A couple of days ago I got to teach a class in which the men outnumbered the women. It was, however, a novel and uncommon experience. Historically yoga was only practiced by men and women were, in fact, prohibited from joining. Fortunately the recent trend towards classes filled with Lululemon clad women is waning as more and more men rediscover the benefits of a regular yoga practice. Slowly but surely we are reaching a gender balance.
Men are often intimidated by yoga classes, particularly if they consider themselves not to be flexible. However, because the physical yoga practice was initially created with a man’s body in mind, there are a lot of poses that rely on strength, particularly upper body – and a man tends to have more of that than a woman. Flexibility is certainly not a pre-requisite to practicing yoga, nor is it a goal. It is merely a welcome side effect that comes overtime, so the men who feel stiff and tight can benefit greatly from regular yoga classes.
Besides flexibility, there are other benefits to yoga that may especially appeal to men:
–Increased strength and decreased muscle soreness (helpful in any other sports you may play)
-It works your entire body (so that in each class all of you gets to move)
–Decreased stress and increased mental clarity (which reflects in all aspects of your work and home life)
–Increased energy levels (removing physical and mental toxins is revitalizing!)
As yoga increases in popularity, there is more dialogue on the benefits people have experienced – and plenty of that comes from men. Check out this book for the account of 21 different star athletes who use yoga as part of their training regime, or this article for the testimony of a well-known male teacher who used to not be able to touch his toes.
So if your office already runs corporate yoga classes – come join them. If they don’t, perhaps you can be the one to organize. Either way, give yoga a try, and stop letting the women have all the fun!