A few days ago, I had the opportunity to attend my wife’s Yoga class at the local gym.  I rediscovered something that I had forgotten.  Yoga is hard.  Very hard.  And its not just hard because of the stretching.

How Yoga Will Give You A Great Workout

It was Good Friday, so my wife and I had the day off together, and she had to teach a yoga class before we could get our day started.  With that in mind, we decided to go to the gym together, and head out from there.  Me, being the big strong man, thought I might take part of her class for the stretching before I went out to get my “real” workout started with the free weights.

I should’ve known better.  I’ve taken her class before.

Most guys I’ve known, myself included, tend to think of yoga as not very “manly.”  Taking her class helped remind me that yoga is not for cupcakes.  In fact, a well constructed yoga class will provide a great total body workout.  Here’s how.

1.  Yoga challenges your flexibility.
This is how we classically think about yoga, and it’s a correct perception.  Yoga challenges us to lengthen the muscle, which in turns builds strength and protects against injury.  We should all pay more attention to this subject, but as we age, it becomes even more important.

2.  Yoga builds strength in the core
Most of us know that our “core” muscles provide the foundation for both exercises and everyday function.  These are the muscles in the center of the body that are responsible for supporting posture, and provide the foundation every exercise in your arsenal.  A perfect example is the “Plank” which is finding more acceptance among strength trainers as a replacement to classic situps and crunches.

3.  Yoga provides a great body weight exercise.
The strength poses rely solely on body weight, but don’t let that fool you.  Anyone who’s spent much time trying to do pull-ups knows that body weight exercises can provide a workout to challenge even the strongest among us.  Combine that with the slow movements inherent to yoga, and you can expect to feel it when you’re done.

4.  Yoga builds balance.
Improving your balance reduces the risk of injury, and enhances practical strength.  All are important aspects of maintaining function and mobility, particularly if your job requires sitting at a desk all day long.

So, the next time you walk into a gym, and see a group of people flowing between yoga poses, don’t dismiss the idea of giving it a shot.  You might just be surprised at just how challenging it can be.

Greg Hayes is the author of Live Fit Blog, where he writes about what it means to live fit, stay healthy, lose weight, and the challenges of raising little boys.