Yoga Men - Are You There?

Posted on Nov 19th 2008 6:00PM by Bev Sklar

Filed Under: Fitness, Motivation, Men's Health

Most Mondays you'll find me in Bodyflow class (a Tai Chi/Pilates/Yoga combo) with a bunch of ... women. In all the weeks I've been attending, never a guy. All the testosterone sits below in the free weight room. I have one question for fitness guys everywhere -- why aren't you there? My husband can't be the only one in town willing to commit to a Triangle Pose.

According to this article in Yoga Journal, 77 percent of U.S. yoga practitioners are female. Seems the number should be higher based on my personal observation over the years, coupled with the fact that only one in 10 Yoga Journal subscribers is a dude. The author offers a few reasons why men and yoga don't date in this country, here are three I found interesting:

Yoga is simply foreign territory -- It takes a brave man to enter that room full of calm women, likely led by a woman or if the instructor is a man, not likely the towel-snapping-let's-go-for-a-beer-after-the-game type of guy's guy.
Yoga hurts -- Scientists don't know why, but men are less flexible, with boys losing flexibility faster than girls by adolescence. Weight-training tends to take priority over flexibility-training in male sports programs.
It's a brain thing -- namely, mirror neurons. These brain cells receive signals from another person and trigger similar reactions in the observer. Mirror neurons are firing when you're watching and imitating a yoga instructor. It's unknown if women have more of these cells or they're simply more active, but women definitely mimic better than men. Guys, don't lose hope. Your mirror neurons will improve if you keep returning to the yoga mat.

OK, guys. Have you tried yoga? Will you try yoga? Let us know in the poll below. The world needs more than a few good Yoga Men.

Guys, what best describes your feelings about yoga?
I like yoga and do it regularly.	64 (36.6%)
I like yoga, but I rarely ever do it.	44 (25.1%)
I tried it once, but it's not for me.	8 (4.6%)
You'll never get me on a yoga mat.	10 (5.7%)
Maybe I should give it a try.	44 (25.1%)
Other (leave a comment)	5 (2.9%)

Body by yoga(click thumbnails to view gallery)

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Tags: Bev Sklar, BevSklar, male yogis, MaleYogis, mirror neurons, MirrorNeurons, Yoga Journal, Yoga Men, YogaJournal, YogaMen

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

casey 11-19-2008 @ 9:10PM

er, um ... i took my first class after losing a bet. ended up being a great workout, now its part of my routine ... granted, i still feel out of place

Matt 11-19-2008 @ 9:39PM

I am a reg at my Body Flow classes. I love them!! Great workout.

UH2L 11-19-2008 @ 11:20PM

I don't like yoga too much because it can be a bit boring for me, but I do it occasionally because I know it's good for you. My mom encourages me to do so. (We're Indian) I intend on taking a class to make me do it more often and on a regular basis.

Thomas 11-20-2008 @ 3:50AM

I attended a "gentle flow" yoga class at my health club. It was a fairly large class of older, retired women and a one retired guy. I am 36 and live a very inactive lifestyle behind a desk. Yoga, as it turns out, is essential for my mind, body and soul. I worked up a sweat, worked out the toxins and in general felt great afterwords. I am now implementing yoga into my workout which includes 20 min on the eliptical machine and weight training. I just need to make this workout an active part of my schedule and balance my diet with more nutritious foods.

John 11-20-2008 @ 8:24AM

I would love to try yoga.

TC 11-20-2008 @ 10:29AM

I have been reading about the benefits of Yoga and wanted to try it for the past year, finally made it to a class about a month ago and have been doing it twice a week ever since. Suprisingly about a 40/60 split in my classes for M/F... I am doing it with 3 other male friends.

Paul Bryan 11-20-2008 @ 6:01PM

I'm more of a T'ai Chi person, but I'm looking to get into Yoga, if only to improve my flexibility.

BB 11-24-2008 @ 2:54PM

I have done the body flow and namaste classes " not for me" but Power Yoga now thats a work out , anybody that doesn't think yoga is a good workout all I can say is TRY IT!

Bev Sklar 11-24-2008 @ 6:59PM

Thanks guys -- glad some of you are enjoying yoga or are planning on a class soon. It's not for every man, but I know there'd be many more Yoga Men out there if they just give it a try.

Bev