Yoga is a type of physical activity that has been around for a long time. Almost everyone in the world has adopted yoga as a healthy lifestyle. According to many studies, yoga is more than just an exercise as it works not just the body but the mind and soul as well.
However, that being said there, for some people, yoga still isn’t the right choice due to different personal reasons. If yoga is not your cup of tea, then don’t worry, as there are plenty of other exercises you can perform instead of that.
In this article, we’ve discussed the different alternative forms of practice you can do instead of yoga.
See also: 6 Things To Do After Your Yoga Class.
Table of Contents
What is Yoga?
Yoga is a physical and spiritual discipline based on a highly nuanced science that concentrates on bringing harmony and balance between mind and body. Yoga is defined as the art and science of healthy living. “Yoga” comes mainly from the Sanskrit root “Yuj,” meaning “to join,” “to yoke,” or “to unite.“
Before discussing the replacement exercises for yoga, let’s talk about what yoga actually is. It’s a beneficial form of physical exercise whose roots go back almost 2500 years ago. Apart from strengthening the body, yoga is widely famous for its ability to help people relax and be calmer.
In short words, yoga helps everyone feel more in touch with their mental and spiritual self along with their physical.
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Reasons Why Some People Avoid Yoga
Even though yoga is a great activity, some people might find it off-limits. Here are the most common reasons why some people avoid yoga:
- Chronic Injury
- Personal Preference
- Religious beliefs
- Medical Conditions
- Being overweight
- Lack of time
- Yoga is very expensive
- Yoga is for women
- Not flexible enough
See: Is It Safe To Sleep After Yoga? (Let’s Find Out)
10 Things to Do Instead of Yoga
If for some reason, you don’t or can’t do yoga but are looking for similar things that can help you achieve the same results, then this article is for you. Below are listed several other similar exercises:
1- Pilates
You shouldn’t be surprised that Pilates is the first on the list as an alternative to yoga. This form of exercise has been going popular for quite a while now and was first created by a man named Joseph Pilates back in the 1920s.
The story behind Pilates is that it was created for soldiers that were returning home after the war. It was designed in a way to help relieve the stress and tension in the body and strengthen up the body.
It’s an exercise that’s not related to any religion or spiritual meaning as well, so if that’s the type of workout you’re looking for, then start doing Pilates as it’s highly effective!
In addition, Pilates offers tremendous health benefits, according to science.
Pilates’s health benefits include:
- Improved flexibility, concentration, and posture
- Enhanced relaxation of the neck, shoulders, and upper back
- Increased body awareness and improved stabilization of your spine
- Improved muscle tone and strength
- Better stress management and relaxation.
2- Ballet
If you’ve ever seen a ballet performance live or through videos, you would know how mesmerizing it is. But, one thing that’s often mistaken is thinking of ballet as a profession rather than as an exercise that anyone can do.
It’s okay if you’ve never taken ballet classes before; there are adult classes now widely available for everyone to join. Practicing ballet will help improve your balance, posture, and flexibility, along with building up your physical and mental strength. Although it can be a bit difficult at the start but the amount of serotonin released in your body will keep you going!
According to research issued in the New England Journal of Medicine, dancing frequently can help lower the risk of dementia by 76%.
Other benefits of dancing, including practicing Ballet are:
- Helps improve physical coordination and posture
- Enhance mental strength and focus
- Promotes social skills
- Helps build confidence
3- Tai Chi
If you don’t mind the spirituality associated with the workout, then Tai Chi is one of the perfect alternatives to yoga! The concept of this physical activity revolves around the body’s relationship with chi (the soul). This practice’s origin comes from the ancient Chinese culture that embraces the mind, spirit, and body, much like how yoga does.
Tai chi consists of very slow, rhythmic movements together with deep breathing to help focus and gain strength and balance. It also allows your body to become more flexible and further helps in relieving stress and pain.
Tai Chi can treat or prevent many health problems, according to Harvard Health Publishing.
Benefits of Tai Chi include:
- Similar to yoga, Tai Chi improves flexibility.
- Tai Chi is an excellent way to keep yourself active.
- It helps improve balance and coordination
Are you wondering about the differences between yoga and Tai Chi? Here is a detailed article that answers this question.
4- Rock Climbing
It may not seem that climbing can cause the same calming effect yoga provides, but that’s far from the truth. When you’re climbing, your focus will increase automatically, and along with that, every part of your muscles, even the tiniest one, will be strengthened up.
Because of the adrenaline rush during climbing, there will be a lot of serotonin released in your body, plus the end view of the summit will definitely improve your mood as well. All of this combined will help in making your confidence go up.
The top benefits of Rock Climbing include:
- Excellent cardiovascular workout
- It can help lower the risk of chronic disease
- Help improve coordination and flexibility
5- Aerial Yoga
If the normal type of yoga isn’t enough for you, then hop on to doing Aerial Yoga instead! In this type, the main art of yoga remains the same, which involves stretching movements to help with becoming stronger physically.
However, the aerial form is done using hammocks instead of doing it on the regular yoga mats. This form of exercise contains a mixture of Pilates, dance moves, and traditional yoga poses.
The added benefit of aerial yoga is the fact it helps in relieving back problems as you’ll be hanging in the air with no stress or tension on your bones.
Top Aerial Yoga benefits:
- Reduces joint pressure and spinal compression triggered by floor workouts.
- It helps release tension and improve breath awareness.
- It releases endorphins and enhances core strength.
6- Swimming in Cold Water
The thought of swimming in cold water might already be giving you goosebumps, but don’t freak out just yet. It has been proven that swimming, especially in cold water, does absolute wonders to the body! This includes gently toning it and building muscles along with bringing you peace mentally.
Swimming in cold water helps in the overall health of the body as it’s linked to boosting immunity plus keeping the blood pressure in check, allowing your cardiovascular health to stay fit. You don’t have to swim for hours on the first go; start by swimming for a few minutes anywhere you’re comfortable, such as pool rooms, lakes, and rivers. Then, once you’ve built up the endurance, you can swim for as long as you like!
Here are a few benefits of swimming in cold water:
- It helps reduce stress and increase libido
- It is an excellent way to meet new people and socialize.
- It strengthens your immune system and helps improve body circulation.
- However, to fully benefit from swimming in cold water, it is recommended to ensure you do it under supervision, mainly if you are a beginner, according to research.
See also: 10 Different Swimming Strokes and Their Health Benefits.
7- Surfing
Do you want something that’ll make even the muscles you didn’t know existed in your body strong? Then go surfing as it does exactly that, just like yoga. Not only will it help break your fears but it will also help you in focusing and improve your concentration
With just some practice, you will be in love with the sport where you’ll feel both; calmness and thrill at the same time.
Benefits of surfing:
- Surfing is known to be one of the best anti-aging or longevity workouts.
- Surfing reduces stress, promotes our mood, and even helps overcome loss and grief.
- Helps coordination and balance, improves sleep, and strengthens muscles.
8- Barre
This physical activity is a combination of multiple other forms of exercise blended together. Barre includes yoga and Pilate movements mixed with contemporary dancing and ballet. This hybrid activity will surely get you moving.
Not only is barre good for the body, but it’s also a pretty fun thing to do, so you won’t even feel like you’re working out.
Benefits of Barre:
- Barre helps boost and build your muscles.
- It improves your posture and increases cardiovascular endurance and metabolism, which helps burn calories quickly.
- Regular barre workouts can improve your bone density and prevent conditions, including osteoporosis.
9- Martial Arts
Martial art is a broad term that consists of many styles of fighting, with most of its origin residing in the Japanese and Chinese cultures. Karate, Kung Fu, Judo, Jiu-Jitsu, and many more all come under this category.
Just like yoga, this form of activity encapsulates the mind and body both and helps them become much stronger than before. So along with building up your muscles and improving flexibility plus posture, the different forms of fighting improve your cardiovascular and mental health as well. It’s definitely one of the best ways a person can help destress themselves.
Benefits of Practicing Martial Arts include:
- Practicing martial arts can help develop higher emotional stability,
- It improves self-confidence and increases self-esteem.
- It can also help strengthen the body and build muscles.
10- Contemporary Dance
If you want to exercise without it feeling like you’re working out, then contemporary dance is something you should choose. It’s a bit different from the usual dance as it consists of a blend between ballet and classical dancing.
Contemporary dance is a great way to express yourself along with refining your flexibility. It creates a great mind-to-body connection as you’ll focus and coordinate while dancing. It takes some time to learn this form of dancing, but once you start, you won’t be able to stop!
The top benefits of contemporary dance are:
- Contemporary dance allows dancers to explore their creativity through movement.
- It also helps develop strength.
- Dance is an effective way of exercising that help raise your heart rate and build muscles.
- Exercise can help lower the risk of depression and anxiety by helping you escape repetitive negative thoughts and unnecessary worries.
Final Thoughts
Overall, yoga is an excellent way to keep yourself active and healthy. However, yoga is not for everyone, and for those, I suggest adopting one or two yoga alternatives outlined in this article.
The best way to choose the best yoga alternatives is to pick the activity you enjoy the most and that fits your personality and schedule.
