The ancient practice of yoga includes a large list of benefits for the mind and body; it can help fight anxiety, improve mobility and adaptability, and help ease pain. But as any modern-day yogi knows, to achieve the weekly 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise recommended through the American Heart Association, yoga alone may not cut it. And considering that cardiovascular disease and stroke are the no. 1 and no. 5 killers in america, it is important for the most dedicated yogi to crosstrain and incorporate cardio to their daily lives to reduce the chance of stroke or heart attack. Obviously, for the yogis available that are looking to mix their yoga and cardio into one workout, you’ve come to the best place.
In this video, Chloe Kernaghan and Chrissy Jones of Sky Ting Yoga demonstrate a yoga flow that helps get your heartbeat up and improve circulation. The succession of poses are designed to provide that full-body stretch you crave whilst including more dynamic movements, like donkey jumps that get your heart pumping.
The sequence is also strung together in flow- or vinyasa-style, so that you keep moving continuously from pose to pose, enabling you to conserve a moderately elevated heart rate through the entire 10-minute practice. And as an additional benefit, the inversions Kernaghan demonstrates, and also the gentler modifications demo-ed by Jones, can help improve circulation and ease swelling. Incorporate this practice into your daily recommended Half an hour of physical activity-or go on and get it done three times inside a row-to start getting heart healthy today.
