Psychological aspects of three movement forms of Eastern origin: a comparative study of aikido, judo and yoga

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.