Which Comes First, Cardio or Weights_ - Alex Hutchinson [55]
Several studies have found that yoga programs can lower levels of cortisol throughout the day, including a 2009 randomized trial that compared yoga with “supportive therapy” in a group of 88 breast cancer patients. (In contrast, yoga failed to change cortisol levels in another 2009 study of women with rheumatoid arthritis.) Various other studies have seen positive effects from yoga on outcomes like perceived stress, mood, and sleep patterns.
Of course, researchers have observed many of the same benefits from non-yogic exercise. A Rutgers University study in 2008 pitted hatha yoga against strength training in a head-to-head comparison, putting subjects through 50-minute sessions and then measuring the effects on anxiety, tension, calmness, and other mental health variables at 15-minute intervals afterwards. Both yoga and strength training had positive effects—yoga improved scores on anxiety and calmness, while resistance training improved all variables. Interestingly, yoga’s impact was most pronounced immediately afterwards, then began to fade within an hour. Strength training, in contrast, produced effects that intensified as recovery progressed, suggesting a longer-lasting result.
It’s important to note that the weights session was perceived by participants to be “moderate exercise,” while the yoga session was “light exercise”—a difference that could explain why weights had a bigger effect. But, lead author Joseph Pellegrino explains, the details of the sessions were carefully chosen to mimic how people really do weights and yoga, in order to do a real-world comparison.
Other studies have found, in general, more similarities than differences between yoga and other forms of exercise. A review of 81 studies by University of Maryland researchers in 2010 concluded that “yoga may be as effective as or better than exercise” for a variety of health-related outcomes but acknowledged a lack of rigorous studies. For now, researchers haven’t been able to isolate and identify any secret ingredients that yoga offers and other forms of exercise don’t. But it’s clear that, whether you choose a yoga class or a relaxing bike ride along a waterfront path, you’ll be getting benefits for both body and mind.
CHEAT SHEET: FLEXIBILITY AND CORE STRENGTH
• Stretching increases your range of motion, but studies have failed to confirm that stretching reduces injuries. The best time to stretch for flexibility is after exercise, not before.
• “Static” stretching reduces strength, power, and speed for an hour or more, thanks to a combination of neuromuscular effects and lowered force transmission in “loose” muscles and tendons.
• Runners who display greater flexibility in a sit-and-reach test run less efficiently, and pre-run static stretching also lowers efficiency and worsens performance.
• Warming up with “dynamic” stretching exercises raises the temperature of muscles and prepares them for exertion but doesn’t decrease strength, power, speed, or endurance.
• Stretching after exercise makes no difference to how sore you are the next day.
• Hip muscles and deep abdominal muscles are more important than the superficial “six-pack” muscles for core stability and injury prevention.
• The benefits of yoga depend on the style and level; in general, yoga classes are good for flexibility and strength but are insufficient to count as an aerobic workout.
• Like other forms of exercise, yoga can help reduce stress hormones and control mood.
Chapter 7
Injuries and Recovery
WHEN GREEK PHYSICIAN HERODIKOS of Selymbria, sometimes considered the father of sports medicine, got tuberculosis, he treated it with a vigorous program of massage, steam baths, and wrestling. We’ve come a long way in the 2,500 years since then (wrestling is out, massages are still in, and steam baths . . . well, it depends), but one principle hasn’t changed since Herodikos’s time: it’s better to prevent an injury, or at least nip it in