Stay In The Game: Free Ebook On Yoga For Men
A new student at one of our lunchtime Darwin classes asked us not to tell anyone. His golf had improved, and he wanted to keep his secret weapon away from his playing mates. This free ebook on yoga for men, and yoga for athletes of any age, explains why yoga is the add-on that keeps you playing your sport into your fifties, sixties and beyond.
New to Flametree, or away for 3 months or more? You get 2 free classes + 2 ebooks, only available via this offer. Choose this book and one more. Already a student? You can still get this book free. Jump to the form.
Iyengar yoga is the style developed by Mr BKS Iyengar. In the 20th century he did more than anyone to set down traditional Indian yoga, through his books and his teaching, and he pioneered the use of props. He also worked with sportsmen, from cricketers to Sachin Tendulkar. It’s the style we teach at Flametree, in Darwin and live online.
Stay In The Game: Why And How Yoga Works For Men. By Stuart McGill, Flametree’s main male teacher.
What’s inside Stay In The Game?
About 50 pages, written by Stuart, with photos and simple diagrams. Some of what you will find:
- Stuart’s own story. A cattle station kid and daily lap swimmer who found himself “inflexible and moderately overweight”, and what changed under a hot shower one day.
- Fit, and still stiff. A famous musician and daily runner who could not put his palms on the floor, and the house where Mr Iyengar once taught in the garden.
- The cricket legends. From a professor with bad knees in 1938 to a batting great with a sore back, and an Australian opener who said being present “at 150 kilometres per hour” is the whole point.
- “Yoga is for sissies.” The father whose daughter stopped the car until he promised to try a class.
- Colin, a Darwin mountain biker, who now skips down the stairs after a hard ride “rather than creep down crabwise”.
- Stiff men die younger. What a 13-year study of 3,139 middle-aged adults found.
- Testosterone falls with poor health more than with birthdays. The levers that matter: weight, sleep, stress and staying active.
- Humming, the nose and the long out-breath. Why breathing steadies you under pressure.
- How we do it at Flametree: range under load, even out a one-sided sport, strong legs carry the back, and props so nobody is too stiff to start.
- You won’t be the only man in the room.
Key findings on yoga for men and sport
- Cricketers moved better, for months. In a 2021 Indian trial, 82 first-class male cricketers aged 18 to 35 did six weeks of yoga. Core stability, flexibility, balance and ankle control improved, and most gains were still there six months later.
- Rugby players kept their range. In a 2021 New Zealand trial of 31 rugby players, those who added yoga twice a week for eight weeks kept their hamstring flexibility. The others lost about 15% of theirs mid-season.
- Real strength. A 2019 review of 22 trials in older adults found yoga built leg strength, and did better than walking or chair aerobics.
- The midlife numbers move. A 2025 review of 30 trials, with 2,283 people with high or borderline-high blood pressure, found yoga lowered the top number by about 8 points.
The executive summary, in full
This is the opening of the book, the whole thing on two pages. The rest is in the free download.
If you want to keep playing your sport into your fifties, sixties and beyond, yoga is one of the best add-ons you can choose.
Yoga is also more than a workout. The major benefits of yoga that people seek most are more strength, flexibility, calmness and wellness. In the process, by quietening the chatter of the mind, people often find it brings useful transformations, as well as more contentment and happiness. That is what makes yoga different from almost any other exercise.
What the research says
- Yoga helps sportsmen move better. In a trial of 82 first-class cricketers, six weeks of yoga improved core stability, balance and flexibility, and the gains were still there six months later. Rugby players who added yoga kept their hamstring flexibility through the season, while those who didn’t lost about 15% of it.
- Yoga can stand in for part of your conditioning. In 60 club cricketers, yoga improved bowling speed and accuracy as much as standard conditioning work did.
- Yoga builds real strength. In 22 trials of older adults, yoga built leg strength, and it did better than walking or chair aerobics.
- Yoga moves the midlife numbers. In 30 trials, yoga lowered systolic blood pressure by about 8 points. In 28 trials of people with type 2 diabetes, it lowered average blood sugar (HbA1c) by about 0.6%. Australian men are 1.8 times as likely as women to be living with diabetes.
- Stiff men tend to die younger. In a study of 3,139 middle-aged adults, the least flexible men had nearly twice the risk of dying over 13 years as the most flexible.
- Testosterone falls with poor health more than with birthdays. In very healthy Australian men over 40, testosterone did not fall with age. Putting on weight was linked to as big a drop as ten years of ageing, and one week of short sleep cut it by 10 to 15%. Yoga works on the levers: weight, sleep, stress and staying active.
- The breath steadies you under pressure. Slow breathing, a long out-breath and breathing through the nose all calm the body, and mindfulness training improved performance in precision sports such as shooting and darts.
- Not yet tested does not mean wrong. No trial has yet counted injuries across a whole season for men who do yoga. Yoga’s knowledge of what keeps a body playing has been built and tested in classes for thousands of years. Research is still catching up.
How yoga does it
- It is an add-on, not a replacement. Keep your sport. Yoga gives back what your sport takes away.
- Range under load. Standing poses stretch and strengthen at the same time, so new range is range you can use.
- Even out the body. Golf, cricket and tennis work one side harder. Yoga works both sides evenly.
- Strong legs carry the back. Standing poses build the legs and hips, so the back is not left to do the work.
- Carry your own weight. Arms out, hands on the floor, upside down with a teacher: your body is the weight.
- Attention is the training. Holding a precise pose trains the same steady focus you need for the next ball.
- The out-breath is the brake. Long, slow out-breaths through the nose switch on the body’s recovery system.
- Recovery counts. Supported, restful poses and better sleep help you bounce back after a hard game.
- Props make it doable. Chairs, walls, blocks and belts mean nobody is too stiff to start.
- Come regularly. The trials used two or more sessions a week for six to twelve weeks.
Get your free copy
2 free classes + 2 ebooks only available via this offer.
What happens next: we email you a link straight away. Click it, choose your two books, and download them on the spot. No payment, no card.
Want to see the other seven books first? See all eight free yoga ebooks.
Questions about yoga for men
Why should a fit man bother with yoga?
Because fit is not the same as supple, even or calm. Sport keeps you fit but often leaves you stiff and lopsided, and stiffness creeps in decade by decade. In a study of 3,139 middle-aged adults followed for about 13 years, the least flexible men had nearly twice the risk of dying of the most flexible.
Do I have to give up my sport to do yoga?
No. Yoga is an add-on, not a replacement. In a 2022 study of 546 yoga participants, men scored higher than women on using yoga as a supplement to their other sport. Keep your sport, and let yoga give back what it takes away.
Will yoga help my golf?
Many golfers find it does. A golf swing is a fast twist to one side, repeated thousands of times, and more than a third of 1,170 male golfers in a 2023 survey had low back pain in the past week. Yoga works both sides evenly and frees the hips, and one of our lunchtime students calls it his secret weapon.
What does yoga do for athletes?
Better range, balance and core control, and a steadier mind. In a 2021 trial of 82 first-class cricketers, six weeks of yoga improved core stability, flexibility and balance for months. In a 2021 New Zealand trial, rugby players who added yoga kept their hamstring flexibility while the others lost about 15%.
Is yoga hard enough for men?
Yes. In an Iyengar class your body is the weight: standing poses, weight on the hands, and later upside-down poses with a teacher. A 2019 review of 22 trials found yoga built leg strength better than walking or chair aerobics. Nick, a father in the book who always said yoga was “for sissies”, sweated more in his first class than ever in his life.
Can yoga help testosterone?
Not directly, but it works on what matters. In very healthy Australian men over 40, testosterone did not fall with age. Weight gain was linked to as big a drop as ten years of ageing, and one week of short sleep cut it by 10 to 15%. Yoga works on those levers: weight, sleep, stress and staying active.
Can breathing really help performance under pressure?
Yes. Slow breathing, a long out-breath and breathing through the nose all calm the body, and mindfulness training improved performance in precision sports such as shooting and darts. An Australian Test opener put it simply: facing a ball at 150 kilometres per hour, you want to be very present.
Does Stuart teach beginner classes in Darwin?
Yes. Stuart, who wrote this book, teaches beginner classes at Coolalinga and Woolner every week, some of them live online too, and he runs breath meditation at Coolalinga. See the beginner timetable. New students get 2 free classes with this offer.
