Exercise is an essential part of a healthy lifestyle. Cardiovascular exercise, strength training and stretching workouts like yoga make up the three basic types of exercise needed for optimal fitness. Understanding the similarities and differences between yoga and strength training allows you to formulate a workout plan that's right for you.
Identification
Strength training uses the force of resistance to strengthen muscles and increase anaerobic endurance. Most forms of strength training rely on gravity or hydraulic force to counter muscle contraction, resulting in bigger, stronger muscles.
Yoga is a type of flexibility exercise practiced for more than 5,000 years in many Eastern cultures. It combines breathing, meditation and stretching poses called asanas to help the participant attain mental tranquility and physical fitness. Many types of yoga exist, with difficulty ranging from easy to highly advanced levels.
Types
Hatha yoga focuses on physical poses, while other types focus more on meditation or breathing. Other kinds include Bhakti, Tantra, Raja and Bikram yoga.
Weightlifting is a widely practiced form of strength-training exercise and includes use of free weights, dumbbells, barbells and weight machines. Other resistance exercises like squats, abdominal crunches and pushups also fall under the strength-training category.
Benefits
Strength training has many health benefits. In addition to increasing muscle strength and endurance, strength training reduces body fat, improves focus and helps prevent health conditions like osteoporosis.
Yoga and other flexibility exercises help tone muscles and improve range of motion. Stress reduction, weight loss and management of chronic health conditions like chronic pain are more benefits of yoga. Yoga helps reduce blood pressure and heart rate while improving energy levels and mood.
Precautions
Both yoga and strength-training exercises can cause injury when done incorrectly. In rare instances, weightlifting has been linked to increased risk for aneurysm in otherwise healthy people. People over 40 and those with a history of connective tissue disease or aneurysm should use caution when engaging in heavy lifting. Proper breathing and lifting techniques may be helpful in reducing these risks.
Improper execution of yoga poses can also lead to injuries including muscle sprains, strains and general soreness. To help prevent injury, start with poses that match your experience level and stop if you feel pain.
Consult your doctor before starting any new exercise program.
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