UKH

Now more than ever, the outdoor industry is talking about mental health; but are eating disorders among outdoor folk receiving the attention they deserve? Emily Ankers talks to GB Paraclimbing Squad member Abbie Robinson, and endurance athlete Alex Staniforth, about sport, social media, and their relationships with food.

I never knew that Disordered Eating/Eating Disorders were so complicated or that prominent climbing athletes like the two in the article would suffer from them. Kudos to the two for being so open about it. Don't other sports have nutrition coaches? Would they be a good addition to the paraclimbing team or an ultra-distance runners' organisation?

Frankly climbing is absolutely riddled with it. The more you dig and ask questions (within a circle of stronger climbers, at least), the more people will start to admit the struggles they've had with disordered eating. 

From my close circle of friends I could name at least 5 people who have sought professional help due to varying forms of disordered eating. 

The underlying trend from every one of these (that I've had personal contact with) has been that they didn't fit the super skinny body type that the climbing community expects from stronger climbers and thereby fell into steadily more mechanical and controlled eating patterns to try to change this. 

From a personal perspective, I climb at a reasonable level and do not have the skinny body that is expected. I get on average at least one comment about my body composition vs strength per session. This will usually take the form of 'Wow, you're really strong considering your size!' or 'How are you so much stronger when you weigh probably 15kg more than me?' 

When I'm feeling patient I explain to the person why this isn't a compliment and isn't appropriate. 

I can easily see how that sort of thing could affect the decisions of a young adult who wants to perform at their best. IMO If we want to handle this, we have to root out this sort of social commentary and kill it off.

‘Riddled, disordered, super skinny, circles of strong climbers, social commentary, root it out and kill it off’

A post lacking in empathy and understanding beyond self perspective.
 

The article itself is thoughtful, clear and accessible which is lovely to see. For those struggling that may want help, there is also an nhs early intervention service for 16-25 yr olds that’s being set up across the U.K. 

https://freedfromed.co.uk

Didn’t Ian Mcnaught Davis identify the problem many years ago when he described some climbers as anorexic little weirdos?

I'd agree completely with this. Obviously how hard you can climb is dependent on a few things but weight is one of the major ones if you are aiming to get really good, so it is not at all surprising that disorders are common in those climbing hard.

I remember there was a bit of chat a while ago about girls essentially slowing/halting changes as they went through puberty through a combination of training and eating - I think Natalie Berry wrote an article on it. I have to say that for a number of the top girls/young women currently, when I see climbing videos of them, between thinking "damn, if only I could do that, it'd be E8 on sights for breakfast!", a bit of me is thinking "that body shape/composition looks worrying".

I feel like it would have been useful to have a bulleted list of things that suggest you might have food/nutrition related issues. No list is going to be complete but the article explains some obvious signs, hints at others but also doesn't mention yet others. I think there was an opportunity to give a list at the end.

Well, let's go!

1.  Reading articles on eating disorders in climbing

2.  Weighing yourself frequently, rather than knowing when you're a couple of kilos over/under from how you feel

3.  Dieting beyond simply exercise and moderate portions of healthy food

4.  Changing what/how you eat in response to a climbing goal

5.  ...

And why?

I know Alex loosely, chat to him at races and on social. Never knew he'd had eating problems until he surfaced it. Insidious stuff. He's not super skinny for the population of freaks we mix in, same with the climbing world. And that's part of the problem.

Funny, they all apply to me. 

...

6) Feeling guilty for eating a certain type or quantity of food.

7) Vomiting after eating.

8) Lying to or misleading others about how much you eat.

9) Trying many different diets in a short length of time.

10) Body weight going up and down significantly within a period of months.

...

In terms of "why?" I guess I was thinking about it in similar terms to the classic signs of alcoholism - it's useful to have a checklist you can read through to prompt you to realise that you might have a problem you were not acknowledging up to that point.

Anyone else can feel free to add to the list or dispute when Bilberry and I have come up with so far.

Physical signs:

Significant weight fluctuations

Stomach complaints or pain

Changes in bowel habits

Changes in menstrual regularity, stopping menstruating or missing periods 

Feeling dizzy, weak, or tired.  Fainting.

Changes in skin and hair

Emotional signs:

Preoccupation with weight and/or calorie counting to the extent that it disrupts other activities

Being preoccupied with body image/size/shape (may focus only on a particular part of the body)

Limiting the repertoire of food eaten, including restricting whole categories of food, having lists of safe and unsafe food

Performing rituals around eating food

Not eating in social situations or being very private about eating

(From a short course about recognising disordered eating I did when I was coaching gymnastics)

For those struggling that may want help, there is also an nhs early intervention service for 16-25 yr olds that’s being set up across the U.K. 

From my understanding, which may not be quite right, they are hoping to set this up across the U.K but, unfortunately, I am not sure it is being commisioned and paid for in all areas just yet.