An ideal lifestyle consists of healthy work habits and a healthy lifestyle. The most essential part of a healthy lifestyle is daily physical movement. Daily physical movement can be anything: gym, walk, or yoga. However, it must align with your fitness goals and medical conditions, if any.
Many fitness enthusiasts get confused when it’s time to choose between yoga or gym. Hence, it is essential to know about both of these fitness options before choosing as per your body and fitness goals.
This blog is the ideal piece covering both yoga and gym, as it will give you a comprehensive idea about both and their comparison.
Understanding Yoga vs Gym: The basics
It is important to understand the basics to reach a conclusion on yoga vs gym.
Yoga can be defined as the age-old traditional Indian practice developed by saints. Primarily, it is associated with meditation. Apart from physical benefits, yoga aids mental well-being as well. It requires high discipline and constant practice for one to experience its transforming results.
The main aspect of practicing yoga is to calm the soul and the body. Additionally, the majority of yoga courses evoke spiritual enlightenment. It is important to practice yoga with proper postures for the utmost benefit.
Gym or gym training, on the other hand, is the process of increasing bodily strength. Gym training is for people who want to build toned muscle or want to lose weight. Gym entails using machines like treadmills, cardio machines, and weights to pump body muscles. Unlike yoga, gym training cannot be performed in any alternate setting. Moreover, people who go to the gym must put more force into their exercises and follow a strict diet.
Difference between yoga and gym:
Both fitness regimes have the same goal: aiding proper health. However, their practice methods and features make them distinct from one another.
Apart from the basic differences between yoga and gym, there is also a constant split between the yoga body vs gym body. It is a fact that yoga helps build balance, posture, and flexibility, which will be visible in a yoga body. And since the gym focuses on muscle building, a gym body will be more toned and buffed.
Comparative Parameter | Yoga | Gym |
Weight Loss | Yoga does contribute to weight loss but not as effectively and quickly as gym training. | Gym is rightly preferred by sportspersons and actors for quick fat loss and muscle gain. |
Cost-effectiveness | Yoga is highly cost effective as it doesn’t entail equipment cost. One can easily perform yoga by watching YouTube or attending one-time yoga classes. | Gym entails a membership charge which depends on the equipment and vicinity of the gym. Moreover, there are extra charges for personal trainers. |
Mental and Heart health | Yoga is known to calm the body and mind. Yoga poses reduce anxiety as they include breathing exercises. It also improves concentration. Moreover, since Yoga heals from within, it has a positive impact on heart health. | Research indicates that working out in the gym produces happy chemicals like serotonin and endorphins. Hence, gym does have a good impact on mental health. Gym focuses more on the muscles than cardiovascular health. Hence, heart patients must avoid gym training. |
Process | The process of yoga focuses on detoxifying the body and making it flexible. | Gym includes intense exercises for gaining muscles and losing fat. The process of gym focuses on a toned body. |
Calorie burning impact | Yoga does burn calories but slowly. Performing yoga results in strengthening internal organs as compared to fat burning. | Gym exercises are aimed at effective calorie burning. |
Benefits of Practicing Yoga
There are several benefits of yoga, here are some of them:
- Yoga is practiced to enhance concentration and induce calmness of the mind.
- It is known to reduce stress and anxiety levels.
- Yoga helps build stronger immunity, reducing the chance of viral infections.
- It is also beneficial for the digestive system and for blood circulation.
- Multiple yoga postures target the core glands, resulting in the secretion of healthy enzymes and hormones.
- Yoga induces perfect body and mind balance.
- Yoga has anti-aging benefits and can easily be performed by people in the mature age group.
Benefits of Going to the Gym
- It caters to a younger generation who want to focus on toning and muscle building.
- Gym exercises prepare the body for muscle resistance toward stress.
- Gym aids faster weight loss and burns extra calories.
- It helps build muscle and increases the body’s endurance power.
- Regular gym improves one’s appetite and discipline
- It also reduces the chances of several medical issues and facilitates better blood circulation
Can one practice yoga as well as go to the gym?
Yoga and gym fall under the category of physical exercises but have different benefits and outcomes. Some people perform both yoga and gym for better results.
While they both are very different from each other, they complement one another. Hence, practicing both ensures that the gym causes muscle strength. Yoga calms the mind and relaxes the stress put on the body during gym training.
Since yoga is not a body-heavy workout, one can include it in their fitness regime alongside gym training. However, it is important to analyse personal endurance and power before adding both together to your fitness regime.
Conclusion
The question that still prevails is: Yoga Vs Gym: The Better Choice?
From the comparative table and benefits mentioned in this blog, you may have gotten a clear perspective on yoga and gym. They both aid health and offer different types of bodily improvements.
If you aim rigid weight loss and muscle gain, gym training is ideal. But if you wish to strike a mental and physical balance with inner development, you should choose yoga. However, you will see the results slowly when practicing yoga.
To strike the perfect balance, both can be practiced by people who are working. Long hours of work and a sedentary lifestyle can lead to multiple health problems. Thus, a mix of yoga and gym is necessary for proper mental and physical activity.
