While deciding any type of exercise over the other, your approach and purpose behind making a choice is very important. Let's say yoga is the best. But, it is not like an intensive 15-day routine that will help you lose five pounds a week. Although, if you seek complete health, then it is the perfect option for you. In this age of race and competition, what we continuously aim at is achieving a balance. That is what yoga teaches us. To balance, not only through physical postures, but throughout several facets in our life. According to Patanjali, yoga is 'Yoga Chitta Vritti Nirodha', or the cessation of mental fluctuations. Calming the mind is what yoga is all about. So gym or yoga? Which is better? Let's find out. Going to the gym mostly trains only the physique. It strengthens the muscles and makes the body sturdy and well-built. Yoga, on the other hand, tones the body as well as the mind. Flexibility is attained when you practice different asanas (postures); these make you lean. But yoga is not merely about the asanas, as it also includes various breathing practices that ensure a healthy and peaceful mind. Except for the fact that you must be awake, yoga requires no preparation, nor any heavy equipment for a workout. It can be practiced anywhere. If I feel like doing some asanas early in the morning at 4 o'clock, I can. All I need is myself, and perhaps a mat (a carpet works too). That is definitely affordable, right? Another point where yoga wins over training in the gym, is that it is free from any risks of physical injury. You do not have the chance of accidentally hurting yourself because you lifted weights, or because you were in an uncomfortable position. In yoga, you move and stretch with ease, and only where you can. Metabolism refers to the chemical processes within our body that break down matter (food) to produce energy components like proteins. Digestion is an important element of metabolism. Yoga improves your digestive system. If you do not feel hunger, you would start to, or if you tend to overeat, you would begin to cut down on some comfort food. The environment in a gym is different, where you tend to compare yourself with the people around you. How much faster, how much better than others can I do, is the goal while you are walking on a treadmill or in an aerobics session. There also are many distractions like loud music; you tend to simply follow the group in a gym routine. On the contrary, yoga requires you to focus on yourself, no one else matters. You may be a little bulkier than others, but the shape of your body is no important here. After a heavy workout at the gym, you may experience fatigue and tiredness. Alternatively, with yoga, which mostly ends with a few minutes of breathing and meditation, you don't experience that. It is a powerful stress buster, as it heals you from both, the outside and inside. A routine in the gym may make you feel hungry after exercise, and also stressed out at times. You may end up consuming as much calories as you burned, or even more. The goodness of yoga lies in that it naturally directs you to healthy dietary habits. You tend to eat at the right times, and the right quantities of highly nutritious foods. All because you know the rhythm of your body. Mindfulness, being in the present, looking within ourselves, and introspection just happens, of course, when one practices yoga. Any change in our emotions alters our breathing pattern. So, our breath is the only powerful tool to control our emotions, that further helps us maintain a healthy body. You learn about your body through a variety of postures. The mind-body union, which is the basic underlying concept of 'yoga' ('yuj' the root term meaning union), also improves memory and the ability to concentrate. One of the simplest reasons of why yoga is good, is that it saves a lot of time and money. You need not waste your time in traveling to the gym, nor adjusting yourself to the gym timings. Also, the fees you pay to get in shape seem a waste when you again put on weight, because you discontinued the exercise. Yoga saves you all that trouble. Physical exercise combined with meditation inculcates happiness and peace within. So, especially today, when most of the stress is mental and psychological, yoga provides a better way to find your own self, and accept it happily.