Gymorexia sparks obsession with weight loss
Iliana Deanda
Exercise can be good for an individual, but how much is too much? Compulsive exercise, or gymorexia, is on the rise among people who feel they need to constantly work out to validate themselves.”Gymorexia is a similar concept as anorexia, where it’s defined as tracing it back to a mental disorder. Anorexia is an obsession with food which is linked to body dysmorphic disorder, where someone looks in the mirror and they are just disgusted with themselves even though they might be skinny and in shape, they just see imperfections everywhere,” said Kristine Kuschel, a certified athletic trainer at LA Fitness.
She detailed the traits of gymorexia.
“Gymorexia is kind of the new anorexia where people get so obsessed with working out that it’s never good enough. It’s really an obsession and it can actually can be diagnosed and treated by a psychiatrist,” Kuschel said.
While gymorexia isn’t in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders fourth edition (DSM IV), it can still be linked to other disorders.
“Compulsive exercising is not by itself a mental disorder, rather, it is potentially a symptom of a few different mental disorders,” said said Carolyn St. Peter, an MCC psychology instructor. “Just a few of the many possibilities that come to mind include eating disorders, Body Dysmorphic Disorder, or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.”
Exercising at full speed and not being satisfied with the work out seperates exercising for pleasure versus over doing oneself.
“A 90 minute work out to two hours, something (that) is reasonable. Somebody that has an obsession with (exercising) will go for two hours full speed and be completely disgusted and say that was a terrible work out, and come back (to the gym) an hour later to do cardio and lift weights,” Kuschel said.
Over exercising can put stress on the heart, which is one of the many long term effects of gymorexia.
“Your muscles don’t have time to re-cooperate and heal properly. Muscle strains, torn ligaments, stress fractures in the bones, are some of the long term effects of exercising too much. Anytime you do any type of exercise you are also working your heart and lungs so there are a multitude of stressors on the heart as well,” Kuschel said.
Proper nutrition and cardio is key to weight loss and can help kick start a healthy lifestyle.
“Nutrition is about 80 to 90 percent of any type of weight loss. A really good website that I give my clients is www.mypyramid.gov. The food pyramid has changed a lot even since I was a kid. It’s a really neat website because you can plug in each height and weight and it will give you how many calories you should be taking from each food group,” Kuschel said.
Obssesive thoughts of working out as well as feeling fatigue are key things to look out for, when monitoring excessive exercising.
“You should never be sore all the time, especially if every day it hurts to get out of bed. Obsessive thoughts, even if you’re at work or school and you’re constantly thinking about what your next workout is going to be is something to look for,” Kuschel said.
For those who think they may be on the path of gymorexia, St. Peter reccomends starting with your family doctor.
“If a person is worried about the amount of exercise they are doing, the first thing they might do is make an appointment with their personal physician,” St. Peter said. “For MCC students, we also have counseling services through the Counseling Department at MCC. The student may be able to determine whether the problem is substantial enough to warrant psychological treatment.
