The Culture of Disordered Eating in Athletics

New Eating Disorder Special Interest Group in Sport Psychology!

I have just returned from the Annual Conference for the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP).  This year it was held in St. Louis and although I did not take the time to explore the city, I had the unique opportunity to meet with fellow professionals who have an interest in both sport/exercise and eating disorders.  Myself and a colleague have created a Special Interest Group (SIG) for AASP which is the leading organization for sport psychology information and credentialling.  The mission of this SIG is to: To educate athletes, coaches, parents, treatment professionals and the media about signs and symptoms, treatment and consequences of eating disorders and body image disturbance in athletes and exercisers. This SIG will also develop, for use by AASP’s members, prevention materials that can be presented to athletes, parents and coaches.  The Eating Disorders SIG will work with other SIGs within AASP and other professional organizations devoted to athletes and/or eating disorders to promote this effort.

I am excited to have been a part of creating this group of professionals!  I think we can make a significant impact in people's overall understanding of the impact of eating disorders and related concerns on athletes and exercisers.  I welcome any and all comments/suggestions/questions that you may have about this group and/or what we will be doing over the coming months/years.  Your input will be heard by leading professionals in the field of sport psychology and eating disorders.  Please let us know what you think!   

Thoughts on Peacefulness

As I reflect on writing for this blog, I often find that although this is intended to be specific to athletes and those who are regularly physically active I want to convey what I believe to be important for living a healthy and satisfying life regardless of one's status as an athlete or non-athlete, and regardless of whether or not one struggles with eating concerns.  What I believe to be central to our living the kind of lives we want to live is our ability to be authentic with ourselves and others.  I plan to say more about this in another blog; however, an important starting place is to be able to calm one's self and quite one's mind.  By developing our ability to do we can become more connected to our true thoughts, feelings and desires.

Below I have some quotes about peace and peacefulness that may help you to find a sense of peace and to become more true to yourself. 

"Peacefulness is an inner sense of calm - it comes from becoming still - in order to reflect and meditate on our inner wisdom and receive answers. A peaceful heart is one that is free from worry and trouble. It's becoming quiet so we can look at things quietly so we can more clearly understand them and thus come up with creative solutions. It is learning to live in the present."

Nothing is worth more than this day.
- Goethe

Whenever you are sincerely pleased, you are nourished.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Live in the present moment and find your interest and happiness in the things of today.
- Emmett Fox

Be childlike in your sport.

As a "new wave" of organized athletics begins for many of you this fall, I am reminded of the myriad benefits of exercise.  Although many can lose sight of why they may have begun to play a particular sport or to engage in some form of physical activity/exercise, it is useful to reacquaint yourself with those motivations.  Of course physical activity has the benefit of improving both physical and mental health and ca foster collaboration and cooperation between those who might not otherwise encounter one another.

As you consider your participation in athletics, I think it can be especially helpful to remember what it was like to play as a child.  Simply play.  If your memories are at all similar to mine, there was a lot of running, jumping, screaming, laughing, disagreement, compromise and just plain fun!  Certainly there is a certain amount of seriousness that comes with organized athletics especially if your are on a highly competitive team.  If you are so inclined, I'd encourage you to do the following...

Close your eyes, take a few deep, relaxing breaths, and as vividly as possible remember a time when you were a child when you weren't playing to win or to impress, but to have fun with your friends.  Try to recall how you felt running around, laughing and spending time with other kids.  After you spend some time with that memory, I hope that you find yourself smiling when you open your eyes...and a bit more relaxed.  Try to bring that feeling to your next practice or competition.  Sports and athletics can still be enjoyed even if everyone is also trying to win.