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'How yoga changed my life': male practitioners weigh in

We speak to some men, including world-famous former model Yogi Cameron who was recently in town for the XYoga Dubai Festival, to find out how yoga got them hooked and changed their lives

 "Transformation is not an overnight process" - Yogi Cameron
Money and fame might be the typical dream for most, but leaving the spotlight to seek a more peaceful path can be the start of a journey towards self-discovery. This definitely holds true for British-Iranian Cameron Alborzian (now known as Yogi Cameron), previously a successful fashion model who travelled the world, partying at trendy establishments and working with A-listers such as Elton John and Kate Moss. His rugged good looks saw him become the face of labels such as Guess, Levi's and Versace, while he also shot to fame for playing Madonna's love interest in the music video Express Yourself. 
However, after the quick pace of the fashion industry and its focus on outer trappings, Cameron yearned for inner peace and a more fulfilling existence. At 32, he packed his bags and caught a flight to India where he started learning Ayurveda and natural medicine. Few years down the line, he became a practising yogi and Ayurveda therapist in order to help people connect with themselves and others.
The 51-year-old was at the XYoga Festival in Dubai last weekend where he performed a yoga session with Indian model and actress Malaika Arora and gave an Ayurveda talk to help residents connect with their inner selves. "People have feelings of uncertainty or fear... or are discontented with what their life means... Transformation is not an overnight process but a lifelong journey," explains Yogi Cameron. "The more I studied, the clearer I became on wanting to be a conduit to bridge the outer and inner worlds." 
Yogi Cameron's visit to India helped him find the balance between inner and outer beauty. For him, the transition was anything but easy, but it prompted him to learn how to cultivate patience and develop additional discipline. "It all eventually brought me to a place of immense joy and contentment. The outer world is a distraction when you don't know where you're going in life. You get lost by the options it has to offer. But once you find inner purpose, you enjoy life without being distracted by the outside world." 
His recent Dubai talk guided people on how to use the five elements of yoga (air, water, wind, fire and space), to choose the right amount and quality of food, schedule sleep and work timings, and to balance other aspects of life. 
"Having at least 15 minutes in the morning for yourself can do wonders and bring you closer to your purpose and peace. Take some time out to listen to your heart," Yogi Cameron says.
According to him, committing to the smallest change to be healthier can make a big impact on overall wellness. "Having a  disease in any part of our system doesn't allow us to live in synchronicity with nature's course. Harmonising from the inside out allows us to exude a sense of well-being and come into alignment with higher purposes of life - like compassion, kindness, and gratitude."
Yogi Cameron said the key to mastering something is to do it every day. And because yoga, as a practice is such a personal one, people should start where they feel most comfortable. "Begin by choosing a place where you'd like to do your practise every day. Learn a couple of yoga postures and breathing techniques, sit quietly and focus on them - you'll get to a routine that's doable for you."
Yoga may also provide the ultimate recipe to success. Last May, Yogi Cameron released a book titled The Yogi Code where he shares the seven universal laws of infinite success. Through the book, he aimed to give readers a step-by-step guide to understand themselves, while helping them create a routine to make them the best versions of themselves.
"It's a yogic formula that depends on how committed you are," he explains.  "When you're committed to something, you find success in it. And not just spiritual success either, but success in social relationships with family and friends."
"A gym cannot bring that sense of calm" - Sumit Manav

Dubai-based Sumit Manav was only 14 when he was introduced to yoga. His mother, a yoga disciple, signed him up for a one month-long camp at a local ashram. At that point, Sumit reacted just like any 14-year-old probably would.
"I did not enjoy it at all. It was very difficult to get used to the schedule followed there, where we would be woken up at 4am to practise yoga for two hours before even having breakfast," confesses Sumit. "The food was bland as well - people used to try and smuggle salt in their pockets!"
In hindsight, Sumit now realises that everything in yoga is done for a reason - the minimal salt in the food was to keep it light and healthy. Meanwhile, the hours of meditation and practice transformed him for the better, and eventually went on to change his life.  
"In my early years, I remember being an angry person," he says. "I was aggressive and I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life. But after learning and practising yoga, I became more balanced, focused and caring. I guess my mother had an intuition about which way my life would go!" 
Today, Sumit has 20 years of experience under his belt, having studied yoga in some of the best-known institutes in India, and is the proud founder of Lifestyle Yoga studios in Dubai. In the past, his love for yoga had taken him to the Dev Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya, a traditional school in the Himalayas where he completed his post graduation in yoga and human consciousness. His goal is to reach out to as many UAE residents as he can about the many benefits of yoga- which goes beyond the physical. "A lot of people practise yoga for flexibility or strength, but the real goal there is missing. In order to meditate, you need to be able to sit in a posture for two to three hours and for that, you need to be fit. That is real goal of yoga - to prepare the body so the mind can be prepared. That's how you add awareness to every single thing you do in a day."
By encouraging people to have greater awareness, yoga can help them gain control over their emotions and reduce stress. Unfortunately, having such a focus on mental capabilities may be the reason why yoga is more popular with women than with men, says Sumit.
 "If you go back in history, you'll see that most yogis have been men. But today, women are getting better at it because they are looking for something different - like flexibility or mental peace. Most men go for workouts looking to build their bodies. But they don't see what other changes yoga can bring. For example, a lot of men deal with stress, balancing work and family, and doing just three or four sessions a week can really change their lives. A gym cannot bring that same sense of calm."
"Yoga helped me learn more about myself" - Sean Houlihan
Instagram: @trouliwellbeing

Sean Houlihan, who works for personal training service Fit Squad DXB, is a level 3 personal trainer, massage therapist and yoga instructor - so it will come as no surprise that he believes in a more holistic form of fitness. He had his first brush with yoga at the age of 22, when he took several classes from a friend's mother, who happened to be a teacher, and found that it greatly helped him overcome his past injuries - and there was no looking back after that. The next five years saw him take two trips to India where he did intensive courses with the Himalaya Yoga Valley institute in Goa to better understand the practice.
"I think, right now, we are fed a very superficial image of yoga really," he says. "It's not just an exercise routine but a practice that affects different aspects of our life - from how we breathe to how we communicate to how we perceive the world around us." 
As a fitness trainer, Sean works with people on a daily basis, helping them stay in ship shape. And it is important, he says, to figure out what emotional state people are in while training with them, and to tie in the physical and mental aspects of a workout - and that's where yoga comes in. "As a trainer, I need to pass on discipline to my clients and, for that, I need to determine where they are emotionally. Sometimes, the last thing they need is a drill sergeant standing over their shoulders and yelling. The body and the mind need to be tightly connected because health isn't just about the body. Our bodies will deteriorate eventually and we're going to be left with our minds. We need to make sure that they are healthy."
Since the very nature of yoga encourage individuals to access - and express - their emotions, it's not altogether surprising that more women are taking it up than men. As Sean says, "Our society is quick to judge men who express emotion". It also doesn't help that social media is dominated by sensual images of women in yoga poses, and brands use the same to market products. 
"I guess we need to change that perspective," says Sean. "Yoga has helped me learn more about myself, treat people better and change the way I approach life in general. If more men started practising it, I think we will create a more balanced and compassionate society. On a smaller scale, if guys out there are suffering from injuries, yoga can cure some of those problems as well. 
Sean leaves us with a little nugget of wisdom - to switch off from the digital world and sit in silence for at least five minutes every day. "Don't worry what you look like because that is irrelevant. Just be aware of how you feel."