Bigorexia: symptoms, treatment, what is a disease?

Bigorexia means a sports addiction. This addiction to sports practice or effort is sometimes called “sportoolism” or athletic anorexia. It can also affect both professional and amateur athletes. What are the causes of bigorexia? How to recognize it? What are the consequences and the dangers? The best way to treat it? Explanations by Bertrand Guérineau, psychologist at theMedical Antenna for the Prevention and Management of Doping Behaviors (AMCD)

Definition: what is bigorexia?

“Bigorexia” is often characterized by dependence on physical activity and sports. Gold, “this is a reductive definition and may seem a bit confusing to most people“, immediately restores Bertrand Guérineau. In reality, behind this term can hide several disorders. “Sports addiction is often associated with eating disorders.reverse anorexia when the person uses a diet exclusively for muscle mass gain. But also ofathletic anorexiawhich concerns young women more and which is the desire to maintain a lean weight, while practicing endurance disciplines (running, cycling, rollerblading…)”, explains the psychologist. These are not classic anorexias – mental and restrictive – because the person must still ingest food to be able to practice a sport, but rather behavioral anorexia. Finally, bigorexia can sometimes be associated with orthorexiaa disorder comprising a set of dietary practices that are characterized by the obsessive desire to ingest healthy food and the systematic rejection of foods perceived as unhealthy.

Is bigorexia a disease recognized by the WHO?

Bigorexia is a disease recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) since 2011, but is still little known in France. She may as well touch top athletes that amateur athletesbecome dependent following an excessive practice of sport.

What are the possible causes of bigorexia?

The cause of bigorexia is psychological. The person who suffers from bigorexia and associated eating disorders is at the perpetual search for the perfect body. Modeling their body, melting fat, building excessive muscle or achieving a low weight are part of their motivations. Sport is no longer seen as mere pleasure or entertainment, but becomes obsessive, almost binding and must correspond to a “daily routine”. “The feeling of well-being linked to the production of endorphins or the search for technical prowess can be linked, but are generally not their primary goals“, explains Bertrand Guérineau.

What are the symptoms of bigorexia?

“The weight curve is not necessarily alarming”

The main difficulty lies in detection of this addiction and associated eating disorders. “It is very difficult to spot this behavioral addiction, because the weight curve is not necessarily alarming“, specifies the psychologist. And to add “that beyond the weight curve, it is psychological profile and mental functioning which will give clues to a potential dependence“. Moreover, it is not necessarily the time spent playing sports that is indicative of bigorexia, but rather the repercussions on private or professional life :

• Obsessive behavior
• Social isolation
• A sacrifice of everything for the benefit of sport
• A loss of interest in anything unrelated to sports
• Money spent on sports (protein, equipment, gym membership, club licenses, food healthy…)
• Guilt and irritability if the person does not manage to do all the physical training that they impose on themselves
• Lying about his sports practice
• Lack of hindsight despite knowledge of the negative consequences on health (risk of serious injury, recourse to doping, etc.).

“These characteristics are also common to all addictions such as alcoholism, drug addiction, nymphomania or addiction to video games.“, specifies the psychologist.

What are the dangers and consequences of bigorexia?

Bigorexia leads to addiction and therefore psychological problems (listed previously). But also physical problems, especially if the practice is very intense:

• a burnout
• A stress fracture
• A muscle tear
• Tendinitis
• An heartstroke

It is possible to get help from a psychologist, an addictologist, a sports doctor…

“We live in a society focused on health, slimming and healthy eating. Promoting fitness and sport – especially with the emergence of cross-fit boxes whose sole purpose is to have a perfect body – promotes this problem“, deplores the specialist. As a result, people addicted to sport very rarely go to consult. “Yet, as with any addiction, support, ideally multidisciplinaryis necessary“, he adds. It is also important that health professionals, coaches and people working in sports are made aware of this pathology, in order to be able to quickly direct dependent people to suitable specialists. As for all addictions, it is possible to get help from a psychologist, an addictologist, a sports doctor, but also from a Center for Care, Support and Prevention in Addictology (CSAPA) where there are good contacts. , this support is only possible if the person recognizes that they need help and agrees to want to change.

► View the directory of Addictology Care, Support and Prevention Centers (CSAPA) in France

Thanks to Bertrand Guérineau, psychologist at the Medical Antenna for the Prevention and Management of Doping Behaviors (AMCD)