YES WE CAN
USE POSITIVE CUEING!
Experience with eating disorders and body image issues led
one instructor to banish weight-orientated cues and embrace a
positive approach to motivation.
WORDS: CAT WOODS
‘B
The 30-second article
• Using the motivation of a very slim
body in promotional imagery and
language reinforces the idea that
group exercise is fundamentally
about weight loss and punishing the
body for indulgences or imperfections
• For participants to try and compete
with each other or their instructor is
pointless because we all have different
physiology, lifestyles and priorities
• Societal and media fixations with dieting
can be highly damaging to people with a
predisposition to anorexia, bulimia or a
binge eating disorder
• The language you use when
instructing group exercise is
incredibly important in engendering a
positive body image.
urn off that Christmas
indulgence! Cinch your
waist! Slim your thighs! One
more rep!’
I’ve heard each and every one of
these lines as a participant in group
exercise classes. Whether it’s a weight
workout, balance or Pilates class, the
temptation to use the motivation of a
slimmer body is the easiest option for
instructors.
T