Let\u2019s hear it for the boys \u2014 in the Pilates classes.<\/p>\n
To avoid talks of lip gloss and lattes in a room full of Alo-clad ladies, men are doing bro-lates \u2014 or men\u2019s-only Pilates classes \u2014 with no girls allowed. And that\u2019s the way they like it.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll in all, it\u2019s better being with six other guys than six other women and you,\u201d Matt Goldschmidt, 41, who enrolled in the bro-lates class eight months ago at Pure Pilates in Merrick, New York, told The Post.<\/p>\n
More and more men are doing bro-lates \u2014 or men\u2019s-only Pilates classes. The Nofar Method<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s good camaraderie among us, and it doesn\u2019t have the same kind of competitive nature that you find in a gym,\u201d added Mark Reiss, 72, a fellow participant in the class at Pure Pilates.<\/p>\n
Reiss, a grandfather and avid tennis player, had never considered taking Pilates until his wife and daughters suggested he try the workout.<\/p>\n
He and some of his friends, all of whom are also in their 60s and 70s, decided they would try a class if \u2014 and only if \u2014 it was men-only, prompting them to become the original group in the studio\u2019s bro-lates class that launched in 2023.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re all in decent shape, and while we all stay active outside of class, it helps us work on different muscles than we would normally,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Pilates\u2019 manly beginnings<\/p>\n
Before trying Pilates himself, Goldschmidt, a father of three and Long Island-based chiropractor, had recommended it to many of his patients.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost men would laugh at me, so I started educating myself about it, and I found that it was actually started by a man \u2014 but it still has a stereotype around it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The movement\u2019s founder, Joseph Pilates, developed the routine as a way to repair his own health and strengthen wounded soldiers during WWI. He most likely didn\u2019t envision that it would one day become a favorite fitness workout for women \u2014 so for Goldschmidt, a men\u2019s-only Pilates class made the idea much more palatable.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s always more comfortable to be with your own sex when doing any out-of-the-box kind of exercise or movements,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll in all, it\u2019s better being with six other guys than six other women and you,\u201d Matt Goldschmidt (pictured), who enrolled in the bro-lates class eight months ago at Pure Pilates in Merrick, New York, told The Post. Kristine Schanstra<\/p>\n
Catering to the \u2018stronger sex\u2019<\/p>\n
Of course, a workout craze largely loved by the \u2018weaker sex\u2019 must be pretty gentle. Right?<\/p>\n
Kristine Schanstra, the owner of Pure Pilates, said that many men learn the hard way that Pilates isn\u2019t nearly as laid-back as they had imagined.<\/p>\n
\u201cMen would come to a class and immediately think that Pilates is for girls so it must be easy, or think they are too advanced for it as they lift weights or work out regularly \u2014 but boy, would they get humbled really quickly!\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Naimah Jackman (center) teaches monthly bro-lates classes called Men\u2019s Pilates NYC at The Moxy Hotel in Times Square. She said many of them are surprised by how tough it is. Naimah Jackman<\/p>\n
Naimah Jackman, who teaches monthly bro-lates classes called Men\u2019s Pilates NYC<\/a> at The Moxy Hotel in Times Square, said even her bodybuilder attendees have been struck by just how real the struggle is \u2014 especially on the reformer, a bed-like wooden or metal frame that offers low-impact resistance training using adjustable springs, pulleys and straps.<\/p>\n \u201cThey are given two-pound weights while on the reformer, but to their surprise, they can hardly lift their arms and are shaking,\u201d Jackman said.<\/p>\n She also finds that guys want to know how they match up to the women in her other classes.<\/p>\n \u201cThe women don\u2019t ask for a water break, but the guys always do! They are shell-shocked that they have to seamlessly move into the next movement,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cThey are given two-pound weights while on the reformer, but to their surprise, they can hardly lift their arms and are shaking,\u201d Jackman said. Naimah Jackman<\/p>\n \u201cThe women don\u2019t ask for a water break, but the guys always do! They are shell-shocked that they have to seamlessly move into the next movement,\u201d she said. Naimah Jackman<\/p>\n For what it\u2019s worth, Schanstra is understanding that some men don\u2019t feel \u201ccomfortable\u201d in classes around so many women.<\/p>\n \u201cWomen can be chatty and more easily form bonds and friendships, so it\u2019s natural for a man to feel left out \u2014 not to mention that they can be easily intimidated by the six-foot model with skinny legs in a perfect matching outfit,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Boys just want to have fun<\/p>\n Adam Widener, 40, a realtor, had never tried Pilates before stepping into a bro-lates class at the Nofar Method in Manhattan.\u00a0<\/p>\n Now \u201chooked,\u201d he often brings his boyfriend to class and loves that he is able to combine his social life with strengthening his body.<\/p>\n \u201cWomen can be chatty and more easily form bonds and friendships, so it\u2019s natural for a man to feel left out,\u201d said Pure Pilates owner Kristine Schanstra. Kristine Schanstra<\/p>\n \u201cI invite friends and clients, and sometimes even colleagues, to come and take the class with me,\u201d he said. \u201cWe sometimes have the all-male classes filled with just my friends! It\u2019s a mix of gay, straight, athletic, and inexperienced.\u201d<\/p>\n