Interesting piece; and looking at the wider issue it's easy to see how mental illness and body dysmorphia can drive a lot of athletes. Given how ultra-competitive and extreme commercialised sports have become it seems reasonable to suggest that the most successful participants are likely to be those eager to indulge their unhealthy, unregulated obsessions with reaching their goals.
While I'm neither particularly accomplished as a cyclist nor sporting the ultra-lean physique you'd expect those afflicted to have / covet, I can relate to a lot of the "red flags" listed in points 1 and 2; which appear to originate from a core of anxiety issues:
1. Predisposing traits
Cyclists often exhibit the classic triad of anxiety, sensitivity and perfectionism. These traits can drive athletic success – meticulous attention to detail, relentless effort – but they can also lead to unhealthy behaviours. When these tendencies become obsessive or trigger defensiveness, they may be early signs of trouble.
2. Precipitating behaviours
A single, seemingly innocent comment such as, “If you lost a bit of weight, you’d climb faster,” can trigger harmful behaviours. I know from experience how easily such comments can stay with you, resurfacing years later and derailing progress. Coaches must be mindful of their language – the smallest remark can have lasting consequences.
3. Perpetuating patterns: The ABCDE
To intervene early, be alert to the following signs:
A: Absence – Withdrawing from meals, eating alone or gradually restricting intake.
B: Body – Frequent comments like “I feel fat” are red flags; “fat” is not a feeling – it’s often a mask for low self-esteem.
C: Control – Obsessive eating habits or restrictive patterns (e.g. intermittent fasting) may be rationalised but are risky for athletes.
D: Diet – Cutting out food groups without medical reason can signal disordered thinking.
E: Exercise – Overtraining or “calorie accounting” via rides or workouts is a hidden form of purging.
I would raise questions about no.3 though and I think it's important to remember that these are not intrinsically bad and only problematic when taken to extremes or occur within the context of consistant, heavy exercise and / or already very low body fat. For example "abstinance" (extended fasting), "restrictive patterns" (intermittant fasting) and "cutting out food groups" (severely restricting carbs, especially junk) have helped me lose a large amount of weight and improve the quality of my diet on numerous occastions in the past - no doubt to the benefit of both my mental and physical health.
In addition I'd question the legitimacy of "fat is not a feeling" - so how else should you feel when you're perpetually conscious of bits of you wobbling when you move, or constantly aware of your clothes rubbing / clinging to areas of your body that are exaggerated by the presence of excess fat?
Also, is it not normal and legitimate to have low self-esteem if you're dissatisfied with your health and appearance; especially in a society that increasingly pushes unattainable models of body image and at best objectively finds excess weight unattractive?
Funnily enough a lot of the time when I wake up feeling like a fast / am flagging while fasting the first song that pops into my head is
4st 7lb by the Manics (which is an account an anorexic girl slowly starving herself to nothingness). As someone who struggles enormously with productivity I've learned that it takes extremes to push me to do anything; and with that to embrace and use the disgust felt when I look in the mirror or the sense of shame and inferiority derived from how others treat me based on my appearance to drive myself to self improvement.
While this mindset is arguably perverse it only becomes self-destructive when taken to extremes; and when handled rationally and objectively (which granted are two things separating those with eating disorders from everyone else and a very important distinction / caveat) can reach legitimate goals that would otherwise be unattainable.
For those of us fortunate enough to have a balanced and rational view of our bodies and eating habits, harnessing feelings of extreme dissatisfaction can be liberating, empowering and ultimately drive legitimate self-improvement that serves to address and the core issues that created this motivation in the first place.
While I'm happy to embrace an extremist mindset to push towards my goals I consider this perfectly healthy as long as my perception remains objective and balanced and that I know when to stop. I still have excess fat, am at the mid-upper end of the "healthy" BMI range and while shooting for the low end have no desire to starve myself to an emiciated weaking. I desire more muscle mass and definition, but do not aspire to the excesses of hypertrophy sought by many body builders - whose goals / reality apparently lie at the other end of the spectrum to the super-skinny cyclists of which this article is the focus; yet are no doubt driven by the same anxiety and insecurities.
I think the article raises a lot of good points but fails to recognise how many of the traits that can be damaging / self-destructive for some can be used to immense benefit by others... although granted one probably has to be very careful when acknowledging this as it could be seen as a green-light by those with dysmorphia issues.
All that said, I'm off downstairs for a massive fry up - stay healthy folks
