UK The Kentucky Kernel:
Why is yoga more popular among women in the U.S.? The colorful, rolled-up mats and skin-tight pants may be to blame. Perhaps it’s the sitting in peace without beating each other up that turns men off of the exercise, but don’t be quick to judge this ancient practice.
The leaders of the pack are often men. In sixth century B.C., Buddha emphasized movement and meditation. B.K.S. Iyengar brought yoga to the Western world in the 1960s. Bikram Choudhury popularized hot yoga, during which the room is made to feel as sweltering as India.
Often urged by their wives, men have started coming to class. UK President Eli Capilouto told the Kernel when he first came to the school that he sometimes does yoga because it, and exercise in general, makes him “healthy in mind and spirit.†Even hip-hop king Russell Simmons, who founded Def Jam Records, shares this passion and has launched a yoga clothing and lifestyle line.
Some guys are using yoga to get ahead. Former UK linebackers Micah Johnson and Danny Trevathan took yoga to up their game. In the Rashida Jones and Andy Samberg flick “Celeste and Jesse Forever,†a character admits to going to class to meet girls. A friend of mine is dating a guy who is getting his teacher certification in India. He said going into a yoga class that is predominately women was intimidating at first.