For Men

Sports & Compulsive Exercising in Males

Men who participate in weight-restricted sports such as swimming, wrestling, bodybuilding, gymnastics, and running are at an increased risk of developing an eating disorder.

At some point, compulsive exercisers begin to feel like drug addicts. Exercising no longer feels like a free choice; it starts feeling necessary and essential. While exercise may provide temporary feelings of well-being and even euphoria, overwhelming guilt and anxiety can result if a compulsive exerciser does not have the opportunity to work out.

When exercise addicts abuse steroid drugs in an effort to increase muscle mass, they face serious medical risks including blurred vision, hallucinations, rages and tantrums, depression, acne and other skin problems, increased blood pressure, muscle cramps, joint pain, loss of sex drive, and mood swings.

Many psychological factors contribute to the development of eating disorders in men. These include the pressure to succeed and to win at all costs, low self-esteem, poor body image, and strong feelings of inferiority or inadequacy.

Although men often feel ashamed about seeking treatment for an eating disorder, they should do so as soon as possible since the symptoms of an eating disorder can become much worse over time.

Males & Eating Disorders

• One in ten individuals seeking treatment for an eating disorder is a teenage boy or man.
• Most often, disorders are seen during the teenage years, but there are cases where boys as young as eight or men as old as 60 have been affected.
• Most professionals believe that eating disorders in men are very similar or equivalent to eating disorders in women.
• Males are more at risk for developing eating disorders if they participate in sports with weight restrictions. These include running, bodybuilding, wrestling, swimming, and gymnastics.
• Diagnosis and recovery are frequently complicated by a man's reluctance to seek treatment since society generally regards an eating disorder as a "woman's issue."
• Eating disorders in men, as in women, are not about food or vanity. They develop as a way of coping with the conflicts, pressures, and stresses of life. An eating disorder may be a way to experience some control when the rest of one's life seems out of control.

Eating Disorders Defined

When individuals refer to eating disorders they are speaking about anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, or binge eating disorder:

Anorexia is self-imposed starvation. It is a serious, life-threatening disorder. Although people with anorexia deny their hunger, they are obsessed with food. They may also limit or restrict other parts of their life besides food, including relationships, social activities, or pleasure.

Bulimia is the repeated cycle of out-of-control eating followed by some form of purging. This may include self-induced vomiting, excessive use of laxatives or diuretics, or obsessive exercising.

Binge Eating Disorder (commonly called compulsive overeating) is marked by episodes of uncontrolled eating or bingeing followed by periods of guilt and depression. It does not include purging. A binge is marked by the consumption of large amounts of food, sometimes accompanied by a pressured, "frenzied" feeling.