Anorexia and the Walking Culture

Journal Entry: Weight = 174.4 Coinage = $1.17, 37 pennies, 1 nickel, 5 dimes, 1 quarter; Glass Bottles = 2; Ground Scores = 2; Best coinage find = .46 at the Mikimota restaurant and Sushi bar drive up. I regular check this money spot but rarely score. This morning’s 1 quarter, two dimes, and one penny made me forget how much I dislike sushi.

Feature Entry: Anorexia and the Walking Culture

Yesterday, the MoneyWalker stated that Barbie, now 50, was a role model for us all. In the nicest of way, The Numismatist, and Ms. MoneyWalker agrees, suggested that yours truly was misinformed and provided misleading if not dangerous advise; that Barbie was anorexic for crying out loud.

For most, turning 50 is a milestone. Looks improve for some; others keep their girlish figures or rippling abs. Still others pull together a wardrobe that expresses their personality. But it's rare to have all three - unless you're made of plastic and your name is Barbie (NYT partial quote). Born Barbara Millicent Roberts on March 9, 1959, in Willows, Wisconsin, Barbie, the 12 inch doll is the top-selling toy in the world. What say you readers? Is Barbie a worthy role model? Is she anorexic?

As for the MoneyWalker, he must recant on this issue. If Barbie influences some members of the walking culture to pursue walking in order to obtain unhealthy thinness (anorexia), then Barbie cannot be held as a role model.

According to the American Psychological Association

“The cardinal feature of anorexia is refusal to maintain body weight over a minimal normal weight for age and height. (APA, 1987, p. 65)

In their chapter of Louis Diamant’s edited book, Psychology of Sport, Exercise, and Fitness: Social and Personal Issues, 1991, J. A. Prout, R. V. Kappius, and P. S. Imm indicated that 14% of anorexic patients over-exercise and are characterized by an obsessive impersonal ego-dystonic urge to move (ego-dystonic, a person's behavior, thoughts, impulses, drives, and attitudes that are unacceptable to him or her and cause anxiety). Prout et. al. indicated that anorexic individuals that are exercise compulsive walk great distances, rarely settle, have a sense of inner restlessness, and spend their time doing vigorous physical exercises. Such exercise finally leads to exhaustion and then depression.

Our protagonist Lewis Percy often fell into this walking trap:

“As he walked along the Fulham Road his pace slackened and his euphoria…gradually ebbed away, leaving sadness and confusion in its wake.”

He also had an eating disorder.

Anorexic? Be careful out there.

MoneyWalker