Yoga for Men

Whether it’s something like Yoga or Pilates, your core is vital to maintaining a healthy posture and a strong body. More and more men are taking up yoga as recommended by their physios and GPs as a way to strengthen and tone their bodies. It’s almost becoming a craze and there are many professional male athletes who are turning back to this ancient form of exercise to enhance their physical condition. The likes of Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Georges St. Pierre, and Evander Holyfield spring to mind.

There are numerous famous actors out there who are also improving their bodies through Yoga, proving it’s not just something that women should be doing and in fact, going back through history, it was actually men who were the leaders of yoga. Matthew McConaughey, laballed as a Hollywood Heartthrob swears by yoga and judging by the state of his toned and muscular body, it’s definitely worked for him. OK, so he doesn’t just perform yoga but he claims it has had a major impact on his physique.

It’s not surprising that sportsmen and male Hollywood actors are taking up Yoga more and more. Not only does it have a physical benefit but it also soothes and clams the mind. So, for male athletes it’ll help them focus on their goals and targets, honing their mind to their body and ensuring they are fully committed to the task at hand, whether it’s a Football match, boxing fight or just a daily training session that needs their 100% focus. Actors go through extreme stress, with many continuous days of long hours and a stressful work atmosphere, so ensuring their mind is cleansed is vital to learning lines and performing to the peak of their ability.

Yoga should not be overlooked by men and it’s about time that men stopped believing that it’s meant just for women. Men invented Yoga. Use it for your benefit.

There seems to be a stigma kicking around that yoga is only for women and guys constantly questioning, “Is yoga for men?”. Well, simply put, the answer is YES! There is no reason why men can’t do the yoga techniques that women carry out. OK, so women are deemed as, in general, more flexible than men, however it’s time for these stigmas to be pushed aside.

Yoga is fantastic for improving your strength, fact! There, as a guy reading this I’ve hopefully caught your attention. Did you know that? Well, now you do. Yes it’s great for flexibility and focus, but it’s fantastic on greatly improving your strength and improving your core.

The Strength of Yoga

Yoga For Men is coming to the fore increasingly in recent years and it’s a fact in the yoga world that after practicing yoga consistently for a few months, you can feel twice as strong as previously. Yoga can make an overweight man handle his weight with a greater degree of efficiency, putting doubts in the minds of those who arguing against yoga for men.

Rodney Yee is a well known expert, worldwide in promoting strength yoga and has created an exceptional DVD entitled “Yoga For Strength”, and is great yoga for men material. His techniques teach you methodically and will improve your endurance, enabling your muscles to let go more efficiently without collapsing to the response of stretched tendons.

What Customers Say About “Yoga For Strength”

“This is a great DVD taking you through basic prep poses. I totally recommend this product to anyone interested in yoga.” – speedylegs

Here’s a quick summary of some of the techniques that could be under the umbrella of “Yoga For Men”.

Iyengar Yoga

This yoga style is perfect for beginners and gives you the foundations to move on to the more advanced yoga techniques, for example power yoga.

Power Yoga

Perfect for improving your strength (read below this section for more on strength yoga), this is not for beginners and it is recommended that you learn the basics under Iyengar Yoga first.

Bikram Yoga

Building stamina and burning calories, this form of yoga is carried it in very hot (95 – 102 degrees) rooms. It’s perfect for those who need sweat to feel like they’ve done something good.

Try the DVD out, what have you got to lose? I certainly will be and will be happy to start promoting yoga for men from this day forward.

Most men think of Yoga as something for women, or something only new-age types really get into, so that there are a lot of biases against men using Yoga as a way to get fit. That is an image that should be dispelled, because Yoga for men can be a fantastic workout that any man can integrate into their lives. Yoga can build flexibility, muscle control, stamina and will go to great lengths towards building up the endurance that will serve any man well as they go about their day, or go into other styles of workout.

Despite the relaxed, calm demeanor of those long-time practitioners of Yoga, don’t forget, Yoga is hard work! Yoga centers on taking poses that the body naturally does not like, so someone practicing Yoga is constantly in a battle between their natural sense of balance, the stresses of unfamiliar muscles being used heavily and even the force of gravity to maintain their position. That means it takes someone willing to tough it out through the harder, beginning stages of Yoga before being able to take on some of those high level, advanced poses that prove how good you are and how long you have been working on your body.

Yoga is not some cult trying to convert practitioners to Hindu, or Buddhism or many of the other spiritual or religious doctrines attached to it. Practicing Yoga has long been on the recommended exercises as ways to keep the body fit and healthy. Many Yoga instructors do ascribe to one of the more popular  spiritual tenants behind Yoga, but when you get past that, to the core exercises, you will see that if the spiritual component is not for you, you can just ignore it Most often you can use the teacher’s talking as a focus point for your breathing and movement. Ignore the message, pay attention to the pacing; most often they have a very deliberate way of speaking that matches the motions of Yoga. It is a way to keep in the same rhythm as the rest of the class, and a way for you to ignore that hot woman in the second row with her leg above her head!

You also don’t need to worry about some special uniform or clothing for your Yoga class. Normal workout clothes are fine, in many cases a beginner Yoga practitioner should wear tighter clothes, so the instructor can tell when a muscle is in the wrong position, or you may be straining too much and potentially injuring your body. You should buy your own mat though, not only are gym mats usually beaten up and packed down, to you really want a surface that who knows how many people have sat, stood and sweated on?

Don’t think that Yoga is for wimps, it is a huge challenge to a person’s physical ability, tone, and balance. It is a place that men can find a better way of improving their health, and their physical abilities. It is also a way for a guy to build up a good old fashioned sweat in a new way. When you incorporate Yoga into your workouts, and into your daily life you can say that yes, Yoga worked for this man.

As a great yoga position for upper body strength and balance, this position works great as a step up to further poses that require more upper body control, especially in the arms. It acts as a great strengthener for the arms and spine and helps promote straighter posture. It is much like that of doing pushup but is much more based on a static hold. It is a goods for practice so you can get into more challenging arm balances.

The key to this one is to get you body into a elevated and completely straightened position. You want to maintain a straight line from the balls of your feet to the top of your head. You also want to try and have your arms as perpendicular and straight as you can from your body without locking your elbows to hard. This helps improve your balance and is a great fitness exercise as well. For more advanced use try lifting one leg up and holding it and then alternating them.

As a practicing yoga enthusiast myself, I have taken great interest into yoga poses that benefit me as a man. Although very similar in physique, men and women have their differences in physical development needs and methods. What works for men may not work for women, and vice versa. So I’ve taken a moment to explain 3 of the best poses that I have found in my research. Having suffered traffic and sport injuries, I find that these are just a few of the most beneficial poses I can do to feel healthy and stay limber.

At first this one was a little tricky to grasp. But eventually it proved its worth after a little practice. The Bow Pose is a deep reaching stretch that clears the mind and expands the chest. It stretches your thighs, arms, back, chest, and other areas. It is great for stress relief and for focus, and the more you perfect it the more it does for you. Doing the Bow Pose increase muscular balance and core stability and does wonders for back and legs. In this particular pose you lie on your stomach and bring your ankles towards your backside. You then reach back with your hands and grab your ankles slowly, pulling your body into the shape of a bow. Take your time and don’t force this. If you must try it one leg at a time until you find your comfort zone. Take deep breathes and stay in this position for 30 seconds or more.

Another great position, especially for the hips and back, is the Crescent Lunge. Very similar to the Lunge used in many fitness workouts, this variations focuses on loosening up the hips and lower back and in turn helps to avoid future injury and pain from a past one. It is a great warm up for your regular workout commonly used in the Sun Salutation routine. There are a number of ways to get into this position, two of which I will explain. The first is kneeling on the ground with your palms placed flat on the floor, step your right (or left) foot up in between your arms in the bent position and extend your other leg back straight against a wall. Press your hips in the direction of the floor and you heel back as well. Another way to get into this position is to be in downward dog and step up into your arms with your leg already extended behind you.

Lastly I will touch upon a great hip and hamstring stretch. Countless games of basketball make this stretch a necessity for a good outcome. Known as the Reclining Big Toe, this stretch promotes better digestion and also prostate gland stimulation which is a vital part of the male agenda. It’s great for anyone highly active in running or other sports. In this stretch you simply lie on your back with your legs flat on the floor. Maintaining even contact with your right leg against the floor, raise your left leg into a 90 degree position towards the sky. Slowly bend your left leg and bring it towards your chest with you arms. Using some sort of loop or even a towel, wrap it around your left ankle and raise your left leg back up towards the sky in the direction of your head safely extending your knees and thighs. Stay in this position for at least 5 deep breaths and alternate twice between each leg.

Put aside all the cliché’s guys. Yoga for men is a great way to stay in shape and find your inner peace. I realize there is a stigma about men doing yoga but I’m telling you it has done wonders for me. The site, GuidedMeditationForBeginners.com, has shown me how I can approach yoga in my own way.  It brings me much joy to share my experience with you as I hope that one day my words can be used to get somebody off the fence about yoga for men. I’m sure it will bring you as much happiness as it has given me.

Just a few years ago I was struck by a car crossing the street at a crosswalk. I got flipped up in the air and came down on my head. Let’s just say, my neck and my back were pretty messed up. After 2 years of physical therapy and prescription medication I needed to find an alternative. Yoga for men is how I achieved my health and well being back. I wrestled for 12 years and never thought I could step foot on a mat again. But from the knowledge I got from  GuidedMeditationForBeginners.com I have been able to get the confidence and the peace of mind needed to give it another go.

Aside from my own specific story, there are a wealth of other benefits that cater to a lot of things that ail people. Yoga  has shown significant impact in the healing process of many everyday aches and pains that I experience. I know from my own struggle that meditation has reduced my anxiety and insomnia far more than any other prescribed fix-it-all solution. I sleep so much better at night too.

Learning  from GuidedMeditationForBeginners.com has changed my life immensely. My days have become less stressful and more productive. My diet and all around habits have improved ten fold. I can sit quietly in my chair at find total peace from what I have been taught. My true inner soul has been opened and my attitude towards life is much more positive. I am much more patient with my kids and my clients and I am able to fight back the rigmarole of every day frustrations with meditations I have practiced.

Approaching everyday life is much more optimistic now and my thoughts are clearer. If you haven’t tried this out yet then you should, because it’s aces in my book. Don’t miss your chance to bring peace and happiness into your life.

You may have your life together in every possible way, but one of the most neglected and least explored realms may be yourself. That may sound far fetched, but the truth of the matter is that flaws are easy to ignore and cover up, especially when you have a thousand other things to occupy your mind. Despite what popular culture conveys, men have just as many physical hang ups about their looks, bodies in particular, as women do. Some of these perceived flaws can be improved upon with physical exercise while others simply just have to be addressed in order to have a healthy opinion of one’s self. You can help to get in touch with yourself, physically and spiritually with yoga for men.

Giving yourself a thorough examination has little to do with mirrors, instead it is based on acknowledging insecurities, flaws and providing yourself with the tools to deal with it all. In today’s society, it’s pretty easy to drown yourself in a world of electronic distractions and even build the perfect you in the form of an online character or personality. Those tools are perfectly normal and healthy as well, but only if you realize that the real you is okay too. The sheer demanding of yoga will force you into a position that makes self examination necessary to properly progress. If you’re questioning anything about yourself, inside or out, you will greatly benefit from the self reflection setting that yoga provides.

Yoga teaches us to cure what need not be endured and endure what cannot be cured.~ B.K.S. Iyengar

After being injured, the single most difficult element, besides the pain itself, is finding that your mobility is severely limited. Depending on the injury, you will find impaired movement to be mildly irritating at best to downright handicapping at best. Whether your injury is fresh or happened many years ago, you may need to look at different programs to get your body operating the way it was previously. Traditional physical therapy can give patients phenomenal results, but not every injury qualifies a person to receive it. There are even situations which do not allow for someone suffering form a physical injury to get any type of rehabilitation. For many men, an injury can be chalked up to a minor inconvenience and will be ignored for years.
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After an injury occurs for whatever reason, many times yoga for men is a viable, practical and easily accessible solution. Unlike traditional physical rehabilitation programs, attending a yoga class doesn’t require a referral from a doctor. Because anyone at any age and in any physical shape can perform yoga, there is little pressure. Beyond that, many men who use yoga to help get over a physical injury find that their underlying ailment goes away rather quickly. With no surgery, medications or doctors visits, yoga can help to relieve serious physical injuries with little fanfare and a lot of sweat.

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One of the largest concerns of men when they first start doing yoga is basically how they will be perceived. The long list of macho activities doesn’t exactly include activities such as yoga that require patience and focus. Add in the fact that, like all beginners, they can’t immediately master a sport that most believe is simple, and you have a recipe for an injured ego.

Naturally, no one wants to look weak and for men this is an even larger concern. What any man should know is that yoga is an incredible way to get in shape without the use of expensive exercise equipment. Yoga for men is masculine, it is vigorous and it will help your overall health profile.

In fact, more and more MMA fighters and other top athletes  are realizing the benefits of yoga and implementing it into their daily routines. This is due to the fact that yoga does more for athletes than many people originally thought. In fact, yoga and MMA are actually pretty closely related. Not only does yoga help to increase flexibility, it also allows one to strengthen their core and learn methods of controlled breathing.

A good way to put yoga into perspective is by comparing to any other sport. You may be a world class swimmer, but you wouldn’t take up baseball on Monday with the expectation of scoring a home run on Friday. You have to think about yoga with the understanding that it will take time to do advanced moves and there really is no competitiveness as far as progression goes.

When your body allows you to go to the next stage you will know and trying to force yourself ahead will only result in failure. On the other hand, if you are single you can always use the fact that you will be surrounded by fit ladies who will be impressed with your security in your masculinity.

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One of the best things about yoga is the fact that you can’t beat it. That means that there is no final stage, no way of plateauing or being able to say that you are the best. Granted, you can be really, really good at yoga, which comes with plenty of bragging rights,
but it isn’t like other sports that can be walked away from after you have your name inscribed in the Hall of Fame.

So, you are looking to develop a healthy lifestyle then trying out yoga for men will have your body buff and your health status elevated.

Starting yoga required a lifelong commitment and it will take years to progress to even modestly impressive levels. It pretty much goes without saying that you will need to develop eating habits that mimic your new found dedication to fitness, but don’t think you have to live off of a diet of bean sprouts and lettuce.

Most importantly, men who do yoga consistently improve every single facet of their lives. They will perform better in the bedroom, work more efficiently at their jobs, handle stress better, have better bodies and will feel better.

You will find that nearly every other athlete, health junkie and enlightened citizen has taken up yoga with similar results.