, trying to navigate what is proper nutrition and what is not, make this one-time investment in a weight loss challenge and lose that weight once and for all!
Click here to learn more about 20 POUNDS LIGHTER IN 3 WEEKS!