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Health

Is Yoga Actually Dangerous for Men?

Jan. 8, 2013 3:05pm
Yogis Research Finds Evidence that Men Are More Likely to be Injured in Yoga Than Women

(Image: Shutterstock.com)

The same New York Times writer who wrote the controversial “How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body” last year to the chagrin of many yogis (yes, that’s what they’re called), has stirred the pot again, recently writing a post that alleges yoga is dangerous for men to practice in general (or at least in its current state).

William Broad, a science reporter for the Times and author of “The Science of Yoga: The Risks and the Rewards,”  wrote based on his research that men report more frequent and serious injuries from the stretches and contortions performed in yoga. Don’t believe that? Broad says that as a male practicing yoga himself since the 1970s, he has experienced some of the “guy hazards” personally.

While doing research for his book and finding that many would support the idea of the unisex nature of yoga poses, he found “a world of poorly known information on gender disparity.”

Broad began looking into the prevalence and types of injuries men reported for yoga-related injuries at hospitals:

To deepen my analysis, I focused on specific injuries, especially ones inside the body. Guys, it turned out, accounted for 20 percent of the torn muscles and damaged ligaments, which result in swollen joints. Dislocations of the knee, shoulder and other joints came in at 24 percent.

The figure for broken bones and fractures was 30 percent. The injury sites ranged from the toe to the tibia, the bigger of the two bones in the lower leg.

For nerve damage, which can result in pain and lost muscle control, the male figure jumped to more than 70 percent. The cases included sciatica, where compression of a spinal nerve in the lower back can result in pains that race down the back, hip and leg.

I found the trend in women’s admissions to be just the opposite. The major injuries were few proportionately, and the minor traumas quite abundant. Women, for instance, accounted for a vast majority of the fainting episodes.

With these observations, Broad believes there is an opportunity to make yoga safer. He wrote that he’s not a yoga “basher” — he practices daily himself — but he believes the “myth of perfection” needs to be given up to “give way to the reality of better yoga.”

As Broad anticipated in his article, there are those unconvinced that this means yoga is dangerous for men.

Melissa Gutierrez wrote on the website Smarter Bodies that she finds some of Broad’s observations regarding yoga and men ironic given that yoga when it originated seemed to be dominated largely by men (not females like it is today). Here’s one of the problems Gutierrez sees with Broad’s thoughts on yoga for men:

Current physiology tells us that the only sensory feedback that our brain receives from our muscles come from the spindles, which primarily sense stretch and the rate of stretch. If men do have “tighter” muscles, their spindles would send a signal to their brain much faster than someone more elastic when they enter into a pose that is beyond their current range of motion. The choice to ignore such a loud and screaming signal, in that case, would require a lot of willpower. And we do see this in class! People grimacing in poses, losing awareness of their breath and pushing themselves beyond what their body is telling them to do. Once these signals are ignored, it is easy to see why one might end up in the emergency room with an acute injury! However… it takes a certain kind of person to ignore these loud signals! My guess would be that the kind of person who would ignore these signals in yoga, would ignore the signals in ANY physical activity he or she chose to do and would most likely wind up with an acute injury later on down the line from that activity.

So do we blame yoga? Or is there something else we should be looking at?

A yoga instructor on another blog held a similar sentiment as Gutierrez, writing that at the beginning of class the students are told to “listen to their bodies.”

“If it even feels like it might start ‘thinking’ about hurting, they need to stop and not do it or pull way back to try it safely,” the blog post author wrote.

Read more details of Broad’s “Perils of Yoga for Men” here.

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Comments (56)

1 2
  • scottstown
    Posted on April 6, 2013 at 1:31pm

    Yoga is definitely not dangerous for men, check out this awesome dvd that I have been using for a while now: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00C4GIX70 or find it here http://yogaforsports.org/shop/yoga-for-men-dvd/

    Report this comment

    scottstown  
  • RoDogg
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 7:49pm

    Well … I’m a certified yoga instructor. My sister is certified in all kinds of yoga and fitness and has owned a studio with her husband for over a decade. I have seen first hand, yoga changing lives.

    I am kinda shocked at the lack of knowledge here, where I come to surround myself with knowledgeable people. the sad thing is, most people here are probably older and could seriously benefit from yoga.

    But hey, if you have a bad back or joint pain etc and take pain meds daily … just keep masking that problem, forget about any real life changing things like yoga. *sarcasm

    as for as my opinion on the article … its apples and oranges ….. men most of the time have far more muscle mass than women, they do labor intensive jobs, they are more likely there because of an injury, they are naturally less flexable … etc…. etc…etc…. men WILL have more injuries …… this article is nothing but mis-information IMO.

    Like the women make less argument or the millionaires pay less taxes etc. its all how you look at it.

    Anyways … learn about yoga old timers …. learn about how it lubricates joints and strengthens bones and cartilage etc

    or just mock it and say its just for women … but I assure you, flexibility, agility, and core strength could save your like against an attacker or in a survival situation!!!

    Benefits on top of benefits

    Report this comment

    RoDogg  
    • dark4181
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 10:38pm

      I’ve been practicing Yoga for almost two years now, and have had no problems. What the real problem is is that most Americans simply don’t know how to exercise properly. We spend all day sitting hunched over in front of the screen. This makes out hips tight, our glutes underactive, our backs weak, our shoulders hunch, and pulls our spine out of natural alignment. Add to this the fact that the majority of the population eats unnatural “food” products, laced with poisonous chemicals and heavy metals, etc, and empty of actual nutrition. There two things lead directly to weakened immune systems AND vulnerability to injuries. As far as yoga, the main problem there is more likely to be imperfect technique.

      Report this comment

      dark4181  
    • vhbuckeye1
      Posted on January 9, 2013 at 12:10am

      I agree w/ u Rodogg….I’m a PT who was introduced to Bickram (?) a couple of year ago…..Love it! Also the P90x yoga…. I have also had multiple surgeries, broken bones, and I have a terrible lumbar spine…..(HNPx2, retro lesthesis, DDD, etc…)…and I know forced extension is not good of me…One needs to tailor the yoga to accommodate for health/physical issues….it may take some guidance from the instructor, but it is an integral portion of obtaining a flexible/healthy body.

      Report this comment

      vhbuckeye1  
    • 3-Blue
      Posted on January 9, 2013 at 12:55pm

      Well, it’s just pretty obvious that men are not as flexible, sensitive, or elastic as women. Couple that with macho tendencies and that is a recipe for injury. Men just need to take it slow, feel their bodies and not to push them beyond the limit. What is the limit? Your body will tell you! Listen!

      Yoga is simply a wonderful thing! I’ve been doing some Yogic calisthenics called Psycho-Calisthenics off and on for 35 years and when I do them regularly, I am more relaxed, energetic, centered, poised, my mind works better and my body comes to rest after actions instead of going around all the time in an uptight KNOT! I’m more aware and instinctual. The problem is that if I do them ‘too’ much, I start to feel like a rag doll….. :)

      The only problem I’ve ever had was due to feelings of invincibility. It could have been bad but thankfully was not. I tried to do a headstand without bracing myself with my arms. A disc in my neck suddenly jumped out of place then popped back when I came down and it scared the crap out of me. I DON’T DO THAT ANYMORE! All I had was a sore, stiff neck for a week but it could have been much worse. Just like everything else, you gotta use some common sense and restraint. Take care. Don’t push it too much all at once, but be PERSISTENT and you will feel great in a short time!

      It’s too bad more people don’t do Yoga. We would all be in a lot better shape and maybe we could tell Obamacare to kiss our happy, healthy and relaxed posteriors.

      Report this comment

      3-Blue  
  • TH30PH1LUS
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 5:20pm

    I don’t know any men who do this.

    Report this comment

    TH30PH1LUS  
  • THX-1138
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 5:01pm

    Whoa! I just flashed on the PSY video there for a sec!

    Report this comment

    THX-1138  
  • freedomisasfreedomdoes
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 5:00pm

    Men and women differ physiologically in MANY different ways. Women have typically have atypical chest pain/cardiac symptoms, whereas, men have the mainstream known ones. The response to pain is different. Just to name 2. There are MANY differences. So not too shocking, but rather interesting.

    Report this comment

    freedomisasfreedomdoes  
  • thegreatcarnac
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:52pm

    Yoga……isn’t that the name of that picnic basket stealing bear???

    Report this comment

    thegreatcarnac  
  • Lion420
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:51pm

    Retired wrestler, and former WCW World Champion Diamond Dallas Page runs a yoga school for guys…I think that’s what it’s called too “Yoga for guys”. Many current and former wrestlers swear by it. They say it works wonders and helps them avoid injuries. Just recently he’s had Jake “The Snake” Roberts coming off drugs and getting into shape at his school.

    Report this comment

    Lion420  
  • yiska8
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:46pm

    Men doing yoga?
    Not attractive to real women. It may be attractive to the feminazi-yoga, starved out women and vegan gay men.
    From a woman’s point of view, I’ll always look at the rugby or football players first.
    And then twice!

    Report this comment

    yiska8  
  • Jake Dog2
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:38pm

    Anything in excess is bad for you.

    Report this comment

    Jake Dog2  
  • Nevermind
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:24pm

    OniKaze
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:07pm
    While I admit you have a point with the fitness rant (as a little effort is all it takes, and you don’t have to use fads to get what you want), your judgement of Yoga is pure ignorance (not stupid, just un-informed)…

    Don’t get me wrong, I DO NOT practice yoga, but I do practice Tai Chi, and I also Teach Seven Star Kung-fu…

    Yoga movements help keep your body limber and allow the muscles to have power in positions that typically standard stretching does not encourage. Useful in Martial Arts (which I dare you to accuse of being “Un-manly”)…

    I always tell people who like Yoga, give up on Yoga… Practice Kung-fu… You will get ALL of the benefits of Yoga, plus learn how to fight correctly at the same time… Win/Win… But I have noticed, people that either did Yoga first (or Tai Chi) tend to pick up Kung-fu faster, and tend to have more power behind their strikes.. So I think it has its benefits…
    ****

    You just made my point. Yoga is a waste and you are better off with kung fu as you said. As far as your ” dare” , I am not saying it is unmanly but it is funny at times. I have got into it before wiht martial arts guys and by the time they were ready to kick me they were just waking up wondering what happened. Spare me with your dares, i have served in a war and it takes a bit more than a kick to ruffle the feathers of someone that has been shot at.

    Report this comment

    Nevermind  
    • katzkiner
      Posted on January 10, 2013 at 11:16pm

      Neverhadamind: Kung Fu can be cured. Stupid not so much. You need to work more on doctrine. A friend of mind is the highest ranked practitioners in the West., he is one of the most pleasant people you will ever meet.. You have venom. Bitterness, it kills from the inside out grasshopper.

      Report this comment

      katzkiner  
  • matt_c
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:21pm

    It’s worth the risk if I can learn to stretch my arms and legs to ridiculous lengths and spit fireballs like in the Street Fighter video games. What? You mean it can’t teach me how to do that? Screw it then. What good is this crap?

    Report this comment

    matt_c  
  • Nevermind
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:03pm

    Ghost,

    We do have our moments were we are 100% on the same page. I think when it comes to just life in general you and i would be great friends to be honest. Politics is where we **** heads, i know i have been testy about certain topics with you but lets move forward and try again.

    Report this comment

    Nevermind  
  • Nevermind
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:58pm

    Holy cow ! I didnt look at this monitor much and realized how poor my typing was, for anyone that took the time to read that garbage I am sorry. I was knee deep in a spreadsheet and didnt pay attention

    Report this comment

    Nevermind  
  • Exidor
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:58pm

    It’s dangerous in Texas.

    You could get your a$$ kicked,,,,,lol

    Report this comment

    Exidor  
  • Nevermind
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:51pm

    I had no idea any ” men” actually did yoga, all i know about is is that it makes womens rears look good. Mine does it and besides keeping her rear in shape i dont see how this woudl help a man. Just stretch before and after you work out and you should be fine. All thse new exercises and fitness fads are silly, just use free weights and walk 3 times a week for 30 minutes at atime and you will be fine. I am 38 and have yet to get ” fat” as most have said will happen once I am older due ot just sticking wiht basics. Eat right 6 days a week and have a cheat day, work out and go for walks or bike rides. Anything more is an obsession.

    One more thing, if you are a man stop shaving your chest!! UNless your name is Michael Phelps and get paid to swim you are a disgrace to men!

    Report this comment

    Nevermind  
    • GhostOfJefferson
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:57pm

      Finally, we arrive at common ground again! I agree 100%.

      Report this comment

      GhostOfJefferson  
    • OniKaze
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:07pm

      While I admit you have a point with the fitness rant (as a little effort is all it takes, and you don’t have to use fads to get what you want), your judgement of Yoga is pure ignorance (not stupid, just un-informed)…

      Don’t get me wrong, I DO NOT practice yoga, but I do practice Tai Chi, and I also Teach Seven Star Kung-fu…

      Yoga movements help keep your body limber and allow the muscles to have power in positions that typically standard stretching does not encourage. Useful in Martial Arts (which I dare you to accuse of being “Un-manly”)…

      I always tell people who like Yoga, give up on Yoga… Practice Kung-fu… You will get ALL of the benefits of Yoga, plus learn how to fight correctly at the same time… Win/Win… But I have noticed, people that either did Yoga first (or Tai Chi) tend to pick up Kung-fu faster, and tend to have more power behind their strikes.. So I think it has its benefits…

      Report this comment

      OniKaze  
    • Anonymous T. Irrelevant
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 5:50pm

      Can’t agree more. Real men have **** on their chest and have at least a little sideburns. The metro-sexuals today make me sick. I just got back from a trip to Florida and had to keep asking my wife if that was a boy or a girl we just spoke to/saw.

      Report this comment

      Anonymous T. Irrelevant  
  • TIMEBOMB
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:49pm

    Dangerous? Not the way my rugged SS men do it,my two favorite agents,Jack Hammer and Dick Smothers got me into yoga and they can really bend me over pretty good I’ll tell ya. They’re so young and strong,virile,and after a session both of them shower me with accolades about how good I was.
    Praise be to me BHO.

    Report this comment

    TIMEBOMB  
  • SpankDaMonkey
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:44pm

    .
    I’m all for Yoga. I mean anything that can teach a woman how to put her legs behind her head is OK with me……

    Report this comment

    SpankDaMonkey  
  • The-Monk
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:34pm

    Can anyone tell from the photo “why” that guy needs to stop what he’s doing ASAP?

    Look at the color of his face. It’s red. He has high blood pressure and needs to stop ASAP.

    The goal of exercise isn’t to get in shape. One gets in shape first in order to exercise.

    He needs to fix his diet first. Might take many months.

    And you wonder why this book is true? There are no real Yoga teachers so people get hurt.

    Report this comment

    The-Monk  
  • The-Monk
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:30pm

    All, or about 99.9% of these so-called “yoga classes” are nothing more than stretching and breathing lessons and have noting to do with Yoga.

    Real Yoga teachers do not charge money.

    In a real Yoga class, the first goal is to stop the self-deceiving and lying to one self.

    It can take 6 to 12 months before any Yoga positions are even started; depending on the student.

    There are no mantras in Yoga.

    I could go on and on but, don’t get me wrong; stretching and breathing exercises are good.

    Just don’t call it Yoga…..

    Report this comment

    The-Monk  
  • GhostOfJefferson
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:24pm

    Sorry, I prefer masculine based exercise. Lifting weights, swimming laps, etc.

    That being said, this could be correlation and not causation that’s being noted. There’s a whole hell of a lot of out of shape men out there. We’re no longer tasked to do anything more dangerous than teach our daughter how to ride without training wheels (most of us), and there is a prevalent attitude that being “a man” means sitting on the couch chugging beer, belching and watching sports instead of playing them. I strongly suspect that the male injuries were not from in-shape men returning from boot camp, but were rather from the pathetically out of shape middle aged guys with guts that hang near the floor.

    Report this comment

    GhostOfJefferson  
  • Cavallo
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:17pm

    Yoga has been so bastardized from its form by western leftist weenies it’s not even really worth it to go into what is wrong with Westernized Yoga practice.

    Report this comment

    Cavallo  
    • Top_Contributor
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:30pm

      Leftist weenies? Yeah, because it’s the camo-sportin’ “don’t tread on me” types in the trailers who are correctly carrying on the eastern tradition. LOL man.

      Report this comment

      Top_Contributor  
    • GhostOfJefferson
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:49pm

      @Pork

      I don’t wear cammo, I don’t live in a trailer, I have two college degrees and a very nice home in a neighborhood that you couldn’t afford to drive through except to collect our trash.

      I love how you know nothing but stereotypes fed to you by your intellectual masters. It’s so telling as to where you stand in the hierarchy, which is to say, at the lowest rung of boiler plate spewing apparatchik.

      Report this comment

      GhostOfJefferson  
    • Cavallo
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:54pm

      @Top

      See what Monk says above. ^

      The-Monk
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:30pm -

      Report this comment

      Cavallo  
    • Top_Contributor
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:00pm

      @GhostOfJefferson, it’s funny how you talk of “stereotypes” and then proceed to stereotype. Two degrees my ass.

      Report this comment

      Top_Contributor  
    • GhostOfJefferson
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:08pm

      I didn’t stereotype you. Stereotype means to draw broad conclusions about traits or habits of a group of people. My remarks were directly squarely at you, based on your words here and on other threads. You spout boilerplate propaganda and your talking points can be taken directly from the DNC or from DemocraticUnderground. You’re intellect is void, you have nothing but insults, sneering, condescension and derision.

      What you think about my claims is irrelevant, I simply wanted you to know that you know nothing, but you assume everything. It’s just a bit to keep you boggled in cognitive dissonance, if that’s possible given your low threshold of intelligence.

      Report this comment

      GhostOfJefferson  
    • Top_Contributor
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:16pm

      There you go again, Ghost. I know nothing? You are projecting.

      Report this comment

      Top_Contributor  
    • ArmedAndReallyPissed
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:18pm

      Durn it GHOST. I told you that you can’t use big words on Brokeback Mountain. He just cain’t understand you. Tee Hee :)

      Report this comment

      ArmedAndReallyPissed  
    • The-Monk
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:27pm

      Top_Contributor

      Tick tock, tick tock…. EtchASketch/Pork_Anvil

      Your 5 pm deadline is approaching…. only 30 more minutes left.

      http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+fred+flintstone+5+oclock++work+whistle&mid=9E4697A57DDA87600BA99E4697A57DDA87600BA9&view=detail&FORM=VIRE1

      Report this comment

      The-Monk  
    • Top_Contributor
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:27pm

      @Armed, I just checked your profile and noticed that all of your posts have to do with asses, Barney Frank, and homosexuality. Just thought that was an interesting fact!

      Report this comment

      Top_Contributor  
    • GhostOfJefferson
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:29pm

      @Armed,

      Heh, yeah, he’s down to 3rd grade level now. “I know you are, but what am I”. I fully expect a “neener neener” post to follow shortly on his last post’s heels. :)

      Report this comment

      GhostOfJefferson  
  • Top_Contributor
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:16pm

    This site’s “articles” read like pop-up ads on local television websites. I guess they’ve got to post stories all day to keep racking up the ad impressions.

    As if Tea Partiers even care about yoga or staying fit!

    Report this comment

    Top_Contributor  
    • GhostOfJefferson
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:29pm

      Tell you what, skippy, if you’re near or in Ohio, I’ll invite you out for a beer at your convenience. We can arm wrestle, run a 100 yard dash, and see how many laps we can do in an Olympic pool before we konk out. Care to wager who would win that friendly competition?

      Keep your insults to yourself. By your words, you demonstrate your prejudices and ignorance.

      Report this comment

      GhostOfJefferson  
    • The-Monk
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:36pm

      Top_Contributor is our old friend EtchASketch and Pork_Anvil….

      He’ll be gone by 5pm. Just watch. LOL

      Report this comment

      The-Monk  
    • MrSunshine
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:37pm

      Top, my money is on Ghost! Your childish posts are really geting lame. I think you have diarrhea of the fingers.

      Report this comment

      MrSunshine  
    • ArmedAndReallyPissed
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:47pm

      GHOST : for future reference when responding to Brokeback Mountain there, please try not to use too big of words. I would hate to see you waste your time since he “cain’t” read to well cause he never used books for learnin and such. Perhaps using just a few Pictures might work.
      Just a thought.

      Report this comment

      ArmedAndReallyPissed  
    • GhostOfJefferson
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:10pm

      @Armed

      Yeah, he’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer, that much is certain. While polysyllabic words may confound him, I find it fun to throw them at him. He’s a cipher, a nobody, a non-entity if you will. He exists merely to spread the words of others, words he himself could have never arrived at with independent thought nor analysis. In short, it’s fun to put him in his place. :)

      Report this comment

      GhostOfJefferson  
    • ArmedAndReallyPissed
      Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:22pm

      GHOST : And you do do that well my Friend. We are all lovin every minute of it.

      Report this comment

      ArmedAndReallyPissed  
  • ArmedAndReallyPissed
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:15pm

    Health

    Is Yoga Actually Dangerous for Men?…………………Only if your near Michael Moore’s Ass.

    Report this comment

    ArmedAndReallyPissed  
  • toiletclogga
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:14pm

    I hate the taste of that crap. Particularly the Vanilla!

    Report this comment

    toiletclogga  
  • sizzlinsexybeckster
    Posted on January 8, 2013 at 3:08pm

    No, it is not dangerous for men. Some men are just more clumsy than women. Stop with the excuses. If you can’t do it then get out of the kitchen!

    Report this comment

    sizzlinsexybeckster  
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