IS 20 MINUTES OF YOGA A DAY ENOUGH? THE ANSWER MIGHT SURPRISE YOU…

October 6, 2021

“Is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough?”

You’d be amazed by how many times we get asked that question!

Most of the time, it comes from a busy professional or parent who is struggling to fit that short workout into their daily schedules, or from people who want to add Yoga into their existing workout program.

Our answer tends to be “yes and no”.

You may be wondering what the heck that is supposed to mean—don’t worry, we’ll explain below.

Answering the question “Is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough?” is a bit more complex, and requires a more in-depth answer.

That’s because the question is incomplete…

You see, whenever someone asks that question, they have a specific goal in mind. For some people, Yoga is a way to lose weight. For others, it’s about improving their overall fitness. Others want to get more flexible, and some want to enjoy the relaxation and mental benefits of a good Yoga workout.

So, those are the questions we’re going to answer on this page. By the time you reach the end, you’ll know exactly whether or not 20 minutes of Yoga per day is enough to help you attain your specific goals.

Is 20 Minutes of Yoga a Day Enough for Weight Loss?

Let’s start with the big one: weight loss.

Yoga isn’t inherently a weight loss workout—typically, a combination of resistance training and cardiovascular exercise are best for encouraging fat and weight loss. However, Yoga can be good for helping you to burn more fat and build muscle, thanks to the full-body movements and focus on core engagement.

Now, to answer the question of “Is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough to burn fat?”, we’ve got to look at the way your body utilizes energy.

To put it simply:

Aerobic exercise burns stored fat and carbs
Anaerobic exercise burns mostly carbs until supply is depleted, then it taps into stored fat

Yoga is a low-intensity aerobic exercise, which means it burns both stored fat and carbs. Typically it will start burning the carbohydrates in your blood (blood sugar, or glycogen), but as you continue with the workout, it activates stored fats to supplement your glycogen.

It takes around 10 minutes of aerobic exercise to “switch on” your body’s fat-burning engines. That means that in a 20-minute Yoga session, you’ll only spend about 10 minutes in fat-burning mode.

Unless you’re doing a very athletic form of Yoga—such as Power Yoga—10 minutes will only burn 100-200 calories maximum. Considering that some of that will be carb-based energy, that means you’ll burn very little stored fat.

So, is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough to burn fat and trigger weight loss? Sadly, the answer is no. You need more time and/or higher intensity in your workouts to see fat-burning results.

Is 20 Minutes of Yoga a Day Enough to Get Fit?

The term “get fit” is short-hand for “get fit enough to carry out your daily activities of life without fatigue”. In this, Yoga definitely can help you out.

Yoga builds both muscular strength and endurance, increases your cardiovascular endurance, and even helps your mobility. Considering that these are the four pillars of fitness, you’ll find that a daily Yoga workout does wonders to help you “get fit”.

Now, is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough? If you’re pushing hard and exerting yourself, you can absolutely get more fit with just a 20-minute Yoga session every day.

Is 20 Minutes of Yoga a Day Enough to Improve Flexibility?

Ahh, now we’re getting somewhere!

The focus of Yoga is on both flexibility and mobility, your joints’ ability to move easily and more naturally without tension or strain. Anyone who’s done any kind of Yoga workout will know just how great Yoga is for improving your range of motion and ease of movement.

Will Yoga help you improve flexibility specifically? If you focus on the flexibility-increasing poses, absolutely. And 20 minutes a day is more than enough to (slowly) increase your joint range of motion.

Is 20 Minutes of Yoga a Day Enough for a Mental Boost?

Yoga is amazing for relaxing your mind while pushing your body to its limits. Or, in the cases or gentler forms of Yoga, it’s almost a meditative experience that utilizes simple motions to align your mind and body for maximum results.

You see, Yoga combines physical movement with breathing exercises and guided meditations that, put together, do wonders to soothe anxiety, combat worry, and help you remain in the present.

The answer to the question, “Is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough to relax and combat anxiety?” is a resounding YES! Really, it only takes a few minutes to get in the flow, focus on your breathing, and let all the outside thoughts slip away as you listen to the soft music and concentrate on your posture. By the end of the 20-minute session, you will feel exponentially better in both mind and body than when you started.

Is 20 Minutes of Yoga a Day Enough to See Real Results? With Yoga Lean, Absolutely!

Yoga Lean is our approach to improving both your mind and body. We’ve tailored Yoga workouts to not only combat anxiety and clear stressed thoughts from your head, but also to push your muscles and endurance to their absolute limits—all while focusing on better mobility and flexibility.

Yoga Lean is the best of everything you love about Yoga, and you’ll find that with the daily workouts in your life, you’ll feel so much better, happier, and healthier than ever before. With Get Yoga Lean, the answer to “Is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough?” will always be yes.

IS 20 MINUTES OF YOGA A DAY ENOUGH? THE ANSWER MIGHT SURPRISE YOU…

“Is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough?”

You’d be amazed by how many times we get asked that question!

Most of the time, it comes from a busy professional or parent who is struggling to fit that short workout into their daily schedules, or from people who want to add Yoga into their existing workout program.

Our answer tends to be “yes and no”.

You may be wondering what the heck that is supposed to mean—don’t worry, we’ll explain below.

Answering the question “Is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough?” is a bit more complex, and requires a more in-depth answer.

That’s because the question is incomplete…

So, those are the questions we’re going to answer on this page. By the time you reach the end, you’ll know exactly whether or not 20 minutes of Yoga per day is enough to help you attain your specific goals.

Is 20 Minutes of Yoga a Day Enough for Weight Loss?

Let’s start with the big one: weight loss.

Now, to answer the question of “Is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough to burn fat?”, we’ve got to look at the way your body utilizes energy.

To put it simply:

Aerobic exercise burns stored fat and carbs

Anaerobic exercise burns mostly carbs until supply is depleted, then it taps into stored fat

Yoga is a low-intensity aerobic exercise, which means it burns both stored fat and carbs. Typically it will start burning the carbohydrates in your blood (blood sugar, or glycogen), but as you continue with the workout, it activates stored fats to supplement your glycogen.

It takes around 10 minutes of aerobic exercise to “switch on” your body’s fat-burning engines. That means that in a 20-minute Yoga session, you’ll only spend about 10 minutes in fat-burning mode.

Unless you’re doing a very athletic form of Yoga—such as Power Yoga—10 minutes will only burn 100-200 calories maximum. Considering that some of that will be carb-based energy, that means you’ll burn very little stored fat.

So, is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough to burn fat and trigger weight loss? Sadly, the answer is no. You need more time and/or higher intensity in your workouts to see fat-burning results.

Is 20 Minutes of Yoga a Day Enough to Get Fit?

The term “get fit” is short-hand for “get fit enough to carry out your daily activities of life without fatigue”. In this, Yoga definitely can help you out.

Yoga builds both muscular strength and endurance, increases your cardiovascular endurance, and even helps your mobility. Considering that these are the four pillars of fitness, you’ll find that a daily Yoga workout does wonders to help you “get fit”.

Now, is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough? If you’re pushing hard and exerting yourself, you can absolutely get more fit with just a 20-minute Yoga session every day.

Is 20 Minutes of Yoga a Day Enough to Improve Flexibility?

Ahh, now we’re getting somewhere!

The focus of Yoga is on both flexibility and mobility, your joints’ ability to move easily and more naturally without tension or strain. Anyone who’s done any kind of Yoga workout will know just how great Yoga is for improving your range of motion and ease of movement.

Will Yoga help you improve flexibility specifically? If you focus on the flexibility-increasing poses, absolutely. And 20 minutes a day is more than enough to (slowly) increase your joint range of motion.

Is 20 Minutes of Yoga a Day Enough for a Mental Boost?

Yoga is amazing for relaxing your mind while pushing your body to its limits. Or, in the cases or gentler forms of Yoga, it’s almost a meditative experience that utilizes simple motions to align your mind and body for maximum results.

You see, Yoga combines physical movement with breathing exercises and guided meditations that, put together, do wonders to soothe anxiety, combat worry, and help you remain in the present.

Is 20 Minutes of Yoga a Day Enough to See Real Results? With Yoga Lean, Absolutely!

Yoga Lean is our approach to improving both your mind and body. We’ve tailored Yoga workouts to not only combat anxiety and clear stressed thoughts from your head, but also to push your muscles and endurance to their absolute limits—all while focusing on better mobility and flexibility.

Yoga Lean is the best of everything you love about Yoga, and you’ll find that with the daily workouts in your life, you’ll feel so much better, happier, and healthier than ever before. With Get Yoga Lean, the answer to “Is 20 minutes of Yoga a day enough?” will always be yes.