Few people would not know the name Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. While his popularity spurs from his action-packed movies and chiseled physique, the Rock also gets attention for what he eats. Just like his bulging biceps, he does not hold back on his food, with his Instagram profile boasting regular pictures of what he eats. One post showed 12 pancakes, 4 pizzas and 21 brownies all consumed in one seating. In the fitness or bodybuilding arena this is labelled a “cheat meal”.
A cheat meal is a planned high calorie reward for maintaining some level of dietary restriction (e.g., reduced carbohydrates) in the previous 7 days of eating. There is no evidence to suggest a “cheat meal” is a form of disordered eating. For example, cheat meals may add flexibility to restrictive dieting phases (e.g., cutting), which not only assists goal attainment, but attenuates the possibility of binge episodes or compensatory behavior's during calorie depravation. However, “cheat meals” do have some striking similarities to binge eating episodes, and usually follow some period of restrictive eating.
A study on cheat meal content from pro-muscularity websites reported that user comments suggest periods where cheat meals can go out of control, noting loss of control is a cardinal aspect in bulimia nervosa. While cheat meals may be viewed as a goal-oriented behavior, to enhance either fat reduction, increase in muscularity, or reward adherence to strict dietary rules, a large consumption of high calorie food in a brief period, with loss of control present in some cases may warrant attention into other eating practices associated with enhancing muscularity.
While females generally strive for a "thin body", males tend to prefer a more muscular and lean body, commonly referred to as the muscular ideal (e.g., The Rock). In fitness and body building communities a significant focus on eating practices is undertaken in addition to resistance training to help augment muscularity of the body. An important caveat to note is that while more males are oriented towards muscularity, there are also a minority of females that share this ideal over a conventional “thin body”.
Typical eating patterns to augment muscularity are not starvation diets (e.g., fasting) that promote thinness, but dietary practices that over emphasize strict rules on regular daily protein consumption (i.e., 5 - 7 meals per day), even in the absence of hunger, to increase muscularity. Another feature of eating patterns towards the muscular ideal also spans two distinct phases: (1) bulking and (2) cutting.
One phase focuses on increasing muscularity (e.g., bulk), while the other phase focusses on reducing body fat (e.g., cutting) to enhance leanness and improve visibility of muscularity. It is plausible that an increase in body fat during bulking phases, or a reduction of muscularity during cutting phases leads to constant body dissatisfaction, leading to distress. Support for periodic phases being associated with distress is provided through self-reports of young males who described a tension between being muscular and lean.
Muscularity oriented eating practices may interfere with interpersonal relationships, for example, where eating food in restaurants may become difficult as macronutrient counting cannot be controlled. This may place stress on the relationship and the person’s interpersonal circle. Moreover, inability to control food intake may lead to emotional distress and compensatory behaviors. To further augment muscularity some people may use anabolic androgenic steroids. The addition of these synthetic testosterones and derivatives allows for a leaner and more muscular look, where less emphasis can be applied to eating practices. Strict and inflexible dietary rules which echo an “all or nothing mindset” (i.e. no flexibility) are shown to be significant predictors of disorder eating.
Males exhibiting eating patterns oriented towards muscularity may go untreated as health care professions may hold more traditional beliefs of disordered eating (e.g., thinness), which excludes muscularity themes. Moreover, someone above a normal body weight with a varying degree of muscularity would be perceived as healthy, even strong, but we need to be cognizant it’s the persons mind we are more concerned with here.
Males afflicted with disordered eating may experience intense stigma, as they may hold stereotypical beliefs that males do not suffer from eating concerns. Furthermore, men or adolescents believing disordered eating is exclusively a female issue may result in a delayed entry to treatment and a more chronic and complex concern to treat. Stigma may also extend to clinical settings, where in some instances, males with disordered eating expressions have been advised by clinicians to "man up" and neglected for further treatment or referrals to specialists.
It's important for individuals experiencing symptoms disordered eating symptoms to seek professional assistance. Effective treatments like CBT can help manage these eating concerns and improve a person's quality of life and interpersonal relationships. If you or someone you know is struggling with disordered eating, consulting with a mental health professional is advised as the first step in getting relief from the distress.
