Before we get down into the weeds of this topic, the reader should have the difference between body schema and body image clearly in his or her mind. At its simplest:
Body schema is the experience of being embodied on both the conscious and unconscious levels. It is the experience of being embodied.
Body image is the cognitive evaluation of that experience, the emotional response(s) to those evaluations, and any behaviors in response to those thoughts and emotions. It is how you perceive the experience of being embodied.
And one last definition:
Yoga is a somatopsychic modality of physical and spiritual development which can also be applied as a therapeutic treatment method.
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Improving body image starts with improving one’s relationship to one’s body. There are various ways of doing this ranging from physical practices to self-affirming behaviors to body awareness meditation, but improving one’s experience of body schema first is by far one of the most effective ways to start healing a wounded body image. One physical technique has proven to be particularly effective and that is Hatha Yoga. Here are five research studies that substantiate the power of yoga.
- One longitudinal study over 15 years of 1,664 young adults with a median age of 31 measured how yoga affects body satisfaction. It found higher body satisfaction in persons practicing yoga 30 minutes or more per week (Neumark-Sztainer et al., 2017).
- Another study compared 193 yoga practitioners and 127 university students (non-yoga participants) from Adelaide, South Australia. Measures included questionnaire inquiries on body image, embodiment, self-objectification, and desire for thinness. Yoga practitioners scored higher on positive body image and embodiment, and lower on self-objectification than the control group. Yoga enhances the sense of embodiment by reducing the practice of body-self objectification (Mahlo & Tiggemann, 2016).
- This study investigated the effects of yoga on functionality appreciation in the practice of yoga and its effects on positive body image. Young adult women practiced yoga in a 10-week random control study (N = 114). Participants completed measures of functionality appreciation, body appreciation, body compassion, appearance evaluation, self-objectification, and embodiment at pre-test, midway, post-test, and one-month after completion. The yoga practitioners had lower self-objectification with increasing embodiment over time. All test subjects improved in body appreciation, body compassion, and appearance evaluation over time. And, contrary to the starting hypothesis, yoga did not increase the appreciation of the body’s functionality appreciation (Alleva et al., 2020).
- A small pilot study examined the effects of yoga on body self-surveillance behavior, feeling of bodily self-worth, and body appreciation. Twenty adolescents practiced yoga for 12 weeks while 23 others engaged in traditional exercise. Results showed decreased body surveillance in the test group (Cox et al., 2017).
- One small random control group study of 44 young women examined yoga effects on 20 test subjects and 20 control group members in a four-session treatment plan. Positive effects in body appreciation, body connectedness (sense of embodiment), and healthy mood all improved after the experiment and persisted after four weeks (Halliwell, Dawson, & Burkey, 2019).
- A research literature analysis of 446 studies found that yoga helped improve body satisfaction although most studies examined were of moderate to low quality (Rupani et al., 2024).
Closing Thoughts
Critics of body image research contend that experimental measures need to be much more focused on direct body experience so as to be more embodied. This is why I like yoga studies so much. Besides examining the many positive effects, it is, in my opinion, the premier body movement practice. The Halliwell, Dawson, & Burkey (2019) is of special interest because it shows you don’t need to practice a lot of yoga to reap positive results. This is a remarkable finding.
Paul Shane, Ph.D., LMT
Director, Academic Content
References
Alleva, J., Tylka, T., van Oorsouw, K., Montanaro, E., Perey, I., Bolle, C., Boselie, J., Peters, M., & Webb, J. (2020). The effects of yoga on functionality appreciation and additional facets of positive body image. Body Image 34, p. 184-195.
Cox, A., Ullrich-French, S., Howe, H., & Cole, A. (2017). A pilot yoga physical education curriculum to promote positive body image. Body Image 23, p. 1-8.
Halliwell, E., Dawson, K., & Burkey, S. (2019). A randomized experimental evaluation of a yoga-based body image intervention. Body Image 28, p. 119-127.
Mahlo, L. & Tiggemann (2016). Yoga and positive body image: A test of the Embodiment Model. Body Image 18, p. 135-142.
Neumark-Sztainer, D., MacLehose, R., Watts, A., Pacanowski, C., & Eisenberg, M. (2017). Yoga and body image: Findings from a large population-based study of young adults. Body Image 24, p. 69-75.
Rupani, N., Miller, J., Renteria, J., & Kaliebe, K. (2024). The impact of yoga on body image in adults: A systematic review of qualitative studies. Body Image 51, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2024.101772.
Revised 02-01-26.