Yoga and Pilates not counted for NHS min moderate exercise

[SWS17]

I saw a blogpost recently which indicated that neither Yoga nor Pilates are reckonable for the NHS minimum exercise guideline. I practise an energetic vinyasa yoga 3 times a week and I can see from my fitness tracker that I burn around 120-180 calories during each session. Given how strenuous it is, it seems funny not to count it... any thoughts....

“ Note: Neither Pilates or yoga contributes to the NHS 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise recommended per week, although they do both count towards your recommended strength sessions”

thefoodmedic.co.uk/2020/04/myth-busting-pilates-vs-yoga/

There’s yoga & yoga, though. I’d have thought Vinyasa & Ashtanga could count.

The NHS website about yoga says
Does yoga count towards my 150 minutes of activity?

Most forms of yoga are not strenuous enough to count towards your 150 minutes of moderate activity, as set out by government guidelines.

However, yoga does count as a strengthening exercise, and at least 2 sessions a week will help you meet the guidelines on muscle-strengthening activities.

So some forms of yoga do count!

Surely no one except yourself is actually 'counting'. If you know from your fitness tracker and breathing that you're exercising somewhat aerobically (which I assume is what the NHS guideline wants for 'moderate activity'?) then what does it matter?

Presumably they include that general advice because some people may be self-deluding and complacent.

120-180 calories is absolutely nothing.

It will be good strengthening exercise which is fantastic for your long term health.

But it won't be good cardio vascular exercise.

And won't burn calories to help lose weight.

The benefits of yoga are way beyond losing weight

• 120-180 calories is absolutely nothing. It will be good strengthening exercise which is fantastic for your long term health. But it won't be good cardio vascular exercise. And won't burn calories to help lose weight.*

It's not 'nothing' - if you expended that much energy doing HIIT it would be excellent cardiovascular exercise, and some of the more vigorous forms of yoga might not be dissimilar.

Obviously it's not all about weight loss but if that's an objective then every little helps. 150 cals extra a day will very gradually accumulate weight, a 150 cal deficit will very gradually reduce it.

The sort of yoga which people would be deluded in counting towards their exercise goals is the more gentle forms. I'm doing a bit of bedtime yoga some evenings - just stretches really - which in a 15 minute session my Apple Watch might credit as eg 17 cals. That's probably realistic and the comments above would apply.