TW: exercise addiction and disordered eating

I know I keep talking about this a lot but I am really, really concerned about the damage lockdown has done to people in terms of exercise addiction and eating disorders.

This comes from both what I'm seeing close to me and what I'm seeing online/in public. Substantial amounts of time + a need for control have led people to turn to exercise with a fervour they might not have done before. This has resulted in very unhealthy habits forming.

I'm talking about exercising too much, eating too little, people being convinced they are actually revolutionising their lives because they are dropping lots of weight when in fact, they're unwittingly nurturing an exercise addiction/burgeoning eating disorder.

Also worried about how people who have put on weight during lockdown are dealing with this, especially if they have a history of issues with exercise addiction and disordered eating. Our society is extremely fatphobic.

The loss of control over weight during a pandemic will be seen as a 'failure'. It will be very triggering. And people will try extremely quick 'methods' to get rid of it.

This all points to more danger, particularly coupled with the new Tory 'anti-obesity' plan which prizes 'losing weight' over having a healthy, sustainable relationship with food and exercise that leaves you nourished and happy.

These nascent issues with exercise and food might not have been obvious during lockdown but they'll be becoming harder to ignore now, especially as life returns to 'normal' & you're able to spot how priorities have shifted to a focus on working out at the expense of other things

I am not an expert, just some who's gone thru it but pls, if you spot:
1) you're working out more than 3 times a week for lengthy periods
2) you freak out if food is not low sugar/low carb
3) your clothes are hanging off you
4) exercise and food are constantly on your mind

5) missing a workout makes you panic and you will cancel plans to get them done
6) you're very low energy outside the workout
7) your meals are significantly smaller and sometimes you skip them
8) you see food as 'earned'

talk to someone. visit @beated. try and take a break.

take the amount of working out you're doing down. try and readdress how you're viewing food. ask what rationale you're using to skip certain items or what you do if you're bingeing on them.

my DMs are also always open but again, not an expert, just v worried.

if you do want to lose weight, there are healthy and sustainable ways to do this. sorry to be cliche but also remember that your body shape is your body shape. being a size Gigi Hadid or Baywatch Zac Efron is not good for the majority of us.

I can also give some tips on basic workout plans and approaches to guide a healthier, balanced approach to exercise but also not an expert. However, can definitely suggest following @hannah_lewin_ who is a trained PT and has a non-aesthetic approach.