1 1549 178 LAUGHTER YOGA REDUCES THE CORTISOL RESPONSE TO ACUTE STRESS IN HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS. STRESS IS ONE OF THE FOREMOST CONTRIBUTORS TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF PSYCHIATRIC DISEASES. SINCE THE PREVALENCE OF STRESS-RELATED COMPLAINTS IS INCREASING, WE ARE IN NEED FOR AFFORDABLE AND EFFECTIVE TREATMENT ALTERNATIVES. LAUGHTER YOGA (LY), A POPULAR METHOD ENCOURAGING PARTICIPANTS TO SIMULATE LAUGHTER AND PARTICIPATE IN YOGIC BREATHING EXERCISES, IS HYPOTHESIZED TO BUFFER NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF STRESS. ALTHOUGH WIDELY PRACTICED, EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FOR BENEFICIAL EFFECTS OF LY IS SCARCE. WE INVESTIGATED THE ACUTE EFFECTS OF A SINGLE 30-MIN LY SESSION ON THE AUTONOMIC, ENDOCRINE AND PSYCHOLOGICAL RESPONSE TO A STANDARDIZED PSYCHOSOCIAL STRESSOR. THIRTY-FIVE HEALTHY SUBJECTS (51% FEMALE) WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO EXPERIENCE EITHER A LY (N = 11), A RELAXATION BREATHING (N = 12) OR A (NON-INTERVENTION) CONTROL (N = 12) SESSION PRIOR TO THEIR EXPOSURE TO THE TRIER SOCIAL STRESS TEST FOR GROUPS (TSST-G). SALIVARY CORTISOL, SALIVARY ALPHA AMYLASE, AND SUBJECTIVE STRESS WERE ASSESSED REPEATEDLY THROUGHOUT THE EXPERIMENT. WE EXPECTED THAT LY AND RELAXATION BREATHING GROUP EACH SHOW A DOWNREGULATION OF STRESS RESPONSE INDICES COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP. FURTHER, WE EXPECTED THAT LY HAS BENEFICIAL EFFECTS COMPARED TO RELAXATION BREATHING. THE GROUPS DID NOT DIFFER IN SALIVARY CORTISOL, ALPHA AMYLASE OR SUBJECTIVE STRESS REACTIVITY DURING THE 30-MIN INTERVENTION. HOWEVER, IN RESPONSE TO THE TSST-G, THE LY, BUT NEITHER THE RELAXATION BREATHING, NOR THE CONTROL CONDITION, SHOWED AN ATTENUATED CORTISOL STRESS RESPONSE. THESE FINDINGS HIGHLIGHT THE POTENTIAL OF LY TO BUFFER THE ENDOCRINE STRESS RESPONSE. THEREFORE, LY COULD BE USED AS A CHEAP AND EASILY-TO-IMPLEMENT ADD-ON TO MORE TRADITIONAL STRESS INTERVENTIONS. LAY SUMMARY IN RECENT YEARS, MORE AND MORE PEOPLE HAVE REPORTED TO FEEL STRESSED. ALTHOUGH OUR BODY IS WELL EQUIPPED TO DEAL WITH ACUTE STRESS, CHRONIC STRESS CAN TIRE OUR SYSTEM AND CONTRIBUTE TO ILLNESS IN THE LONG RUN. THEREFORE, WE NEED AFFORDABLE AND EFFECTIVE MEASURES TO REDUCE STRESS. IN THIS STUDY WE HAVE INVESTIGATED WHETHER A SINGLE LAUGHTER YOGA SESSION CAN HELP US TO DEAL WITH ACUTE STRESS. ALTHOUGH LAUGHTER YOGA DID NOT CHANGE HOW STRESSFUL A SITUATION WAS PERCEIVED, IT REDUCED THE AMOUNT OF STRESS HORMONES THAT WERE RELEASED IN RESPONSE TO THE SITUATION. AS SUCH, LAUGHTER YOGA MIGHT BE A CHEAP AND EASILY-TO-IMPLEMENT ADD-ON TO MORE TRADITIONAL STRESS REDUCTION INTERVENTIONS. 2021 2 1512 34 IS THERE MORE TO YOGA THAN EXERCISE? CONTEXT: YOGA IS INCREASING IN POPULARITY, WITH AN ESTIMATED 15 MILLION PRACTITIONERS IN THE UNITED STATES, YET THERE IS A DEARTH OF EMPIRICAL DATA ADDRESSING THE HOLISTIC BENEFITS OF YOGA. OBJECTIVE: TO COMPARE THE PHYSICAL AND MENTAL BENEFITS OF AN EXERCISE-BASED YOGA PRACTICE TO THAT OF A MORE COMPREHENSIVE YOGA PRACTICE (ONE WITH AN ETHICAL/SPIRITUAL COMPONENT). DESIGN: STUDENTS WITH MILD TO MODERATE DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, OR STRESS AND WHO AGREED TO PARTICIPATE WERE ASSIGNED TO ONE OF THREE GROUPS: INTEGRATED YOGA, YOGA AS EXERCISE, CONTROL. PARTICIPANTS: A TOTAL OF 81 UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS 18 YEARS AND OLDER AT A UNIVERSITY IN THE SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, STRESS, HOPE, AND SALIVARY CORTISOL. RESULTS: OVER TIME, PARTICIPANTS IN BOTH THE INTEGRATED AND EXERCISE YOGA GROUPS EXPERIENCED DECREASED DEPRESSION AND STRESS, AN INCREASED SENSE OF HOPEFULNESS, AND INCREASED FLEXIBILITY COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP. HOWEVER, ONLY THE INTEGRATED YOGA GROUP EXPERIENCED DECREASED ANXIETY-RELATED SYMPTOMS AND DECREASED SALIVARY CORTISOL FROM THE BEGINNING TO THE END OF THE STUDY. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA, PRACTICED IN A MORE INTEGRATED FORM, IE, WITH AN ETHICAL AND SPIRITUAL COMPONENT, MAY PROVIDE ADDITIONAL BENEFITS OVER YOGA PRACTICED AS AN EXERCISE REGIMEN. 2011 3 1826 30 PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF LAUGHTER YOGA SESSIONS IN JAPAN: A PILOT STUDY. THE PURPOSE OF THIS PILOT STUDY WAS TO EXAMINE AND EVALUATE THE PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF MULTIPLE SESSIONS OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON COMMUNITY MEMBERS. PARTICIPANTS TOOK PART IN A 45 MIN LAUGHTER YOGA SESSION ONCE PER MONTH FOR 6 MONTHS. BEFORE AND AFTER ALL SESSIONS, PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED THE PROFILE OF MOOD STATES-BRIEF JAPANESE VERSION (J-POMS-B) QUESTIONNAIRE TO ASSESS THEIR MOOD, AND HAD BLOOD DRAWN FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF STRESS INDICATORS AND IMMUNE FUNCTION. SERIAL CHANGES IN J-POMS-B SCORES WERE TESTED BY THREE WAY ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE, AND CHANGES IN LABORATORY RESULTS PER SESSION WERE EVALUATED WITH A PAIRED T-TEST. THE RESULTS SHOWED THAT REPEATED SESSIONS OF LAUGHTER YOGA HAD PSYCHOLOGICALLY BENEFICIAL EFFECTS, ESPECIALLY ON THE ASPECTS OF TENSION-ANXIETY, AND VIGOR. ADRENOCORTICOTROPIC HORMONE AND CORTISOL VALUES RELATED TO THE PARTICIPANTS' STRESS LEVELS WERE SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED AFTER THE FOURTH LAUGHTER YOGA SESSION. THESE RESULTS INDICATED THAT MULTIPLE LAUGHTER YOGA SESSIONS APPEARED TO BE EFFECTIVE IN IMPROVING THE PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL STATUS OF HEALTHY ADULTS. 2018 4 1964 32 SEPARATING THE "LIMBS" OF YOGA: LIMITED EFFECTS ON STRESS AND MOOD. THOUGH MILLIONS OF PEOPLE PRACTICE YOGA TO REDUCE STRESS AND IMPROVE THEIR MOOD, IT IS UNCLEAR WHICH ASPECT OF YOGA IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THESE EFFECTS. TO INVESTIGATE RELEVANT ASPECTS, OR "LIMBS" OF YOGA, PARTICIPANTS WHO WERE NOVICES IN THE PRACTICE OF YOGA ENGAGED IN A SINGLE YOGA MANIPULATION (I.E., POSES, BREATH WORK, MEDITATION, OR LISTENING TO A LECTURE ABOUT YOGA) FOR 20 MIN BEFORE EXPERIENCING A MILD STRESSOR. PARTICIPANTS' HEART RATE, BLOOD PRESSURE, MOOD, AND ANXIETY LEVEL WERE ASSESSED, BOTH IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE YOGA MANIPULATION AND AFTER THE MILD STRESSOR. THE 20-MIN YOGA MANIPULATION DID NOT DIFFERENTIALLY AFFECT ANY OF THE MEASURES, INCLUDING PARTICIPANTS' STRESS RESPONSE AFTER THE MILD STRESSOR. RESULTS ARE DISCUSSED REGARDING THE INDIVIDUAL COMPONENTS OF A YOGA PRACTICE. 2019 5 2084 43 THE EFFECT OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON GENERAL HEALTH AMONG NURSING STUDENTS. BACKGROUND: PROMOTION AND PROVISION OF INDIVIDUALS' HEALTH IS ONE OF THE BASES FOR DEVELOPMENT IN SOCIETIES. STUDENTS' MENTAL HEALTH IS VERY IMPORTANT IN EACH SOCIETY. STUDENTS OF MEDICAL SCIENCES UNIVERSITIES, ESPECIALLY NURSING STUDENTS, ARE UNDER VARIOUS STRESSES IN CLINICAL ENVIRONMENT, IN ADDITION TO THE STRESS THEY EXPERIENCE IN THEORETICAL EDUCATION ENVIRONMENT. WITH REGARD TO THE IMPORTANCE OF NURSING STUDENTS' GENERAL HEALTH AND CONSIDERING THE VARIOUS EXISTING STRATEGIES TO PROMOTE GENERAL HEALTH COMPONENTS, USE OF COMPLEMENTARY TREATMENTS IS MORE CONSIDERED BECAUSE OF THEIR BETTER PUBLIC ACCEPTANCE, LOW COSTS, AND FEWER COMPLICATIONS. ONE OF THE NEW STRATEGIES IN THIS REGARD IS LAUGHTER YOGA. THE PRESENT STUDY WAS CONDUCTED WITH AN AIM TO DEFINE THE EFFECT OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON GENERAL HEALTH AMONG NURSING STUDENTS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: THIS IS A QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL TWO-GROUP THREE-STEP STUDY CONDUCTED ON 38 MALE NURSING STUDENTS IN THE NURSING AND MIDWIFERY SCHOOL OF ISFAHAN UNIVERSITY OF MEDICAL SCIENCES IN 2012. IN THE STUDY GROUP, EIGHT 1 H SESSIONS OF LAUGHTER YOGA WERE HELD (TWO SESSIONS A WEEK), AND IN THE CONTROL GROUP, NO INTERVENTION WAS CONDUCTED. THE DATA OF THE PRESENT STUDY WERE COLLECTED BY GOLDBERG AND HILLER'S GENERAL HEALTH QUESTIONNAIRE AND ANALYZED BY SPSS VERSION 12. RESULTS: THE FINDINGS SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE MEAN SCORES OF GENERAL HEALTH BEFORE AND AFTER LAUGHTER YOGA INTERVENTION IN THE TWO GROUPS OF STUDY AND CONTROL. CONCLUSIONS: THE FINDINGS SHOWED THAT LAUGHTER YOGA HAD A POSITIVE EFFECT ON STUDENTS' GENERAL HEALTH AND IMPROVED THE SIGNS OF PHYSICAL AND SLEEP DISORDERS, LOWERED ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION, AND PROMOTED THEIR SOCIAL FUNCTION. THEREFORE, LAUGHTER YOGA CAN BE USED AS ONE OF THE EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES ON STUDENTS' GENERAL HEALTH. 2014 6 209 51 A SINGLE SESSION OF HATHA YOGA IMPROVES STRESS REACTIVITY AND RECOVERY AFTER AN ACUTE PSYCHOLOGICAL STRESS TASK-A COUNTERBALANCED, RANDOMIZED-CROSSOVER TRIAL IN HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS. OBJECTIVES: YOGA IS PROMOTED AS AN ANTI-STRESS ACTIVITY, HOWEVER, LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT THE MECHANISMS THROUGH WHICH IT ACTS. THE PRESENT STUDY INVESTIGATED THE ACUTE EFFECTS OF A HATHA YOGA SESSION, DISPLAYED ON A VIDEO, ON THE RESPONSE TO AND RECOVERY FROM AN ACUTE PSYCHOLOGICAL STRESSOR. METHODS: TWENTY-FOUR HEALTHY YOUNG ADULTS TOOK PART IN A COUNTERBALANCED, RANDOMIZED-CROSSOVER TRIAL, WITH A YOGA AND A CONTROL CONDITION (WATCHING TV). PARTICIPANTS ATTENDED THE LABORATORY IN THE AFTERNOON ON TWO DAYS AND EACH SESSION COMPRISED A BASELINE, CONTROL OR YOGA TASK, STRESS TASK AND RECOVERY. BLOOD PRESSURE (BP), HEART RATE (HR) AND SALIVARY CORTISOL RESPONSES WERE MEASURED. STATE COGNITIVE- AND SOMATIC-ANXIETY ALONG WITH SELF-CONFIDENCE WERE ASSESSED BEFORE AND AFTER THE STRESSOR. RESULTS: ALTHOUGH NO DIFFERENCE IN THE BP OR HR RESPONSES TO STRESS WERE FOUND BETWEEN CONDITIONS, SYSTOLIC BP (P=0.047) AND DIASTOLIC BP (P=0.018) RECOVERY FROM STRESS WERE SIGNIFICANTLY ACCELERATED AND SALIVARY CORTISOL REACTIVITY WAS SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER (P=0.01) IN THE YOGA CONDITION. A YOGA SESSION ALSO INCREASED SELF-CONFIDENCE (P=0.006) IN PREPARATION FOR THE TASK AND AFTER COMPLETION. MOREOVER, SELF-CONFIDENCE REPORTED AFTER THE STRESS TASK WAS CONSIDERED DEBILITATIVE TOWARDS PERFORMANCE IN THE CONTROL CONDITION, BUT REMAINED FACILITATIVE IN THE YOGA CONDITION. CONCLUSION: OUR RESULTS SHOW THAT A SINGLE VIDEO-INSTRUCTED SESSION OF HATHA YOGA WAS ABLE TO IMPROVE STRESS REACTIVITY AND RECOVERY FROM AN ACUTE STRESS TASK IN HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS. THESE POSITIVE PRELIMINARY FINDINGS ENCOURAGE FURTHER INVESTIGATION IN AT-RISK POPULATIONS IN WHICH THE MAGNITUDE OF EFFECTS MAY BE GREATER, AND SUPPORT THE USE OF YOGA FOR STRESS REACTIVITY AND RECOVERY. 2017 7 2149 32 THE EFFECTS OF POWER AND STRETCH YOGA ON AFFECT AND SALIVARY CORTISOL IN WOMEN. YOGA PRACTICE IS KNOWN TO IMPROVE WELL-BEING AND DECREASE STRESS. HOWEVER, ACUTE YOGA IS UNDERSTUDIED. THIS STUDY INVESTIGATED THE EFFECTS OF TWO DIFFERENT TYPES OF YOGA ON AFFECT AND SALIVARY CORTISOL LEVELS IN COLLEGE WOMEN. THIRTY-THREE WOMEN AGED 18-30 YEARS EACH COMPLETED 1-HOUR SESSIONS OF POWER YOGA AND STRETCH YOGA. MEASURES OF AFFECT AND SALIVARY CORTISOL WERE ASSESSED BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER EACH SESSION. PARTICIPANTS PERCEIVED POWER YOGA TO BE MORE PLEASURABLE AND ENERGIZING. SALIVARY CORTISOL SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED AFTER BOTH YOGA SESSIONS. THUS, EVEN ONE SESSION OF YOGA MAY BE EFFECTIVE IN IMPROVING AFFECT AND DECREASING STRESS IN COLLEGE WOMEN. 2019 8 2227 43 THE IMPACT OF YOGA NIDRA AND SEATED MEDITATION ON THE MENTAL HEALTH OF COLLEGE PROFESSORS. BACKGROUND: WORLD STATISTICS FOR THE PREVALENCE OF ANXIETY AND MOOD DISORDERS SHOWS THAT A GREAT NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS WILL EXPERIENCE SOME TYPE OF ANXIETY OR MOOD DISORDER AT SOME POINT IN THEIR LIFETIME. MIND-BODY INTERVENTIONS SUCH AS HATHA YOGA AND SEATED MEDITATION HAVE BEEN USED AS A FORM OF SELF-HELP THERAPY AND IT IS ESPECIALLY USEFUL FOR CHALLENGING OCCUPATIONS SUCH AS TEACHERS AND PROFESSORS. AIMS: IN THIS INVESTIGATION, WE AIMED AT OBSERVING THE IMPACT OF YOGA NIDRA AND SEATED MEDITATION ON THE ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION LEVELS OF COLLEGE PROFESSORS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: SIXTY COLLEGE PROFESSORS, MEN AND WOMEN, AGED BETWEEN 30 AND 55 YEARS WERE RANDOMLY ALLOCATED IN ONE OF THE THREE EXPERIMENTAL GROUPS: YOGA NIDRA, SEATED MEDITATION, AND CONTROL GROUP. PROFESSORS WERE EVALUATED TWO TIMES THROUGHOUT THE 3-MONTH STUDY PERIOD. PSYCHOLOGICAL VARIABLES INCLUDED ANXIETY, STRESS, AND DEPRESSION. RESULTS: DATA ANALYSIS SHOWED THAT THE RELAXATION GROUP PRESENTED BETTER INTRAGROUP RESULTS IN THE ANXIETY LEVELS. MEDITATION GROUP PRESENTED BETTER INTRAGROUP RESULTS ONLY IN THE ANXIETY VARIABLE (PHYSICAL COMPONENT). INTERGROUP ANALYSIS SHOWED THAT, EXCEPT FOR THE DEPRESSION LEVELS, BOTH INTERVENTION GROUPS PRESENTED BETTER RESULTS THAN THE CONTROL GROUP IN ALL OTHER VARIABLES. CONCLUSIONS: PREPOST RESULTS INDICATE THAT BOTH INTERVENTIONS REPRESENT AN EFFECTIVE THERAPEUTIC APPROACH IN REDUCING ANXIETY AND STRESS LEVELS. HOWEVER, THERE WAS A TENDENCY TOWARD A GREATER EFFECTIVENESS OF THE YOGA NIDRA INTERVENTION REGARDING ANXIETY, WHICH MIGHT REPRESENT AN EFFECTIVE TOOL IN REDUCING BOTH COGNITIVE AND PHYSIOLOGICAL SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY. 2018 9 248 42 A YOGA INTERVENTION FOR YOUNG ADULTS WITH ELEVATED SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION. CONTEXT: YOGA TEACHERS AND STUDENTS OFTEN REPORT THAT YOGA HAS AN UPLIFTING EFFECT ON THEIR MOODS, BUT SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH ON YOGA AND DEPRESSION IS LIMITED. OBJECTIVE: TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTS OF A SHORT-TERM IYENGAR YOGA COURSE ON MOOD IN MILDLY DEPRESSED YOUNG ADULTS. DESIGN: YOUNG ADULTS PRE-SCREENED FOR MILD LEVELS OF DEPRESSION WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO A YOGA COURSE OR WAIT-LIST CONTROL GROUP. SETTING: COLLEGE CAMPUS RECREATION CENTER. PARTICIPANTS: TWENTY-EIGHT VOLUNTEERS AGES 18 TO 29. AT INTAKE, ALL PARTICIPANTS WERE EXPERIENCING MILD LEVELS OF DEPRESSION, BUT HAD RECEIVED NO CURRENT PSYCHIATRIC DIAGNOSES OR TREATMENTS. NONE HAD SIGNIFICANT YOGA EXPERIENCE. INTERVENTION: SUBJECTS IN THE YOGA GROUP ATTENDED TWO 1-HOUR IYENGAR YOGA CLASSES EACH WEEK FOR 5 CONSECUTIVE WEEKS. THE CLASSES EMPHASIZED YOGA POSTURES THOUGHT TO ALLEVIATE DEPRESSION, PARTICULARLY BACK BENDS, STANDING POSES, AND INVERSIONS. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY, STATE-TRAIT ANXIETY INVENTORY, PROFILE OF MOOD STATES, MORNING CORTISOL LEVELS. RESULTS: SUBJECTS WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE YOGA COURSE DEMONSTRATED SIGNIFICANT DECREASES IN SELF-REPORTED SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION AND TRAIT ANXIETY. THESE EFFECTS EMERGED BY THE MIDDLE OF THE YOGA COURSE AND WERE MAINTAINED BY THE END. CHANGES ALSO WERE OBSERVED IN ACUTE MOOD, WITH SUBJECTS REPORTING DECREASED LEVELS OF NEGATIVE MOOD AND FATIGUE FOLLOWING YOGA CLASSES. FINALLY, THERE WAS A TREND FOR HIGHER MORNING CORTISOL LEVELS IN THE YOGA GROUP BY THE END OF THE YOGA COURSE, COMPARED TO CONTROLS. THESE FINDINGS PROVIDE SUGGESTIVE EVIDENCE OF THE UTILITY OF YOGA ASANAS IN IMPROVING MOOD AND SUPPORT THE NEED FOR FUTURE STUDIES WITH LARGER SAMPLES AND MORE COMPLEX STUDY DESIGNS TO MORE FULLY EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON MOOD DISTURBANCES. 2004 10 1701 48 PARTICIPATION IN A YOGA STUDY DECREASES STRESS AND DEPRESSION SCORES FOR INCARCERATED WOMEN. INCARCERATED INDIVIDUALS EXHIBIT A HIGH INCIDENCE OF STRESS-RELATED DISORDERS, INCLUDING ADDICTION AND POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER (PTSD), AS WELL AS THE ADDED STRESS OF CAPTIVITY. ACCESS TO STRESS-REDUCTION TOOLS IS LIMITED FOR THESE INDIVIDUALS. ONE POSSIBLE APPROACH MAY BE REGULAR STRUCTURED YOGA CLASSES. USING TWO APPROACHES, WE TESTED THE EFFECTIVENESS OF A BRIEF, INTENSIVE YOGA INTERVENTION IN A POPULATION OF INCARCERATED WOMEN IN A COUNTY JAIL. THE FIRST APPROACH WAS AN EXAMINATION OF ARCHIVAL DATA COLLECTED AS PART OF A PROGRAM ANALYSIS. INDIVIDUALS SHOWED CONSIDERABLE REDUCTION IN SELF-REPORTED STRESS FOLLOWING A SINGLE YOGA SESSION. THE SECOND APPROACH WAS AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY USING A WEEK-LONG YOGA INTERVENTION. THIRTY-FOUR PARTICIPANTS WERE ASSIGNED TO EITHER THE YOGA OR CONTROL GROUP FOR THE FIRST WEEK. IN THE SECOND WEEK, THE CONDITIONS WERE REVERSED. PARTICIPANTS WERE ASSESSED WEEKLY, BEFORE AND AFTER INTERVENTION. BASELINE SCORES REVEALED HIGH RATES OF DEPRESSION, STRESS, AND EXPOSURE TO TRAUMATIC LIFE EVENTS COMPARED TO NORMATIVE DATA. STRESS AND DEPRESSION WERE ASSESSED USING THE PERCEIVED STRESS SCALE AND BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY, RESPECTIVELY. COMPARED TO CONTROLS, PARTICIPANTS REPORTED LESS DEPRESSION AFTER A WEEK OF DAILY YOGA SESSIONS. PERCEIVED STRESS DECLINED UNDER BOTH CONTROL AND YOGA CONDITIONS. DUE TO THE TRANSIENT NATURE OF THE JAIL INSTITUTION, IT IS IMPORTANT TO EXAMINE INTERVENTIONS THAT CAN BE PROVIDED ON A SHORT-TERM BASIS. ALTHOUGH THERE WERE LIMITATIONS IN THIS STUDY, THE RESULTS SUPPORT THE CONCLUSION THAT THE BRIEF YOGA INTERVENTION HAD A POSITIVE EFFECT ON PARTICIPANTS' WELL-BEING. 2021 11 314 39 AN IN-SITU INVESTIGATION OF THE ACUTE EFFECTS OF BIKRAM YOGA ON POSITIVE- AND NEGATIVE AFFECT, AND STATE-ANXIETY IN CONTEXT OF PERCEIVED STRESS. BACKGROUND: BIKRAM YOGA IS A RELATIVELY NEW, BUT AN INCREASINGLY POPULAR FORM OF EXERCISE. ITS HEALTH BENEFITS WERE DEMONSTRATED ON PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL MEASURES. AIMS: THE CURRENT FIELD STUDY TESTED THE ACUTE EFFECTS OF BIKRAM YOGA ON PRACTITIONERS' POSITIVE-/NEGATIVE-AFFECT AND STATE-ANXIETY, AND THEIR LINK TO THE SELF-PERCEIVED STRESS, IN BIKRAM YOGA PARTICIPANTS. METHOD: FIELD STUDY, WITHIN-PARTICIPANTS DESIGN, TESTING PERCEIVED STRESS AND ITS RELATION TO CHANGES IN POSITIVE-/NEGATIVE-AFFECT AND STATE-ANXIETY IN 53 HABITUAL BIKRAM YOGA PARTICIPANTS. RESULTS: STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT POSITIVE CHANGES EMERGED IN ALL THREE PSYCHOLOGICAL MEASURES AFTER THE 90-MIN BIKRAM YOGA SESSION. THE DECREASE IN NEGATIVE-AFFECT AND STATE-ANXIETY WERE SIGNIFICANTLY AND POSITIVELY RELATED TO THE PERCEIVED STRESS. ESTIMATED EFFORT WAS UNRELATED TO THE MAGNITUDE OF THE CHANGES RECORDED IN THE PSYCHOLOGICAL MEASURES. HEART RATES AND SELF-REPORT MEASURES INDICATED THAT PHYSICALLY BIKRAM YOGA IS ONLY MILDLY CHALLENGING. CONCLUSIONS: THE FINDINGS ILLUSTRATE THAT, INDEPENDENTLY OF THE PHYSICAL EFFORT, BIKRAM YOGA IS A NEW MILD FORM OF EXERCISE THAT REDUCES NEGATIVE-AFFECT AND STATE-ANXIETY, AND THE REDUCTION IS DIRECTLY RELATED TO THE PERCEIVED STRESS. THEREFORE, BIKRAM YOGA APPEARS TO BE BENEFICIAL FOR ALL PRACTITIONERS, BUT EVEN MORE SO FOR THE INDIVIDUALS WHO EXPERIENCE SUBSTANTIAL STRESS IN THE DAILY LIFE. 2017 12 1424 37 IMPROVEMENT IN PHYSIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL PARAMETERS AFTER 6 MONTHS OF YOGA PRACTICE. YOGA IS BELIEVED TO HAVE BENEFICIAL EFFECTS ON COGNITION, ATTENUATION OF EMOTIONAL INTENSITY AND STRESS REDUCTION. PREVIOUS STUDIES WERE MAINLY PERFORMED ON EASTERN EXPERIENCED PRACTITIONERS OR UNHEALTHY SUBJECTS UNDERGOING CONCOMITANT CONVENTIONAL THERAPIES. FURTHER INVESTIGATION IS NEEDED ON THE EFFECTS OF YOGA PER SE, AS WELL AS ITS POSSIBLE PREVENTIVE BENEFITS ON HEALTHY SUBJECTS. WE INVESTIGATED THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON MEMORY AND PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGICAL PARAMETERS RELATED TO STRESS, COMPARING YOGA PRACTICE AND CONVENTIONAL PHYSICAL EXERCISES IN HEALTHY MEN (PREVIOUSLY YOGA-NAIVE). MEMORY TESTS, SALIVARY CORTISOL LEVELS AND STRESS, ANXIETY, AND DEPRESSION INVENTORIES WERE ASSESSED BEFORE AND AFTER 6 MONTHS OF PRACTICE. YOGA PRACTITIONERS SHOWED IMPROVEMENT OF THE MEMORY PERFORMANCE, AS WELL AS IMPROVEMENTS IN PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGICAL PARAMETERS. THE PRESENT RESULTS SUGGEST THAT REGULAR YOGA PRACTICE CAN IMPROVE ASPECTS OF COGNITION AND QUALITY OF LIFE FOR HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS. AN INDIRECT INFLUENCE OF EMOTIONAL STATE ON COGNITIVE IMPROVEMENT PROMOTED BY YOGA PRACTICE CAN BE PROPOSED. 2012 13 59 44 A COMPARISON OF THE ACUTE EFFECTS OF DIFFERENT FORMS OF YOGA ON PHYSIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL STRESS: A PILOT STUDY. YOGA IS A FREQUENTLY RECOMMENDED STRESS MANAGEMENT STRATEGY; HOWEVER, THE ACUTE STRESS RESPONSE TO VARYING TYPES OF YOGA ARE NOT FULLY CLEAR. THUS, THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO COMPARE THE ACUTE EFFECTS OF MEDITATIVE AND POWER YOGA ON INDICES OF PHYSIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL STRESS. IN A CROSSOVER COUNTERBALANCED DESIGN, PHYSICALLY ACTIVE FEMALES (N = 13; AGE = 20.8 YRS +/- 0.8, HEIGHT = 164.5 CM +/- 6.1, BODY MASS = 65.0 KG +/- 13.8) WHO DID NOT REGULARLY PARTICIPATE IN YOGA OR MINDFUL TRAINING ENROLLED IN THIS STUDY. PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED TWO VISITS EACH, WITH A STANDARDIZED INSTRUCTIONAL-VIDEO 30-MIN YOGA SESSION WITH EITHER A) MEDITATIVE (HATHA STYLE) YOGA OR B) POWER (VINYASA STYLE) YOGA. PRIOR TO AND IMMEDIATELY AFTER EACH YOGA BOUT, PSYCHOLOGICAL STRESS WAS ASSESSED USING THE STATE-TRAIT ANXIETY INVENTORY (STAI) QUESTIONNAIRE, AND SALIVARY CORTISOL SAMPLES WERE OBTAINED TO MEASURE INDICES OF PHYSIOLOGICAL STRESS. STATE ANXIETY SCORES WERE SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER FOLLOWING MEDITATIVE YOGA (P = 0.047) BUT WERE NOT DIFFERENT FOLLOWING POWER YOGA (P = 0.625). SALIVARY CORTISOL LEVELS WERE SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER FOLLOWING MEDITATIVE YOGA (P = 0.020) BUT NOT FOLLOWING POWER YOGA (P = 0.242). RESULTS INDICATE THAT ACUTE ENGAGEMENT IN MEDITATIVE YOGA DECREASES MARKERS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL STRESS, WHILE POWER YOGA DOES NOT IMPART A SIGNIFICANT STRESS-RELIEVING BENEFIT. FINDINGS INDICATE THAT DIFFERING TYPES OF YOGA MAY HAVE VARIOUS STRESS-RELIEVING CAPABILITIES AND SHOULD BE CONSIDERED BY INDIVIDUALS SEEKING ANXIOLYTIC BENEFITS. 2020 14 678 28 EFFECT OF A YOGA PRACTICE SESSION AND A YOGA THEORY SESSION ON STATE ANXIETY. YOGA TECHNIQUES PRACTICED FOR VARYING DURATIONS HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO REDUCE STATE ANXIETY. IN THIS STUDY, THERE WERE 300 NAIVE-TO-YOGA PERSONS OF BOTH SEXES WHO WERE ATTENDING A YOGA THERAPY CENTER IN NORTH INDIA FOR STRESS RELIEF AS DAY VISITORS AND WERE NOT RESIDING AT THE CENTER. THEY WERE ASSIGNED TO TWO GROUPS, YOGA PRACTICE AND YOGA THEORY, AND THEIR STATE ANXIETY WAS ASSESSED BEFORE AND AFTER A 2-HR. YOGA SESSION. A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN SCORES ON STATE ANXIETY WAS FOUND IN THE YOGA PRACTICE GROUP (14.7% DECREASE), AS WELL AS IN THE YOGA THEORY GROUP (3.4% DECREASE). THE DIFFERENCE IN SCORES FOLLOWING THE SESSIONS WAS STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT. HENCE, YOGA PRACTICE AS WELL AS LEARNING ABOUT THEORETICAL ASPECTS OF YOGA APPEAR TO REDUCE STATE ANXIETY, WITH A GREATER REDUCTION FOLLOWING YOGA PRACTICE. 2009 15 1744 37 PHYSIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF HATHA-YOGA EXERCISE IN HEALTHY WOMEN. HATHA-YOGA HAS BECOME INCREASINGLY POPULAR IN WESTERN COUNTRIES AS A METHOD FOR COPING WITH STRESS. HOWEVER, LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT THE PHYSIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF YOGA PRACTICE. WE MEASURED HEART RATE, BLOOD PRESSURE, THE HORMONES CORTISOL, PROLACTIN AND GROWTH HORMONE AND CERTAIN PSYCHOLOGICAL PARAMETERS IN A YOGA PRACTICING GROUP AND A CONTROL GROUP OF YOUNG FEMALE VOLUNTEERS READING IN A COMFORTABLE POSITION DURING THE EXPERIMENTAL PERIOD. THERE WERE NO SUBSTANTIAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE GROUPS CONCERNING ENDOCRINE PARAMETERS AND BLOOD PRESSURE. THE COURSE OF HEART RATE WAS SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT, THE YOGA GROUP HAD A DECREASE DURING THE YOGA PRACTICE. SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN BOTH GROUPS WERE FOUND IN PSYCHOLOGICAL PARAMETERS. IN THE PERSONALITY INVENTORY THE YOGA GROUP SHOWED MARKEDLY HIGHER SCORES IN LIFE SATISFACTION AND LOWER SCORES IN EXCITABILITY, AGGRESSIVENESS, OPENNESS, EMOTIONALITY AND SOMATIC COMPLAINTS. SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES COULD ALSO BE OBSERVED CONCERNING COPING WITH STRESS AND THE MOOD AT THE END OF THE EXPERIMENT. THE YOGA GROUP HAD SIGNIFICANT HIGHER SCORES IN HIGH SPIRITS AND EXTRAVERTEDNESS. 1994 16 427 59 CAN YOGA BOOST ACCESS TO THE BODILY AND EMOTIONAL SELF? CHANGES IN HEART RATE VARIABILITY AND IN AFFECTIVE EVALUATION BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER A SINGLE SESSION OF YOGA EXERCISE WITH AND WITHOUT INSTRUCTIONS OF CONTROLLED BREATHING AND MINDFUL BODY AWARENESS IN YOUNG HEALTHY WOMEN. EXERCISE IS INDISPENSABLE FOR A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE. YOGA EXERCISE CAN HAVE POSITIVE EFFECTS ON WELL-BEING AND ON CARDIAC AUTONOMIC ACTIVITY MAKING IT AN IDEAL INTERVENTION FOR IMPROVING MIND-BODY INTERACTIONS AND RESILIENCE TO PHYSICAL AND MENTAL STRESSORS. EMOTIONS TRIGGER ESPECIALLY STRONG BODILY AND AFFECTIVE-COGNITIVE RESPONSES BECAUSE OF THEIR SOCIAL RELEVANCE FOR THE SELF AND THEIR BIOLOGICAL RELEVANCE OF MOBILIZING THE ORGANISM FOR ACTION. THIS STUDY INVESTIGATES WHETHER CHANGES IN EMOTION PROCESSING RELATED TO SELF-OTHER REFERENTIAL PROCESSING AND CHANGES IN CARDIAC AUTONOMIC ACTIVITY, REFLECTED BY HEART RATE VARIABILITY (HRV), OCCUR IMMEDIATELY AFTER ALREADY A SINGLE SESSION OF YOGA EXERCISE WHEN YOGA POSTURES ARE PRACTICED WITH OR WITHOUT BREATHING- AND MINDFUL BODY AWARENESS INSTRUCTIONS. WOMEN, ALL UNIVERSITY STUDENTS (N = 34, FINAL SAMPLE: N = 30, N = 25 NAIVE TO YOGA PRACTICE) WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO TWO EXPERIMENTAL GROUPS WHO PERFORMED THE SAME YOGA EXERCISES WITH OR WITHOUT CONTROLLED BREATHING AND MINDFULNESS INSTRUCTIONS. EMOTIONAL, SELF-OTHER REFERENTIAL PROCESSING, AWARENESS OF BODILY SIGNALS AND HRV INDICATORS WERE INVESTIGATED BEFORE AND AFTER THE EXERCISE USING STANDARDIZED EXPERIMENTAL TASKS, STANDARDIZED QUESTIONNAIRES, AND MOBILE RECORDING DEVICES. EXERCISING FOR 30 MINUTES CHANGED CARDIAC ACTIVITY SIGNIFICANTLY. HRV MEASURES SHOWED ADAPTABILITY OF CARDIAC ACTIVITY DURING THE EXERCISE AS WELL AS DURING THE AFFECTIVE TASK POST- TO PRE-EXERCISE. EXERCISING WITH BREATHING INSTRUCTIONS AND MINDFUL BODY AWARENESS HAD NO SUPERIOR EFFECTS ON CARDIAC, PARTICULARLY PARASYMPATHETIC ACTIVITY, COMPARED TO PRACTICING THE SAME MOVEMENTS WITHOUT SUCH EXPLICIT INSTRUCTIONS. SELF-REFERENTIAL PROCESSING DID NOT CHANGE; HOWEVER, PARTICIPANTS WERE FASTER AND MORE ACCURATE IN THEIR AFFECTIVE JUDGMENTS OF EMOTIONAL STIMULI [REGARDLESS OF THEIR REFERENCE (SELF/OTHER)], AND SHOWED BETTER AWARENESS OF BODILY SIGNALS AFTER COMPARED TO BEFORE THE EXERCISE SESSION. THE RESULTS SUPPORT IMMEDIATE, ADAPTIVE EFFECTS OF YOGA EXERCISE ON CARDIAC AND AFFECTIVE-COGNITIVE PROCESSING IN AN ALL-FEMALE HEALTHY SAMPLE. THEREFORE, YOGA EXERCISE COULD BE RECOMMENDED AS A PHYSICAL ACTIVITY FOR BOOSTING CARDIAC AND EMOTIONAL RESILIENCE IN THIS TARGET GROUP. 2021 17 208 40 A SINGLE SESSION OF AN INTEGRATED YOGA PROGRAM AS A STRESS MANAGEMENT TOOL FOR SCHOOL EMPLOYEES: COMPARISON OF DAILY PRACTICE AND NONDAILY PRACTICE OF A YOGA THERAPY PROGRAM. OBJECTIVES: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO ASSESS THE EFFECT OF THE DAILY PRACTICE OF A YOGA THERAPY PROGRAM LEARNT DURING A SINGLE SESSION OF AN INTEGRATED YOGA INTERVENTION THAT WAS DEVELOPED BY US AS A STRESS MANAGEMENT TOOL FOR SCHOOL EMPLOYEES. SUBJECTS: NINETY SCHOOL EMPLOYEES. DESIGN: CASE-CONTROL STUDY. THREE MONTHS AFTER THE INTERVENTION, THE SUBJECTS WERE ASSIGNED TO A DAILY PRACTICE GROUP (CASE: N=43) AND A NONCONSECUTIVE DAILY PRACTICE GROUP (CONTROL: N=47) ACCORDING TO THEIR DAILY PRACTICE LEVEL OF THE YOGA THERAPY PROGRAM. INTERVENTIONS: THE SUBJECTS PARTICIPATED IN A STRESS MANAGEMENT EDUCATION PROGRAM BASED ON AN INTEGRATED YOGA THERAPY SESSION. THE PROGRAM INCLUDED PSYCHOLOGICAL EDUCATION AND COUNSELING ABOUT STRESS MANAGEMENT AND YOGA THEORIES, AS WELL AS THE PRACTICES OF ASANAS, PRANAYAMA, RELAXATION, AND COGNITIVE STRUCTURE BASED ON INDIAN PHILOSOPHY. OUTCOME MEASURES: ASSESSMENTS WERE PERFORMED BEFORE AND AFTER THE PROGRAM USING THE SUBJECTIVE UNITS OF DISTRESS FOR MIND AND BODY AND THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL MOOD SCALE. THE GENERAL HEALTH QUESTIONNAIRE 28 (GHQ28) WAS USED TO ASSESS THE MENTAL HEALTH STATE BEFORE THE INTERVENTION AND AT 3 MONTHS AFTER THE PROGRAM. RESULTS: THE SUBJECTS SHOWED SIGNIFICANT INCREASES IN THEIR LEVELS OF CALMNESS, COMFORT, AND CHEERFULNESS (P<0.001) AND SIGNIFICANT DECREASES IN COGNITIVE MIND AND BODY STRESS (P<0.001) AFTER PARTICIPATING IN THE INTEGRATED YOGA PROGRAM. A COMPARISON OF THE TOTAL SCORES ON THE GHQ28 USING A TWO-WAY ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE SHOWED SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS IN TERMS OF BOTH INTERACTION (P=0.047) AND THE MAIN EFFECT (P=0.026). CONCLUSIONS: THE PRESENT RESULTS SUGGESTED THAT A SINGLE SESSION OF AN INTEGRATED YOGA PROGRAM WAS EFFECTIVE FOR REDUCING STRESS AND THAT THE MENTAL HEALTH OF SCHOOL EMPLOYEES WAS PROMOTED BY THE DAILY PRACTICE OF THE YOGA THERAPY PROGRAM. 2015 18 893 28 EFFECT OF YOGA-BASED PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON PERCEIVED STRESS, ANXIETY, AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN YOUNG ADULTS. PURPOSE: THIS STUDY, CONDUCTED AT A PUBLIC UNIVERSITY IN TURKEY, SOUGHT TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA-BASED PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON PERCEIVED STRESS, ANXIETY, AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN YOUNG ADULTS. DESIGN AND METHODS: THIS STUDY WAS PLANNED AS A SEMIEXPERIMENTAL NONRANDOMIZED STUDY WITH A CONTROL GROUP. FINDINGS: YOGA-BASED PHYSICAL ACTIVITY DECREASED THE PERCEIVED STRESS AND STATE ANXIETY LEVELS, BUT HAD NO EFFECT ON TRAIT ANXIETY LEVELS AND QUALITY OF LIFE. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: IT IS RECOMMENDED THAT YOGA-BASED TREATMENT CAN BE INCLUDED IN NURSING INTERVENTIONS FOR REDUCING STRESS AND ANXIETY LEVELS IN YOUNG ADULTS. 2020 19 2687 29 YOGA IN THE TREATMENT OF EATING DISORDERS WITHIN A RESIDENTIAL PROGRAM: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON NEGATIVE AFFECT (AN EATING DISORDERS RISK FACTOR), 38 INDIVIDUALS IN A RESIDENTIAL EATING DISORDER TREATMENT PROGRAM WERE RANDOMIZED TO A CONTROL OR YOGA INTERVENTION: 1 HOUR OF YOGA BEFORE DINNER FOR 5 DAYS. NEGATIVE AFFECT WAS ASSESSED PRE- AND POST-MEAL. MIXED-EFFECTS MODELS COMPARED NEGATIVE AFFECT BETWEEN GROUPS DURING THE INTERVENTION PERIOD. YOGA SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED PRE-MEAL NEGATIVE AFFECT COMPARED TO TREATMENT AS USUAL; HOWEVER, THE EFFECT WAS ATTENUATED POST-MEAL. MANY EATING DISORDERS PROGRAMS INCORPORATE YOGA INTO TREATMENT. THIS PRELIMINARY EVIDENCE SETS THE STAGE FOR LARGER STUDIES EXAMINING YOGA AND EATING DISORDER TREATMENT AND PREVENTION. 2017 20 2237 47 THE IMPACTS OF PILATES AND YOGA ON HEALTH-PROMOTING BEHAVIORS AND SUBJECTIVE HEALTH STATUS. THIS STUDY INVESTIGATES WHETHER PILATES AND YOGA LEAD PEOPLE TO ADOPT GENERALLY HEALTH-PROMOTING LIFESTYLE ELEMENTS AND FEEL BETTER ABOUT THEIR PHYSICAL AND MENTAL FITNESS. TO THIS END, WE DESIGNED AN 8 WEEK EXERCISE PROGRAM OF PILATES AND YOGA REVIEWED BY VETERAN PRACTITIONERS AND CONDUCTED AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY THROUGH WHICH WE COLLECTED THE DATA FROM 90 VOLUNTEERED ADULT SUBJECTS BETWEEN AGES 30 AND 49 (MEAN AGE = 35.47), EQUALLY REPRESENTED BY WOMEN AND MEN WITHOUT PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE WITH PILATES OR YOGA. IN THE 8 WEEK LONG EXPERIMENT, WE ASSIGNED THE SUBJECTS TO THREE GROUPS, WHERE SUBJECTS IN THE TWO EXERCISE GROUPS REGULARLY TOOK PART IN EITHER PILATES OR YOGA CLASSES, AND THE CONTROL GROUP PARTICIPATED IN NEITHER EXERCISE CLASSES. ALL PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED TWO SURVEYS, THE HEALTH-PROMOTING LIFESTYLE PROFILE (HPLP II) AND THE HEALTH SELF-RATING SCALE (HSRS), BEFORE AND AFTER THEIR ASSIGNED PROGRAM. IN OUR ANALYSIS OF PRE- AND POST-TREATMENT DIFFERENCES ACROSS THE THREE GROUPS, WE RAN ANOVA, ANCOVA, AND SHEFFE TEST, IMPLEMENTED USING SPSS PASW STATISTICS 18.00. OUR RESULTS INDICATE THAT PILATES AND YOGA GROUPS EXHIBITED A HIGHER ENGAGEMENT IN HEALTH-PROMOTING BEHAVIORS THAN THE CONTROL GROUP AFTER THE PROGRAM. SUBJECTIVE HEALTH STATUS, MEASURED WITH HSRS, ALSO IMPROVED SIGNIFICANTLY AMONG PILATES AND YOGA PARTICIPANTS COMPARED TO THOSE IN THE CONTROL GROUP AFTER THE PROGRAM. THE SUPPLEMENTARY ANALYSIS FINDS NO SIGNIFICANT GENDER-BASED DIFFERENCE IN THESE IMPACTS. OVERALL, OUR RESULTS CONFIRM THAT PILATES AND YOGA HELP RECRUIT HEALTH-PROMOTING BEHAVIORS IN PARTICIPANTS AND ENGENDER POSITIVE BELIEFS ABOUT THEIR SUBJECTIVE HEALTH STATUS, THEREBY SETTING A POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT CYCLE IN MOTION. BY PROVIDING CLEAR EVIDENCE THAT THE PROMOTION OF PILATES OR YOGA CAN SERVE AS AN EFFECTIVE INTERVENTION STRATEGY THAT HELPS INDIVIDUALS CHANGE BEHAVIORS ADVERSE TO THEIR HEALTH, THIS STUDY OFFERS PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS FOR HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS AND PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS ALIKE. 2021