If you ask the average person on the street what yoga is, he or she would think of a tall, slender, super-sculpted and toned upper middle-class woman in tight yoga pants bending and stretching like a pretzel. Although yoga has grown in popularity over the past couple of decades and has become mainstream, one thing is still glaringly obvious: the overwhelming majority of yoga teachers and practitioners in America are women.
Men already know that they aren’t as flexible as women. Now, take that man and ask him to be in a room full of women where everyone is doing intricate poses where they all looked like they spent their whole lives upside down. Men just don’t like doing things they aren’t already good at — especially in front of women.
There’s a perception among many men that the yoga studio is a “women’s space,” just as other environments where they go for self-care (i.e. the hair salon, spa). But we all know that yoga is an equal opportunity workout: increased strength, flexibility, tone, and stress reduction benefit everyone. Men know this … they just don’t know where to go where they won’t feel out of place.
Why I Never Went Back After My First Yoga Class
I’ve always prided myself on being open minded. I rarely hesitated to try new foods of different cultures. I’ve always read books of various genres. And although I was never heavily into sports, I did enjoy regular exercising and keeping fit; I’m a regular runner and have practiced various martial arts.
For years I’d been curious about yoga, but it was a struggle to muster enough courage to actually go to a yoga class.
So when my company, as part of their employee perks, started free weekly yoga classes after work I figured it was the perfect time to finally give yoga a try. I was never the skeptical type when it came to yoga and believed all of the benefits: greater flexibility, more muscle tone, increased relaxation, and overall health improvements. The only thing that scared me were the preconceived fears of the judgments from women. I had this image in my head of scores of women sitting in lotus position all staring and judging my inflexibility and ineptitude. I worried that some were even thinking I was some creep.
As I entered the yoga room, I was greeted with polite smiles from the students (and just as I expected, most were women, and I was the only man). The teacher asked, “Is this your first time?”
“Yes,” I replied with a sense of relief. I thought, “OK, so she’ll go easy on me and will explain everything to me like a toddler … this won’t be so bad after all.”
Throughout the workout, it was mostly me trying to emulate the poses of the other women around me: Downward Dog, Sun Salutations, Crane Pose, etc. Needless to say, it was a very humbling and borderline humiliating experience. It was one of those moments where I thought I would enjoy it but was way out of my league, but I was too embarrassed to just walk out. Because I had to constantly look at others to see if I was posing correctly, I think I pulled a neck muscle from turning my head in every unimaginable angle. And I was too proud to ask for help — it felt selfish to disrupt the flow of the class just for a tight, inflexible newbie like me.
At the end, we were told to lay on our backs on our mats and close our eyes. I think I remember being told to think of a blue light which is our aura or higher self (or something of the sort). All I remember is feeling relieved it was all over and couldn’t wait for this weirdness to end so I could get the heck out of there and rush back to work (and very few things ever made me want to run back to my cubicle).
Why Men Resist Trying Yoga
My story shows the various reasons why men aren’t open to yoga as much as many other forms of exercise.
- First, there’s the image problem: the misconception that yoga is really meant for women;
- Second is that once a typical man takes a class, his unique issues don’t seem to be ever addressed due to different physiology;
- And third, like it or not, the mystic “woo-woo” factor is a turn-off that makes many men not want to return.
But this still didn’t deter me from continuing yoga. I dusted off an old “Yoga X” DVD, part of the wildly popular P90X DVD workout program. I also found myself searching on YouTube, “Yoga for Men” and added, “Man Flow Yoga” to my playlist. When I do yoga by myself in the privacy of my own home, I didn’t feel judged and more “safe.” But I also thought how it would be cool to do this with others in a place where it’s more hospitable and inspiring for the average man like me.
I can’t speak for all guys out there, but my experience certainly was not unique. Below is a list of the common reasons why men don’t come back to class:
- Not knowing the realistic expectations of the first class.
- Not being able to do what everyone else is doing or not able to keep up
Being “the worst” at something. - Not understanding the words that are used to give instructions.
- Pride being torn down due to embarrassment.
When you start a running regimen, you don’t run 10 miles on your first day. In your first class of Tae Kwon Do, you’re not expected to do a flying spinning roundhouse kick. It doesn’t help that the above legit obstacles for men are already compounded by many misconceptions of modern yoga.
The Yoga Myths that Men Believe
Here is a list of what a lot of men think of then they hear the word yoga:
- I’m not flexible enough.
- It’s a women’s space.
- Men’s bodies aren’t suited for yoga.
- I’m not into the sitting and chanting “ohms,” it’s too new-agey and touchy-feely and not a real workout.
- I don’t understand Sanskrit.
OK, maybe the last one is way out there, but the point is that modern Western yoga doesn’t give off a welcoming vibe to men. There’s a blend of ego, acknowledgment of physical limitations, and fear: and together this mental barrier can seem impossible to break.
And it doesn’t help that about 99% of all yoga marketing feature images of tall, statuesque women: to men, this is the ultimate symbol of yoga and they have no place in the community.
What’s ironic is that with yoga, for the vast majority of its history, has been the domain of men.
How to Structure a Class with More Men
Before thinking about marketing to have more men in your class, it’s obviously important to structure a class that is actually more welcoming to men. Here are some tips that will help:
- Men are goal oriented. While women in (in general) are happy to go with the flow, men typically schedule their week in terms of activity goals. Play up to this. At the beginning of each class, briefly explain what you want to achieve for that session and what you are focusing on for that class. A little explanation goes a long way.
- Don’t patronize men. We can sense it a mile away, and our fragile egos can’t take it! It just doesn’t sit well when, with a soft consoling voice, you’re asking the class to perform a tough pose. Men want to know you’re with them during the tough bits, not standing back and judging. So, if you know it is going to be a challenging pose, do it with them as if a leader is joining the fight with the troops.
- Treat everyone equally. Paying more attention to the beginner male doesn’t mean neglecting the more advanced yoga students. Conduct the class as you normally do but just offer modifications to the beginner: this way he would have something to work on and still be inspired by seeing what the advanced level students can achieve.
- Play to their strengths. In general, men have more upper body strength: incorporate more poses that focus on the core, chest and arms. You may even incorporate free weights.
- Help them adapt. Men have a “no pain, no gain” mentality and are prone to injure themselves when doing yoga. Tell them early on that there should be “moderate discomfort” and that anything beyond that is bad.
- Be hands-on. Don’t be afraid to touch or physically adjust a man’s pose. The last thing on his mind would be anything sexual: he’d be much too busy struggling to hold a pose while not giving up. And this will be very appreciated because we all know that feeling the pose correctly is by far the best way to learn and to remember.
- Less “woo-woo.” Most men would be there for a workout and not for a lecture on the importance of meditation or living a life of veggies and being one with the Universe (again, this is a stereotype that’s stuck in the minds of many men). Tone down the lecturing, Sanskrit, chanting, and lecturing.
- Explain things logically. By simply explaining why you’re doing what you’re doing will make the new student feel more acknowledged and he’ll appreciate it. Men prefer logical and fact-based explanations.
How to Market to Men
After you’ve designed your class to be more male-friendly, it’s time to start marketing.
- Focus on the benefits. Promote specific health benefits that men care about. This could be more flexibility when it comes to playing sports or weight lifting. And, every man wants more energy and stamina for everyday life, including better sexual performance.
- Use male role models. Promote the fact many professional male athletes do yoga (LeBron James, Ray Lewis, Vernon Davis, Evan Longoria, etc.). Show how yoga increased their performance and feature this in your blog, brochures, etc.
- Show them the facts. Promote the scientific proof of how yoga benefits the body and the brain. In recent years, mindfulness meditation businesses have been doing this very successfully: practitioners of mindfulness are roughly 50% men, 50% women.
- Go further down the niche. “Men” is a very broad category. Try whittling it down to more specific categories such as men who want flexibility, yoga for weightlifters, men with back pain, etc.
- Use the power of imagery. Humans are visual animals. Tone down the “feminine” colors of your website and other marketing materials and include pictures of men along with women. And make sure they look happy!
It may seem logical to be reluctant to market to men: men don’t attend; therefore it may be a wasted effort. But with the growth of yoga and with increasing competition, it may be time to start branching out distinguishing your business from the other yoga providers. And what better way is there than to include the other 50% of the population?
Yoga is gaining in popularity and is indeed becoming mainstream. By marketing yoga effectively to men, you can tap into a niche that’s just waiting and willing to give you business.
