Background: Retirement from sport is a major life transition that can cause emotional and psychological distress, particularly related to body image. Former athletes with strong athletic identities may be especially vulnerable to body dissatisfaction and related issues. Although interventions for practicing athletes are increasing, few target body image in retired athletes. Self-compassion meditations have shown promise in improving body appreciation and reducing body shame and appearance-based self-worth, but no studies have examined their impact in this population.


Purpose: This study evaluated the feasibility of a three-week, 20-minute daily self-compassion meditation intervention, adapted from Albertson et al. (2015), for retired athletes with body image concerns. Primary outcomes included recruitment, retention, and participant satisfaction. Secondary outcomes included changes in self-compassion, body dissatisfaction, body shame, body appreciation, and appearance-contingent self-worth.


Methods: A mixed-methods feasibility trial was conducted with 32 retired athletes (18+) who had competed at the collegiate, provincial, or national level. Participants engaged in a 21-day self-guided online meditation intervention. Recruitment and retention rates were recorded. ANCOVAs controlling for baseline values were used to assess secondary outcomes. Thematic analysis was conducted on open-ended responses from a satisfaction survey.


Results: Retention was high (86.49%) but recruitment was low (10 participants/month). Participants reported improvements in body appreciation (d=0.83) and self-compassion (d=1.43), and reductions in body dissatisfaction (d=-0.54), body shame (d=-1.36), and appearance-based contingent self-worth (d=-0.59). Qualitative feedback indicated greater body awareness, positive self-perception shifts, and high acceptability of the intervention.


Conclusion: A self-compassion meditation intervention appears feasible and well-received among retired athletes with body image concerns. Preliminary outcomes suggest psychological benefits, warranting a larger randomized controlled trial. Future research should improve recruitment strategies, incorporate objective measures, and enhance sample diversity.