Fitness Frenzy

Gymshark x Whitney Simmons

The fitness industry can be a very controversial place. Some look at it as a way to thrive and get a boost of confidence but others see it as a very negative place full of self-conscious individuals that obsess over their looks. Some even go as far as saying fitness can rule our lives but is this really true?

Many young girls turn to fitness as a way to overcome their negative emotions towards their bodies, which can lead to obsession. Beat Eating Disorders estimates that “around 1.25 million people in the UK have an eating disorder.” Many believe the fitness industry is to blame for these high figures due to the promotion of fat loss plans but in reality it can actually help aid recovery and promote healthy relationships with food and exercise. For example, people that choose to weight train, often eat more food as they need more fuel to help grow and build their muscles. For girls with disordered eating, this can help change their mindset and put them on a path to recovery.

Lizzy is a 20 year old advocate for eating disorder awareness. From struggling herself in the past and recently relapsing last year, she now sees fitness as a way to improve her health, gain strength and feel good day-to-day. “I started my fitness journey about 3 years ago, mainly to work on my physical appearance. But from summer 2019 I got obsessed with fitness which led me down a slippery slope of relapsing from my eating disorder. After recovering from this I changed my mindset around fitness and I now use it as a way to feel good, improve my strength and health. I changed my mindset by going to the gym not with the intention of losing weight and to burn off food but instead going to get stronger and to improve my health. I realised that when I just focused on changing how I physically look it never felt enough; I always had to improve even if I reached my goal. Now I’m focusing on my strength and fitness, I am not chasing unrealistic goals and the changes in my body so far are just an added bonus.” After switching her mindset towards exercise and swapping to weight training, she is now more confident in herself and her ability to inspire other women in a positive way. “I love weight training as it makes me feel strong, physically and mentally. Not only has my physical strength increased but my mental strength has also increased as I know I can do anything I put my mind too, which leads me to hitting new PBs.”

Weight training is a great way to help both mentally and physically during recovery and can help when changing the focus behind exercise.

“Weight training has helped my recovery a lot as I now focus on getting stronger instead of chasing a physique goal. In a way it’s nice to see that I can grow mentally stronger which is reflected in my physical strength as I keep hitting new PBs. Also, I really enjoy it so I am not forcing myself to do it, which has brought back my love for exercise that I lost when I was struggling with an eating disorder.”

After gaining back her confidence back and now sitting at a healthy body weight Lizzy is using her social media channels to help other young females that may be going through similar things. “I’m spreading awareness of eating disorders by talking about taboo topics such as things we shouldn’t normalise in the fitness industry like losing your period. This is actually a sign your body is shutting down. I also wrote an article which is on my page called the ugly truth of starvation where I highlight the symptoms and what it is actually like to suffer. I try to share a lot of body positivity stuff and do more ‘realistic’ pictures so my instagram isn’t a highlight reel, to remind people who are struggling not to compare themselves to others on social media. I like doing transformations pictures as it shows that recovery is possible, it doesn’t make you ‘fat’, and weight gain isn’t a bad thing.” Lizzy often outlines the truth behind weight loss and how damaging it can be for your body and your hormones. “I definitely think there needs to be more awareness so people can spot the signs, how to help others and actually get rid of fitness crap out there such as them saying it is okay to lose your period when dieting. If you do lose your period due to weight loss or over-exercising this is NOT normal. It’s a sign your body is shutting down as it doesn’t have enough energy to function properly. Please fuel your body and don’t risk your fertility to look a certain way, it isn’t worth it.”

Fitness is and most likely will be a very controversial place as everyone has different thoughts/opinions and knowledge. We also all have different goals, bodies and lifestyles which play a part in the way we look. However, undereating and over-exercising is never something that should be done, especially just to look a certain way. If you find yourself comparing your body to those around you or those on social media it is time to stop! It’s time to start living your life again, focusing on your health, start getting stronger and starting to enjoy food again!

Lizzy’s 4 top tips for increasing food again:

1. Change your mindset. It’s been drilled into us that eating more is bad but it’s not true. We need to eat to live and eating more can give you more energy and help build strength.

2. If you are struggling to physically to eat more, try smoothies with ingredients to bomb up calories such as protein powder.

3. Eat calorie dense foods, it’s an easy way to up your calories without eating larger volumes such as peanut butter and nuts.

4.Remind yourself that the only person stopping you is you. You can do anything you put your mind too, even if its hard.

After coming out the other side and now aiming to help others Lizzy’s advice to those that may be struggling is: “Tell someone! If someone is struggling they shouldn’t suffer alone, not only does it damage your mental health but your physical health too! If they don’t feel comfortable with that then they should used BEAT online eating disorder services which has free online support or they should go to the GP to get referred to a specialists. I would also say, remind yourself to not believe everything you think or that you see online; you deserve to eat and you need to eat to live.”

It’s time to step back and really think about why you are no longer living your best life and enjoying all the wonderful foods! It’s time to stop worrying, stop comparing and focus on gaining and not loosing!

If you or anyone you may know is struggling with an eating disorder then please tell someone you trust. If you don’t feel like you have anyone to talk to then here are some helplines you can call instead: