{"id":21946,"date":"2018-06-11T07:49:14","date_gmt":"2018-06-11T14:49:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/?p=21946"},"modified":"2018-07-02T15:36:52","modified_gmt":"2018-07-02T22:36:52","slug":"top-ten-things-personal-trainer-know-working-eating-disorders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/all-mfn\/top-ten-things-personal-trainer-know-working-eating-disorders\/","title":{"rendered":"Top Ten Things a Personal Trainer Should Know About Working with Eating Disorders"},"content":{"rendered":"

Having worked as a certified personal trainer and strength and conditioning specialist early in my career, and now as a certified specialist in sport dietetics who specializes in treating clients with eating disorders who are often over-exercising, I feel it is critical for trainers to have some training about how to deal with their clients with these issues because you will be seeing these clients.\u00a0 Given eating disorders can present as over-exercise and under-fueling, a personal trainer is in a position to be the first identifier of these issues and can be a key player on an eating disorders treatment team.\u00a0 I often utilize personal trainers to help these clients develop exercise limits, boundaries, or assist with reiterating the \u201cfueling and hydrating\u201d messages the dietitian may be providing the client.\u00a0 I have helped in developing a new tool available to those who work in the fitness and coaching field called\u00a0Running on Empty,<\/strong><\/em>an online eating disorders awareness and prevention program for coaches and exercise professionals, through a non-profit eating disorders outreach and prevention organization, Eating Disorders Information Network. I have also invited one of our recovery speakers to share her tips in this article. She is both an ACE certified personal trainer and a recovery speaker for EDIN. She, Kristy Wegert, shares her thoughts as a professional who currently treats clients who are on their recovery path.<\/p>\n

A key reference on this topic is the new International Olympic Committee\u2019s position statement on RED-S, Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport.\u00a0Many of us will work with people with sub-diagnostic cases of eating disorders who may present with many of the negative energy balance physical issues discussed in this consensus statement.\u00a0Working with an exercising population means helping this population stay in energy balance or eating appropriately to fuel for the level of activity in which they are engaging without harming the body because of lack of energy for basic body systems to function.\u00a0 All body systems are affected when limiting the body to too little energy to function fully, including the systems visually represented below. It is the job of the eating disorders treatment team, including the exercise professionals, to be aware of this set of possible consequences and treat\/refer to treatment accordingly.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

A sport dietitian\u2019s top 5 tips for working with the exercising client with an eating disorder:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

1. Keep your client in energy balance by reminding them about appropriate fueling, recovery, and hydration. Complex carbs rule before exercise. Encourage your clients to fuel on these before they train vs. training on empty. Common \u201con the go\u201d examples of this can be as simple as a slice of toast or a higher carbohydrate energy bar. Encourage your client to drink hydrating fluids and even an electrolyte beverage during their training session with you. Also, most active clients need to drink 4 oz. of fluids every 15 minutes. Encourage your client to take these breaks.\u00a0 Encourage your clients to have a protein recovery choice within 15-45 minutes after they finish their workout.\u00a0 This could be a glass of chocolate milk or a smoothie with protein.<\/p>\n

2. Encourage and educate your clients with a non-diet mentality. This means \u201cAll Foods Fit<\/em>\u201d and that there are \u201cNo Bad Foods<\/em>.\u201d All foods have some energy value and can fit into our performance plan. In fact, when we exercise, we have need to eat more energy. If we adapt the mentality that all foods fit, then we will have less chance of sabotaging ourselves with exercise or restriction.\u00a0 Check out the references\u00a0Moving Away from Diets\u00a0<\/em>by King, Katrina, and Hayes and\u00a0Intuitive Eating\u00a0<\/em>by Tribole and Resch for more on this way of working with clients.<\/p>\n

3. Be aware of different types of eating disorders or disordered eating that may present to you. An individual with Binge Eating Disorder may be a common client seeking a trainer\u2019s help for weight loss. Be sensitive to this type of client\u2019s energy needs, orthopedic limitations, and potential resistance to traditional exercise and\u00a0Health at Any Size<\/em>\u00ae.<\/p>\n

4. If you must take any anthropometrics, make sure you discuss amongst the team who is the best person to take those measurements.Often the dietitian is the best fit on the team to do this, to discuss these results, and to comment on realistic body weight ranges and appropriate food intake to fuel activity with a sport nutrition approach in a way that is focused away from calories.<\/p>\n

5. Set reasonable boundaries on movement to include at least 2 rest days per week; sessions not exceeding 1 hour in duration; alternate cardio and strengthening to not over-exercise; consider cross training or varying types of activities to lower risk of over-training (such as outside, non-gym activities like road biking, climbing, kayaking, etc.); encourage gentle and restorative activities during the week as well, like yoga, barre, and Pilates; support varying types of classes (dance, kickboxing, karate, etc.) that have appropriate warm-ups and cool downs and are led by a certified instructor; and lastly, exercise with others who have reasonable exercise boundaries to give one appropriate containment and normal exercise boundaries.<\/p>\n

A personal trainer\u2019s top 5 tips in working with an exercising client with an eating disorder:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"\"1. Exercise will bring up past trauma in the body. It can get emotional. Be prepared for some distress and perhaps, some crying.\u00a0Hence, it is important to consult with the treatment team so you are prepared and can offer the appropriate type of support.<\/p>\n

2. Don\u2019t assume that a small person is weak; that a larger person cannot move or has never worked out; that someone in a larger or smaller body doesn\u2019t purge. Bottom line\u2026never assume. Check out the\u00a0Health at Any Size<\/em>\u00ae movement to learn more about this mindset.<\/p>\n

3. Offer privacy when possible. Many people in early recovery feel awkward in their own bodies. Try to help them feel as comfortable as they can during a workout. This may mean taking them out of the traditional exercise environment and away from mirrors, or going outside.<\/p>\n

4. Get written permission to speak with therapists, doctors, dietitians, sponsors, partners, and parents. People who are in recovery from anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder, and OSFED need well-defined, appropriate boundaries and you may need help from the treatment team in determining this. People who are in recovery need a team to help them.<\/p>\n

5. Fitness is about function, healthy lifestyle, and feeling good. No matter what the client asks for, focus away from aesthetics.\u00a0Have fun! Exercise should be a good time for your clients. Help them have a positive experience!<\/p>\n

\n

This article was co-written by Page Love,\u00a0Vice President of the Board for Eating Disorders Information Network<\/a> (EDIN) and\u00a0Kristy Wegert, recovery speaker for EDIN. Originally printed on ED Resource Catalog<\/a>. Reprinted with permission.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"Page Love<\/strong> is a registered dietitian, certified specialist in sport dietetics and nutrition therapist, and runs a thriving private practice<\/a> specializing in eating disorders nutrition therapy, sports nutrition, and weight management nutrition counseling in Atlanta, Ga.\u00a0 She served as a clinical dietitian for Atlanta Center for Eating Disorders for 20 years and has run ANAD groups in Atlanta for 25 years, and has served as a consultant to The Renfrew Center and Veritas Collaborative.\u00a0 She has developed materials for the NEDA, Renfrew Center, and EDIN and has been published in the Renfrew Perspectives, International Journal of Sport Nutrition, and International Journal of Sport Science for Tennis Medicine.\u00a0 She currently serves as the Vice-President of the board for EDIN, Eating Disorders Information Network.\u00a0 She also serves as a consultant for the International Women\u2019s Professional Tennis Tour (WTA) and the Men\u2019s Tour, Association for Tennis Professionals (ATP), the Atlanta Ballet, The Atlanta Falcons Cheerleaders, and formerly with the Atlanta Braves.\u00a0 She has recently co-authored Running on Empty, an online education program for the exercise professional working with eating disorders through Eating Disorders Information Network, a non-profit for the prevention and outreach for eating disorders in Atlanta, Ga.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"At 40 years old, Kristy Wegert<\/strong> made some decisions that caused a mid-life career change. She decided after some much needed deep thought, that she was meant for the fitness industry. She holds an ACE Personal Trainer Certification. While she was studying for the ACE exam, she decided to get herself into the industry. There was just no point in waiting (and\u00a0 she was too excited!) so she became a certified Cycle Instructor. (A little back story: Kristy lost 100 pounds after being heavy most of her life and\u00a0has kept off that weight since 2008). Kristy loves to exercise and\u00a0loves being an inspiration to others. Her current passion is to help others in a safe, fun way and watch them transform. Her company, My Workout Buddy<\/a>, embodies everything she feels is important in the fitness industry\u2026rigorous yet fun physical activity, a well balanced lifestyle, and the safety of a properly educated personal trainer at your side.<\/em><\/p>\n

References<\/strong><\/p>\n

The IOC consensus statement: beyond the Female Athlete Triad<\/a><\/p>\n

bjsm.bmj.com \u203a Archive \u203a Volume 48, Issue 7<\/p>\n

Running on Empty; A online eating disorders awareness and prevention program for coaches and exercise professionals,\u00a0<\/em>Love and Gunter,\u00a0<\/em>myedin.org\u00a0http:\/\/www.myedin.org\/athletes.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Moving Away from Diets\u00a0<\/em>Hayes, Katrina, and King<\/p>\n

Health at Any Size<\/em>\u00a0Bacon<\/p>\n

Intuitive Eating\u00a0<\/em>Tribole and Resch<\/p>\n

Sports, Cardiovascular, and Wellness Nutrition dietetics practice group of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Practice Manual:\u00a0\u00a0https:\/\/www.scandpg.org\/e-learning-and-events\/a-practice-manual-for-professionals\/<\/a><\/p>\n

American Council on Exercise Podcast on\u00a0Why We Eat:<\/em>\u00a0https:\/\/www.acefitness.org\/health\/resources.aspx<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Having worked as a certified personal trainer and strength and conditioning specialist early in my career, and now as a certified specialist in sport dietetics who specializes in treating clients with eating disorders who are often over-exercising, I feel it is critical for trainers to have some training about how to deal with their clients with these issues because you will be seeing these clients.\u00a0 Given eating disorders can present as over-exercise and under-fueling, a personal trainer is in a position to be the first identifier of these issues and can be a key player on an eating disorders treatment team.\u00a0 I often utilize personal trainers to help these clients develop exercise limits, boundaries, or assist with reiterating the \u201cfueling and hydrating\u201d messages the dietitian may be providing the client.\u00a0 I have helped in developing a new tool available to those who work in the fitness and coaching field called\u00a0Running on Empty,an online eating disorders awareness and prevention program for coaches and exercise professionals, through a non-profit eating disorders outreach and prevention organization, Eating Disorders Information Network. I have also invited one of our recovery speakers to share her tips in this article. She is both an ACE certified personal […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":248,"featured_media":21947,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[130,198,139],"class_list":["post-21946","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-mfn","tag-eating-disorders","tag-fitness-professionals","tag-nutrition"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21946","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/248"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21946"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21946\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21947"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21946"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21946"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21946"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}