How often should you do yoga?
You don’t have to do yoga every day in order to get the benefits, but you should do yoga at least 2-3 times per week, usually for 20-30 minutes per session at a minimum. Our recommendation is that you try to do 100 minutes of yoga per week, and you can space that out however you want.
If you’re looking for a program with a schedule of workouts, including recommended frequency and how to fit it into your other programs, Man Flow Yoga has hundreds of at home workouts for men that are effective and safe. I’ve already written a comprehensive blog on this topic, and you can view it by clicking here: How often should you do yoga? (Blog)
Is yoga enough to keep you fit?
For most people, yoga for fitness is enough to keep you fit. There are tons of physical benefits of yoga, but when combined with a healthy diet and good sleep, an effective, fitness-centric yoga program helps you build muscle, improve body balance, increase strength and flexibility, and improves your overall wellness. However, I do recommend adding pulling or rowing exercises in order to keep your shoulders healthy, or you could risk injury. If you are looking to build significantly more muscle mass or improve your performance for sports, you should also do sport-specific training and resistance training.
Can you build muscle with yoga?
Yes! Yoga helps you build muscle, both directly and indirectly. Some poses in particular are more effective at building muscle than others, while other poses help to indirectly build muscle by improving flexibility, mobility, and decreasing recovery time. “Power yoga” is another popular form of yoga for building muscle, but it can only build muscle if you’re challenging yourself and reaching the point of fatigue. Our yoga for strength programs help you build muscle directly by increasing strength and endurance, but also indirectly by improving your muscle activation, increasing flexibility & mobility, correcting muscular imbalances, preventing injury, and facilitating faster recovery; and when combined with other muscle-building activities, such as weight training, bodyweight exercises, HIIT, sprinting, or other similar activities, can help you build even more muscle.
I'm not flexible, are there beginner yoga poses?
This is one of the biggest concerns from people who have not done yoga before, but it doesn’t have to be. Yoga helps you increase your flexibility; it doesn’t require you to be flexible. The problem is that most yoga classes are structured in a way that makes it impossible for people who aren’t flexible, and don’t have yoga experience – but Man Flow Yoga isn’t like that.
Most yoga instructors or online based yoga classes don’t provide the modifications or appropriate postures for beginners who are not flexible. Man Flow Yoga, on the other hand, teaches you the modifications and postures for beginners you need to do the pose in a way that works for YOU, instead of somebody who is more flexible and more experienced. This way, you can get the same benefits as somebody more flexible. Man Flow Yoga has tons of beginner yoga workouts with gentle yoga stretches.
Is lifting weights and yoga a good idea?
Yes! Yoga and weight training is a fantastic combination of exercise. Yoga for strength and flexibility will help your flexibility & mobility, increase strength in your stabilizing muscles, improve balance, and aid with recovery; while weight training helps you build more muscle mass and develop strength. Man Flow Yoga in particular also helps to develop improved muscle engagement (aka body awareness, mobility, motor control, etc), which allows you to increase your overall strength potential by increasing muscle fiber recruitment. The bottom line is that yoga and weight lifting help to build strength in different ways, but you will get better at both yoga and weight training if you include both activities in your weekly workout routines.
Do I need to lose weight before I start? Do you have yoga for overweight guys?
Nope! In fact, beginner yoga is a great form of exercise if you have excess weight, since traditional exercise may be too stressful on your joints when you are overweight. Yoga helps you establish a strong foundation of strength and mobility, and will also help you lose weight in the process – when combined with healthy eating (diet) and adequate sleep.
However, I should caution that most types of yoga do not provide modifications for people who are overweight, and many of the postures that you do in a typical yoga class can be uncomfortable, ineffective, or downright painful. Man Flow Yoga provides modifications to help make the poses more accessible for people who are overweight. We even have yoga workouts for people who are overweight in our workout library, which you’ll find in our Members’ Area.
How is yoga different from stretching?
Stretching (passive stretching, as well as active stretching) is just one part of yoga. Yoga also involves (1) isometric exercises that build strength and mobility (poses/postures), (2) slow-moving, dynamic exercises that help build body awareness and control, (3) an emphasis on breathing to help you improve your body-mind connection, (4) balancing postures to help you develop your strength and improve balance, and (5) a much greater emphasis on proper technique. Stretching is casual – it’s something you can do while watching a TV show without too much focus. It helps you release muscle tension, lengthens muscles, and relieves joint pain – but it has no lasting effects.
The benefits of stretching are mostly temporary. A good strength and mobility-focused yoga program – even one that is yoga for beginners – has much more long-lasting benefits. It improves your focus, increases flexibility and mobility, builds strength, improves balance, increases mindfulness, and much, much more. It involves much more focus – it is something you are completely involved in and demands 100% attention.
How is Man Flow Yoga different from other types of yoga?
Man Flow Yoga is 100% fitness-focused. The yoga workouts and programs we make our designed to be as effective as possible in order to increase your functional fitness and improve your longevity. The workouts emphasize proper technique; what you should and should not be feeling in your body, proper alignment, modifications for people who are inflexible, and explain the benefits of each posture. Workouts are focused on helping you build muscle and increase your strength, in as little time as possible. (Most of our workouts are 25-30 minutes.) We also emphasize active mobility (instead of passive stretching) to help improve your functional range of motion.
It’s easier for for people new to yoga and men (and women) who consider themselves inflexible, and provides yoga modifications to make the poses work for people who aren’t as flexible as a yoga instructor. Structured programs deliver specific results, to deal with specific issues such as back pain, posture improvement, performance for running, injury-prevention, and so on.
To sum it up, Man Flow Yoga is fitness-centric, non-spiritual yoga created to help you achieve your fitness goals. Traditional yoga is a part-spiritual, part-fitness, and usually does not address specific fitness goals.
Am I too old to do yoga? Do you have yoga for Seniors or yoga for older men??
You’re not too old for yoga. When it comes to exercise, yoga is one of the most approachable, joint-friendly, beginner-friendly forms of fitness – when practiced safely with proper technique, and the appropriate modifications. If you’re older and starting a yoga program, keep in mind that you’ll typically be less flexible, have less muscular endurance, and less balancing ability than your younger peers. But don’t worry – Man Flow Yoga is appropriate for people who are in their 30s, 40s, 50s, and beyond.
We have hundreds of members in their 60s, and even people in their 70s and 80s. And, it’s exactly for the aforementioned reasons that older people SHOULD practice yoga. Building strength is essential for bone density. Flexibility is important for joint health and functional movement. Balance helps build strength and great for injury prevention. We’re even working on a Chair Yoga for Seniors DVD!
How long are typical workouts?
Typical workouts on manflowyoga.com last 20-35 minutes, but we have workouts of all lengths, from 10 minutes all the way up to 60 minutes or more. Most yoga workouts at a studio last 60 minutes, but we recognize that most people don’t have time for that, which is why our workouts average about 30 minutes. Most of our workouts incorporate yoga poses for beginners.
What do I need for home yoga?
A home yoga practice is easy and requires minimal equipment. All you need is a yoga mat, a block, and a strap. If you don’t have a block or a strap, then you can use a stack of books and a belt or dog leash.
How do I get started with Man Flow Yoga?
The best way to get started with Man Flow Yoga is to join our Members’ Area. From there, you can choose a yoga program based on your goals, follow a set schedule of workouts, and get noticeable results within your first month. We have a Launch Guide to help you get started, which includes choosing a structured yoga program featuring follow-along yoga videos for beginners, based on your fitness goals and experience. Once you join, you’ll get access to all of our structured workout programs, workouts, tutorials, pose guide videos, and entry into the exclusive Man Flow Yoga Community group on Facebook.
Click here to learn more about the Man Flow Yoga Members’ Area.
Can I get started for free?
Free yoga? Yes! We have a FREE 7-Day Intro Program that helps you learn postures, understand the benefits, and begin to integrate yoga into your daily life. We’re told that we have the best yoga videos for beginners on the internet.
Click here to sign up for our FREE 7-Day Intro today (no credit card required!)
