By OkayGoal 
Content warning: discussion of eating disorders, weight, and body image.
Studies show that eating disorders occur more often in athletes than in non-athletes, affecting an estimated 6–45% of female athletes and 0–19% of male athletes. Additionally, up to 70% of female athletes engage in behaviors that can develop into eating disorders.
Adolescence and competitive sport environments can both independently increase a young person’s risk of body image stress and disordered eating. And, as often happens in team sports, coaches and spectators are constantly judging and comparing players. Young girls are especially targeted with unrealistic body expectations and unhealthy self-talk.
Unfortunately, this can cause girls’ soccer to become a breeding ground for unhealthy thought patterns and behaviors to cope with the mounting pressure.
Factor #1: Social Media and Media Representation
As young athletes often have unlimited access to an image-driven landscape and highlight reels, they can develop unrealistic expectations or unhealthy diet patterns. Young female players are in danger of internalizing the narrative that being smaller or lighter will mean “better”.
Fitness influencers can also be a toxic addition to this space. Many reinforce the idea of an “ideal” body image and propose behavioral habits that are detrimental to many young athletes. Especially in puberty, when girls naturally develop curves and deal with hormonal changes at different times, athletes may feel different from their teammates and take measures to fix that dissatisfaction.
Try: Normalize body diversity in female athletes. Engage with positive role models and language.
Options: Aly Raisman, Serena Williams, Alex Morgan, Simone Biles, Megan Rapinoe, Ilona Maher, Michelle Carter, Kayla Harrison, Gabby Douglas
Affirmations:
- “I am getting faster and stronger every time I try something new.”
- “My body is developing as it is meant to.”
- “I am a powerful and unique player.”
- “Fueling my body well is important to keep me healthy.”
Factor #2: High-Performance Culture and Social Dynamics
Intense soccer club practices can start as early as 8 years old. This early specialization increases the drive to “keep up” with competition and expectations each year. Moreover, social competition and peer dynamics can be difficult to navigate, causing extreme social pressure or fear of criticism. These can influence eating disorders in young athletes.
Planting a young athlete in this environment without a positive way to cope can lead to behaviors such as gossiping, overtraining, people-pleasing, hiding “unacceptable” feelings, and feeling like they are never good enough. Perfectionism can develop, along with a lack of coping with failure, a need to be flawless, or a fear of disappointing others. In this way, a soccer field can quickly become a battleground for a young girl who once enjoyed the feeling of freedom.
There is something to be said for the value of competition in pushing an athlete to perform their best. While being a top performer does mean engaging in self-reflection and being disciplined and dedicated, messages given to female youth athletes can be contradictory and harmful. Coaches making offhand comments on appearance or parents comparing players’ fitness to others can filter through a vulnerable mind as “my body is wrong” or “I need to be like her”. This can lead to unhealthy motivation and isolation.
Try: Focus on strengthening identity outside of sport to reduce anxiety and burnout.
- Are there other hobbies you enjoy?
- Are there friendships outside of the team you can strengthen?
- What are your values as a person?
- Would you benefit from working on separating your self-worth from your performance?
Factor #3: Unrealistic Female Body Standards
We already know that female body standards are unrealistic and harmful.
Female athletes may feel pressure to blend in, suck in, tone down, not appear too large or muscular, wear makeup, wear a smaller uniform, or do their hair for a sports competition to fit this ancient beauty “standard”. This can impact how they train, fuel, and feel about their value.
Additionally, consider the complications that arise when these impossible-to-live-up-to beauty standards are combined with natural fluctuations of the female body. Periods, miscarriages, and pregnancy affect how the body performs, looks, and works. This is normal. But in elite sport, we are just beginning to normalize what happens around these fluctuations that every female experiences.
Try: Reframe success to progress over perfection.
- What did you learn today?
- Where do you notice improvement?
- Where do you want to put your effort?
- How can you be more consistent in your training?
Hope: Sydney Leroux’s Powerful Message
No one is immune to the pressures of body criticism and scrutiny of female athletes. Recently, world-class soccer star Sydney Leroux posted a powerful video sharing her experience with an eating disorder. This sparked new discussions regarding the prevalence of eating disorders in female athletes and ways to frame conversations around them.
Leroux discussed:
- Feeling judged for her physique at different stages of her life
- Rejecting unrealistic expectations placed on girls and women in sport
- Emphasizing confidence, strength, and self-worth over body shape
- Encouraging young players to value what their bodies can do, not how they look
Her openness struck a chord with youth athletes and parents because it highlighted a truth: as she says, “her story is just one of many”.
Resources
National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) Helpline
Athletes Connected (University of Michigan Resources for Eating Disorders & RED-S
National Association of Anorexia Nervosa & Associated Disorders (ANAD) Free Support Group