Many college students quit their sport after high school if they are not playing for their school’s varsity team.
About one in three high school students will play varsity sports in college, and according to The New York Times, about 15% of scholarship athletes quit their sport after freshman or sophomore year of college.
This lull in practice-mandated exercise for students can manifest as a desire to go to the gym in college.
Lehigh doesn’t require physical education classes like high schools or other colleges, so incorporating exercise routines is left to the individual.
While the gym provides a comforting sense of routine for some, it’s understood that exercise can create unhealthy mentalities that look different for everyone.
Having a healthy relationship with exercise incorporates living in the present and enjoying the movement, rather than worrying about how this gym session will change your body.
Stereotypically, people think about the mental health consequences for women trying to change their bodies or lose weight, but we want to highlight the danger of leaving men out of the conversation.
Men face the mindset of toxic masculinity, which is defined by Dictionary.com as “a cultural concept of manliness that glorifies stoicism, strength, virility and dominance and that is socially maladaptive or harmful to mental health.”
Toxic masculinity persists in the gym community, as there are typically men who are “cutting,” (meaning they are eating at a caloric deficit to lose fat,) while others “bulk,” (which is eating at a caloric surplus, in order to gain muscle.)
That’s not to say cutting or bulking are inherently symptoms of an eating disorder, but they do leave the door open for unhealthy habits and destructive mindsets.
Motivation for some men comes from the societal expectation to be big and strong, rather than working out for themselves.
In The Brown and White’s reporting, we’ve come across stories about students who’ve normalized under-eating and the physical and mental side effects of achieving a certain look.
The signs of body dysmorphia and disordered eating are disturbing no matter the circumstances.
Eating disorders can be life-threatening, which is why they require the same amount of attention as other life-threatening illnesses. An estimated 9% of the United States population will have an eating disorder in their lifetime according to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders.
Still, young men often don’t even know how to recognize the signs of an eating disorder. Whereas young women in America are taught from a very young age about the signs and dangers of over/under eating.
According to the National Eating Disorder Association, in the United States, 6.6 million men will be affected by eating disorders at some point in their lives, but because of cultural and gender bias, they are less likely to be diagnosed or seek treatment.
That’s not to say exercise doesn’t have plenty of well-studied benefits. Exercise should be for enjoyment, so those who want to continue exercising after they quit their high school sport may join a club or an intramural sport at Lehigh for fun.
Playing sports lends itself to getting lost in fun moments with teammates, instead of focusing on how their workouts will change their bodies. Being a part of a club or intramural sports team can allow students to continue to play their sport with limited stress and time commitment.
For those uninterested in sports, the gym can be a time to self-reflect, which can create a healthy relationship between exercise and mindfulness.
Thinking about how your body will feel afterward is important as well, noting if you feel physically better after your workout, you can have more motivation to return to a similar workout.
Exercise should be put into your schedule and be made into what you want it to be. It is important to be comfortable when exercising, which may mean surrounding yourself with other people and places that make you comfortable during it.
It is also important to keep in mind that Lehigh’s campus can be a workout in itself and you have access to walk around campus, either alongside a friend or accompanied by music in your headphones. Exercise doesn’t always have to equate to playing a sport or taking a trip to the gym.
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