44% Emphasize Yoga's Strength Benefits: How the Practice is Evolving Beyond Flexibility

Yoga has long been associated with flexibility and mindfulness, but recent data from the WorkoutHealthy Facebook community reveals a surprising trend: 44% of users emphasize its strength-building benefits over aspects like flexibility and endurance.

In this article, we'll explore members' insights on yoga's benefits and their perspective on its effectiveness as a workout.

In the Facebook group we asked: 

Link to Facebook Post

Top Yoga as a Workout Statistics:

• 94% of respondents believe yoga should be considered a workout.
• 45% think yoga is beneficial for strength training.
• Power Yoga, Vinyasa, Hot Yoga, and Ashtanga are the most popular yoga types considered as workouts.

The Changing Perception of Yoga

Traditionally, yoga has been viewed as a practice focused on flexibility, relaxation, and mental clarity. However, data suggest a significant shift in this perception.

Most now recognize yoga as a comprehensive workout, with strength emerging as a key benefit.

This change reflects yoga's evolving role in modern fitness routines, where it's increasingly seen not just as a supplementary activity, but as a primary method for building physical strength.

The sentiment surrounding yoga as a workout is overwhelmingly positive, with 94% of users agreeing that it's more than just a stretching routine.

This strong consensus highlights growing recognition of yoga's ability to build strength, enhance flexibility, and support overall physical health.

Many users shared personal experiences, emphasizing how yoga challenges their bodies similarly to traditional strength training.

Several commenters noted that holding yoga poses for extended periods significantly engages their muscles, leading to increased strength and stability.

One user explained this perfectly when they said: "Yoga is a bodyweight workout... I see similar results from yoga as I do from lifting. There was a point in time I lost 25 pounds doing only yoga."

The data reveals a clear trend: most users not only consider yoga a workout but also view it as an essential component of their fitness journey.

Strength as the Dominant Benefit

Strength Takes Center Stage

Among various yoga benefits discussed, strength emerged as the most frequently mentioned. 

This emphasis indicates a shift in how yoga is perceived—not just as a practice for flexibility and relaxation, but as a powerful tool for building muscle and enhancing overall physical resilience.

This is echoed through a study confirms that yoga is helpful to build not only flexibility and balance but also muscular strength. 

Many users shared that they experienced significant muscle engagement through yoga, particularly through poses requiring holding body weight for extended periods. One user explain this perfectly: "Yoga is a bodyweight strength workout... I see similar results from yoga as I do from lifting." 

Another user emphasized the difficulty of certain yoga classes, noting that they found a one-hour yoga session more challenging than their usual weightlifting routine. They said: "Probably the hardest workout I've ever done.  I can lift weights all day but a 1 hour yoga class once almost took me out!"

These personal experiences underscore the growing recognition of yoga as a strength-building practice.

Flexibility and Endurance – Important but Secondary

Flexibility has long been yoga's hallmark, often seen as the primary reason people engage in the practice. While flexibility remains important, it's no longer the primary focus for many practitioners.

Comments indicate that users appreciate how yoga enhances their flexibility, particularly as it relates to other physical activities.

For example, a user mentioned: "Yoga promotes strength, relaxation, flexibility. You can stretch out your body from the impacts of your other workouts. I love it and it helps with my horse riding activities."

Endurance was another benefit mentioned in the comments with one user mentioning: "If you've done yoga, you’d know it raises your heart rate like cardio does." While we think that cardio is king when it comes to endurance, yoga has been found by multiple studies to support endurance training as well. 

Core Stability, Mobility, and Relaxation: The Comprehensive Benefits

Other aspects like core stability, mobility, and relaxation play equally crucial roles in the practice.

Core stability emerged as a key theme in user comments. A user mentioned: "Holding positions helps strengthen stabilizer muscles, which keep you balanced." Its emphasis reflects how yoga engages the entire body, particularly the deep stabilizing muscles that support overall balance and posture. 

Mobility is especially important for those engaging in high-impact activities, as it helps maintain range of motion and flexibility necessary for optimal performance. 

Relaxation, while not the focus of most comments, is often intertwined with yoga's mental health benefits. It was mentioned as a complementary benefit that enhances the overall yoga experience, making it not just a physical workout but a mental one as well.

Yoga Styles That Double as Workouts

The comments also highlighted specific yoga styles they consider effective workouts.

Power Yoga and Vinyasa Yoga were the most frequently mentioned, with 33% of users citing each as a challenging practice that rivals or surpasses the intensity of traditional workouts.

• Power Yoga is known for its fast pace and strength focus, blending traditional yoga poses with athletic movements.
• Vinyasa Yoga emphasizes fluid movement and breath coordination, offering both cardiovascular benefits and muscle engagement.

Other styles like Hot Yoga and Ashtanga Yoga were also recognized for their effectiveness.

Hot Yoga involves performing yoga in a heated room, increasing heart rate and promoting sweat for an intense physical challenge.

Ashtanga Yoga follows a rigorous, set sequence of poses, promoting strength, flexibility, and endurance through its demanding structure.

Conclusion

The analysis of user comments makes it clear: yoga is widely recognized as an effective workout, particularly for building strength.

This reflects a shift within the fitness community, where yoga is increasingly valued for its comprehensive approach to physical health.

While a small minority expressed skepticism, the overwhelming positive sentiment shows that yoga is not just a supplementary activity but a core component of many fitness regimens.

As yoga continues to gain recognition as a strength-building exercise, gym owners and trainers should consider incorporating it into their programs as a central element of a well-rounded fitness strategy.

References:

1. Workout Healthy. (2024, May 29). Yoga as a Workout. Facebook post  https://www.facebook.com/WorkoutHealthy/posts/pfbid02GGzJJ5bfQ98198qfr99hAjGpf3jrpR1pXKUwkmSHv2vPtvxGpmsrNFafoy7xk2aTl

2. Bhunia, G. B., & Ray, U. S. (2024). Improvement in muscular strength, body flexibility and balance by yoɡasana and with reduced detraining effects by yoɡa breathing maneuvers: A non-randomized controlled study. Journal of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine, 15(1), 100815. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaim.2023.100815

3. Kothari, R., Mittal, G., A, P., & Bokariya, P. (2023). Exploring the Effect of Yoga on Exercise Endurance As Assessed by Cardiorespiratory Efficiency Tests in Exercise Physiology Laboratory: A Pilot Study. Cureus. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.38283