• Culture
    Culture
    preenph klea pineda katrice kierulf coming out lesbian couple

    Klea Pineda and vlogger Katrice Kierulf are our new fave biker couple

    A guide to watching ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ with your Asian parents

    Bela Padilla and the snub accusation, and how we shouldn’t treat people like zoo animals

    • Women
    • Queer
    • Politics
    • Environment
    • Food
  • Style
    Style
    bea alonzo farm tour inspo

    Bea Alonzo’s Beati Firma is shaping up to be the farm of our dreams

    preenph Gift Guide 2022

    Gift Guide: Splurge or save options for you and your loved ones

    preenph Nadine Lustre online store

    Want to cop Nadine Lustre’s old OOTDs? Check out her new store

    • Fashion
    • Beauty
    • Space
    • Shopping
  • Entertainment
    Entertainment
    preenph klea pineda katrice kierulf coming out lesbian couple

    Klea Pineda and vlogger Katrice Kierulf are our new fave biker couple

    A guide to watching ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ with your Asian parents

    Are Issa Pressman and James Reid dating?

    • Celebrities
    • TV & Movies
    • Music
  • Life+Money
    Life+Money

    A guide to watching ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ with your Asian parents

    Are Issa Pressman and James Reid dating?

    preenph agatha uvero baby juan single mothers

    Never underestimate single mothers like former courtside reporter Agatha Uvero

    • Career & Money
    • Parenting & Relationships
    • Sex & Health
    • Astrology
    • Travel
  • Inquirer.net
  • Lifestyle
Reading
What Really Goes On Inside a Naked Yoga Class
ShareTweet
In BeautyMost PopularWellness
3 min read

What Really Goes On Inside a Naked Yoga Class

By Elliott Hayon July 14, 2015
Share
0shares

naked yogae preen

I breathe in while slowly shifting to warrior two. Sweat beads glide down my chest and arms. I stretch, feeling my arms and legs accommodate the pose without locking into place. I shift into a new pose, following my instructor and the other dozen or so completely naked men in the room.

How did I get here?

After my yoga retreat earlier this summer, my instructor Paulo Leonido suggested I tag along to one of his Naked Yoga MANila sessions. I had been thinking about it for a few months, though I hadn’t been able to muster up the courage to take it all off. After our skinny-dipping session on Danjugan Island this May, I figured I had nothing left to expose. My pale skin had reflected the island sun. Surely, indoor yoga with soft lighting would be kinder to my form than the glare. So, I said yes.

There was a clandestine element to the entire affair that added a layer of excitement. Rather than having a dedicated studio, locations for naked yoga shift weekly, with attendants getting a confirmation text earlier in the day as to the exact location. Makeshift studios range from actual ones to quite a few surprises. I won’t dish on the whereabouts of this particular session, only that it was in somewhere in the heart of Ortigas.

Soon, I found myself with a dozen other guys, ready for the session to begin.

I’m cool with my body on a personal level. I have nothing that I’m too unhappy with, though I’d love to tone my midsection a bit. Who wouldn’t, right? It’s the age of Magic Mike. I do think I have killer legs, though.

My American mentality insists that tan is best, but my complexion is closer to that of coconut milk. My manscaping has always been dire, to the point I have non-ironically solicited assistance from a few trusted friends. I’d consider myself to be presentable naked. That hasn’t always been the case.

I was the type of kid who locked the door when changing, even if nobody was home. So how did I build up the confidence to practice yoga in the buff?

Modesty isn’t about self. It’s about being viewed by others. Yoga is all about self—self-reflection, self-control. If you’re fully committed to the practice, then the world around just sort of slips away. So, if anything, the lack of clothes helps in that it allows you to become more in tune with yourself. I became aware of my breath and the change in my musculature as I switched positions.

During the session, Paulo played on this attention to amplify the intensity of his normal routines. Were people around me naked? I hardly noticed as I sweat just to keep up. The rhythm was brisk, and I was thoroughly lost in my swift pose changes.

But these yoga sessions are unlike any other. Looking around me, the room was full of men intently perfecting the poses. Yes, the sessions are specially catered to male homosexuals—one of the yogi’s attempts to emphasize on the gay community aspect.

Here is where I go into “gay best friend” mode here for a minute.

The gay community in Manila is vibrant, but fractured. Preen has covered the difference between sex and gender in the past, and I think it’s important to note that Filipino media has combined queer sexuality with gender, alienating a lot of the actual gay community in the process.

Vice Ganda is awesome, but there’s a whole lot of other shades to the rainbow. One of the best things about Naked Yoga MANila is that it unifies a lot of different types of gay men, across age, stereotype, and socioeconomic boundaries. For now, this particular series of yoga sessions still is still exclusive. It’s a safe environment, and one that is sorely lacking in the nightclubs and bars that cater to the G and B in LGBT.

That being said, anyone can benefit from naked yoga, especially those who struggle with their own personal body image. In being vulnerable and in communion with others, it’s easy to realize we all have quirks and imperfections—not necessarily one and the same. So, if you practice yoga at home, maybe try it without the Lululemon next time. Ask your yoga instructor about starting up a class. You might just be the start of a revolution.

For more information, visit Naked Yoga MANila’s Facebook page or contact [email protected]

 

Photo courtesy of Naked Yoga MANila

 

Total
18
Shares
Share 18
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0

Action Required!

We embed Facebook Comments plugin to allow you to leave comment at our website using your Facebook account. It may collects your IP address, your web browser User Agent, store and retrieve cookies on your browser, embed additional tracking, and monitor your interaction with the commenting interface, including correlating your Facebook account with whatever action you take within the interface (such as “liking” someone’s comment, replying to other comments), if you are logged into Facebook. For more information about how this data may be used, please see Facebook’s data privacy policy: https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/update.

Accept    Decline

Subscribe to our newsletter

Stay in the loop


By subscribing, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

ShareTweetEmailShare
Elliott Hay
Related

You need more than your umbrella to protect yourself from harmful UV rays

The myth of getting ‘too dark’ and how it killed my self-esteem

november 2022 beauty drops christmas

Beauty drops for your early Christmas shopping list

preenph ph local drag queen businesses

LIST: Local drag queen businesses to support

Peek This

preenph klea pineda katrice kierulf coming out lesbian couple

Klea Pineda and vlogger Katrice Kierulf are our new fave biker couple

A guide to watching ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ with your Asian parents

UP University Job Fair 2023 is set to conquer boundaries

Are Issa Pressman and James Reid dating?

Preen.ph © 2020. Hinge Inquirer Publications, Inc.
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • HOME
  • ARCHIVES
  • ABOUT US
  • CONTACT US
  • ADVERTISE WITH US
Previous
3 Ways to Wear Sunscreen Over Your Makeup
Next
Plastic Bottles Could Soon Be the Stuff of Highways
  • Culture
    • Women
    • Queer
    • Politics
    • Environment
    • Food
  • Style
    • Fashion
    • Beauty
    • Space
    • Shopping
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrities
    • TV & Movies
    • Music
  • Life+Money
    • Career & Money
    • Parenting & Relationships
    • Sex & Health
    • Astrology
    • Travel
  • Inquirer.net
  • Lifestyle
  • Subscribe
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Search
Start typing to see results or hit ESC to close
fashion fashion news music Culture News movies
See all results

Subscribe to our newsletter

Stay in the loop


By subscribing, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.