Looking to Get in Some Cardio and Work on Flexibility? Try These Yoga Workouts

Juliana Spicoluk, cocreator of Boho Beautiful, classifies yoga as one of the main tools she uses to ease anxiety and stress. The certified yoga and Pilates teacher said that when it comes to flows that get your heart rate up as a form of cardio, she recommends Ashtanga, or what we tend to know as "power yoga."

That form of yoga is quite difficult, Spicoluk told POPSUGAR, and some people, she said, find it too strict because it follows the same poses. That's why she'll teach Ashtanga-inspired classes instead so there's more free rein, while still having that strong power component. Speaking in regard to what Spicoluk offers on her YouTube and Patreon pages, she specifically suggests the videos that are labeled "yoga workouts" for cardio.

The yoga workouts that Spicoluk offers are "always a little bit of a fusion between toning, Pilates, and yoga," she said. "So people feel like they're getting a workout and, at the same time, still feel that connection and that breath work and that kind of energy release that you get through a yoga practice." Ahead, check out a handful of those yoga workouts straight from Spicoluk's Boho Beautiful YouTube channel. You can try them the next time you want to challenge your flexibility but also get in a cardio session and build strength.

01
click to play video

14-Minute Full-Body Yoga Workout

In this full-body yoga workout, you'll do what Spicoluk calls "Pilates push-ups" into Three-Legged Downward Dog, kicks for the glutes, side plank crunch variations for the obliques, Chair pose, and more.

02
click to play video

15-Minute Full-Body Yoga Workout

Spicoluk walks you through exercises such as a variation of Bird Dog Crunch, Pilates push-ups, and some core work.

03
click to play video

15-Minute Yoga HIIT Fusion Workout

In this workout, you will follow Spicoluk as she holds and transitions into poses and does intervals of 30 seconds of exercises. One of these exercises is a Chair pose into plank jack, and another will have you doing lunges through to standing crunches (like a reverse lunge with a knee drive).

04
click to play video

Another 15-Minute Yoga HIIT Fusion Workout

This session has yoga flows mixed into a low-impact HIIT workout. You'll be doing exercises such as a fusion of Upward Facing Dog and knee-to-chest crunches, mountain climbers, and a yogic variation of a burpee.

05
click to play video

12-Minute Full-Body Yoga Workout

This yoga workout from Spicoluk is meant to strengthen the entire body. You'll flow through poses and exercises on both sides, and you'll end with core and breath work on the mat.

06
click to play video

12-Minute Full-Body Yoga Workout

Spicoluk filmed this yoga workout in Costa Rica, so the footage itself is super calming. You'll be waking up your core and your lower body as well as working on balance (note: you'll feel heat in your arms during the plank work and Chaturanga holds, too).

07
click to play video

22-Minute Yoga Workout For Toning

If you're looking to get into the lower body and core especially, with both static poses and moving exercises, this workout is for you. Plus, it's longer than the sessions prior.

08
click to play video

23-Minute Ashtanga-Inspired Yoga Workout

This is one of the Ashtanga-inspired classes Spicoluk was talking about earlier. "The goal of our practice today is to not only strengthen your entire body and stamina, but to also allow the mind to be free of any other thoughts except the idea of the interconnection of your breath to the movement of your body," she says.

09
click to play video

24-Minute Total-Body Power Yoga Class

This is another power yoga type of class from Spicoluk, and the theme is reconnection. You'll be flowing through plank variations, high and low lunges, Pyramid, and more.

10
click to play video

10-Minute Cardio Yoga Workout

This yoga workout is for the entire body to "cultivate heat from the inside out" with toning- and cardio-based movements.

11
click to play video

16-Minute Beginner Yoga Workout

This flow is specifically designed for beginners. It's full of what Spicoluk classifies as easy postures and movements. You'll do a form of Bird Dog Crunches, high lunges, plank with knee taps, and more.

12
click to play video

13-Minute Cardio Yoga Workout

Here, Spicoluk walks you through cardio exercises and toning yoga poses. You'll do moves such as Lizard hops, side crunches in Warrior 2, and plank variations (plank jacks with plank hops look like they'll really get your heart rate up and work the core).

13
click to play video

17-Minute Yoga and Pilates Fusion Workout

This is a fusion of both yoga and Pilates, or "yogalates," as Spicoluk says. She writes in the YouTube description, "By fusing different Pilates toning exercises with different effective yoga asanas, you will be able to feel the effects of each type of movement and yoga pose." The majority of this flow will be low to the ground and work your core.