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Yoga or weight training: What's the secret to a fit lifestyle?

Physical fitness is becoming more critical as we become more aware of its importance. People who belong to gyms, running clubs, and cycling groups are prevalent. Yoga is also gaining popularity, although it is frequently misunderstood as a type of physical activity. In reality, the physical aspects of yoga, known as asanas, are merely an adjunct to the general practice of meditation. Furthermore, these asanas differ significantly from traditional physical and weightlifting workouts in terms of how they are performed and the effects they produce.

Yoga is more concerned with maintaining stable postures and relaxing the muscles. The movements are calm and controlled, and the breathing is in sync with them. When you exercise regularly, the emphasis is on training and putting stress on your muscles to burn calories.

Despite our efforts to regulate our breathing rhythm, weightlifting frequently consists of repeated activity with no synchronised breathing. As a result, the benefits of yoga and exercise differ from one another.

Let's look at this article to see if yoga or exercise is the key to living a healthy lifestyle.

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Pexels

Muscle Contractions

Yoga postures: It promotes the uniform development of muscles across the bone surface, resulting in increased flexibility. Yoga is also a very low-energy form of exercise.

Exercise: Weight-lifting is a type of exercise that is commonly used to increase muscular growth. As a result of this, the muscle's length and flexibility are reduced. We expend a significant amount of energy when we exercise.

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Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels

The Circulatory System

Yoga postures: Once the asana (posture) is achieved, the body relaxes, and the blood demand of the body is reduced. This lessens the strain on the cardiovascular system.

Exercise: Lifting weights produces the opposite of what you would expect. Routine physical activity puts strain on the muscles. As a result, blood circulation and blood pressure are accelerated, putting additional strain on the heart, which pumps faster due to the increased workload.

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Photo by cottonbro from Pexels

System of Respiration

Yoga postures: Because yoga promotes a calm state, the respiratory system has less work to do throughout the practice.

Exercise: The continuous action of weightlifting training causes your muscles to require more oxygen to function correctly. As a result, the rate of breathing increases.

Photo by Victor Freitas from Pexels
Photo by Victor Freitas from Pexels (Photo by Victor Freitas from Pexels)

The Immune System

Yoga: Yoga postures help strengthen the immune system by increasing the number of immune cells in the body and their ability to function correctly.

Exercise: While this is also true for weightlifting exercises, the type, intensity, and duration of the training is generally determined by the individual.

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Pexels

Stress Levels (Nervous Tension)

Yoga: Yoga postures have been shown to lower cortisol levels in the body. Cortisol is a hormone produced by cholesterol that has been linked to feelings of stress.

Yoga improves cognition by using specific nostril breathing techniques that are not present in regular exercise. Because yoga has a calming effect on the nervous system, the body feels relaxed afterwards.

Exercise: According to research, lifting weights may raise cortisol levels because the body interprets lifting weights as a stressful event.

Weight-lifting activity, on the other hand, produces lactic acid, which can cause tiredness and exhaustion. Another benefit of yoga is that training does not provide better control over impulsive behaviour and resetting one's biological cycle.

A mix of weight training and yoga is the key to having a balanced and a fit lifestyle, by getting the best of both worlds.