Research and programme outcomes
Mindful Yogis tracks participant outcomes before and after every structured programme, to understand what is changing and to improve how the work is delivered. This page brings together Karthikeyan's MSc study on burnout and sleep and the ongoing evaluation of Calm Within Chaos: the measures used, the results observed, and how those findings continue to shape the programmes.
Burnout and online yoga
Reignite grew out of Karthikeyan's MSc study of an online yoga programme for adults experiencing burnout in the Netherlands. Thirty people followed the programme and completed the same outcome measures at the start and at the end.
The programme combined movement, breathing, relaxation, meditation and reflective practice, all delivered online.
93%
recorded lower burnout scores
28 of the 30 participants who followed the yoga programme. Two did not.
What changed
Among the 30 people who followed the yoga programme:
Average burnout score
Oldenburg Burnout Inventory, down 14.5% on average; 28 of 30 recorded a lower score
Average sleep score
Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, down 42.6%; a lower score is better
Average outlook score
Positive Thinking Scale, up 29.7% on average
Recorded lower burnout scores
28 of 30
by the end of the programme
Exhaustion and disengagement
The Oldenburg inventory measures two distinct components of burnout, and they did not move together.
Exhaustion
physical, cognitive and emotional depletion associated with sustained demands. Down 18.3%; 27 of 30 improved, 3 scored higher
Disengagement
increasing distance from, or loss of identification with, one's work. Down 10.1%; 23 of 30 improved, 4 unchanged, 3 higher
In this study, exhaustion changed more than disengagement. That difference is one reason Reignite gives substantial attention to sleep, energy and recovery, while also recognising that disengagement can involve wider factors in a person's relationship with their work.
Study context
Matched starting and closing measures from the 30 people who followed the yoga programme in Karthikeyan's MSc study. The figures describe the changes observed during participation rather than a controlled estimate of programme effect. Individual outcomes vary.
How this shaped Reignite. The findings are one reason Reignite runs over several weeks rather than as a single workshop, gives substantial attention to sleep and recovery, and includes regular opportunities to review what is and is not helping.
Explore Reignite →Tracking anxiety over eight weeks
Calm Within Chaos is evaluated through matched assessments completed at the beginning and end of the programme. The current dataset includes 17 participants across three cohorts: seven from April 2024, six from September 2024 and four from March 2026.
Two of the questionnaires are established anxiety measures used widely in healthcare:
- GAD-7
- Beck Anxiety Inventory
The third is the Positive Thinking Scale, the same outlook measure used in the MSc study.
82%
recorded lower GAD-7 anxiety scores
14 of 17 participants
71%
moved into a lower GAD-7 severity range
12 of 17 participants. None moved higher.
What changed
Across those 17 people:
Average anxiety score
GAD-7, down 36.4%; 14 of 17 recorded a lower score
Average anxiety symptoms
Beck Anxiety Inventory, down 40.4%; 13 lower, 2 unchanged, 2 higher
Average outlook score
Positive Thinking Scale, up 10.1%; here a higher score is better
People did not all respond the same way. On the Beck Anxiety Inventory, 13 improved, two stayed the same and two scored higher than when they started.
Exploratory look at symptom patterns
Anxiety shows up in the body as well as the mind, so we also grouped the individual Beck inventory items into physical and psychological symptoms and scored them separately. The Beck inventory is designed and validated as a single 21-item total, and published analyses group its items in more than one way. This is our own additional grouping rather than a standard interpretation of the questionnaire.
Physical symptoms
14 items: racing heart, dizziness, trembling, breathing, sweats, numbness. Down 41.9%; 12 improved, 2 unchanged, 3 higher
Psychological symptoms
7 items: unable to relax, fear of the worst, terrified, nervous, fear of losing control, fear of dying, scared. Down 38.5%; 13 improved, 1 unchanged, 3 higher
Both groupings moved by a similar amount. Slightly more people improved on the psychological side, and the physical side fell slightly further on average. Three people scored higher on each at the end than when they started.
Evaluation context
These figures combine matched starting and closing assessments from 17 participants across three Calm Within Chaos cohorts. They describe the changes observed during participation rather than a controlled estimate of programme effect. One further case was excluded because the starting questionnaire was incomplete.
The dataset will continue to grow as further cohorts complete the programme. Results are reported in aggregate, and participant names are not included.
How this shapes Calm Within Chaos. The clearest lesson is that people do not respond in the same way. That is why the programme keeps a common eight-week structure but adds individual consultations and adjustments along the way, and why anxiety is looked at from more than one angle rather than through a single score.
About the measures
- GAD-7.
- Seven items, scored 0 to 21. A lower score means fewer anxiety symptoms.
- Beck Anxiety Inventory.
- Twenty-one items, scored 0 to 63. A lower score means fewer anxiety symptoms.
- Oldenburg Burnout Inventory.
- Sixteen items across two components, exhaustion and disengagement, each scored 8 to 32 and combining to a total of 16 to 64. A lower score means fewer reported signs of burnout.
- Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index.
- Scored 0 to 21. A lower score means better sleep quality.
- Positive Thinking Scale.
- Twenty-two yes or no items, scored 0 to 22. A higher score means more positive thinking. From Diener and colleagues (2010), New well-being measures: short scales to assess flourishing and positive and negative feelings, Social Indicators Research 97, 143 to 156.
Percentage changes throughout this page are calculated from unrounded group means; the means shown are rounded to one decimal place.
How the evidence shapes our programmes
Measuring is only useful if it changes how the work is actually done. Three things have come up consistently enough across both programmes to shape how they are run.
Practice needs time
A useful technique can be introduced quickly. Learning when it helps, how much is appropriate, and how it fits into everyday life takes longer. This is one reason our structured programmes run over several weeks.
Individual adaptation matters
Group averages show an overall pattern, but people do not respond identically. Individual consultations and regular review allow the shared programme structure to be adapted to health, capacity, and experience.
Progress needs to matter in daily life
Questionnaires are one way of seeing change. We also look at whether participants are sleeping, recovering, managing anxiety, recognising limits, and using the practices more effectively in ordinary life.
Karthikeyan
I hold an MSc in Yoga from S-VYASA, where my research examined burnout and online yoga among adults in the Netherlands. Outcome measurement has remained part of my work since then.
As a yoga therapist, I use these measures alongside participant experience to understand where people are starting, observe what changes over time, and identify where a programme may need to adapt. The aim is not research for its own sake. It is to make the work more considered, responsive, and accountable.
More about my background and approach →See how the work is applied
Reignite
An eight-week yoga therapy programme for people experiencing burnout, persistent exhaustion, or difficulty recovering after effort.
Explore Reignite →Calm Within Chaos
An eight-week yoga therapy programme for people experiencing persistent anxiety, worry, restlessness, or overwhelm.
Explore Calm Within Chaos →Start with a conversation
If you are considering yoga therapy but are unsure whether a group programme or individual work is more appropriate, we can look at that together in a free consultation.
Book a Free ConsultationThese are the practice's own outcome measures, not a peer-reviewed clinical trial. If you are a clinician considering this for someone in your care, there is a page setting out the conditions supported, the evidence, and how referral works.
Information for health professionals →