Positive effect of yoga on cardiorespiratory fitness: A pilot study

Abstract

Introduction:Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in developed countries. An integral part of primary prevention is physical activity. One form of physical activity to be potentially used is yoga, but this activity is associated with lower energy expenditure than that recommended for prevention. The study aimed at assessing the effect of regular yoga sessions on the aerobic capacity of the practitioners and comparing it with the normal population performing physical activity recommended by guidelines.Materials and Methods:Fifty-eight persons (16 males) with a mean age of 50.0 ± 11.06 years comprising the yoga group practiced yoga for at least 1 h a day for over 2 years. They underwent spiroergometry under maximal exercise testing to assess basic performance parameters. Their results were compared with those in 54 age-matched controls (16 males mean age of 48 ± 11.86 years performing a regular aerobic physical activity for at least 7 h a week.Results:The yoga group had statistically significantly higher maximum performance per kilogram (P = 0.007) and maximum oxygen consumption per kilogram per minute (P = 0.028).Conclusions:Despite low energy expenditure, yoga practices are better in some cardiorespiratory fitness parameters than other aerobic activities recommended by current guidelines for CVD prevention.

Hatha Yoga as a Form of Physical Activity in the Context of Lifestyle Disease Prevention

“…The results of previous studies also confirmed that yoga exercises prevented obesity [11,14,43,45]. Performing more difficult and more dynamic yoga poses during 90 minutes produces energy expenditure at a level of 250 kcal, which is beneficial for the management of body weight [46].…”

“…Research has found that yoga exercises improve cardiovascular system function, reduce systolic and diastolic blood pressure [11,12,13,14,15], and improve respiratory system function [16,17].…”

Association of Coronary Protective Factors Among Patients With Acute Coronary Syndromes

“…This finding suggests that approaches to prevention can be based on similar principles worldwide and have the potential to prevent most premature cases of myocardial infarction and CAD [26][27][28] . Meditation and yoga as well as some of the prayers by religious groups, have been regarded as a type of physical activity as well as a stress management strategies [29][30][31] . Recent studies suggest the beneficial effects of yoga on various ailments.…”

“…However, the effectiveness of yoga for secondary prevention in CAD remains uncertain unless large randomized controlled trials of high quality are conducted [30] . In a recent study, 58 subjects, mean age of 50.0 ± 11.06 years comprising the yoga group practiced yoga for at least 1 h a day for over 2 years [29] . Their results were compared with those in 54 agematched controls (mean age of 48 ± 11.86 years) performing a regular aerobic physical activity for at least 7 h a week.…”

Kardiometabolikus betegségek megelőzése és gyógyítása jógával

“…Ezek hasonló mérvű kedvező változásokat idéznek elő, mint a rendszeres futás -írja több szerző, akik ilyen csoportokat hasonlítottak össze [5]. A jógázó középkorúak aerob kapacitása magasabb lehet, mint a rendszeres fizikai aktivitást végzőké [6].…”