NYC men's yoga class meets in the nude

NEW YORK, March 15 (UPI) -- A New York man who teaches a weekly men-only nude yoga class said performing the exercises in the nude allows students to shed their "costumes and armor."

Michael Gates, 44, said he has been leading the nude yoga classes since 2006 and usually about six men will pay $20 for the weekly 90-minute session, the New York Daily News reported Thursday.

"Our clothes are costumes and armor," Gates said. "Naked yoga is an interesting metaphor for letting go of the B.S."

He said he realized soon after beginning the classes that they should be restricted to a single gender.

"I understand that women don't want to get undressed in front of strange men," he said. "When I offered co-ed sessions, I found they were attended 98 percent by men."

However, Gates said he still keeps the exact location of the classes a secret to keep away the "creeps."

"I was getting too many people that were more interested in being in a room with naked men than practicing yoga," Gates said.