Are some personal trainers triggering eating disorders in their clients?
June 27, 2008 by angelique
Filed under Women's Health
I’ve often wondered if personal trainers have to take any kind of oath to look out for the health of their clientele? Probably not, if what I’ve seen is any indication.
In the past, I’ve watched trainers humiliate and berate their clients into “top physical shape”. Are those “customers” really benefiting in the long run, or are they being molded into some kind of ideal that could be a trigger for an eating disorder? (To my current gym’s credit, I have NEVER seen it happen there… and it’s an all-women’s club with amazing, kick-your-ass-in-a-second trainers. In fact, one trainer asked a client to leave the club until she was in therapy and had gained weight.)
I’ve known anorexia sufferers whose trainers turned a blind eye to the eating disorder in favor of getting results (thinner thighs, smaller buttocks, lower weight) and, presumably, making money. Personally, I think that’s a little cold; shouldn’t trainers be on the lookout for health risks on behalf of their clients?
What are your feelings about this topic?
If you were (or are) a trainer, would (or do) you stop training someone who was obviously becoming unhealthily thin or obsessed with exercise?
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