Men are reluctant yogis. At least they are unsung ones. So it’s no surprise to discover that the greatest obstacle to the “broga” movement is apparel with sports outfitters preferring to cater to the five-a-side playing masses and the pavement pounders instead of the one in five yoga practioners that just happen to be male.
Certainly, the male yogi has a distinct list of requirements: he needs to be able to move unrestricted, make it through the sweatiest of vinyasa sessions with his dignity intact and not have to spend hours trawling the shops for a kit that works for him.
Online menswear outfitter Mr Porter has paired with athleisure brand Lululemon to provide just such a service, and have launched an 18-piece capsule collection with a host of exercise regimes in mind, among them yoga. Lululemon — hugely popular with both sexes — is renowned for attention to fit and detail as well as for its “anti-stink” Silverescent fabric technology — the holy grail for those who tire of a funky gym bag.
But the yoga king does not stock up on one brand alone. Soweflow ... (the ellipses emphasise that life is always in flux ... ) is a British company specialising in fit-for-purpose men’s movement clothing. It eschews the Lycra-lite look of other brands for a style that is more in keeping with British workwear: cotton yoga shorts, loose twill longs and organic slim fit jersey vests designed to go from “mat to street”.
For a style closer to the nu lad aesthetic, Asuno’s men’s collection includes caps, tracksuit bottoms and slim-fit T-shirts which are a better fit. Ethically, too, there’s something distinctly yogic about them, as each purchase saves lives by providing food, water or an identity (like a birth certificate) to vulnerable children in need, helping charities Plump’d, Water for Africa and Toybox.
Ahmed Zambarakji, a London-based yoga teacher, recommends Yogangster, a brand launched by DJ turned yogi Goldie. “If a guy is prone to sweating trying out hot yoga, I’d try it,” he says. “The prints are great, the material wicks sweat and the fabrics don’t stink after a couple of washes, which is a big problem if you’re doing Bikram.”
Most of all, the brand is edgy enough to appeal to a new generation of yogis. He also likes Ohmme, “whose Dharma pants are the only bottoms I ever practice in.”
To paraphrase Rudyard Kipling, if you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs, bend your knees, bring one to your chest and raise your legs into the air. Then you’ll be a yoga man, my son. Still, until you feel comfortable, dress like you are.
