Downward dog becomes fit body, inc.: A content analysis of 40 years of female cover images of Yoga Journal

•One hundred sixty-eight covers of Yoga Journal between 1975-2015 were analyzed.•In recent years, models more often embodied the thin and lean fitness aesthetic.•Evidence of body objectifying attire and high body visibility emerged more recently.•Implications for body image disturbance and eating disorder risk are considered.

The present analysis investigated temporal trends in physical appearance attributes and attire worn by female cover models of Yoga Journal magazine between the years 1975-2015. Covers featuring a single female model (N = 168) were coded for: pose activity, amount of body visibility, perceived body size, body shape, breast size, skin exposure, and revealing or form-fitting attire. When collapsed across all decades, the majority of cover models was actively posed with high body visibility, rated as at most low normal weight, possessed either a “thin/lean” or “skinny/boney” body shape, and were “flat-chested” or “small-breasted”. Greater body visibility, pose activity, thinness/leanness, skin exposure, and form-fitting attire were featured on more recent years' covers. Findings suggest that the female “yoga body” conforms to the contemporary thin- and-toned media fitness ideal, particularly recently, which may promote objectified body competence, an unhealthy drive for leanness, and dissuade higher weight women from considering yoga practice.