Yoga for Men: Build Strength, Improve Performance, Increase Flexibility

Pohlman, D 2018, Yoga for men: build strength, improve performance, increase flexibility, DK Penguin Random House, London.

Yoga for Men is a practical exercise book which provides 55 clearly illustrated postures, workouts and programmes to help readers to integrate yoga into their life. The programmes incorporate the workouts which in turn specify sequences of postures. In traditional yoga, postures are defined as asanas. Modern Western yoga has separated out the spiritual and meditational components from the physical. Thus, Dean Pohlman presents postures and workouts more in the tradition of exercise regimes which anyone who is interested in fitness and is familiar with training can relate to.

Contents of book by chapter

The first sections discusses why yoga as an exercise regime, what it is and what it isn’t, and particularly dispelling myths such as that it must be spiritual and that it is specific to the female form. It also discusses how to approach yoga to get the most out of postures and workouts.

Postures

Postures in yoga are also called poses. This section organises the postures into the specific movement. Many of the postures have elements of traditional yoga but are designed specifically to focus on restoring or strengthening the physical body.

Standing: 26 postures which are carried out in the standing position
Kneeling: 5 postures on all fours
Balance: 6 postures where there is balancing on one leg
Seated: 3 postures seated on a yoga mat
Front-lying: 13 postures where the body faces downwards and the hands and legs are engaged in physical positions
Back-lying: 8 postures where the body faces upwards lying or seated

Workouts

When postures are combined into a sequence, they can be targeted to a specific physical outcome. Dean identifies workouts to be:

Restorative
Restorative and strengthening
Strengthening

Programmes

A programme is a set of workouts which are designed to have a specific impact to improve a posture and strength. There are three such types:

12 weeks for general purpose
12 weeks for athletic purposes
16 weeks for health spine and core strength

About the author

Dean is widely considered to be an authority on Yoga for Men. He has worked with physical therapists to create yoga programs for back health and spinal recovery. His workouts and programs have been used by professional and collegiate athletes, athletic trainers, and personal trainers; and have been recommended by physical therapists, doctors, chiropractors, and other medical professionals. (ManFlowYoga | Who is Dean Pohlman,
the founder of Man Flow Yoga?

Eric Bandholz, host of PracticalEcommerce podcasts, interviewed Dean Pohlman in 2024 to discuss Man Flow Yoga, its website and social media presence. This 36 minute podcast provides insights into Pohlman’s his personal and business motivation for developing Man Flow Yoga. (Eric Bandholz | The ‘Why’ of Man Flow Yoga)

Photo of Dean Pohlman, Author of Yoga for Men: Build Strength, Improve Performance, Increase Flexibility (2018) from ManFlowYoga website

Man Flow Yoga Website

https://manflowyoga.com/

Dean Pohlman is the creator of Man Flow Yoga website. The mission of Man Flow Yoga, the company he founded in 2012, offers memberships to workout programs through an online subscription community. (Eric Bandholz | The ‘Why’ of Man Flow Yoga).

Man Flow Yoga YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/@ManFlowYoga/featured

Dean Pohlman hosts over 1000 videos on this YouTube channel with over 34 playlists devoted to exercise goals. Below is one video from a workout series for Yoga for Men.

Example of a video from the YouTube site: 30 Minute Workout | Yoga for Men Series – Workout #1

Where to find

Yoga for Men is available in the SA Libraries system as an interlibrary loan.

Where to buy

Yoga for Men is currently in print and can be purchased at Dymocks bookstore and on popular online book suppliers.