All-Star Cheerleaders With Eating Disorders?

[vipergirl]

"i ate too much last night so my bases can't put me up, too fat" is what i hear much too often from flyers that actually angers me, i just want to shake them and say you already weigh 100 lbs!

however, if someone has an eating disorder i feel that from the outside we have no right to judge, but more to help them along.

but i feel that i does cause a lot of issues, weakens your muscles, having no energy, feeling sick...all of those things can EASILY contribute to injuries.

 

[vipergirl]

"if you eat, you don't compete" is an expression I REALLY hope I NEVER hear again from a cheerleader.

"fat flyers don't fly as high" is something i used to hear in high school at my old gym if people were talking about eating or something...now i know that this was meant as a joke but still...i only weighed 110 lbs at this point. and a lot of the other flyers weighed less than that. it's sad.

 

[Justacoach]

CP flies now because she is young on a higher level team. Any time we talk about flying and basing I remind her that she is only small compared to the other girls because of age. She is a normal body size and would probably base on a team of kids her own age. She is excited to someday get the chance to be a base and knows that her flying days will come to an end when she gets a little older. I stress it to her now so that when that day comes she will not obsess about her weight and be upset that she is 'too big to fly'. She knows its coming and that all positions on the team are important.

 

[retiredl5cheer]

I love you all and my heart goes out to everyone on here that is suffering or has suffered from an eating disorder. You are ALL beautiful and the muscles and fat on your body make you able to do what you do best, cheer! XOXO to all of you.

 

[NEliteSteven]

I have anti-anorexia. No more college cheerleading and now 55 hour work weeks=not working out enough, and eating in drive throughs all the time. You're all invited to my pity party tonight where I'll be eating a pint of ice cream that I don't need.

 

[coachbd]

CP flies now because she is young on a higher level team. Any time we talk about flying and basing I remind her that she is only small compared to the other girls because of age. She is a normal body size and would probably base on a team of kids her own age. She is excited to someday get the chance to be a base and knows that her flying days will come to an end when she gets a little older. I stress it to her now so that when that day comes she will not obsess about her weight and be upset that she is 'too big to fly'. She knows its coming and that all positions on the team are important.

This is such an important message to communicate to your children - I believe once they get a better understanding of the vital importance of both bases AND flyers and that "losing your position as a flyer" is not the end of the world and is (often) a normal occurrence, they can react more normally to changes such as this. I love that your cp is excited to possibly base in the future. It's attitudes like this we need to have to hopefully help prevent the onset of eating disorders and low body image. I think part of the problem is the glorification of flyers as the "more important" members of the team, so that athletes can feel such intense pressure to be small so as to gain and maintain these positions. I am both a coach and an athlete, and I always prefer flyers with muscle and strength over simply just the smallest girls I can find. You need to be able to hold and support your own weight to be a good flyer - yes, you do need to be on the smaller side, but by no means is starving yourself and wasting away your muscle going to make you a better flyer. It's not just about size, but strength and confidence too.

I think it's also important to remember that bases too are prone to developing eating disorders. Yes, there's more overt pressure on flyers to be skinny, but, as was mentioned by a few people earlier, comments by bases that a flyer is "too big" etc. are often not the only contributing factor to developing an ED. I think the perfectionist mentality/personality and the drive to be perfect/have control in one's life also greatly influences this - and this can obviously affect bases as well as flyers. Bases may also feel inadequate looking at how tiny their and other flyers in their team are and/or may wish to get smaller so as to be moved to a position in the air (as, as I mentioned above, they may view this as the "important" position, and may feel that their role is inadequate, or not as valued). I think the moral of all of this is to keep an eye out for warning signs and look after our children through good education both from a coach and parent perspective on body image and eating disorders to hopefully prevent some of the terribly sad things I've read in this thread!

 

[coachrah]

Trust that your coach has chosen the best spot for you to contribute to the team. Not everyone gets to be a flyer, and flyers shouldn't be more important than any other member of the team. A tight flyer weighs less than a loose flyer, and you can't be tight without muscle and strength. I think a lot of comments about weight from bases stems from frustration and wanting to lash out at someone, and unfortunately as girls we are taught that weight matters and it's an easy way to transfer negative feelings. It might also be that they are dealing with body image issues themselves and basing another girl that is similarly sized makes them feel too big to fly, rather than appreciating how strong they are or talented at basing. Let's not make this a "flyer" problem, or "bases against flyers" thing. It's an issue all women face and we are stronger together helping each other than we ever will be picking each other apart. Talk to your coach, team mom, captain, and tell them if there are body image issues that need to be addressed. It's something that needs to be openly talked about regularly, not a one time thing.

Being naturally tiny or thin does not prevent you from developing an eating disorder. I'm naturally tiny and have been in recovery from anorexia for 7 years now. It's a lifelong disease that is ugly and destructive, it affects your friends and family and pulls them apart as you struggle to let it go. Don't ever EVER think it's glamorous or aspirational.

You are right that education is key to awareness, prevention and recovery. Here is a very informative website for athletes, parents and coaches:

http://www.femaleathletetriad.org/educational-materials/

So glad to hear that you are in recovery!

 

[Aussiekat]

So glad to hear that you are in recovery!

Thank you! It's hard sometimes when people feel qualified to talk about your weight because you fly in a sportsbra and spankies. Sometimes I wish I could tell them how much it hurts to hear "that girl needs a sandwich". I'm still a tiny person but now I'm muscly and lean, not waifish and skeletal. My base calls me his greyhound and never lets me near a scale

 

[kisscheer18]

in high school my captain had an eating disorder, she was a senior and the majority of the team were freshmen, so she was worried she wouldnt be able to fly anymore so she developed an eating disorder to stay in the air. our coach kindly kicked her off the team.. idk if it was the right thing to do, but she did get help and is now at a healthy weight.

 

[glitterdiva]

in high school my captain had an eating disorder, she was a senior and the majority of the team were freshmen, so she was worried she wouldnt be able to fly anymore so she developed an eating disorder to stay in the air. our coach kindly kicked her off the team.. idk if it was the right thing to do, but she did get help and is now at a healthy weight.

I love your sig ps

 

[kisscheer18]

thanks girl i love yours too. i literally watch it over and over again

I love your sig ps

 

[glitterdiva]

thanks girl i love yours too. i literally watch it over and over again

thanks!

 

[cheer36mom]

this whole thread really scares me my cp is 12 and had her growth spurt early she is definetly the biggest flyer on her team however she is only 4 foot 9 and hasnt grown in over a year it just so happens the other flyers havent had their growth spurts and probably weigh no more than 60lbs recently with the high level stunts they have been doing it has gotten back to her that when they try new things and it doesnt hit immediately her group talks about her saying she is too big to fly and they wish they had one of the tiny girls so i have caught her calling herself fat and really not eating as much lately i have taken her to the doctor and spoke about the situation where doc tells her by no means at all is she overweight and that she is solid as a rock but i am so scared for her i am constantly monitoring her to make sure she eats she is so talented but doesnt understand that the muscle she has is because of all of the tumbling she works i mean she has specialty through to full standing through to full and multiple other tumbling skills but she doesnt seem to get it i just wonder how she is supose to hit her stunts when she knows her group is saying some pretty nasty things about her and the bad part is the parents of the kids have been caught saying the same stuff like how dare you as an adult i kind of want to show her this thread but at the same time dont know if its a good idea any thoughts????

 

[cheerheart4life]

this whole thread really scares me my cp is 12 and had her growth spurt early she is definetly the biggest flyer on her team however she is only 4 foot 9 and hasnt grown in over a year it just so happens the other flyers havent had their growth spurts and probably weigh no more than 60lbs recently with the high level stunts they have been doing it has gotten back to her that when they try new things and it doesnt hit immediately her group talks about her saying she is too big to fly and they wish they had one of the tiny girls so i have caught her calling herself fat and really not eating as much lately i have taken her to the doctor and spoke about the situation where doc tells her by no means at all is she overweight and that she is solid as a rock but i am so scared for her i am constantly monitoring her to make sure she eats she is so talented but doesnt understand that the muscle she has is because of all of the tumbling she works i mean she has specialty through to full standing through to full and multiple other tumbling skills but she doesnt seem to get it i just wonder how she is supose to hit her stunts when she knows her group is saying some pretty nasty things about her and the bad part is the parents of the kids have been caught saying the same stuff like how dare you as an adult i kind of want to show her this thread but at the same time dont know if its a good idea any thoughts????

Oh my god. Thats terrible I think you need to talk to her that the girls haven't gone through their growth spurt and show her other girls her age that have. The hard part is that she flys and her bases tell her shes heavy. That can really get too a girl! Nobody wants to be the "heavy" flyer. I recommend taking her to a phyciologist if all else fails. Whatever you do, STOP IT BEFORE IT GOES TO FAR. Once she goes down that path, its extremely hard to go back. And shes so young that you don't want her to have to live with anorexia thoughts fo rthe rest of her life (because those thoughts never go away, even after healing).

What pisses me off is that moms are saying that too! They should be grown-ups and know better. Thats just absolutely ridiculous. You might want to have a meeting with them and talk to them about your daughter and to tell their daughters not to say that. I wish you the best of luck! Make sure she knows that her muscle is what gives her the skills she has. If she was smaller, she wouldn't have that muscle and the skills would go away!! That's what motivates me to push and gain muscle- the simple fact that it makes me a better cheerleader.

 

[cheer36mom]

Oh my god. Thats terrible I think you need to talk to her that the girls haven't gone through their growth spurt and show her other girls her age that have. The hard part is that she flys and her bases tell her shes heavy. That can really get too a girl! Nobody wants to be the "heavy" flyer. I recommend taking her to a phyciologist if all else fails. Whatever you do, STOP IT BEFORE IT GOES TO FAR. Once she goes down that path, its extremely hard to go back. And shes so young that you don't want her to have to live with anorexia thoughts fo rthe rest of her life (because those thoughts never go away, even after healing).

What pisses me off is that moms are saying that too! They should be grown-ups and know better. Thats just absolutely ridiculous. You might want to have a meeting with them and talk to them about your daughter and to tell their daughters not to say that. I wish you the best of luck! Make sure she knows that her muscle is what gives her the skills she has. If she was smaller, she wouldn't have that muscle and the skills would go away!! That's what motivates me to push and gain muscle- the simple fact that it makes me a better cheerleader.

thanks and i do we talk every day about it she flys on a senior team so i always show her pics of true senior age flyers that are usually double her size the sad thing is that we are all short i am only 5 foot 1 so her chances of being tall like she dreamed of lol are pretty much gone and doc told her that based on her structure she will be lucky if she hits 4 foot 11 she wants to cheer for hpu or louiseville when its time for college and i dont want her to hate flying or to think she is too big because she loves it and has absolutely gorgeous flexibility and i have a cousin who is anorexic so i worry so much and will do whatever it takes to protect her thats for sure