After about a 8-10 "break" from amateur racing I started getting back into bike racing 2-3 years ago. I started with a coach whom I have worked with 12 years prior and I immediately made gains and felt very strong. (I must say I trained 10hr or less) but nevertheless my training was somewhat controlled. When I learned about racers training like professionals I first got very jealous because I was just in discussions of having a baby or not (and I just turned 40 this year having a 9 month old). But I was jealous that I couldn't train that much. I had a great bike season with a lot of confidence and good results. but this year I have been asking myself 'why' am I racing. The 30 hours per week instantly felt unappealing but the jealousy still has not completely gone. (probably because of the baby thing), but why do i need to win? And when I win, who cares anyway? Even if a professional wins it gets barely noticed (sure a tour de france win likely enhances your market value). In the end, I would rather be able to race along for decades to come than always strive for the podium and sacrifice time with friends and family.
On top of the stressors that professional athletes face regarding training, diet, performance, injuries, etc., they are influenced further by more widely accessible social media and marketing that pressures everyday young people as well. Of course there are instances of ADHD, eating disorders and depression in the amateur and pro peloton - it is a microcosm of a broader societal problem. This is not to diminish in any way the importance of openly discussing these issues, or in providing more support for athletes.
Two recent examples in the world tour peloton represent the breadth of choices being made by athletes and their teams - Jonas Abrahamsen, a rider for Uno-X, spoke out about the dangers of eating disorders, after gaining 20kg and achieving success; and Pauline Ferrand-Prevot, who chose to lose 4kg to improve her chances of winning the TdFF.
I hope that both Ferrand-Prévot and Visma | LAB speak openly and honestly about this. Not just about fulfilling a dream, but also the care taken to ensure safety of the athlete in making this choice.
I agree. There is a lot to unpack, so I'll just add a few bullet points to the discussion. I think it is a fascinating topic with a lot of nuance and complexity :)
1) Perhaps the influence of social media these days highlights the need to combine both sport psychology and sport psychiatry even more (I personally can't stand social media)
2) Disordered eating patterns are a symptom of ADHD. Speaking from experience, if I had known and managed my symptoms appropriately, I would have avoided the issues I had with RED-S in the past, while I was racing - I touched on this in a previous post from earlier this year.
4) There is a spectrum to eating disorders, and at a clinical level they absolutely require psychiatric support (along side additional support from other health care professionals, of course), again highlighting the need for a combined approach.
3) I refuse to comment on athletes weight (whether it's high or low) without knowing the full context, nuance, decision making process, etc. PFP commented several times that she does not plan to maintain a lower weight, acknowledged that it is unsustainable or healthy in the long run and was a heavily monitored, calculated decision. This isn't the first time she has manipulated her weight - She was much lighter at the Olympics last year compared with when she won Paris Roubaix this year, for example. It is not up to anyone else to comment if it was the right or wrong decision. I do admit that as a sports nutritionist, I would love to see this presented as a case study!
weight - I had a discussion with my wife the other day that actors (ex. dallas buyers club) lose weight constantly to obtain certain roles and people find it 'amazing' and impressive vs. athletes like PFP get so much backlash.
Thank you for this thoughtful reply, and for writing about this important topic.
I respect your take on not commenting on an athlete’s weight without knowing the whole story. More than anything, it’s important to keep the dialogue happening.
I think it’s also important that we’ve already heard from riders like PFP and Demi Vollering on this issue, and that both of them bring their own perspectives to this issue.
Really interesting,I am currently going through this transition and have been through a tough time mentally it really is a problem throughout pro/amateur sports and isn’t talked about enough.
I feel you - Its a challenge, for sure. I was forced to stop racing due to health issues and I struggled for a while.
We have something called 'game plan' in Canada, which is a service designed to help national team athletes transition from sport. I do think more can be done and that there isn't enough awareness around this topic in general though.
After about a 8-10 "break" from amateur racing I started getting back into bike racing 2-3 years ago. I started with a coach whom I have worked with 12 years prior and I immediately made gains and felt very strong. (I must say I trained 10hr or less) but nevertheless my training was somewhat controlled. When I learned about racers training like professionals I first got very jealous because I was just in discussions of having a baby or not (and I just turned 40 this year having a 9 month old). But I was jealous that I couldn't train that much. I had a great bike season with a lot of confidence and good results. but this year I have been asking myself 'why' am I racing. The 30 hours per week instantly felt unappealing but the jealousy still has not completely gone. (probably because of the baby thing), but why do i need to win? And when I win, who cares anyway? Even if a professional wins it gets barely noticed (sure a tour de france win likely enhances your market value). In the end, I would rather be able to race along for decades to come than always strive for the podium and sacrifice time with friends and family.
On top of the stressors that professional athletes face regarding training, diet, performance, injuries, etc., they are influenced further by more widely accessible social media and marketing that pressures everyday young people as well. Of course there are instances of ADHD, eating disorders and depression in the amateur and pro peloton - it is a microcosm of a broader societal problem. This is not to diminish in any way the importance of openly discussing these issues, or in providing more support for athletes.
Two recent examples in the world tour peloton represent the breadth of choices being made by athletes and their teams - Jonas Abrahamsen, a rider for Uno-X, spoke out about the dangers of eating disorders, after gaining 20kg and achieving success; and Pauline Ferrand-Prevot, who chose to lose 4kg to improve her chances of winning the TdFF.
I hope that both Ferrand-Prévot and Visma | LAB speak openly and honestly about this. Not just about fulfilling a dream, but also the care taken to ensure safety of the athlete in making this choice.
I agree. There is a lot to unpack, so I'll just add a few bullet points to the discussion. I think it is a fascinating topic with a lot of nuance and complexity :)
1) Perhaps the influence of social media these days highlights the need to combine both sport psychology and sport psychiatry even more (I personally can't stand social media)
2) Disordered eating patterns are a symptom of ADHD. Speaking from experience, if I had known and managed my symptoms appropriately, I would have avoided the issues I had with RED-S in the past, while I was racing - I touched on this in a previous post from earlier this year.
4) There is a spectrum to eating disorders, and at a clinical level they absolutely require psychiatric support (along side additional support from other health care professionals, of course), again highlighting the need for a combined approach.
3) I refuse to comment on athletes weight (whether it's high or low) without knowing the full context, nuance, decision making process, etc. PFP commented several times that she does not plan to maintain a lower weight, acknowledged that it is unsustainable or healthy in the long run and was a heavily monitored, calculated decision. This isn't the first time she has manipulated her weight - She was much lighter at the Olympics last year compared with when she won Paris Roubaix this year, for example. It is not up to anyone else to comment if it was the right or wrong decision. I do admit that as a sports nutritionist, I would love to see this presented as a case study!
weight - I had a discussion with my wife the other day that actors (ex. dallas buyers club) lose weight constantly to obtain certain roles and people find it 'amazing' and impressive vs. athletes like PFP get so much backlash.
Thank you for this thoughtful reply, and for writing about this important topic.
I respect your take on not commenting on an athlete’s weight without knowing the whole story. More than anything, it’s important to keep the dialogue happening.
I think it’s also important that we’ve already heard from riders like PFP and Demi Vollering on this issue, and that both of them bring their own perspectives to this issue.
Really interesting,I am currently going through this transition and have been through a tough time mentally it really is a problem throughout pro/amateur sports and isn’t talked about enough.
I feel you - Its a challenge, for sure. I was forced to stop racing due to health issues and I struggled for a while.
We have something called 'game plan' in Canada, which is a service designed to help national team athletes transition from sport. I do think more can be done and that there isn't enough awareness around this topic in general though.