Is yoga cardio? Yes, if you do it fast enough

Yoga offers some obvious benefits: stress reduc tion, muscular flexibility, an enhanced sense of well-being. But does it qualify as an aerobic workout?Aerobic activity, characterised by an elevated heart rate and increase in the body's use of oxygen, is closely linked to improved health and prolonged life spans; current guidelines suggest that people get at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise each week. Scant research has examined whether yoga is exercise under those guidelines, though. Now two new studies in Complementary Therapies in Medicine indicate that it can be, at least if done rapidly.The practice of yoga in the US typically consists of bodily poses interspersed with or followed by breathing exercises and meditation.The most famous movements are incorporated into the sun salutation (surya namaskar).These can be among the most physically demanding segments. Yet according to a 2016 review of yoga research, the energy expended by those who move slowly during sun salutations generally compares to the demands of a stroll at approx 5kmph. Exercise scientists at the University of Miami wondered whether lesslanguid yoga would be more aerobically beneficial. They outfitted 22 healthy adult volunteers with masks and sensors that measured energy expenditure and muscular activity and had them complete as many sun salutations as possible in eight minutes.Not surprisingly , about 48 calories on average were burnt during the eight-minute sessions, compared with 29 while doing the standard salutations. The salutations, particularly when done three times as fast, functioned as in tense interval training, says Joseph Signorile, a professor at the University of Miami and the senior author of the studies. Signorile acknowledges yoga's nonaerobic virtues. “We're not saying that you should ignore the meditative side,“ he says.The guided contemplation of body provides significant psychological benefits. But the energy expended is about the same that you would spend taking a nap.