Practising Yoga or Working Out at the Gym – Find Out Which One Is Better for You
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Stick to yoga or work out at the gym? That is a difficult choice that haunts fitness enthusiasts! If your goal is to get lean, build muscle, and boost your physical and mental performance, both of these are great options. But if you’ve already settled into your fitness routine, choosing between these two options can present you with quite the dilemma. Here, we’ll list out the benefits of both to help you make a wise decision.
In general, young people find yoga exercises to be boring since it’s therapeutic and not exciting. From the point of view of age alone, yoga is ideal for older audiences while the gym is perfect for youngsters. But we think making use of both is the sweet spot you should aspire to hit. When you practise yoga and work out, you get the cardiovascular benefits of one and experience the whole-body detox benefits of the other. With yoga, your organs go through a cleansing process which means your performance will also improve. Any toxic or emotional blocks will also get removed, so if you’ve been struggling mentally in some aspect of your life, you’ll find it disappearing soon enough. And when that goes away, you’ll naturally perform better in life with more enthusiasm. It’s a win-win situation and that’s why we recommend doing both.
Practising Yoga Versus Working Out – Which One Should You Opt for?
In short, whether you should choose to practise yoga or go to the gym will depend on your activity levels and lifestyle factors. We elaborate more on that below.
1. Yoga
What makes yoga beautiful is that it’s easy to learn and very therapeutic. Here’s a list of its benefits.
Benefits of Yoga
- Therapeutic and de-stresses the mind and body
- Easy to pick up for beginners
- Requires just a yoga mat for practice
- Improves joint flexibility and mobility
- Stimulates positive thinking and mental relaxation
2. Working Out at the Gym
Working out leans slightly more towards the hardcore side but that doesn’t mean its benefits are limited. The fitness industry is getting creative and there are always newer and more challenging workouts emerging. Here’s a list of benefits of going to the gym.
Benefits of Working Out
- Boosts your blood circulation and purges toxins from the blood
- Burns plenty of calories and helps you lose weight
- Stresses your body and pushes it to perform at higher limits
- Keeps you healthy and disciplined and prevents the onset of several medical conditions
What Are the Major Differences Between Practising Yoga and Going to the Gym?
Here’s an overview of the two:
| Yoga | Gym |
| A yoga session doesn’t require you to spend a lot of money to attend. There are yoga groups in different cities and free events. Plus, you can always check out videos and start following along, since yoga is beginner-friendly, with the exception of Power Yoga, of course. | A gym session requires you to travel to the gym or take a membership. You’ll need a trainer to guide you throughout since having the wrong form or doing exercises the wrong way may injure you. Not all gym workouts are beginner-friendly. |
| Yoga works on your internal organs and helps detox the body from within. This leads to a feeling of balance, inner fulfilment, and mental relaxation. | Gym sessions focus on boosting your cardiovascular health and toning, without any focus on the aspect of mental health. However, the rush of endorphins after exercising will definitely make you feel better. |
| Yoga focuses on spiritual enlightenment and broadens your emotional awareness. You feel more in tune with your emotions and grasp what mindfulness is. | Gym sessions involve just improving physical fitness. There’s no connection between the mind, body, and soul, unlike yoga. |
| Yoga has been used since ancient times to heal diseases and detox the body. | Gym workouts don’t get rid of any diseases that are developing internally. However, they can help prevent certain serious conditions. |
| Yoga also gives you anti-ageing benefits by keeping your internal organs healthy and helping them function well. | Gym workouts do give you anti-ageing benefits as well – certain workouts can help reverse your cells’ ageing process. |
| Yoga also provides relief against constipation and bloating. | Gym workouts won’t give you relief against these conditions. |
| Since yoga is gentle on the mind and body, you don’t get a lot of cravings. You also end up eating mindfully since you feel emotionally healthy. | The hard workouts help boost your appetite, but it’s essential that you eat healthy right after your gym sessions to avoid binging on junk food. |
| Yoga is not time-restrictive since you can do it whenever you want, and free of cost too if you’re doing it by yourself. | Every gym has timings and schedules, so if you miss out or bunk a session, you’re at a loss. Plus, there’s the money aspect involved too. |
FAQs
Here are some frequently asked questions about performing yoga versus going to the gym and more. We answer them below.
1. Is it okay to practise yoga and work out at the gym too?
Of course, it is. In fact, if you chalk out just 30 to 40 minutes a day, you can have the best of both worlds. Here’s how to set your schedule – do 2 to 3 days of cardio or HIIT and in the remaining 3 days, fit in yoga sessions. Keep aside one day of the week as your designated rest day. You need to give your body time to adapt to the physical exertion you’re putting it through. By practising yoga 3 times a week plus going to the gym, you’ll derive the benefits of both. But yes, it will take some time to attain the results you want.
2. Practising yoga or working out for weight loss – which is better?
Both yoga and working out will regulate your metabolism. But if you’re asking which of the two yields results quicker strictly in the weight loss department, the latter will win. This is because yoga isn’t designed to push you and burn belly fat or tone your body. The only exception is power yoga but that fits more into the fitness category. Where the gym is concerned, you raise your heart rate and stay in a fat-burning mode, something that yoga isn’t designed for.
We don’t recommend doing either yoga or going to the gym; instead, we recommend a combination of both. Yoga is a great start if you’ve been sedentary for a while since it’ll train your mind and body to ease into difficult and challenging moves. As you make gains in flexibility and mobility, you’ll find that hitting the gym gets much easier. But if you’re active in the gym, you can jump straight to yoga and still yield the benefits it has to offer.
Also Read:
Exercises That Make You Mentally Stronger
What to Eat Before a Workout
Simple Exercises That Only Need 5 Minutes
