Eating · Behavior Chain
Compulsive Exercise Check
Is this movement, or is it the eating disorder wearing trainers?
Movement becomes compulsive when it stops being a choice — when missing a session creates anxiety, when it's used to "earn" or "undo" food, when it overrides injury, illness, or rest. The question isn't how much, it's what it's for.
My current movement — the honest version
Type, duration, intensity, frequency
What it's secretly for (calorie burn, atonement, control, mood)
Compulsive markers — check what's true
I exercise even when injured, sick, or exhausted.
Missing a session creates noticeable anxiety, guilt, or shame.
I use exercise to compensate for eating.
Exercise has priority over social, work, or rest commitments.
I add more if I 'overate' — or 'earn' food in advance.
I exercise in secret, or lie about the amount.
My exercise has gotten longer, more intense, or more rigid over time.
I would not exercise this much if no one were watching the result on my body.
Anxiety when I imagine taking 3 full rest days in a row (0–10)
nonemost
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Punishment / atonement movement
Exercise as the bill for eating, the apology for the body, the permission slip for tomorrow.
Joyful, attuned movement
Movement that doesn't track itself, doesn't end on a number, and can stop when the body is tired.
My rest-day exposure plan
How many rest days, when, what I'll do instead, who I'll tell, what I expect the urge to feel like and at what hour it'll peak.