Let’s talk about real men for a second. They’re not all wearing flannel, crushing beers, or revving engines for the ’gram. Some of us prefer neon leggings. Some of us find strength in stillness. Some of us practice yoga—not to perform, but to reconnect. Some of us love kombucha cocktails. Some of us strip down on a pond dock in the Catskills and call it a spiritual practice. And all of it—every form, every bulge, every breath—is real.
Return to Form: Real Men, Naked Yoga, and the Queer Wilderness of the Catskills – Words and photography by Maxwell Alexander, MA(FIT), BFA(SVA), Certified Fitness Trainer, Bodybuilding and Sports Nutrition Coach – Yoga for Men – Mindfullness – Emotional Wellness – Presented by GUY STYLE MAG (18+)
I shot this series for GUY STYLE MAG in the heart of the Catskill Mountains, far from the noise of what we call “civilization.” But even that word feels wrong. This land—lush, watchful, alive—was never uncivilized. It was cared for, understood, and honored by Indigenous tribes who didn’t even have a word for “nature,” because there was no separation. Everything was one. And out here, barefoot and bare-assed, I felt it.
At the time, I didn’t know I was healing. The words trauma, PTSD, emotional repression—they hadn’t surfaced in my consciousness yet. But my body knew. My art knew. These moments were instinctive—an unspoken rebellion, a quiet ceremony of coming home to myself.
There’s a clarity that comes when you’re naked in the woods, doing tree pose while actually surrounded by trees. Your mind stops performing. Your body just is. And suddenly the filters—of masculinity, sexuality, shame, expectation—fall away like clothes at the edge of the dock.
Is it nude yoga for real men? Is it rebellion? Is it a queer rite of passage? Maybe it’s all three. Or maybe it’s just a hot guy standing on a wooden dock in the mountains wondering why everyone else is still so uptight.
For men—especially gay men, especially Gen Z men redefining gender expression in real time—nude yoga is more than a workout. It’s a return. To stillness. To joy. To body. To Earth.
These photos are my offering. Not just to queer men, but to all men who want to feel more whole. Because strength doesn’t always flex. Sometimes, it bows. Sometimes, it balances. Sometimes, it laughs and says, “You know what? Screw pants.”
This isn’t about escaping society. It’s about remembering that society doesn’t get the final say. Your body does.
And yes, the goose saw everything.
What Comes Next: Emotional Wellness as Art, Lifestyle, and Liberation
This moment on the dock—bare, embodied, free—is just the beginning.
With this shoot, I’m launching a new series centered around Emotional Wellness—not as a trend, but as a truth. A reclamation. A deeper dive into the pressures we carry: societal expectations, masculinity in crisis, the mental health battles and past trauma we don’t talk about, and the quiet, beautiful defiance of living openly—especially as queer men navigating a world still shaped by fear.
But I’m not just writing about it. I’m building it.
From the earliest days of my photography, I didn’t just capture bodies—I built one. I designed my own through years of bodybuilding, long before I ever turned the lens toward the male form. Back then, I was a commercial artist—creating ads for things I didn’t care much about, polishing products instead of truth. It wasn’t until the pandemic cracked me open that I came out—not just as queer, but as an artist fully rooted in the beauty of homoerotic male form. That’s when the model became the muse, and the body became the message. And now, that foundation—of skin, muscle, myth, and light—is evolving into something even more expansive. Something immersive.
Through my business, I’m curating emotional wellness experiences that live beyond the page. Real spaces. Real touchpoints. Real healing. Whether it’s a private yoga session at a secluded Catskills cabin or simply the way a room makes you feel seen the moment you arrive—I’m shaping hospitality into a living, breathing form of wellness. And I’m not alone in this. There’s a growing movement of creators, healers, and wellness practitioners who believe that travel can do more than distract—it can transform. Together, we’re reclaiming hospitality as an art form rooted in care, beauty, and emotional truth.
So yes, there will be more liberating nude yoga in the mountains. More strength, more authenticity, more softness, more bodies becoming truth. There will be muscle, and there will be meditation. There will be moments that heal and stretch and maybe even make you laugh out loud.
Because real wellness isn’t about perfection—it’s about permission.
And this is just the start.
