Jennifer Oliver O'Connell — 10 Reasons plus-sized people do Yoga (hint: it’s not about weight loss)

Jennifer Oliver O'Connell, a black conservative yoga instructor and columnist for Communities Digital News explains why plus-sized people do Yoga.

LOS ANGELES, Aug, 4, 2015— Yoga is a $27-billion dollar industry, an industry that has primarily catered to the already fit and well-heeled. In recent years, there has been a movement to “decolonize” Yoga and bring it to the masses, including different ethnic groups and body types. The Body Positive movement in particular focuses on Yoga instruction, teachers and methods that accommodate, rather than exclude. Certain clothing companies are jumping on the bandwagon, doing their best to incorporate blog posts and motivational materials that encourage this “yoga for all” ethos.

But plus-sized clothing company Alight has started a firestorm in the Body Positive community with a poorly conceived infographic, “Yoga for Every Size: Guide to Plus Size Yoga.”

Among the many fails from this graphic is the use of an unauthorized image from Yoga for Round Bodies founder Tiina Veer as part of the layout. However, when you immediately lead with, “Yoga is ideal for plus-sized individuals because it burns calories and aids in fat loss”, you have already tuned out the majority of the Body Positive movement.

Read the full article HERE.