{
  "slug": "calories-yoga",
  "title": "Calorie Burn — Yoga",
  "category": "Energy Expenditure",
  "category_slug": "energy-expenditure",
  "tier": 2,
  "summary": "Estimate calories burned in a yoga session from body weight, duration, and practice style.",
  "description": "This calculator estimates yoga energy expenditure using style-specific MET values from the Adult Compendium of Physical Activities. It multiplies body weight, session length, and the MET for the chosen practice: Nadisodhana and breath-centred practice at 2.0 METs (code 02170), Hatha yoga at 2.3 METs (code 02150), and Power or vinyasa-style yoga at 4.0 METs (code 02160). Secondary rows show the MET applied and the net-of-resting figure, which for yoga is a large fraction of the story: gentle styles cost little more than quiet sitting.",
  "page_url": "https://fitmetriclab.com/en/tools/energy-expenditure/calories-yoga/",
  "api_url": "https://fitmetriclab.com/api/tools/calories-yoga.json",
  "formula": {
    "id": "calories_yoga",
    "expression": "\\text{Calories} = \\text{MET}(\\text{style}) \\times w \\times \\frac{t}{60}",
    "variables": [
      {
        "symbol": "w",
        "description": "Weight in kg"
      },
      {
        "symbol": "t",
        "description": "Duration in minutes"
      },
      {
        "symbol": "\\text{MET}",
        "description": "2.0 (Nadisodhana), 2.3 (Hatha), or 4.0 (Power) — Compendium codes 02170, 02150, 02160"
      }
    ]
  },
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "weight_kg",
      "label": "Weight",
      "type": "number",
      "unit": "kg",
      "default": 75,
      "min": 20,
      "max": 300,
      "step": 0.1
    },
    {
      "id": "minutes",
      "label": "Duration",
      "type": "number",
      "unit": "min",
      "default": 60,
      "min": 1,
      "max": 300,
      "step": 5
    },
    {
      "id": "style",
      "label": "Style",
      "type": "select",
      "unit": null,
      "default": 1,
      "options": [
        {
          "label": "Nadisodhana / breath-centred (2.0 MET)",
          "value": 0
        },
        {
          "label": "Hatha (2.3 MET)",
          "value": 1
        },
        {
          "label": "Power / vinyasa (4.0 MET)",
          "value": 2
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": {
      "weight_kg": 75,
      "minutes": 60,
      "style": 1
    },
    "expected_output": "173 kcal"
  },
  "result_summary_template": "A practitioner weighing {weight_kg} kg who practises the selected style for {minutes} minutes burns approximately {result}.",
  "methodology": "Calories = MET × body mass (kg) × duration (hours). MET values from the Adult Compendium of Physical Activities (2024): yoga, Nadisodhana = 2.0 METs (code 02170); yoga, Hatha = 2.3 METs (code 02150); yoga, Power = 4.0 METs (code 02160). The Compendium's high-intensity Hatha entry = 8.0 METs (code 02153) is referenced in the write-up but not offered as an option. Net figure = (MET − 1) × mass × hours.",
  "sources": [
    {
      "label": "Herrmann SD, et al. 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities: a third update of the energy costs of human activities. J Sport Health Sci. 2024;13(1):6–12.",
      "url": "https://pacompendium.com/conditioning-exercise/"
    },
    {
      "label": "Ainsworth BE, et al. 2011 Compendium of Physical Activities: a second update of codes and MET values. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2011;43(8):1575–1581.",
      "url": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21681120/"
    },
    {
      "label": "Jetté M, Sidney K, Blümchen G. Metabolic equivalents (METS) in exercise testing, exercise prescription, and evaluation of functional capacity. Clin Cardiol. 1990;13(8):555–565.",
      "url": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2204507/"
    }
  ],
  "faqs": [
    {
      "question": "Why is the yoga estimate so much lower than my fitness tracker's?",
      "answer": "Wrist trackers infer expenditure largely from heart rate, and yoga elevates heart rate for reasons other than metabolic cost — heat, inversion, breath manipulation, and isometric tension all push heart rate up without proportional oxygen consumption. Measured oxygen-uptake studies place ordinary Hatha classes at 2–3 METs. Tracker figures for yoga commonly run 50–100% above laboratory values, one of the larger known tracker biases across activity types."
    },
    {
      "question": "Does hot yoga burn substantially more calories?",
      "answer": "Measured energy cost rises only modestly in heated rooms. Profuse sweating reflects thermoregulation — water loss, not fuel oxidation — and scale weight lost in a heated class returns with rehydration. Studies comparing the same sequences at room temperature and in heat find similar oxygen consumption. The heated environment changes perceived exertion and flexibility far more than it changes the calorie line."
    },
    {
      "question": "Which entry fits a vinyasa flow class?",
      "answer": "The Power entry at 4.0 METs is the closest match for continuous vinyasa with regular chaturanga-to-upward-dog transitions. Classes that flow for some blocks and hold or rest for others average between the Hatha (2.3) and Power (4.0) entries. Sun salutations performed continuously have been measured at 4–6 METs, so a rare class consisting mostly of unbroken salutations can exceed the Power average."
    },
    {
      "question": "Is the gross or the net number the one to log?",
      "answer": "For energy-balance arithmetic, the net row. At Hatha intensity nearly half the gross figure is resting metabolism that would have occurred anyway; logging the gross 173 kcal alongside a resting-metabolism-based daily budget counts that hour's baseline twice. The net 98 kcal is the increment the practice actually added. For higher-MET activities the distinction shrinks, but at 2–4 METs it is material."
    },
    {
      "question": "Do arm balances and inversions change the cost?",
      "answer": "Briefly held strength postures raise instantaneous cost well above the class average, but they occupy little clock time in most sessions, so the hourly figure moves little. A practice deliberately built around repeated arm balances, handstand work, and continuous transitions behaves more like the Compendium's high-intensity Hatha entry at 8.0 METs — an outlier value that describes athletic practice rather than typical classes."
    }
  ],
  "related_tools": [
    {
      "slug": "calories-dancing",
      "title": "Calorie Burn — Dancing",
      "api_url": "https://fitmetriclab.com/api/tools/calories-dancing.json",
      "page_url": "https://fitmetriclab.com/en/tools/energy-expenditure/calories-dancing/"
    },
    {
      "slug": "calories-walking",
      "title": "Calorie Burn — Walking",
      "api_url": "https://fitmetriclab.com/api/tools/calories-walking.json",
      "page_url": "https://fitmetriclab.com/en/tools/energy-expenditure/calories-walking/"
    },
    {
      "slug": "activity-comparison",
      "title": "Activity Calorie Comparison Calculator",
      "api_url": "https://fitmetriclab.com/api/tools/activity-comparison.json",
      "page_url": "https://fitmetriclab.com/en/tools/energy-expenditure/activity-comparison/"
    },
    {
      "slug": "custom-met-calculator",
      "title": "Custom Activity MET Calculator",
      "api_url": "https://fitmetriclab.com/api/tools/custom-met-calculator.json",
      "page_url": "https://fitmetriclab.com/en/tools/energy-expenditure/custom-met-calculator/"
    }
  ],
  "last_updated": "2026-08-08",
  "price": {
    "value": 0,
    "currency": "USD"
  },
  "runs_in_browser": true,
  "disclaimer": "Educational estimate produced from a published formula. Not medical, nutritional, or training advice. Calculations are deterministic — apply the formula to the inputs to reproduce the result."
}