Lose Weight with Yoga

This calorie-zapping yoga routine will melt away pounds while sculpting every major muscle in your body.

By Alyssa Shaffer; Photographs by Dorit Thies

How much can yoga really do for you? A lot. Cyndi Lee, founder of OM Yoga in New York City, has designed a total-body routine that is a mind and body booster. The workout is built around the classic sun salutation series, with challenging core and upper- and lower-body variations added for a fat-blasting twist. Do the entire sequence four to five times through (keep at it for an hour) and you'll burn off the calorie equivalent of a banana split while sculpting your arms, chest, abs, butt, and legs and improving your flexibility.

How it works: Start and finish each circuit with a sun salutation, a four-move series done forward and in reverse that is the foundation of the workout. Every time you do this main series, you'll add a challenging variation to keep your heart rate elevated while toning your whole body. Each sun salutation, plus all of our variations, should take about 15 minutes.

Sun Salutation (Main Series)

1. Mountain Pose

Stand tall with feet together, shoulders relaxed, weight evenly distributed through your soles, arms at sides. Take a deep breath and raise your hands overhead, palms facing each other with arms straight. Reach up toward the sky with your fingertips.

2. Standing Forward Bend

From mountain pose, exhale, sweeping your arms sideways as you swan dive forward, bending athips, until fingertips or palms reach the ground on either side of your feet; keep fingers in line with toes. (If your hamstrings or back are tight, bend your knees.) Think about drawing the crown of your head down and the backs of your legstoward the sky.

3. Forward Bend, Flat Back

From standing forward bend, keep feet together and place fingertips on ground near outer edges of your feet, in line with your toes. Inhale as you lift your torso halfway up, keeping your back flat. Look forward, reaching your tailbone away from the top of your head. If you feel tight in your hamstrings orlower back or can't reach the ground, bend your knees and place your hands on your shins.

4. Downward Dog

From forward bend with flat back, bend knees, place palms flat on ground shoulder-width apart, and jump both feet back, landing softly indownward dog. Spread your fingers and make sure your feet are hip-width apart and parallel. Reach your tailbone up and away from hands and your heels toward the ground.

5. Reverse this series back to the start

Bring your legs toward your hands and straighten legs, returning to forward bend with flat back. Drop your head and return to standing forward bend, then to mountain pose, sweeping arms out to the sides and overhead to complete the main series.

Build Your Workout

Each time you complete the sun salutation, add on a new challenge series until you've incorporated all the moves. Each full sequence will take about 15 minutes; do 4 to 5 times.

Add On: Half Push-Up Series

Part 1. Tabletop to Half Push-Up

From downward dog, get on all fours, aligning your knees on the ground under hips and your hands directly below shoulders (not shown). Keeping abspulled in and head aligned with your spine, bend elbows about 45 degrees in a half push-up, armsclose to sides. Straighten arms; repeat push-up 4 to 6 times.

Part 2. Extended Child's Pose

From half push-up, straighten arms and bring your tailbone back toward heels, resting the backs of yourthighs on your calves. Hold for a few breaths, feeling the stretch through your back and shoulders. Return from child's pose to tabletop, then back to downward dog; do the remainder of the main series in reverse.

Add On: Lunge Jump

Do the halfpush-upseries, returning todownward dog. Step leftleg forward between hands, bending left knee 90 degrees while keeping right leg straight. Hold for a few breaths, then switch legs, jumping left leg back and right leg forward. Repeat 4 to 6 times. Return to downward dog and reverse the main series back to the start.

Add On: Warrior Series

Warrior 1 with High Lunge

Do the main series, adding on both half push-upand lunge jump, ending in downward dog. From here, step left foot forward between hands, bending left knee 90 degrees with toes facing forward; keep right leg straight and lift upper body. Raise armsoverhead next to ears; hold for 3 to 5 breaths.

Straighten left leg while lowering arms; keep palms in and right heel lifted. Repeat 4 to 6 times. Return to warrior 1, then to downward dog; repeat on opposite side, ending in downward dog. Reverse the main series back to start.

Add On: Chair with Twist

Chair Pose

Do the main series plus each of the previous add-ons one time through, ending in mountain pose with arms raised. From here, bend your knees, pushing your butt back.

Bring palms together in front of chest and bend forward, pressing right upper arm against outside of left thigh as you twist your upper body to the left. Hold for 1 to 2 breaths, then come back to center and twist to the right. Continue alternating sides, 4 to 6 times in each direction, then return to a standing position.

Originally published in FITNESS magazine, March 2007.