Effects of wellness, fitness, and sport skills programs on body image and lifestyle behaviors

140 college women participating in one of three types of physical education classes (wellness, fitness, sport skills) responded to questions about body image, body-self relations, and lifestyle behaviors at the onset and conclusion of a 6-wk. program. Pre-post changes for the wellness classes involved the largest number of domains and included increased satisfaction with body and physical appearance, more positive assessment of physical fitness and health, higher orientation toward fitness and health, and reports of positive changes in lifestyle behaviors. Pre-post changes for the fitness classes were mainly in the fitness domain, including a more positive assessment of fitness, a higher orientation toward fitness, and an increase in fitness-oriented activities; increased satisfaction with body and physical appearance was also reported. Participation in sport-skills classes produced only one pre-post change, an increase in fitness-oriented activities. Possible reasons for the success of the wellness classes are discussed. Results suggest that participation in wellness classes provides students with a positive, proactive, empowered attitude toward their own health and well-being.