Individual Trajectories of Eating Behavior in Adolescent Athletes During a Sports Season

Background: The current sports context appears to place adolescent athletes at risk for developing disordered eating behaviors, particularly in lean sports such as synchronized swimming. However, an athlete’s eating behavior changes over the course of a sports season and is influenced by various factors (e.g., pressures related to weight and appearance, body dissatisfaction, self-esteem), as well as by stress levels. To date, only a few studies have examined these variations or explored the effects of stress on eating behavior during a sports season, but understanding how athletes navigate the spectrum of eating behaviors over time is of paramount importance for preventive approaches. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of individual daily stress on eating behavior within different seasonal periods. Methods: A longitudinal mixed methods design is used to capture changes of disordered eating behaviors, levels of stress and other influencing factors. A total of 10 participants practicing synchronized swimming (aged 14–20 years) are followed during their sports season and asked to respond to online questionnaires, narrative and self-confrontation interviews, and to wear an electrocardiogram during several days at four time points (at the beginning of the sports season (baseline), during the first and the second competition, and at the end of the season). Discussion: The trajectories of athletes’ eating behaviors and the impact of stress and other influencing factors during a sports season can contribute to a better understanding of potential risk conditions where young athletes might perceive themselves as more vulnerable. Identifying these high-risk moments and contexts could be useful in enhancing efforts to prevent disordered eating behaviors in adolescent athletes.