Body Image of Highly Trained Female Athletes Engaged in Different Types of Sport

• Published in: BioMed research international Vol. 2018; no. 2018; pp. 1 - 8
• Main Authors: Maćkowiak, Zuzanna, Ingarden, Mateusz, Markiewicz, Paweł, Malchrowicz-Mośko, Ewa, Ingarden, Anna, Firek, Wiesław, Banio, Adrianna, Korcz, Agata, Kantanista, Adam, Płoszaj, Katarzyna
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cairo, Egypt Hindawi Publishing Corporation 01.01.2018; Hindawi; Hindawi Limited
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Athletes; Biomedical research; Body composition; Body Image; Body mass; Body mass index; Bulimia; Competition; Eating disorders; Exercise; Female; Health promotion; Humans; Medicine; Participation; Pathology; Perception; Perceptions; Physical education; Physical fitness; Qualitative research; Regression Analysis; Self image; Sports; Sports medicine; Student athletes; Swimming; Variance analysis; Young Adult; Poland
• ISSN: 2314-6133; 2314-6141
• DOI: 10.1155/2018/6835751

Background. The aim of the study was to evaluate differences in body image across different types of sports in highly trained female athletes. Methods. 242 female individuals, aged 13–30 years (M=20.0, SD = 4.5), representing aesthetic sports (n=56) and nonaesthetic sports (n=186), were recruited from different sports clubs in Poland. Body image, BMI, age, the level of competition attained, and the training background of participants were recorded. Results. One-way ANOVA showed differences in the body image of athletes engaged in different types of sport (F(11,230)=4.10, p<0.001, and η2=0.16). The model predicting the body image of female athletes was significant (F(5,236)=10.40, p<0.001); the adjusted R2=0.163. Type of sport explained 7.1% (β=–0.263, p<0.001), age explained 4.5% (β=0.341,p<0.001), BMI explained 3.6% (β=–0.230,p<0.001), and level of competition explained 0.9% (β=0.153, p<0.05) of variance in body image. Conclusions. The findings provide vital new knowledge which can be used by researchers and practitioners in designing educational programs on weight-related behaviors in female athletes. Such programs should be implemented especially in young female athletes participating in high-level sporting activities at an early stage.