Exercise inflicts students
Obsession with body image drives many to overexert
ByIevaAugstums
Staff Reporter
Jennifer Schulte, a junior dietetics
major, had an obsession with exercise
in high school.
She exercised daily, but she was
unhappy with her body and wanted to
change the way she looked. Exercise
controlled her body, mind, and in the
long run, her life. She lost contact with
her friends and stopped going out.
Schulte’s body became her life.
At age 16, merely a junior in high
school, she realized her addiction to
exercise had led to anorexia, and she
decided she needed to change.
“Exercise controlled my life to the
point where I could not go to bed if I
did not exercise during the day,”
Schulte said. “I felt gross and fat if I
didn’t make it to the gym. And to make
up for my lack of exercise, I chose not
to eat. My exercise dependency and my
feelings about food contributed to my
anorexia.”
Five percent of young women and 1
percent of teen-age girls become
anorexic or bulimic, according to the
University Health Center. Schulte,
unfortunately, is a part of that percent
age.
Nancy Betts, University of
Nebraska-Lincoln nutrition scientist,
along with graduate students and
undergraduates, has developed an
inventory test to identify the diagnostic
criteria and possible cases of exercise
dependent syndrome.
The Exercise Habits Inventory is a
questionnaire in which participants
give answers reflecting their own exer
cise and eating habits. The study also is
trying to find a correlation between
exercise and eating disorders, Betts
said.
D.M.W. De Coverley Veale, a pro
fessor at London’s Royal Free Hospital,
coined the term, “exercise depen
dence,” in 1987, Betts said.
“Exercise dependency is only a
proposed syndrome,” Betts said. “Our
interest in this particular field is to
determine if such a proposed syndrome
actually exists.”
Betts began testing the study’s
validity in 1993.
In 1995, 350 UNL students in
introductory nutrition classes volun
teered to help test the inventory’s
strengths. A random, nationwide mail
survey was also conducted where an
additional 500 to 600 responses were
studied.
Results so far show a 4 to 5 percent
estimate of exercise-dependent people
nationwide. Betts said the sample gath
ered through the mail survey was most
ly representative of the older popula
tion and their views and habits on exer
cise. College students are more prone
to the dependency because of personal
goals and age difference, she said.
Some pain, no gain
People exercise mainly to lose
weight, relieve stress and, as a long
term goal, become healthy, Schulte
said.
“No one thinks they are harming
their bodies,” Schulte said.
“Sometimes exercise does more harm
than good.”
Betts agrees with experts who say
people should exercise at least 30 min
utes at least three times a week as a
minimum.
“Exercise and physical fitness are
essential for life, but it is also addic
tive,” Betts said. “Exercise is healthy,
but when it becomes an obsession,
. assessment is needed.”
Tricia Besett, counseling coordina
_ tor at the Women’s Center, said one of
the main problems that links exercise
dependence and eating disorders is that
exercise is considered a social activity
among college students.
“Many think of exercise as a social
activity and many go to the gym with a
i friend to discuss and catch up on the
day’s activities,” Besett said. “Some
students go to the gym every day and
exercise extensively. When you look at
the national norm, most college stu
dents’ exercise activity is extremely
above normal.”
Betts said women, runners, body
builders and wrestlers are most suscep
tible to the syndrome. Women seem to
exercise to lose body fat, while men
exercise to achieve more physical fit
ness, she said.
“We are finding more correlation
between exercise dependency and eat
ing disorders among females,” Betts
said. “Society has created the image of
an ideal women, and more and more
females feel that they have to live up to
the standard.”
Feel the burn
Betts said the conclusion drawn
from the surveys leans toward the
younger generation. Exercise depen
dency focuses on people under the age
of 40, she said.
Karen Miller, registered dietitian
and nutritional educator for the health
center and Campus Recreation Center,
said she has noticed the effects of exer
cise more in clients with eating disor
ders.
“Most people see exercise as a
healthy way of burning calories,”
Miller said. “What I am seeing more of
is people choosing not to eat and think
they have to exercise to keep off the
calories that they do eat. It has gone to
the extreme that exercise becomes an
obsession.”
Betts said people with exercise
dependency syndrome will increase
their daily exercise habits, make exer
cise a higher priority and have with
drawal symptoms when they don’t
exercise. If they resume exercising,
they will feel a rush, she said.
These clues form the diagnostic
criteria for exercise dependency and
can help researchers begin finding a
cure, Betts said.
“The only help presently available
for exercise-dependent people would
be counseling,” Betts said.
Miller said UNL’s Counseling and
Psychological Services provide many
programs and services that provide a
starting point for treatment.
Schulte gives group presentations
and speaks to students and faculty
members about eating disorders and
her experience with anorexia.
“It was hard for me to admit to
myself, to my family and to my friends
that I had an eating disorder,” Schulte
said. “But looking at my life now, and
how I have improved and excelled, I am
proud of my decision. I admit it was
hard, but I survived.
“Others will too.”
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Programs provide
counseling treatment
■ The university has
services available that
deal with eating
disorders and exercise
dependency.
From Staff Reports
Experts say the best treatment
for people suffering from exer
cise dependency or eating disor
ders is counseling and support
groups. The university has ser
vices that can help:
PeerNET, the Peer Nutrition
Education Team, provides group
presentations and individual
counseling on topics regarding
exercise, dieting and nutrition.
For information, visit
Community Health Education on
the lower level of the University
Health Center or call (402) 472
7440.
Nutritional Assessments
offers a personal evaluation of
exercise, dietary intake, habits
and goals. Call (402) 472-3467 or
stop by the Wellness Office at the
Campus Recreation Center.
Accepting Our Bodies,
Accepting Ourselves is a work
shop for improving one’s body
image through exercise and nutri
tion. The group meets Mondays
from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the
Women’s Center, 340 Nebraska
Union. To register call
Counseling and Psychological
Services, (402) 472-7450.
Eating Disorders Education
Group, provided by Counseling
and Psychological Services,
offers a team approach to individ
uals with eating disorders. The
group meets five times during the
semester, and it is open to stu
dents, friends or family con
cerned about eating disorders. It
costs $25 for students, $50 for
others. Contact Counseling and
Psychological Services, (402)
472-7450, or the health center’s
business office, (402) 472-7435,
for registration.
Eating Disorder Support
Group, organized by the Women’s
Center, meets Wednesdays, 5:30
p.m. to 7 p.m. For information,
visit the Women’s Center or call
(402) 472-2597.