- With Mayo Clinic preventive medicine specialist
Donald Hensrud, M.D.
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Donald Hensrud, M.D.
Donald Hensrud, M.D., M.P.H., M.S.
Dr. Donald D. Hensrud is chair of the Division of Preventive, Occupational and Aerospace Medicine with a joint appointment in the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, Metabolism, & Nutrition at Mayo Clinic. He is an associate professor of preventive medicine and nutrition at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. Dr. Hensrud directed the Executive Health Program at Mayo Clinic for more than 10 years.
He received his B.S. from the University of North Dakota, M.D. from the University of Hawaii, M.P.H. from the University of Minnesota and M.S. in nutrition sciences from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He completed residency training in internal medicine and fellowship training in preventive medicine at Mayo Clinic and completed a clinical nutrition fellowship at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Dr. Hensrud is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine, the American Board of Preventive Medicine and the American Board of Physician Nutrition Specialists, of which he is a past president.
His career interests have combined nutrition, weight management, and prevention. He is the author of many scientific articles and book chapters and was editor of Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight for EveryBody; The New Mayo Clinic Cookbook, which won a 2005 James Beard Foundation award; The Mayo Clinic Plan: 10 Essential Steps to a Better Body & Healthier Life; and The Mayo Clinic Diet, published in January 2010.
Dr. Hensrud says healthy lifestyle habits in diet and physical activity are extremely important as evidenced by a large body of scientific evidence. He also says implementing these lifestyle habits is realistic, sustainable and enjoyable. A primary goal of his work is to help people achieve this.
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Question
Can I use yoga for weight loss?
Can yoga help me lose weight?
Answer
from Donald Hensrud, M.D.
There hasn't been a great deal of research on yoga for weight loss. In general, though, physical activity is better for preventing weight gain than it is for promoting weight loss, and it appears this also applies to yoga. Most types of yoga don't have the same level of calorie-burning power as does aerobic exercise. Consider that a 150-pound person will burn 240 calories in an hour of doing regular yoga, compared with 360 calories for an hour of aerobics.
But any activity is good activity. Yoga will get you moving, after all, and it can provide health benefits such as improved blood lipid levels and enhanced mood.
Regular physical activity should be part of any weight-loss or weight management plan. To lose weight, you want to reduce the calories you take in (eating) and increase calories out (physical activity). If you want to use yoga for weight loss, the smart play is to include it in an exercise plan that includes aerobic activities, such as biking, jogging or swimming, which burn more calories.
Next questionNegative calorie foods: Diet gimmick or weight-loss aid?
- Kristal AR, et al. Yoga practice is associated with attenuated weight gain in healthy, middle-aged men and women. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine. 2005;11:28.
- Ross A, et al. The health benefits of yoga and exercise: A review of comparison studies. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. 2010;16:3.
- Physical activity selector. Shape Up America. http://www.shapeup.org/interactive/phys2.php. Accessed June 29, 2010.
- Hensrud DD, et al. The Mayo Clinic Diet. Intercourse, Pa.: Good Books; 2010:90.
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