Hot yoga men vs women comes down to body size more than sex. In one University of Wisconsin study, men burned about 460 kcal in a 90-minute class and women about 333 kcal. Men also ran hotter. Even so, the same class suits both, and UK students can pace it safely.
This guide is for the UK student who has seen those numbers. You want to know what they mean on a mat in Leeds, Bristol or London. It covers the calorie gap, the heat and heart rate findings, the sweat research, who really fills UK classes, and the checks worth doing first.
It also shows how teachers use the hot yoga men vs women evidence, and how that links to training in Bali.
Hot Yoga Men vs Women: The Short Answer for UK Students
Start with the headline. Across two University of Wisconsin-La Crosse studies, men used more energy and stored more heat than women in a 90-minute Bikram class. However, the gap sat mostly in body size, not in some built-in limit. A small man and a tall woman can land in very different places from the averages.
So the hot yoga men vs women question has three parts, and you’ll see all three in any UK studio:
- Energy. On average, men burn more per class because they carry more body mass to move.
- Heat. On average, men finished the class with a higher core temperature, so they have less spare room before heat becomes a problem.
- Safety. Both sexes need the same habits: water, patience, rest and a health check where it applies.
Nothing in the hot yoga men vs women research says men should avoid hot yoga, or that women can relax. For the male-only angle, our UK guides on whether men can do hot yoga and hot yoga for men cover health checks and first-month pacing. This article compares the two groups side by side, so you don’t have to piece the studies together yourself.
The Calorie Gap: 460 vs 333 kcal in One 90-Minute Class
The energy side of the hot yoga men vs women story comes from a 2014 University of Wisconsin study led by John Porcari (PubMed 24700459). The team measured how much energy people burned in a 90-minute Bikram class. Men averaged about 460 kcal and women about 333 kcal. Heart rate averaged around 80% of maximum across the group.
Hot yoga men vs women energy use in a table
The table below puts those hot yoga men vs women averages into a form you can use. The per-minute and per-week figures are simple sums from the study averages, so treat them as rough guides, not personal targets.
| Measure | Men (average) | Women (average) | How to read it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy burned in one 90-minute class | About 460 kcal | About 333 kcal | Men burned roughly 127 kcal more, mostly through body size |
| Energy per minute (worked out from the averages) | About 5.1 kcal | About 3.7 kcal | A steady effort, closer to a brisk cardio session than a stretch |
| Three classes in a week (worked out from the averages) | About 1,380 kcal | About 999 kcal | Add up over a month, but heat adds recovery cost too |
| Heart rate across the class (group average) | Around 80% of maximum | Around 80% of maximum | The study reported one figure for the group, so do not split it by sex |
Why do men burn more? Moving a heavier body through 26 postures takes more work, and more work makes more heat. That link matters later, because the extra effort that raises the calorie count also raises core temperature. If you’re chasing weight loss, our UK guide to hot yoga and calories burned explains why the number on a watch is only an estimate.
The calorie gap at a glance
Here is the hot yoga men vs women comparison at a glance. Each card shows one number from the research, and the sources sit underneath.
460 kcal
Men, one class
Average burn for men across 90 minutes.
333 kcal
Women, one class
Average burn for women across 90 minutes.
127 kcal
The gap
The difference between those two averages.
36 + 24
Sweat study
Men and women tested in the 2017 heat research.
30 min
NHS recovery rule
Not feeling better after 30 minutes of cooling? Get help.
Hot Yoga Men vs Women: What the Core Temperature Study Found
A second University of Wisconsin team looked at heat instead of calories. In the ACE-sponsored study of core temperature in Bikram yoga, Emily Quandt, John Porcari and colleagues asked 20 regular practitioners to swallow a temperature sensor. Then everyone took a normal class. Seven were men and 13 were women, aged 28 to 67. The room was 105°F (about 40.6°C) with 40% humidity.
The results by group
The numbers split cleanly by group:
- Heart rate. Men averaged about 80% of predicted maximum. Women averaged about 72%.
- Peak core temperature. Men averaged 103.2°F (about 39.6°C). Women averaged 102.0°F (about 38.9°C).
- Danger zone. Seven of the 20 went above 103°F, and the highest reading was 104.1°F (about 40.1°C) in one man at the end of class.
- Timing. Core temperatures reached worrying levels about 60 minutes in, and kept climbing to the end.
What the hot yoga men vs women gap does and does not mean
Nobody in the trial became ill, and that deserves saying clearly. Yet the authors called the rise in heart rate and core temperature alarming, which is why they pushed hydration so hard. John Porcari put it simply: nothing is gained from withholding water in any setting. For the full breakdown of that Wisconsin trial on our Bali training site, follow that link.
The NHS lists the signs of heat exhaustion as tiredness, dizziness, headache, nausea, heavy sweating with pale clammy skin, cramps and intense thirst.
Someone with heat exhaustion should start to feel better within 30 minutes of cooling down. If they don’t, or if they feel confused or stop sweating, the NHS says to treat it as an emergency and call 999. A core temperature near 40°C is a number worth respecting in any class.
Is Hot Yoga Men vs Women Really About Body Size? The Sweat Research
Do men really handle heat worse? Not necessarily. A 2017 study in Experimental Physiology tested 36 men and 24 women on a bike in warm conditions. The team came from the University of Wollongong and Mie Prefectural College of Nursing. Differences in sweating and skin blood flow tracked body size, not sex. In other words, larger people sweated more, and smaller people leaned on skin blood flow instead.
Two limits apply. That trial used cycling at 28°C and 36% humidity, not a 40°C yoga room. And the Wisconsin yoga trials were small. So nobody can claim to know the exact split between sex and size in a hot class. Size is a strong suspect, though, and it’s something you can see.
Pacing by body profile, not by label
So the useful hot yoga men vs women question is a practical one. Where do you sit on the size and experience scale, rather than which box you ticked on the enrolment form? This table turns the research into pacing advice.
| Your profile | What to expect in the heat | How to pace the first month |
|---|---|---|
| Taller or heavier, any sex | More heat made, less skin area to lose it | Take the first set of each posture gently, stay near the door, rest early |
| Smaller or lighter, any sex | Often a lower heat load, but cooling still needs water | Keep drinking, and do not copy the person next to you |
| New to heat, any sex | The body has not adapted yet, so everything feels harder | Plan for about 10 to 14 days of adjustment before judging yourself |
| Experienced and fit, any sex | Better tolerance, yet the study group was experienced and still heated up | Do not skip rest because you feel strong |
Notice that the final row isn’t a free pass. Every person in the core temperature study already practised Bikram yoga regularly, and their temperatures still climbed. Experience helps, but it doesn’t switch the heat off.
Hot Yoga Men vs Women in the UK: Who Fills the Room?
Now the part most studies skip: who is actually in the room. A Statista consumer survey from 2023 shows roughly a 30 to 10 split of women to men who do yoga at least occasionally in the UK, the US and Spain. In plain terms, women make up the clear majority, and men are the minority in most UK yoga rooms.
That matches what teachers see in hot yoga men vs women rooms, though we have no hard UK studio data to quote. City studios often have a handful of men per class. Smaller towns may have one or two, or none on a weekday evening. Many of those men arrive from running, cycling, rugby or the gym. They expect a physical test, and they get a mental one too.
What hot yoga men vs women means for the teacher
In the Original Hot 26&2 method there is no music and no demonstration. The teacher speaks a fixed script and watches the room. So the main safety system is the teacher’s eyes. Mr. Ian Terry, E-RYT 500, has taught more than 12,000 hours. He tells trainees to watch bodies, not labels, because a large student of either sex can be storing more heat than they show.
What hot yoga men vs women means for you
- Do not compete. The person beside you may weigh 30 kilos more or less than you, so their class is a different class.
- Do not hide. Tell the teacher about any heart, blood pressure or heat history before you start.
- Do not judge by flexibility. Men often start tighter, and women often start with more range but less control at the end of it. Both change with practice.
UK Health Checks Before Any Hot Yoga Men vs Women Comparison
Averages are for researchers. Your own health is for you and your GP. Speak to your GP before a 90-minute class at about 40°C if you haven’t exercised for a while, take medication, or live with a heart, blood pressure, diabetes or breathing condition. This article is general information, not medical advice. Consult a healthcare professional first if you are pregnant or have had heat illness.
Our guide to the risks and side effects of hot yoga covers the less common problems. Once you have the all-clear, a few habits work for both sides of the hot yoga men vs women divide:
- Drink steadily all day. A litre in the last five minutes before class does little.
- Give yourself time. The study guidance suggests about 10 to 14 days to adapt to the heat. Early classes are practice, not a test.
- Rest on purpose. Lying down in Savasana lets your heart rate settle, so use it before you feel desperate.
- Watch the last 30 minutes. Core temperature kept rising to the end in the trial, so the floor series is not the easy half.
- Lie down at the first warning sign. Dizziness, cramps, headache and nausea come before heat illness, not after.
What Teachers Learn From the Hot Yoga Men vs Women Numbers
A teacher who reads the hot yoga men vs women research ends up teaching differently. They stop saying “push harder” to anyone who looks strong, and they don’t assume a small student is fine. Instead they scan the room after the first hour, because that’s when core temperatures in the trial began to climb. They also make lying down feel normal.
That skill is why YogaFX treats heat safety as part of teacher training, not a disclaimer. The Bikram Hot 26&2 Yoga Teacher Training MasterClass is a six-day hybrid: you study online first, then join an intensive in Bali.
Our studios in Seminyak and Canggu use natural tropical heat of about 40°C and 40% humidity, with no electric heaters. For UK applicants, that means practising your room-reading in the kind of heat a real class has.
Course facts for UK applicants
- Next batch: check-in Sunday 24 January 2027, check-out Friday 29 January 2027, at Soham Wellness Center in Seminyak.
- Certification: Yoga Alliance RYT 200-Hour plus the Bikram Hot 26&2 200-Hour International Yoga Certification.
- Price: US$1,899 Early Bird, against the normal US$1,999. Interest-free plans start from US$250 a month.
- Your teacher: Mr. Ian Terry, with more than 1,500 graduates from over 80 countries since 2017, and five years of training from 2014 to 2019 with the founder of the method.
For a full side-by-side of cost, time off work and format, read yoga teacher training in Bali vs the UK. Then ask Mr. Ian anything the heat question raises before you book.
What Our Trainees Say About the Room
YogaFX has 150 Google reviews, 50 Yoga Alliance reviews and 357 YouTube video testimonials. Neither review below mentions hot yoga men vs women differences, which is the point: both describe a room where help arrives whoever you are.
YogaFX training is intense but profoundly makes a lot of sense. Help is given along the way throughout the entire day.
Fiona, YouTube review, 2024
Fiona recorded that thank-you at her RYT 200 graduation in Bali. You can watch it here.
Thank you very much for all of the members here, because you are all of my family. Thank you, family.
Lidya, YouTube review, 2023 (translated from a short spoken thank-you)
Lidya spoke after a week-long class and said she would teach what she learned to colleagues. Together, the two reviews show what a supportive room does for people who arrive nervous, on either side of the hot yoga men vs women split.
FAQ
These are the questions UK students ask us most about hot yoga men vs women differences.
Why do men burn more calories than women in hot yoga?
A 2014 University of Wisconsin study measured about 460 kcal for men and 333 kcal for women in a 90-minute Bikram class. Moving a heavier body takes more energy. The gap mostly reflects body size. For example, a small man and a large woman can end up closer than the averages suggest.
Who overheats faster in hot yoga, men or women?
On average, men did. In a 2015 Wisconsin study their peak core temperature averaged 103.2°F against 102.0°F for women. However, sweat research from 2017 found body size explained most heat-loss differences, so larger students of either sex should pace themselves, rest early and drink steadily.
What should men and women wear to hot yoga in the UK?
Wear fitted, breathable clothes that you can move in. Most men choose short shorts and go bare-chested or wear a light vest. Most women choose shorts or leggings with a fitted top. Bring a large towel, because a UK studio mat gets slippery quickly once you start sweating.
Are there women-only or men-only hot yoga classes in the UK?
Most UK hot yoga classes are mixed. Some studios offer women-only sessions at set times, and men-only classes are rare. Ring or email the studio before you book, because timetables change. Ask about the heat, the class length and whether the teacher checks health conditions first.
Is hot yoga bad for male fertility?
Research on hot yoga and male fertility is thin, so nobody can say a 40°C class helps or harms. If you are trying for a baby with your partner, mention your hot yoga habit to your GP and ask what they advise for your situation.
Still have questions? Message Mr. Ian Terry on WhatsApp and the YogaFX team will answer personally. Tell us your age, your training week and any health concerns, and we’ll tell you whether hot yoga, or our teacher training, suits you right now.
