Exercise.
I know what you’re thinking: I knew that answer.
Here’s the interesting part: exercise improved people’s feelings about their body even if they didn’t lose weight or achieve noticeable improvements. They just felt better about it:
Body weight, shape and body image were assessed in 16 males and 18 females before and after both 6 × 40 mins exercise and 6 × 40 mins reading. Over both conditions, body weight and shape did not change. Various aspects of body image, however, improved after exercise compared to before, while no changes were found over reading. These findings have implications for exercise promotion where a possible role for body image in exercise adherence is suggested, and confirm current theories of body image, where changes in body image are mediated by body perceptions as opposed to actual body indices.
Source: “6 X 40 Mins Exercise Improves Body Image, Even Though Body Weight and Shape do not Change” from Journal of Health Psychology
For more on how to get in shape using psychology, click here.
This piece originally appeared on Barking Up the Wrong Tree.
Join over 205,000 readers. Get a free weekly update via email here.
Related posts:
How To Stop Being Lazy And Get More Done – 5 Expert Tips
How To Get People To Like You: 7 Ways From An FBI Behavior Expert
New Harvard Research Reveals A Fun Way To Be More Successful
- Zero-COVID Protests in China Have Rattled Global Markets
- Column: Diversity Initiatives Are Failing the U.S. Muslim Community
- Why European Countries Are Giving Teens Free Money To Spend on Books, Music, and Theater
- Republican Skepticism of Trump Has Never Been Higher
- Column: The U.S. Prison System Doesn't Value True Justice
- How Green Is the Qatar World Cup’s Outdoor AC?
- 16 Funny and Whimsical White Elephant Gifts Under $25
- The 5 Best New TV Shows Our Critic Watched in November 2022
