Like anything, with yoga, you get out of it what you put in it. You could participate in an extremely athletic practice and push yourself enough to burn massive calories, and yes, you could potentially lose weight doing that. You're less likely to burn as many calories in a slow flow, relaxed practice. However, each time you practice you are encouraging your body to perform more efficiently while also increasing your body awareness. You're pushing out toxins, toning your organs, and strengthening yourself. Which brings up another benefit to yoga. Even in a slower practice, you are building muscle, which is going to help you burn calories more efficiently, even when practice is over.
While in Yoga Teacher Training, I was practicing yoga at a minimum of once a day, sometimes up to four times daily. During this time I dropped two pants sizes. In addition to the increased physical activity, taking care of my body daily through yoga, brought about a desire to incorporate healthier practices into my daily life. I started to eat less sugar and more fruits and vegetables. My cravings lessened and I found myself eating less at each meal.
There are a multitude of yoga styles out there and each one will affect you differently. As always, listen to your body on and off the mat. Your body will tell you what you need to lose weight. That said, it is completely possible for me to design a practice that will help you lose weight/tone your arms/flatten your belly/tone your legs, etc. But I prefer to make my classes as complete as possible. It's important to work on your entire body, even the parts you are happy with.
My answer in short: Yes, yoga is a great aid to weight loss, but results will vary due to a plethora of reasons.
Of course, any information on this blog is not a substitute for medical attention or for consulting your doctor. I am a yogi, and very passionate about what I do, but I am not a doctor, the information gathered here is from personal experience, research, or class discussion.
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