My wife has been talking about working out for a while now. She’s had back issues that prevented her from doing weight and cardio workouts with me, but those have been getting better lately. She’s already physically active, walking a lot and riding horses, but she wanted a more structured workout that will exercise the whole body. She was looking into a variety of options with the following criteria:

• Convenient – Like me, she has a very busy schedule. The workout had to mesh with her life.
• Affordable – She didn’t want to pay hundreds of dollars a month for a personal trainer and gym.
• Low Strain – She wanted to minimize the risk of injury or of aggravating her old back injuries.
• Interesting – She didn’t want something dull and boring.
• Social – She wanted to work out with someone.

So putting all that together, she came up with a yoga course offered at her company’s gym.

Yoga As A Workout

I’ve never tried yoga myself, but after she described it to me, I got curious enough to research it. Yoga is an ancient tradition originating from India. Unlike most Asian influenced workouts, yoga did not start out as a martial art. Instead, it used to be a form of meditation in which the body was moved through postures and poses to gain a better understanding of the world inside and outside. I’m not going to go into the metaphysical details of yoga since I’m not particularly interested in them and since this is a fitness blog, but if anyone is interested, here’s the Wikipedia article that gives a bit more detail.

What I was interested in was the physical aspect of yoga.  Is it really a good workout?  Is it more of a cardio workout or a resistance one?  Is it just stretching?  Well, the answers are going to be slightly different depending on the style of yoga you choose to practice, but for the most part yoga can be an excellent workout with its combination of stretching and resistance training.

Stretching and Posing = Workout

A typical yoga session consists of moving through a variety of postures very slowly and in a controlled manner.  The postures themselves can be challenging, although a beginner’s yoga course is not going to ask you to do the splits.  Because you move through the poses very slowly, you can actually get a great workout, almost like a weights workout but with very low weight.

Yoga is also excellent for teaching you control of you body and proper posture and form.  Rather than quickly moving through exercises, yoga teaches you to slowly move each muscle using controlled gestures rather than jerky movement.  You’ll definitely gain a better understanding of your body and how it works after a few yoga sessions.  You might even gain some insight into how to properly exercise and maintain good form.  In fact, after seeing a few yoga videos, I think most gym goers could benefit from a class or two.

Non physical benefits of yoga

Yoga was originally intended for meditation, and many people still find it relaxing.  It’s also a social activity usually done with a group, so if you hate working out alone, you may wish to consider it.

Warning, Expenses Ahead

The only negative to yoga is the slightly higher than usual cost associated with most yoga classes.  They’re typically more expensive than the usual gym membership, unless you can find a good deal like my wife did.  There’s usually no equipment needed, but the yoga classes themselves can range from $5 to $20 a session.

Summary

If you can afford it, yoga is an excellent workout in addition to or instead of your usual weight lifting.  It does not replace cardio but it’s a good form of stretching and resistance training.  It won’t build big muscles, but it can tone up existing muscles while teaching you a lot you didn’t know before about your body.

We’ve been talking about fun ways to workout this week. So far we’ve gone over dancing, hiking and biking. All of these are good examples of ways in which a fun activity can also be a workout. Today, we’re going to talk about something you might not have done since you were a child, playing sports.

Sports As A Workout

Many sports can be an excellent source of physical activity. You’ll frequently find yourself running around for hours while playing. Sports are also a good workout because they tend to engage your whole body and not just your legs. Like the other activities we discussed this week, sports can be a very good social activity which means you’ll have more reason to do them and thus tend to skip your workout less often. Let’s talk about some individual sports and see how they stack up:

Baseball – Unfortunately, the great American pastime does not make for a good workout. First of all, baseball players tend to stand or sit for large periods of time. The physical activity in baseball comes in short bursts separated by large amounts of inactivity. That means you’re not getting a very good cardio workout. Also, baseball requires quite a bit of specialized equipment and a large number of players. This makes it hard to play on a moment’s notice or to set up casual play times.

Football – Another American classic, football is better than baseball in that the periods of physical activity are more frequent. However, football also has frequent breaks between plays. Like baseball, it usually requires a large number of players plus some equipment. Football is also one of the more injury prone sports due to its physical nature.

Soccer – Soccer, while not quite as popular in the US as it is in the rest of the world, makes for an excellent workout. Physical activity comes frequently and without too many breaks. There’s almost no special equipment required, just a ball and something to mark the goal posts. Soccer is also relatively safer than football although it does put a lot of stress on the feet. Soccer can be played in large or small groups. All told, this is one of the best sports workout you can get.

Basketball – Like soccer, basketball is relatively safe and provides for continuous physical activity with few breaks in the middle. It can be played with as few players as two, making it ideal for casual workouts. It does require a specialized court, but one that can be found almost anywhere. Basketball has another advantage in that it engages the whole body, not just your legs. The only slight downside to basketball is the stress it puts on your feet due to the hard nature of the court. However, this detracts only a little which means basketball is still one of the best choices for a sports workout.

Hockey – Hockey is one of the best workouts available through sports. It engages the whole body, it has almost no stress on your feet and it offers a continuous physical workout. The only problem with hockey is the amount of specialized gear it requires. If you have access to hockey gear, hockey players and a hockey rink, by all means, play hockey! I can’t think of a better sports workout.

Tennis – There’s great workout potential in tennis. It works the whole body, it’s usually played on soft surfaces and it has few breaks. The only problem is the limit to 2 or 4 people at most and the need for a specialized court. However, if you have access to the right resources, tennis is another good option.

Rugby – For those unfamiliar with it, rugby is like a cross between football and soccer. It’s an incredible workout in all respects. The only downsides are the potential for injury due to the rough nature of the sport and the general lack of awareness for rugby in most countries such as the US. This means it’s hard to find people who want to play it.

There are many other sports out there but due to time constraints, I’m not going to describe all of them. Feel free to add suggestions in the comments field.

Getting Started

As far as getting started, I’m going to send you to the place you’re already at, the internet. Almost every city will have some kind of sports league. There are also numerous office leagues, school leagues and an endless variety of regularly scheduled games at your local park. Your best bet is to look online or just go to the park and ask the players there how they got started. As usual, I’ve always found experienced players to be very helpful. This isn’t school, they won’t pick you last just because you’re new. Most of these leagues aren’t about cutthroat competition, they’re about having fun, and they’re always looking for more players. Another great idea would be to just get your friends and schedule a time to go play.

Things To Watch Out For

As always, watch out for dehydration and sunscreen. With sports, you should also watch out for various injuries. Make sure to wear the proper protective gear for your sport.