"When I tell people I'm a yoga instructor, they usually look at me in a funny way, like I'm joking,'' says Sarah Harry, of Ashwood, Melbourne.

The thing is, Harry is a yoga instructor with thighs that touch, all the way down.

She is also a counsellor and heads up Body Positive Australia, a provider of treatment services for people with eating disorders and body image issues.

She took up teaching for the sake of her clients. ''I'd suggest yoga to my clients, as it can really help them connect with their bodies in a positive way,'' says Harry.

''But many were reluctant to even try it. All the yoga journals tend to feature young, thin, white females doing acrobatic poses, which would put them off. And if they did try a class, they struggled to find a teacher who could include them, and make adjustments for their body type.''

''It's actually not that hard to make adjustments for boobs, bellies and bottoms, it just takes time and care,'' says Harry whose clients range from the very thin to the very large, from 18 to 70-year-olds.

Anna Guest-Jelley, founder and CEO (curvy executive officer) at Curvy Yoga in Nashville in the US, trains other yoga teachers in conducting inclusive classes that accommodate full-figured students.

Guest-Jelley, who is ''curvy'' herself, attracts a similar response to Harry when she reveals her trade.

''When I tell people I'm a yoga teacher, I typically get one of three responses: a quizzical look while they figure out if I'm joking or not; over-enthusiasm to show how ''with it'' they are - 'oh, how cooooool!!?', or a guffaw - usually followed by a sheepish grin when they figure out I'm not joking,'' says Guest-Jelley.

''These things do happen to me as a fat yoga teacher, but most of the time people come into class, see me and feel palpable relief.''

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Who said big bodies can't bend it?