Control condition
In the RN condition, participants sat in a comfortable chair and were instructed to read a
newspaper for 1 h. We chose reading a newspaper as the control condition as we had tointegrate an alternative, standardised non-sports activity in the study that provides
distraction and prevents boredom. Reading a newspaper as a control condition has a
precedent in other studies (e.g. Logan, Gedney, Sheffield, Xiang & Starrenburg, 2003). In
order to avoid any form of figure-related comparison, none of the newspapers for the RN
condition contained any pictures of slim female models or articles related to fitness, diet
and shape.