How to Address Exercise in Eating Disorder Recovery

Eighty one percent of patients in eating disorder treatment engage in disordered exercise. Exercise can be one of the first behaviors to present and last to leave in an eating disorder. Traditional treatment models used avoidance to address this issue, or a single group yoga class, which is not helpful for developing a healthy relationship with exercise. Many exercise presentations in the eating disorder space present the scientific reasons exercise in treatment is important; however, not many discuss how to start doing so. In this presentation Adrianne and Emily will be focusing on the importance of assessing all ED patients for exercise behavior, identifying the specific ways exercise can be enmeshed in the eating disorder and helping to support patients navigate this piece of recovery effectively.