Becoming Yoga Bodies of Instagram: Women’s Agency, Platform Negotiations and Everyday Activism

Abstract

Women’s yoga bodies have been overutilised in mainstream media through their stereotypical representation aligned with the market forces. Previous studies have shown the domination of similar visuals in yoga spaces on Instagram, following the algorithmic platform structures. Avoiding the dichotomy of subject–object bodies, this article brings out women participants’ living experiences of becoming yoga bodies on Instagram and their practices countering the dominant visual culture related to yoga bodies. The article argues that women use ‘everyday activism’ on Instagram to formulate their yoga body experiences. These findings are based on in-depth interviews with 17 women yoga practitioners active on Instagram. The analysis reveals the emergence of three main themes contributing to the ‘becoming of yoga bodies on Instagram’, namely (a) reclaiming the space through increased visibility, (b) training gazes towards women’s yoga bodies and (c) breaking the yoga body stereotype.