Eating Disorders + Body Positive in Sport

Two courses combined to really dig in!

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Eating Disorders in Sport

+

Body Positive in Sport

About Eating Disorders in Sport

It's widely recognised that eating and exercise difficulties, ranging from infrequent disordered behaviours to clinical presentations, are commonplace in the athlete setting. For most of us, specific training in eating disorders is minimal to absent, leaving us feeling under-skilled and lacking in confidence when it comes to supporting athletes who find themselves struggling. One of the greatest barriers we face is stigma and shame in the sporting environment, leaving athletes suffering in silence, often for way longer than necessary, possibly even leading to long-standing physical and psychological complications the least of which is a reduction in performance.

The good new is that Dietitians and Sports Dietitians are arguably in one of the BEST positions to educate, facilitate communication & support athletes, coaches, teams and support staff to offer powerful and effective ways to reduce the incidence of eating disorders, implement early intervention strategies and, best of all, increase your person-centred skills to help your athletes perform even better without getting caught up in harmful behaviours. You may not actually be a Sports Dietitian, but find yourself seeing people who may struggle in their relationship with food, eating, exercise and body image; this course is totally suitable for you too!

Join Fiona Sutherland and Shane Jeffrey, two Accredited Sports Dietitians with over 30 years experience as Eating Disorder Specialists as we share with you an extensive array of topics to elevate your skills and confidence in developing a greater understanding of the intersection of Eating Disorders and Sport/Athletes. We completely understand that it's not unusual to feel overwhelmed and think "oh goodness, this is WAY too complicated!" but in reality, you've probably already been dealing with folks with eating disorders and just not known about it. With this course, we aim to leave you feeling like you're not left floundering, and you can make a difference, that you do know what to say and what to do, when and how.

This course will guide you from research and diagnostics, all the way through to stepping you through the practical side of setting up effective Eating Disorder early intervention frameworks in your athlete or practice setting. Each module will only take you up to 30 minutes each (we know how important you time is!) and is accompanied by practice-ready downloadables and reflection activities for you to extend your learning and get started straight away!

BONUS! We will be joined by eight incredible experts, Sports Dietitians and Researchers who will share their wisdom, knowledge and experience with us in their specialist area including Prof Paula Quatrimoni (USA), Lauren Anton (USA), Nikki Jeacocke (Aust) and Dr Scott Griffiths (Aust).

There's more details in the preview video below, but this course will include:

  • Over 16 hours of online video training, broken up into 20-30 minute modules to watch in your own time schedule
  • Detailed PowerPoint slides
  • Downloadable handouts to use with clients and athletes in your practice straight away
  • Links to resources
  • Research articles supporting each section
  • Audio links to hear from our experts!
  • An invitation to join our closed Facebook community for ongoing support and networking


About Body Positive in Sport

As health professionals, we have suspect, or already have a good understanding that the way people feel about their bodies is a significant issue, but it may be the case that we don't actually know what to do to help them.

Athletes in particular can get caught up in cultural messaging about bodies which can be conflicting and confusing, leading them to be drawn into "Dr Googling" and/or undertaking behaviours which are unhelpful, or harmful in an effort to change their bodies.

We can make a difference by more deeply understanding the WHAT, WHY and HOW of body image work and become better advocates for our athletes.

This course is suitable for all health professionals working with all athletes or active people.


You'll learn:

  • Why is talking about Body Image so important?
  • How do athletes actually feel about their bodies? (aka “let’s geek out”)
  • Establishing shared definitions - what is "body image" anyway?
  • Risks & protective factors
  • Scope of practice
  • Nuts & bolts - skill building
  • Communication & language
  • Common tripping points

What can I expect to learn in these courses?


By the end of these courses, you will be able to:

  • Recognise early warning signs of poor body image and eating disorders in the sporting setting, and educate others to be able to do the same
  • Identify diagnostic symptoms of poor body image, disordered eating and eating disorders
  • Address myths which may precipitate or perpetuate poor body image, disordered eating and exercise behaviours
  • Understand eating disorders through the bio-psycho-social and aetiological models
  • Identify your scope of practice, and your specific role as a Dietitian within the team
  • Understand the history of the Athlete Triad, and the evolution to Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S)
  • Administer a basic screening tool, and understand which is best to use in your setting, and why
  • Know when to screen, and when to follow through with a more thorough assessment
  • How to use your screening and assessment materials as powerful prevention and early intervention tools
  • Support others to understand more about body image and eating disorders
  • Facilitate a body image, eating disorder prevention and intervention education sessions with athletes, coaches and support staff
  • Develop a framework of care with includes effective communication pathways between health team members, athletes and support staff
  • Know exactly where to turn to for support and literature which support our work


Guest speakers offering insight, experience and wisdom in their specialist area(s).

We are incredibly lucky to welcome world renowned specialists in Eating Disorders and Sport to share time, energy and experience with us through the course. We'll be covering a range of topics including Male Athletes, Body Image and Eating Disorders (Dr Scott Griffiths), the importance of research and early intervention (Prof Paula Quatromoni), Functional Hypothalamic Amenorrhea and RED-S (Robyn Nohling) and so much more! These guests audios are in the form of a conversational "podcast"-style format and we dive right down into such an array of topics. Hope you enjoy them!



Course Curriculum - Eating Disorders in Sport

Course Curriculum


  Screening, Assessment and Scope of Practice
Available in days
days after you enroll

Course Curriculum - Body Positive in Sport


  1. Why is body image so hard to talk about, particularly in the sports setting?
  2. What does the literature tell us about how athletes are feeling about their body?
  3. Body Image - risks and protective factors
  4. Defining "body image" and conceptualising "body image work"S
  5. Whose job is what? Scope of practice
  6. Where to start, assessment
  7. Building skills - Mindfulness, Self Compassion, consistent nourishment, self care, advocacy
  8. How does body image actually improve?
  9. Language & communication
  10. Common tripping points & roadblocks
  11. Resources & references


Frequently Asked Questions


When does the course start and finish?
The course starts now and never ends! It is a completely self-paced online course - you decide when you start and when you finish.
How long do I have access to the course?
After enrolling, you have unlimited access to this course for as long as you like - across any and all devices you own. You can also go back and watch/listen to any sections, over and over again as many times as you like.
Does this course quality me to Professional Development Hours/Continuing Education Credits?
If you are an Australian Dietitian, this course will qualify you to log your hours as ASSESSABLE, for DAA and SDA accredtiation. As Australian Sports Dietitians, we are sorry not to be eligible to offer CE Credits to non-Australian students.
How do I access the Facebook Group?
When you enrol, you will be sent a link to the group, Follow the link and confirm your enrolment in this course - simple! We look forward to sharing this space with you!
Is this only available to Australians?
Not at all! The concepts, research and interventions in this course are universal, and we expect to have participants from all over the world. You may like to see support from a local colleague to address specific factors which may be unique to your local area, and we can help you connect with others!
Are there payment plans available?
Yes, you are welcome to divide your payments up into 3 x monthly payments (see option below)
I'm not a Sports Dietitian but work with active people - is this suitable for me?
Absolutely. A vast majority of the content will be thoroughly relatable to anyone working with active people, across all ages and competition levels.
Can I buy the course, then buy the workshop later?
Yes, you can but the bundle of online course plus workshop will save you 30%.
I'm not sure if this course is a good match for me and it's a decent investment!
Totally understand - both Shane and I invest thousands of dollars in our own ongoing training and supervision and we think being thoughtful about how you spend your time, energy and money is really worth considering! It's important to us to offer high quality training that is accessible so we've poured all we can into this course for you.
I am a student - do you have student pricing?
Of course! If you send me a copy of your student card, I am more than happy to shoot you a discount code - please take a pic and send to [email protected]
How long will the course take to complete?
There is about 20 hours of content here spread over a number of different modules in 20-30 minute blocks.

Your hosts for the course are

Fiona Sutherland, Directors of The Mindful Dietitian &

Shane Jeffrey, Director of River Oak Health


About Fiona

Fiona is an Accredited Sports Dietitian and Director of The Mindful Dietitian & Body Positive Australia. She has been practising for over 15 years primarily in the areas of eating behaviour, eating disorders, body image, sports nutrition & education/training. She has been integrating the Non Diet Approach into Dietetic practice for over 12 years, and is passionate about supporting Health Professionals to develop skills in understanding more about the complexities of client presentations, and how we can focus on wellbeing. As an Eating Disorders specialist, Fiona has a particular interest in binge eating and finding evidence-based, compassionate ways of working with people in larger bodies. Fiona is also a Sports Dietitian, working with emerging professional dancers at The Australian Ballet School and host of The Mindful Dietitian Podcast. Fiona is a dedicated mindfulness practitioner and Yoga Teacher, bringing a particular emphasis on mindful eating and the intersection of food environment, eating psychology and body image into her work and training. She has trained in MBSR (Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction), MSC (Mindful Self Compassion) and MB-EAT (Mindfulness Based Eating Awareness Training). Fiona is guest lecturer within Deakin University Dietetics course within the areas of eating behaviour, Body Image, counselling skills and the Non Diet Approach.


About Shane:

Shane is an Accredited Practicing Dietitian with 25 years of experience as a dietitian in both the private and public sectors. During this time he has worked almost exclusively in the field of eating disorders and the non diet approach, establishing himself as a recognised leader in the field both nationally and internationally. Shane is the founder and clinical director of two Queensland based private practices (River Oak Health and Food Mind Body) dedicated to the treatment of eating, weight, and body image concerns, and is the current Treasurer for the Australian and New Zealand Academy for Eating Disorders. With a special interest in eating, weight and body image concerns in athletes, Shane has has worked with athletes at all levels and recently developed a framework for guiding the management of exercise during treatment for an eating disorder, which has been presented both nationally and internationally. Shane is passionate about his work, and is excited to be sharing this training opportunity with you.

Still have some questions? No problem! Please direct them to [email protected]

Thankyou for taking an interest in the Eating Disorders in Sport + Body Positive in Sport online courses. We appreciate the time, energy and resources that you have already invested in your own training and hope you'll join us to elevate your skills and play a vital role in Eating Disorder prevention, education, intervention and support in your athlete setting.

Get started now!