Hot Yoga and Men

photo from ZenSpot website - www.zenspotmbs.com/

When I started hot yoga classes I was surprised that there were not as many men in the class.

 Then I found an article titled Five Myths (Some) Men Believe About Yoga by Tresca Weinstein.  The most recent stats show 82% of yoga practitioners are women. Here's a discussion of the myths that she listed. 

Men think that yoga is warm and fuzzy, meaning that it only involves some stretching, and there may be talk of opening the heart, and maybe some ballet type postures. My take on hot yoga and vinyasa in particular is that it is very challenging, even for men, and is an excellent workout for an hour non-stop. It needs to be experienced before a "warm and fuzzy" judgment is made about it.  

One thing not mentioned is that because yoga classes have a majority of women, men may shy away from them thinking that it is only a women's exercise class. Be a warrior and overcome that fear guys.
Another myth stated in this article was that you need to be flexible to do it. Yes and no. In the years prior to starting yoga, whenever I did workouts, jogging, weights, etc. I would always forget to do stretching. One thing I love about hot yoga is that is all about stretching, while getting an aerobic workout at the same time. Yoga helps flexibility. If you are already flexible, then the more challenging postures are easier. If you are inflexible, then yoga feels great because it opens you up and improves your flexibility. Yet, even after 18 months, there are postures that I could do when I was 21 that I cannot do yet such as plow. However, it's all good in that yoga still has amazing benefits even if you cannot do one or two of the postures. 

The third myth mentioned is that women may be better at yoga. This may be true for at least two reasons. They have been practicing and know their postures better. They also have a different anatomy that is more conducive to bending and stretching, like when a baby is delivered. That said, men have strength that comes into play with certain postures. I happen to have a wide chest and cannot cross my arms in front, but I have strong upper body strength that allows me to handle the chataranga push ups better. 

One of the phrases that I have heard from yoga teachers is "go where you can go" ...so it's not about being perfect but moving into a posture to whatever degree that you can, and then that is the perfect move for you at that moment. It is ok to sit down and skip a posture if you are too winded or need a minute or two to recover. That is allowed, and not frowned upon. It's a different low key approach to some personal trainers that work you beyond your edge whether you are ready or not. For men this may be an adjustment as we may be inclined to compete with others or ourselves. When I set a 100 day challenge for myself, to do one class a day for one hundred days, it was like my own personal"Mt Everest", or goal that I could empower myself to do. Funny thing was, that as I got closer to the goal, the numbers didn't matter anymore. What mattered most was my commitment to do my yoga practice on a daily basis or at least five days a week, which is not the norm for most yoga students. 

Another myth mentioned is that a person (man) can "win" at yoga. The only competition to focus on is against yourself. If you want a challenge then do ten days in a row. If you want another one then go for thirty. You already have ten down and twenty to go. When a group joins together to do an extended daily practice such as a sixty day, it's not called a challenge but an experience. In fact, it can be a life changing experience. That's another reason that I am writing this book. At day fifty my life, my body, my food habits, and my workaholic schedule are changing.

Except when I did yoga forty years ago (from the time of writing this book), I lived life in my head much more than being aware of my body. I overate and drank and soon weighed about 285 lbs at age 50. I worked hard on that and leveled off around 260 when I started yoga. My weight has been dropping but even more important is the commitment to daily practice, and the self discipline with food that comes much more easily. This is a huge shift for me as I have committed to workout regimens and personal training before but could not get the eating under control. This is changing and I am not resisting it, but going with the flow of life. By doing yoga it has helped me be more aware of my body, and this a big change for me.

My personal vision is to see more men embracing yoga as an amazing experience and form of exercise. Even more, I would enjoy seeing more baby boomers doing yoga in classes, as the average age now I estimate to be about 30. The men close to my age that I meet in the yoga classes and that come to class regularly are friends that I can relate to and that also support me to stay focused on my practice as they are focused. 

On a deeper level, it doesn't matter what age or gender mix there is in a class. We are all there to practice yoga as a group and are doing the exact same asanas or postures together with the teacher's instruction. There is so much focus on just doing the posture that all other thoughts can just be set aside most of the time. Then the experience at the end of class, with a "savasana" or laying on the back completely still is a powerful completion to one hour or seventy five minutes of yoga. 

I am age 63 as I write this. I love yoga and the benefits that I feel in my life as a result.

Kelli Harrington, the owner of a yoga studio named Zenspot

in Eugene Oregon told me  when I started that yoga can change my life. She was spot on. It has and continues to do so.

All men are invited to try hot yoga and challenge themselves to enjoy it and see the benefits.

  

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