Definition
Several terms have been used to describe body movement patterns observed in eating disorders. At the most simplistic level, the terms physical activity and exercise are often incorrectly used interchangeably. Consequently, much of the clinical and research discussions about patterns of body movements in eating disorders have been guided by implied meanings of words such as physical activity and exercise. Thus, definitional clarity is needed to encourage proper context and reference for the types of body movements associated with eating disorders.
The standard definition (ACSM 2000) of physical activity refers to any body movement produced by skeletal muscles that results in a substantial increase over resting energy expenditure. It should be noted that the phrase, “substantial increase over resting energy expenditure,” is derived from the exercise physiology literature examining the physiological resources required to produce body movements. Thus, slowly walking a very...
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Cook, B. (2017). Exercise/Physical Activity. In: Wade, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Feeding and Eating Disorders. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-104-6_11
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