Yoga and Body Image

August 4, 2014
Klein and Guest-Jelley gather an array of yoga practitioners—including musician Alanis Morissette and Dr. Sara Gottfried—for whom yoga has transformed the way they think about their bodies. The “major gap in the conversation” around yoga and body image, according to Klein, is the harmful culture surrounding yoga that has formed in the last decade, thanks to an image-obsessed fitness industry eager to capitalize on the latest craze. In telling their stories, many contributors decry this culture, arguing that there’s no such thing as a “yoga body.” A hard-driving marathon runner finds her passion for yoga while recovering from an injury. A man with cerebral palsy learns to adapt the practice to his unique needs. Yoga helps a transgendered man reconnect with his body after years of self-hatred and abuse. But for all the diversity represented by the book’s subjects, their stories tend to follow similar trajectories, and lessons can feel repetitive. Yoga is a “tool to move inward,” an “opportunity to connect more fully,” and the “unity of being a whole person.” In other words, whatever the question, yoga is the answer. Despite this boilerplate wisdom, the book’s message of self-love is urgent and essential. Agent: Frank Weimann, Folio Literary Management.