Ep 23: Yoga, Social Media, Body Positivity & Aesthetics

In recent years, the intersection of yoga, social media, and body positivity has emerged. As a dynamic and transformative space within the digital landscape. Yoga being an ancient practice rooted in mindfulness self-awareness and self-acceptance offers a holistic approach to physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing. However, in this age of social media where curated images and idealized lifestyles often dominate our feeds sharing the practice of yoga has had some undesirable outcomes. Social media has seen a profound evolution becoming both a source of inspiration and a platform for challenging societal norms and beauty standards. 

I've noticed that recently social media has become a catalyst for the body positivity movement, amplifying diverse voices and representations of beauty and fostering a culture of acceptance and celebration of all bodies. 

As a teacher who uses social media, you have a voice to share your authentic experiences, struggles, and triumphs and you have a space to inspire others to embrace their bodies and cultivate a more positive relationship with themselves both on and off the mat. 

Body positivity, aesthetics, and social media intertwine to either make your online experience a pleasurable one or one that sends you spiraling. So let's talk about it...

Transcript

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In recent years, the intersection of yoga, social media, and body positivity has emerged as a dynamic and transformative space within the digital landscape. Yoga being an ancient practice rooted in mindfulness, self awareness, and self acceptance. offers a holistic approach to physical, mental, and emotional well being. However, in this age of social media where curated images and idealized lifestyles often dominate our feeds, sharing the practice of yoga has had some undesirable outcomes. Social media has seen a profound evolution in Becoming both a source of inspiration and a platform for challenging societal norms and beauty standards. But it has also been a place where you may have found that you are comparing yourself to others or feel as if you're not doing enough or you're not being enough. While it's a place for you to connect, inspire, and share your practice, your teachings, and your personal journeys with a global audience, social media has also brought to light. The pervasive influence of beauty ideals and the pressure to conform to unrealistic standards of perfection. Now, back in the day, my teenage and early adult years, we were still bombarded by these societal pressures, but they were in the form of magazines or television shows, not in the palms of our hands and so easily accessible like an app on your phone is. I've noticed that recently social media has become a catalyst for the body positivity movement, amplifying diverse voices and representations of beauty. And fostering a culture of acceptance and celebration of all bodies. As a teacher who uses social media, you have a voice to share your authentic experiences, struggles and triumphs. And you have a space to inspire others to embrace their bodies and cultivate a more positive relationship with themselves, both on and off the mat. Amidst this backdrop, the body positivity movement has emerged as a source of hope and empowerment, challenging conventional notions of beauty, and promoting self love, acceptance, and inclusivity. Body positivity, aesthetics, and social media intertwine to either make your online experience a pleasurable one, or one that sends you spiraling. So let's talk about it. Welcome to the Essential Conversations for Yoga Teachers podcast with me. I'm Monica Bright, and I've been teaching yoga and running my yoga business for over a decade. This is the podcast for you if you're a yoga teacher, you're looking for support, you love to be in conversation, and you're a lifelong student. In this podcast, I'll share with you my life as a yoga teacher, The lessons I've learned, all the stuff that wasn't taught in teacher training, my process for building my business, and helpful ideas, tools, strategies, and systems I use and you can use so that your business thrives. We'll cover a diverse range of topics that will help you whether you're just starting out or you've got years under your belt. And you want to dive deep and set yourself up for success. I'm so glad you're here. Listen, I don't take myself too seriously. So expect to hear some laughs along the way. Now, let's do this together. Welcome back to the Essential Conversations for Yoga Teachers podcast. In this episode, I want to talk about a topic that's been weighing heavily on my mind. It's body positivity and aesthetics in the yoga world, specific to social media. So let's start with aesthetics and social media. In the context of yoga and social media, aesthetics includes factors such as the composition of images or videos, the choice of filters or editing techniques, the overall vibe or mood conveyed, and the perceived level of perfection or beauty. Or subjective beauty. Hehehe. Aesthetics plays a significant role in shaping the way yoga is portrayed and consumed on social media platforms. And people often curate their content to be visually appealing with carefully crafted images and videos designed to capture the attention of the audience and evoke a specific emotional response. For example, aesthetically pleasing yoga content on social media may feature beautiful scenery. So like backdrops of stunning natural landscapes or aesthetically pleasing studio settings used to enhance the visual appeal of yoga content and create a sense of serenity and tranquility. Right? I can't wait to put you to sleep. In a certain kind of mood, artistic composition, this attention to the composition, framing and lighting, which can elevate the visual impact of yoga photos or videos, making them more engaging and visually striking. Teachers might experiment with different angles, perspectives, props, such as plants or singing bowls, wall tapestry to make the content that they're posting look more visually appealing. for listening. And we can't forget poses, and sometimes these are really challenging poses with a hashtag like beginner yoga attached to it to draw potential new students to the practice. I'm going to save my thoughts on that for a later discussion because I think that we can really get into that topic of what we're labeling as beginner yoga and how that has an effect on. The consumer and finally, when we talk about aesthetics, we could include a color palette. Some people find this really important to have a consistent use of a cohesive color palette or theme which can enhance the aesthetic appeal of a social media feed and create a sense of cohesion and harmony, so on my Instagram account I don't necessarily have a theme that I follow, but I will say this, my favorite color in the world is green. So anytime I can have the opportunity to use green, I'm going to use it. So my brand colors do include green along with some other complimentary colors. But on my social media feed, you're probably going to see. A cohesive, um, color palette of green. And I do that for a couple of different reasons. One, yes, it's my brand, it's part of my brand colors, but then two, it takes some decision making out of some things that I have to do. So anytime that I can reduce the amount of decisions that I have to make, whether it's the certain use of fonts or a certain color is like, I don't have to think about a color. I don't have to think about a font because these are part of my brand. It's part of my brand. Now, it's important to recognize that while aesthetics can enhance the visual appeal of yoga content on social media, it shouldn't overshadow the true essence and purpose of yoga practice. Honestly, that's kind of what's been happening in the past. Ultimately, the most impactful yoga content is not just visually appealing, but also authentic, educational and reflective of the transformative power of yoga to uplift and inspire. I want to drill down a little deeper into aesthetics and focus on body positivity. Because no matter what shape, size, or color you are, we all know that yoga is for everyone. But social media might have you thinking differently. So let's get into some ways that social media has been detrimental to body positivity, and then we'll discuss how it's been helpful so it's not all doom and gloom on this episode. So the first way it's been detrimental is comparison. Social media often presents curated and idealized images of bodies, leading to constant comparison and feeling of inadequacy. among users. Seeing unrealistic beauty standards portrayed by people who don't look like you can contribute to negative body image and self esteem issues. Here's one thing I'll say about comparison because I've totally, uh, been there. You've got to remind yourself that this is an image that you're looking at. It's a shot in one moment of a person's life. And that's all you're seeing at the moment. So I remember a content creator, this is a yoga teacher that I was following. Obviously she was teaching out of her home and she had a separate room in her house that she used as her yoga studio. So. You saw her mat, you saw the wall behind it, and the space was very clean. But one day, she took her camera and she was like, I just want to bust the myth that like my space is always pristine, it's always beautiful. And she turned the camera around and behind the camera, It was like piles of laundry and books stacked up and just, it, it was messy, but what she wanted viewers to see was that behind the camera, it wasn't perfect. Right. And she communicated that in the most loving way. It wasn't like she was digging on herself. It was just like, look, this is, this is real life. Another example I have of that is there have been times that I've been teaching, I teach in my living room. The camera, obviously it faces my mat, but there have been times that my daughter has been sleeping on the couch while I've been teaching. And sometimes she is a little bit of a mess, so she'll have her snacks next to her, her drinks next to her, her books all spread out. around her blankets jumbled up and everything. So that side of the room isn't as clean and as beautiful as my mat. And so what I did was I turned the camera so that my students could kind of see. It's like, I'm teaching you guys, but if you just looked off to the right, you can see that my daughter's over here with all of her stuff around her. But it was just a peek into like, This is another part of my life. You see this one point, but there's more. Okay, the next detrimental example is this filter culture. Photo editing apps are everywhere and filters distort reality and perpetuate unrealistic beauty ideals. You might feel the pressure to edit your photos and your videos to conform to these standards, which leads to dissatisfaction with your natural appearance. and distorted perception of beauty. Do you guys remember, there was a show, I don't even know if it's still, um, on TV. I don't watch TV, like, at all. But there was a show called Catfishing. I had never heard of this term, but someone introduced it to me. And told me to go watch the show and it did break down how people were presenting themselves online. And then when they showed up in person, they look completely different. And I remember times in the past where I've met people in person that, that I know online and they're like, Oh, you look just like you look online. And I'm like, of course I do. Like, what do you mean? But you know, these filters are. And if we see these beauty standards that we feel like we have to live up to, then we feel like, ah, I got to use a filter. I can't put this out because you see the enlarged pores on my face, or you see a little roll over the, the top of my yoga pants. I mean, so crazy. Uh, but yeah, filter culture. Ha, ha, ha. The next is cyberbullying and trolling. So we've heard all about social media being a breeding ground of cyberbullying and body shaming, and these negative comments and hurtful remarks have long lasting effects on self esteem and mental wellbeing, particularly for young and vulnerable users. I've had many talks with my children about social media, about And interacting with people and bullying and trolling and how to handle that. So it's not just for you, but think about the people in your family, the little people in your family that you may need to sit down and have these conversations with. The next is misinformation. Social media is rife with misinformation about dieting, about weight loss, about beauty standards. So about perpetuating harmful myths and promoting unhealthy behaviors. You've seen the promotions of unrealistic or dangerous fad diets and beauty products which might lead you to pursue unsustainable and potentially harmful practices in pursuit of a certain body image. The next is the highlight real effect. Social media typically showcases the highlights of people's lives, creating a distorted perception of reality, resulting in you feeling inadequate when comparing your everyday life to the curated and filtered images presented on social media, which lead to feelings of inadequacy and low self worth. I mentioned this before when we were talking about comparing yourself to others. This is detrimental to your mental health. So you have to be mindful when this is happening. I have a presence on, um, Facebook, but I've stopped using Facebook, honestly, for the last, maybe four, five months. But recently I went back on and immediately, I will tell you immediately, I noticed how I felt. And the feeling wasn't a good one, right? I was scrolling and it was like, like these people, obviously the connections that I have on Facebook are more people that I know in real life. Right. And. The images that I see is like, I know this is a partial image of your life, right? Like I know the other information about your life. And so the feeling that I had in me was not good. And I noticed it right away and right away. I was like, Oh, I am going in a direction with my mental. And my thoughts and my feelings that I don't want to go in. And so I noticed it right away. And you know what I did? I logged off. I logged off immediately. Closed the app. And I said to myself, I'm not going there. So I put it down because I realized right away how I felt. The last is this pressure to conform. So ask yourself, when you feel these feels, do you also feel as though you need to be doing more? Do you need to be changing up what you're doing? Do you feel like you're falling behind? Do you feel like you're not doing enough? When you answer those questions and they make you feel like, Ah, I am not enough right here with what I'm doing, where you need to pause and take note of that, right? Because social media can create this pressure to conform and you might feel compelled to alter your appearance, your lifestyle, your behaviors to fit in with these standards, even if it means sacrificing your authenticity and individuality. So don't do that. I think that's my message is like, don't do that. Be aware of it first, and then don't do that. Ha ha ha. Sometimes I think the hardest thing you can do in life is to just be yourself because you aren't conforming, you're standing your ground, and you're saying no when everyone wants you to say yes. That's hard work. And sometimes it's lonely work, but it's such good work. Let's shift gears here a little bit. And let's. Talk about ways that social media has been helpful with body image and body positivity. The first way is by representation. Social media provides a platform for people with diverse body types, sizes, and shapes to share their stories, their experiences. Their images and this increased representation of diverse bodies helps challenge traditional beauty standards and promotes body acceptance and inclusivity. The next is community support. Social media allows you to create community and connect with others who share similar body positivity journeys in a way we couldn't when we were reading magazines or watching TV shows. Online communities provide a supportive space for you to share your struggles. Celebrate your victories and offer encouragement and support to other people online. The next is visibility and role models. Social media amplifies the voices and the visibility of body positivity creators who can inspire others to embrace their bodies and challenge societal norms. The next is educational resources. Social media serves as a source of educational content and resources on body positivity, where you can share information on topics such as body image, self esteem, intuitive eating, for example, and health at every size. And let me just say this, it doesn't matter the size of your following, you can decide to share content that empowers people To cultivate a more positive relationship with their bodies. Whether you have three followers, 300 followers, or 3, 000 followers, doesn't matter. And finally, self expression and empowerment. Social media empowers people to express themselves authentically, unapologetically, regardless of societal expectations or judgments. Through these platforms, you can decide to share content that celebrates all bodies and encourages self expression and empowerment. So let me ask you this, are you struggling with comparing yourself to others online? If you find yourself struggling with comparing yourself, here are some strategies to help you navigate those feelings. All right, if you don't already have it, go get your journal because you're going to want to write these down. The first is to practice self awareness. Recognize when feelings of comparison arise and acknowledge them without judgment. Pay attention to how comparison impacts your mood, your self esteem, and overall well being. Remember my Facebook story that I just shared with you? Apply that here. The next is to limit social media exposure. Take breaks from social media or limit your time spent on these platforms. If you find that they exacerbate feelings of comparison, set boundaries around when and how often you engage with social media to prioritize your mental. Number three. Curate your feed. Be mindful of the content you consume on social media and curate your feed to include accounts that uplift and inspire you. Unfollow or mute accounts that trigger feelings of inadequacy or comparison and seek out content that aligns with your values and interests. Recently came across a creator. I don't follow her, but somehow she just came up on my feed. She is, I think she does fashion stuff, so she tries on outfits and, and shows the outfits to people. But she was, she shared that she was going through a divorce and she decided to unfollow everyone. And the reason why is because when she shared that she was going through a divorce. She started getting comments. She started getting DMs. She started getting messages from people that she was connected with. That didn't necessarily align with her while she was going through this divorce process. So she decided to get rid of everyone for a while so that she could clean up what she was seeing, who she was connected with. And I think in this video, she was thanking people for understanding this decision that she made. And then she was also saying she's in a place now that she feels like she can start to follow people again. And if people felt like they needed to unfollow her during this process, that was fine too. She didn't mind. But she's in a different place now, and she's going to curate her feed, hopefully, by following people that she really, truly wants to be connected with. Now, I'm not saying that you have to do that, get rid of everybody. But what I'm saying is, do whatever you need to do to support your mental health. And if that means muting people. Unfollowing people. Do what you need to do. Take care of you first. Number four, practice gratitude. I talk about this a lot and I have learned to do this in my life and it is, is seriously a game changer. So when you cultivate a practice of gratitude, to shift your focus from what you lack to what you have, it will change your life. Life, take time each day to reflect on the things you are grateful for, whether it's your health, your relationships, talents, your experiences, and get super present while you're doing it. Yes, you can reflect on things in the past. Try to resist going off into the future, right? Get really present and be grateful for what you have right here, right now. Again, I promise you this will change your life. Number five, focus on your journey. Remember that social media often presents a curated and idealized version of reality. Instead of comparing yourself to others, focus on your own journey, your own progress, and your own growth. So focus on yourself. So if you are comparing yourself to somebody, let it be. Yourself yesterday, right? Or yourself from two days ago, right? Not this random person. on social media. Celebrate your successes and milestones, no matter how small they might see. Number six, celebrate your uniqueness. Embrace your uniqueness and celebrate what makes you different from others. Recognize that everyone has their own strengths, their own weaknesses, and their own experiences, and that comparing yourself to others only diminishes your own worth. and potential. Be you. If you're nerdy, okay, be nerdy. Embrace it. If you're a hot girl, embrace that too. Be the hot girl. If you are super methodical and logical, be that. Just be that. Be you. All right. Number seven, practice self compassion. Be kind and compassionate towards yourself when feelings of comparison Arise. Treat yourself with the same kindness and understanding that you would offer a friend facing similar struggles and remember that you are worthy of love and acceptance just as you are. And finally, number eight, seek support. Reach out to friends, family members, or even a therapist for support if you're struggling to cope with feelings of comparison. Talk about your feelings with someone. Someone you trust who can provide perspective, validation, and comfort. So now, what can you do in your role? of the teacher. Number one, you can lead by example, embrace and celebrate diversity in your own practice and in your teaching. Model body positive language, cues and adjustments in your classes and notice and avoid if you're perpetuating harmful beauty standards. or promoting unrealistic body ideals. Create inclusive spaces. Foster a welcoming and supportive environment in your yoga classes where students of all body types and abilities feel accepted and valued. Offer modifications and variations to accommodate diverse bodies and emphasize the importance of self compassion and self acceptance in the practice of yoga. You can do this in your theming and your sequencing easily. Promote representation. Use your platform, whether it's your class or your social media platform, as a yoga teacher to amplify the voices and experiences. of marginalized individuals within the yoga community. Share images, stories, and teachings from diverse practitioners and teachers. and actively seek out opportunities to collaborate with and uplift underrepresented voices. The next is to continue to educate yourself and others, continuously educate yourself about the intersection of body positivity, social justice and yoga. Stay informed about the systemic factors that contribute to body shaming and discrimination and explore ways to challenge and dismantle harmful ideologies within the yoga community. Share resources and educational content with your students and peers to raise awareness and foster dialogue about body positivity. Next, you can advocate for change. Use your voice and influence to advocate for more inclusive and body positive policies and practices within the yoga industry. Call attention to instances of discrimination or exclusion and advocate for greater representation and accessibility in yoga spaces. Include in marketing materials, studio environments. even teacher training programs. Here's a quick little side note. I was teaching at a studio and the studio went through a rebrand and out of this rebrand, they added some extremely large pictures of yogis to the wall on the way to the yoga studios. So we noticed this, this rebrand, right, but we looked at the pictures and we were like, I'm going to be honest, these are all thin white women doing really challenging poses. And it's like this, these pictures don't even reflect the students that come to this studio, because this was a studio that was geared more towards the beginner student. Their class offerings were geared more towards The beginner student is like, these pictures don't represent the students here. So how do you think students feel when they walk past these pictures? So we advocated, we asked for them to change those pictures out. And they actually did. I remember one of the pictures they changed to a black man and that was cool and everything, but he was also in a pose. It was an advanced pose and he had on tight shorts, no shirt. He was super buff. And I was like, Oh, jeez. But we still were able to get some pictures on the wall that looked more like the students that came to that studio. So, I mean, you can do the same thing. Advocate for change in the spaces that you work in. And then finally, lead workshops and discussions. So, host workshops or classes or discussion groups focused specifically on body positivity and self love. You can create a space for students to explore their relationship with their bodies, challenge negative self talk, and cultivate a greater sense of acceptance and appreciation for themselves and others. One of the most impactful ways social media facilitates this movement is by providing a platform for individuals of all body types to share their stories. their experiences and their journeys toward self acceptance. When using social media, you have the power to connect with a diverse community. of like minded individuals who are advocating for body diversity and inclusivity in yoga. Social media also serves as a source of inspiration and empowerment for people seeking to embrace and celebrate their bodies. Share content that challenges conventional beauty norms and celebrate bodies of all shapes, sizes, and abilities. This representation not only validates, diverse lived experiences, but also empowers people to cultivate a more positive and compassionate relationship with themselves. Finally, social media serves as a catalyst for collective action aimed at promoting body positivity and inclusivity. Online initiatives can educate and mobilize people to demand change within the yoga industry, from calling for more diverse representation in marketing materials, to advocating for inclusive studio policies and practices, by harnessing the power of social media to amplify marginalized voices. Educate the public and mobilize action. We can work together to create a more inclusive and body positive yoga community for all. Body Positivity. Aesthetics, social media, and yoga are such important topics and my hope is that we continue these conversations. I hope that this episode is a catalyst for you to either begin or continue the conversations you're having. Being cognizant of how you show up as a yoga teacher in person and online is something you should take very seriously. It's so important for us to have this conversation so that you remember that there are so many important discussions to be had in the teaching world. You know that my goal is for you to love the yoga teaching life and allow it to be fulfilling and rewarding. And sometimes it takes some work to get there. If you love this episode, let me know, subscribe to the podcast so you're always in the know when a new episode drops and share it with another yoga teacher who you think would love to be in on these conversation. Thank you for helping to spread the word about this podcast. If you've been taking notes in your journal as you listen to these episodes, I'm so glad. There's a link in my show notes where you can send me a text message. Now, don't worry, I'm not going to know your phone number. And The way it's set up, I can't text you back, but it's an easy way for you to send me a quick message. If you click on it, it's going to pop up in your text messages and there'll be a code in there. That's how you send it directly, um, to me. So don't erase that code, but send me your thoughts on this subject. Finally, don't forget to join my newsletter that's just for yoga teachers. I'll link it in the show notes below. And I would love for you to join in so we can always stay connected. Alright, that's it for now. Bye!