According to research, you burn on average between three and six calories per minute – which adds up to 180 calories in an hour’s class – not that many when compared to a brisk walk, which burns 300 calories per hour.

However, an extensive American study in 2005 of more than 15 000 middle-aged men and women found that those who regularly practised yoga for at least four years were less likely to gain weight.

Even more interestingly, those who were overweight but doing yoga lost an average of 5lb (about 2.2kg) during this four-year period, whereas the overweight non-practitioners gained more than a stone (6.3kg).

“Studies show that yoga lowers levels of stress hormones and increases insulin sensitivity – a signal to your body to burn food as fuel rather than store it as fat,” says Jonathan.

Yoga practitioner Angelka Cavana adds: “Clearly, there is some burning of calories, but bear in mind that whatever type of yoga you practise, your posture will be improved. Just tucking in your bottom, drawing in your stomach, pulling up your chest and relaxing shoulders will instantly make you look taller and more slender.”

Once you start to use your body correctly, your internal organs are able to function correctly, so you’re increasingly likely to crave healthy foods, rather than quick sugary fixes.

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• Get down on your hands and knees (um… wait, that came out wrong!).
  

  Cat dog pose bidalasana

  

  Cat dog pose bidalasana

• Lift your face. Try to look upwards. Your back arches up from the waist.
• Take a deep breath. ( in pose 1 of the picture below ).
• While exhaling, bring your face down, your chin inwards towards your chest.
• Puff your back up, you look like an angry kitten. Hence the name.
• By the time you complete exhaling, you look like pose 2 of the picture below.
• Repeat for 10 to 20 times, depending on your stamina.
• Benefits: Reduces tummy fat

Boat Pose

• Sit down with knees close to your chest, feet on the floor.
  

  Boat Pose Navkasana

• Keeping your body close to vertical,
• hold behind your knees and lift your feet to bring shins parallel to the ground.
• Release your hands and stretch arms straight forward.
• Lean back slightly as you stretch your legs toward straight.
• Keep your chest open and shoulders back rather than rounded forward.
• Practice keeping your body and thighs closer to vertical by keeping knees bent.
• If your tailbone gets in the way when straightening legs, sit on a towel or blanket.
• Benefits: Builds strength in the abdomen and tops of upper thighs.

A good book on yoga which discusses on weight loss by Vinny O’Hare.