Does stretching help you lose weight? – EasyFlexibility
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Does stretching help you lose weight?

Posted by Paul Zaichik on

A woman doing cobra on the beach trying to lose weight by stretching.

Does stretching help you lose weight?

Stretching can help you lose weight depending on what type of stretching you do from the regular stretching point of view. Mobility exercises and dynamic stretching will burn more calories and thus will be more effective in weight loss than passive or relaxed stretches.

Passive or relaxed stretching, on the other hand, if done forcefully, will activate the stretch reflex so your muscles will contract to prevent you from going further into the stretch. While this is not great, if you're looking for flexibility, it has some value in terms of burning calories because the muscles will be contracting.

However, doing a passive stretch and hoping to trigger a stretch reflex to loseweight is like jogging and hoping to become stronger. Will you get some strength benefit from jogging? Yes. Is it the same as if you started to do body weight exercises or any other type of resistance exercises? No.

Yoga and weight loss is different than stretching and weight loss.

Yoga and weight loss is different than stretching and weight loss. When doing yoga for weight loss. The belief that many yoga teachers hold is that when a student performs the asanas, various glands in the body get strengthened and cleansed. And this study confirms that Yoga indeed can help weight loss long term.

For example, a plow pose combined with a fish pose works on the thyroid while
other poses work on other organs. And thus, the metabolic changes or biochemical changes that take place in a body as a result of yoga practice can lead to weight loss. Where the value of those poses is above and beyond just doing physical exercises to burn calories.

The Plow Pose - Halasana Strength & Flexibility Training

Video Online On Demand Step by Step Yoga Program
The Plow Pose Halasana has many amazing health benefits. From regulating the thyroid to stimulating the abdominal organs. From releasing stress and fatigue to promoting good digestion. Besides people seeking health benefits, many athletes can benefit from this pose. Dancers, gymnasts, grapplers, wrestlers, etc., can improve their performance, owning to great posterior chain flexibility.
Click Here to Learn More About the Halasana Plow Pose Program!

Can EasyFlexibility programs help with weight loss?

People have asked me numerous times if EasyFlexibility programs can help with weight loss. The answer is they can, because Zaichik Stretching Techniques are a dynamic form of stretching.

Zaichik Stretching Techniques are not static and there is movement. The supporting exercises are also movement exercises. So, there is more burning of calories. And while these programs can help, they are not designed specifically for weight loss.

Now, if your primary goal is to develop strength, flexibility and mobility with weight loss as something that would come second and additional to your primary goal, then EasyFlexibility programs will help you reach your goals.

If on the other hand, your primary goal is to lose weight and not to become flexible, then you need programs specifically tailored for weight loss.

About the Author:

Paul Zaichik is an Exercise Science Expert, author of multitude of books, and the creator of Zaichik Stretching Technique (formely known as Kinesiological Stretching Technique). His speciality is flexibility training as well as body weight conditioning. His innovative method is designed to have maximum carry over into specific athletic techniques. Paul is the author of books and DVD’s on the topic of flexibility, martial arts and bodyweight training. Over the years, Paul Zaichik has worked with a variety of individuals including athletes, entertainers, and military personnel. His ElasticSteel Method of Athletic Conditioning programs, EasyFlexibility Programs and Zaichik Stretching Techniques are used world wide by both professional and amateurs with great success.
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