Is yoga considered an aerobic exercise?

As we all know, there are aerobic exercises and anaerobic exercises. For example, when track and field athletes run fast, they are doing standard anaerobic exercises. Generally speaking, particularly intense exercises are anaerobic exercises, which place very high demands on the human body. In comparison, some more soothing exercises, such as jogging, swimming, and mountain climbing are all good aerobic exercises. Obviously, yoga is a very good aerobic exercise.

Is yoga considered an aerobic exercise?

Exercise is generally divided into anaerobic exercise and aerobic exercise, and yoga is an aerobic exercise.

There are many types of yoga. If we must define aerobic and anaerobic, we can only summarize it based on the different ways of contact. Flow yoga and Ashtanga, which constantly change movements like flowing water and coordinate with breathing, can be equated to aerobic exercise, while repeatedly correcting the body structure in one posture can be considered a therapeutic and restorative exercise for the body. The entire yoga system is more inclined towards stretching and relaxation. Moreover, an important criterion for aerobic exercise is a heart rate of 120-130 beats per minute (which may vary slightly from person to person and generally must be maintained in this state for more than 40 minutes). A heart rate lower or higher than this cannot be considered aerobic exercise in the strict sense. Most yoga movements are slow or relatively static, and it is generally difficult to reach the above standards in terms of heart rate, which is mostly around 80-90 per minute.

Anaerobic exercise

It is relative to aerobic exercise. During exercise, the body's metabolism is accelerated, and accelerated metabolism requires more energy. The human body's energy is obtained through the metabolism of sugar, protein and fat in the body. Ashtanga yoga is another yoga practice that can also be used to shape the body.

Aerobic exercise

It means that when the amount of exercise is not large, such as jogging, dancing, etc., the body's energy supply mainly comes from the aerobic metabolism of fat. Exercise that uses aerobic metabolism of fat as the main source of energy is called aerobic exercise.

Anaerobic exercise refers to when the exercise is very intense or rapid, such as weightlifting, 100-meter sprint, badminton, wrestling, etc., the body needs a large amount of energy in an instant, and under normal circumstances, aerobic metabolism cannot meet the body's needs at this time, so sugar undergoes anaerobically metabolism to quickly produce a large amount of energy. Exercise in this state is anaerobic exercise.