Eilish McColgan says she is “numb” to comments on social media about her body shape and warned of the dangers of associating her with eating disorders. The British long-distance runner highlighted the abuse she received this month after posting a video of her on a treadmill in preparation for her first London Marathon. Some comments suggested she had anorexia.
McColgan says she has a perfectly healthy body and feels linking her body shape to an eating disorder is dangerous for aspiring athletes to see. “I’m numb to it now, it doesn’t affect me,” she said. “The reason I call it out is so people don’t think that is how they have to look to be an athlete. It is dangerous for people to see comments like that and think that is how you have to be.
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“I am healthy, my body is healthy. Just because I have a small body frame doesn’t mean I have an eating disorder. I have people messaging me telling me they need to run so long on the treadmill each day just to balance calories and that’s just not anything like how it is.
“I eat what I want. I’m a normal person. I got a box of doughnuts the other day because I wanted a box of doughnuts. It also detracts from people who are actually suffering from eating orders. These are serious issues.”
McColgan is stepping up her training for her debut at the London Marathon as she moves into a new part of her career. The 34-year-old, a Commonwealth champion at 10,000m, is excited to get to the start line having had to withdraw from the 2023 race with an injury. And she admits she is heading into the unknown. “It’s a new challenge, but it is a natural progression,” said the Scot. “It has taken me a bit longer than normal. It is just the way my career has pathed out, there is not much I can do about that.
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“I have absolutely loved my track career, and this new chapter on the road is in the early stages. It is like you are doing a new sport really. Everyone has to start somewhere and 26 miles is difficult for everyone when you first do it.”