Time to man up and stretch your talents
A TOWNSVILLE yoga studio is trying to encourage men to try practising the Hindu spiritual discipline.
Lighten Up pilates, yoga and wellness studio is offering a four- week male- only taster course starting today.
Teacher Michael Blades, 56, said many people assume yoga was for women.
“We’re just trying to encourage guys to participate in yoga,” he said.
“( Yoga) is marketed predominantly at women – magazines show super flexible women and it can be a little bit intimidating for guys to come along.”
Mr Blades said yoga had a number of health benefits and wanted to see men participate.
“As a teacher I’ve been to yoga in different places around the world. About 90 per cent of participants – teachers and students – are female,” he said.
“It just seems ( men) are missing out.”
Fellow Lighten Up teacher Oliver Crossley, 24, said yoga was about calming the mind and finding stillness.
“It’s not a very masculine thing in our culture, especially Australian culture, to pay attention internally,” Mr Crossley said.
He encouraged men to take advantage of the male- only classes and to not dismiss yoga as a fitness option because of the “feminine” connotations attached to the practice.
“The yoga I practise is a little stronger. It makes it more attractive to guys because they see that there’s strength and flexibility to be gained,” Mr Crossley said.
“On the superficial level they can do a cool handstand but on a deeper level we are sneaking them a piece of mental peace without them realising.”
The classes will be held at Lighten Up’s Flinders St studio from 6.45pm.