One of Team USA’s Olympic figure skating stars is lifting the lid on eating disorders within the sport by detailing his own battle with body image.
Adam Rippon, 28, opened up about how he used to compare himself to other younger, leaner skaters and, in an effort to emulate their physiques, started starving himself.
By 2016, he had managed to get down to 140 pounds by living off three slices of whole grain bread topped with I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter spread per day.
Problem: Olympic figure skater Adam Rippon has revealed his battle with an eating disorder that saw him starve himself to try and stay skinny for the judges, pictured in February 2018
Bad habits: At his thinnest, Adam weighed 140 pounds, pictured at the Men’s Free Skate at the 2016 US Figure Skating Championships
Unsustainable: Adam, pictured at his thinnest in 2016, used to live off three slices of whole grain bread topped with I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter spread
The Olympian and national champion also supplemented his measly meals with three cups of black coffee, sweetened with six packets of Splenda sweetener.
Speaking to the New York Times, Rippon explained how he got to this point: ‘I looked around and saw my competitors, they’re all doing these quads, and at the same time they’re a head shorter than me, they’re 10 years younger than me and they’re the size of one of my legs.’
Wanting to resemble team mates Nathan Chen and Vincent Zhou, he believed that whittling down his five-foot-seven frame would make him more appealing to the judges.
‘It makes me dizzy now to think about it,’ he added.
The bronze medalist who came out as gay in 2015 also shared how he used to eat normally until he moved to California in 2012 to train with Rafael Arutyunyan, a former Soviet Union coach.
Rippon explained that it was Arutyunyan who told him his muscles needed to be shredded down and informed him of the three slices of bread per day diet.
‘I’d do a few days having my three pieces of bread and then finish the whole loaf of bread and have 3,000 calories,’ he shared.
Last year Rippon broke his left foot while hopping to warm up his legs and during his recovery decided to tackle his disordered eating habits.
Fresh outlook: Adam now weighs a healthier 150 pounds for his five-foot-seven frame, pictured in February 2018
Influenced: The bronze medalist who came out as gay in 2015 also shared how he used to eat normally until he moved to California in 2012, pictured in February 2016
Proud: Now working with a nutrition, Adam is healing old food wounds and is proud to be an advocate for LGBTQ rights withing Team USA, pictured with teammate Gus Kenworthy
‘I think I had a stress fracture before I broke my foot,’ Rippon said, ‘and I think that was absolutely because I was not getting enough nutrients.’
He started working with sports dietitian with the United States Olympic Committee, Susie Parker-Simmons, and getting the help he needed started to reassess his relationship with food and how it was impacting on his health and well-being.
‘I didn’t realize I was so tired all the time,’ he said.
Now seeing food as fuel, Rippon enjoys a more varied, balanced diet, but old habits and thoughts still lurk at the back of his mind.
And while he doesn’t feel guilty when eating, part of him still views things like creamy salad dressing as a treat.
Rippon became the first openly gay U.S. figure skater to compete in the Olympics and the first out figure skater overall to medal as he aided Team USA’s bronze medal finish at the free skate competition Monday
However, 1988 Olympic gold medalist Brian Boitano has also spoken out to disclose that male eating disorders within the sport are nothing new.
‘It’s the same now as it was in my day, and I think it’s all figure skaters,’ he said of the issue.
Learned behavior: 1988 Olympic gold medalist Brian Boitano has also spoken out to disclose that male eating disorders within the sport are nothing new
Regimented: NBC skating analyst and two-time Olympian Johnny Weir, 33, has shared that he still follows the regimented eating plan he adopted as a competitor
When he was competing, Boitano rarely exceeded 1,800 calories per day, usually made up of mostly carbohydrates.
He also shared how feeling hungry made him feel ‘strong’ against his opponents.
He added: ‘We all live during our Olympic careers, and after our competitive careers, with an interesting relationship to food.’
He now follows a Mediterranean diet, has written a cookbook, What Would Brian Boitano Make?, and hosts a cooking show of the same name on the Food Network.
And NBC skating analyst and two-time Olympian Johnny Weir, 33, has shared that he still follows the regimented eating plan he adopted as a competitor.
Eating just one meal per day, always before 5pm, he staves off hunger by drinking coffee.
‘That’s how I’m happiest,’ he revealed, adding that he allows himself a small piece of dark chocolate or a spoonful of caviar if he needs some energy.