About Athletes And Eating Disorders

As noted in the presentation, athletes may develop eating disorders thanks to the pressure from the field of sport, which often causes such disorders to start. Certain repetitive behavior, like excessive exercise and erratic eating habits, is now a natural part of society. To athletes, shape and weight mean all things, and because of the stresses they have to be in the ‘peek’ of their athletic performance to retain good weight and height, they are more focused than ever before, but not realize it just leads down a dangerous path of creating risk factors for an eating disorder.

When I think about some of the biggest athletes in the world, it’s not difficult to see they are firm in mind and have set expectations that they almost can not achieve and that they will meet such goals within countless hours.

Eating disorders can be identified for certain sporting activities. The risk of developing or even suffering from a food disorder is greatest in sports athletes who have such characteristics, like gymnastics.

Figure skaters are under constant and extreme pressure to hold a tiny body and appear practically as thin as paper. As a football player, I am constantly under the stress of my coaches to gain weight and mass since I am a shorter player at 5’8 175 but they want me to eat as if I am 6’4 220. This can create a risk factor by trying to achieve something that just isn’t possible for me to do. With me being an athlete almost all my life and having to achieve goals that my coaches set for me regardless of the sport it is possible that I could have an eating disorder but I wouldn’t truly know unless I talk to a psychiatrist.

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As stated in the presentation, noticing the signs of an eating disorder from the person dealing with the disorder to the coaches, trainers, and parents is very important. With the right interventions like having a helpful positive conversation with instead of blaming that person for their disorder and making it seem like it’s not that serious. The video with Paul who sent 3 months at an eating disorder center who dropped weight at 13 years old to join a weight lifting board, and talks about the negative effects it had on who he was as a person by the end of the summer. It is scary to even think that someone so young just trying to do something like meeting weight for a weight lifting board can have such a massive impact on your life. Paul talks about how hard it is that you get so stuck in the present worrying if you can ever get better and you never look to the future but with the right treatment it is possible to get back on track with your life before the eating disorder.