“If I Don’t Exercise, I’ll Fall Apart”

– When Physical Activity Gets Out of Control

Isn’t it good to exercise? No, not always, and not for everyone. Of course, there’s no doubt that physical activity is something that fundamentally benefits us and that we need. But movement driven by compulsion is never healthy; in fact, it’s harmful. And it is closely associated with eating disorders and orthorexia (an obsession with eating healthy). 

In fact, many girls and women with ADHD, ADD and autism describe how they get trapped in compulsive exercise.

Where thoughts on diet, training, and health anxiety become like a prison. Where one is driven to exercise despite injury.

Perhaps we don’t talk enough about the negative aspects of physical activity, such as compulsive exercise and obsessive urges to move. When physical activity turns into something unhealthy and potentially also becomes a gateway to disordered eating. 

Overlooking the Downsides of Exercise?

In a global culture that almost seems obsessed with fitness this problematic side of exercise may go unnoticed. Because those who exercise receive so much praise and admiration:

“Oh, you’re so strong!” 
“I wish I were like you!”

On social media, we’re flooded with images of “ideal bodies” and disciplined lives, where grit and determination are celebrated.

Few talk about how even a well-toned body can hide severe suffering in the form of obsessive or compulsive exercise and disordered eating.

Are we perhaps blinded by the one-sided message of the positives of physical activity? 

Exercise and movement are almost always presented as something everyone needs more of. However, that messaging needs to be nuanced. Absolutely, at the population level, passive sedentary lifestyles are a problem that increases the risk for several diseases and costs millions in healthcare costs. 

Recognizing the Warning Signs

Research shows many positive effects of physical activity, but perhaps we also need to include the darker sides in the conversation. At least when it comes to neurodiversity [1].

Otherwise, the picture will be incomplete for a huge group, and we risk missing an important aspect of understanding this complex issue – we’ll miss the chance of early interventions.  

Think about everyone who may not have an eating disorder diagnosis but still exercises in a way that isn’t healthy or sustainable over time. 

For example, neurodivergent girls and women who struggle to gain control in a brain where everything feels chaotic. They can easily become overly rigid in their approach to diet and exercise.

Unable to abstain from training even when they are sick or injured, due to the control it helps them feel. 

They aim to be “healthy” at all costs and are broken down under the demands to “optimize” – hearing a self-critical voice saying: “This isn’t good enough, this isn’t good enough, nothing is good enough…”

We know that the earlier you get help, the easier the way back is. 

And to do that, we need to know what to look for! To interpret warning signs and understand that a “perfect body” is not necessarily a healthy one.

Finding Balance Through Self-Awareness

There is absolutely no contradiction between the need for some to move more and for others to move less or with a different approach.

Knowledge about how you specifically function and what your body and mind need is empowering!

When you understand how your ADHD, autism, or AuDHD brain works and in which situations you need to be particularly careful with yourself.

Then you can also achieve what’s challenging for people with neuropsychiatric disabilities – finding balance! 

At its core, it’s about the same thing:
that we all should have the opportunity to move in a way that makes us feel genuinely healthy and well.

Don’t miss the Mini-series about compulsory training in MindHub by the journalist, author and podcaster Anna Ehn.

Reference:
1.https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4777329/#:~:text=The%20prevalence%20of%20eating%20disorders,patients%20%5B7%2C%208%5D.
https://withinhealth.com/learn/articles/signs-and-symptoms-of-exercise-addiction

Lotta Borg Skoglund MD PhD

MD PhD & Letterlife Co-founder

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