The New Trend of Weighted Vests & Yoga

There are a lot of similarities between calisthenics and yoga, both using body weight to improve fitness and strength. Being specialists in calisthenics, Gravity Fitness understands the benefits of this activity, but we’re also keenly interested in other forms of exercise, which could provide additional opportunities for those looking for something new. So, when we heard of a new trend of using weighted vests during Yoga, we had to check it out.

Yoga can be quite intensive, and we’ve all heard of intense yoga, which incorporated some of the most difficult postures to hold, but it looks like some people want to take it to the next level and use weighted vests as well! On average, yoga can burn between 250 and 350 calories for someone weighing around 68kg. The calories burnt increases to 350 to 450 if someone weighs 90kg. That’s a 40% increase in calories burned for the same length of time during Yoga! So, if you’re a lighter weight and have a goal of burning more calories during your Yoga session and build muscle, weighted vests make perfect sense.

Although there are many similarities between calisthenics and yoga, the differences are entirely down to preference, boiling down to what your goals are not just physically, but also mentally.

Purpose and Focus

Yoga:

• Mind-Body Connection: Yoga is as much about mental well-being as it is about physical fitness. It emphasizes mindfulness, breathing techniques (pranayama), and meditation.
• Flexibility and Balance: Yoga focuses on improving flexibility, balance, and joint mobility through a series of poses (asanas). It's often used to enhance relaxation, reduce stress, and improve mental clarity.
• Holistic Approach: Yoga is seen as a holistic practice that benefits the mind, body, and spirit.

Calisthenics:

• Strength and Endurance: Calisthenics is primarily focused on building strength, muscular endurance, and overall fitness. It involves exercises like push-ups, pull-ups, squats, and planks.
• Body Control: It emphasizes developing body control, coordination, and functional strength, often involving complex movements that engage multiple muscle groups.
• Physical Fitness: The primary goal is physical fitness, with less emphasis on the mental and spiritual aspects.

Types of Movements

Yoga:

• Static Poses: Yoga typically involves holding poses for extended periods to improve flexibility, strength, and balance. Movements are often slow and controlled.
• Flow (Vinyasa): Some styles of yoga, like Vinyasa, involve flowing from one pose to another, but the focus is still on fluidity and breath control rather than speed or intensity.

Calisthenics:

• Dynamic Movements: Calisthenics includes a wide range of dynamic movements that can be performed quickly or slowly, such as jumping, sprinting, and high-intensity bodyweight exercises.
• Repetitions: Exercises are often performed in sets and repetitions, similar to traditional strength training, to build muscle and endurance.

Mental and Spiritual Elements

Yoga:

• Mindfulness and Meditation: Yoga integrates mental practices like meditation and breath work to foster relaxation and mental clarity. The spiritual aspect of yoga is central to its practice for many people.

Calisthenics:

• Physical Focus: Calisthenics is more physically oriented, with a focus on improving strength, endurance, and body composition. Mental focus is important, but there's less emphasis on mindfulness or spirituality.

Using a weighted vest during yoga is entirely down to your preference. Some people might want to keep yoga focused on joint movement and flexibility, but if you’re looking for an additional challenge, this form of hybrid exercise can not only help with mentality, focus and flexibility, but also core strength. Let’s look at some yoga poses you can do with weighted vests.

1. Mountain Pose (Tadasana)

• How It Helps: The weighted vest adds extra resistance, which helps improve your posture and engage core muscles more deeply as you stand tall and grounded.
• Focus: Core stability, posture, and breath control.

2. Chair Pose (Utkatasana)

• How It Helps: The added weight increases the challenge to your legs, glutes, and core, making this pose even more effective at building strength and endurance.
• Focus: Lower body strength, core engagement.

3. Warrior Poses (Virabhadrasana I, II, III)

• How It Helps: The vest adds resistance to your legs and core, enhancing the strength and stability benefits of these powerful standing poses.
• Focus: Leg strength, balance, and endurance.

4. Plank Pose (Phalakasana)

• How It Helps: The extra weight intensifies the workout for your shoulders, chest, and core, making plank even more challenging.
• Focus: Core strength, shoulder stability.

5. Downward-Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)

• How It Helps: The added weight increases the resistance on your shoulders, arms, and core, while also requiring more engagement from your legs.
• Focus: Full-body engagement, shoulder and arm strength.

6. Boat Pose (Navasana)

• How It Helps: The vest adds difficulty to this core-focused pose, requiring more effort to maintain balance and stability.
• Focus: Core strength, hip flexor engagement.

7. Crow Pose (Bakasana)

• How It Helps: The extra weight challenges your arm and core strength while testing your balance and focus on this arm balance pose.
• Focus: Arm strength, core stability, balance.

8. Bridge Pose (Setu Bandhasana)

• How It Helps: The weighted vest makes it harder to lift your hips, increasing the workout for your glutes, hamstrings, and lower back.
• Focus: Glute and hamstring strength, lower back engagement.

9. Camel Pose (Ustrasana)

• How It Helps: The vest adds resistance to your back and shoulders, making it more challenging to lift and open your chest in this deep backbend.
• Focus: Spinal flexibility, chest and shoulder strength.

10. Tree Pose (Vrksasana)

• How It Helps: The weighted vest makes it more challenging to maintain balance, requiring more core and leg engagement.
• Focus: Balance, leg strength, core stability.

Remember to start out light. Gravity Fitness offers 10kg weighted vests, which are perfect if you’re looking to get into this new trend. Don’t forget to check out our calisthenics app as well or sign up to our newsletter and let us know what you think.