ABSTRACT

Yoga, judo and aikido are popular exercises expected to promote physical and mental health. This study examined four characteristics rooted in Eastern philosophy and religious practice, i.e. spirituality, mindfulness, body awareness, and self-compassion in healthy individuals regularly practicing these movements and a control group (n = 341). The results revealed that practitioners of the exercises of Eastern origin reported greater spirituality than control participants, with practitioners of yoga reporting the highest values. Yoga practitioners also scored higher on mindfulness compared to controls but did not differ from aikidokas and judokas. Practitioners of the Eastern exercises did not differ from each other with respect to body awareness, but they all scored higher than the controls. Finally, yoga practitioners scored higher than all other groups on self-compassion. Results suggest that the regular practice of movement forms of Eastern origin has additional psychological benefits compared to pure physical activity.

摘要

瑜伽、柔道和合气道是有望促进身心健康的流行运动。这项研究检查了植根于东方哲学和宗教实践的四个特征，即定期练习这些运动的健康个体和对照组的灵性、正念、身体意识和自我同情（n = 341）。结果显示，东方起源练习的练习者比对照组参与者报告了更高的灵性，瑜伽练习者报告了最高值。与对照组相比，瑜伽练习者在正念方面的得分也更高，但与合气道和柔道没有区别。东方功法的练习者在身体意识方面没有差异，但他们的得分都高于对照组。最后，瑜伽练习者在自我同情方面的得分高于所有其他群体。结果表明，与纯粹的身体活动相比，经常练习源自东方的运动形式具有额外的心理益处。