It comes out in Therese Johaug’s autobiography “The whole story”, which will be released on Friday. – If I hadn’t realized the seriousness then and hadn’t had the right people to help me, my career could have looked completely different, says Johaug to news about the period when she struggled. She met news in Holmenkollen ahead of the book release. In the end, she became one of the winningest skiers of all time. But the unknown seriousness of the problems could have produced a completely different outcome. The situation became particularly serious in the spring of 2011. She had then recently become a national hero after winning the WC gold in Holmenkollen. But a few months after the gold race, the alarm went off after a health test. Bone density was dangerously low, indicating malnutrition. She weighed too little, and her fat percentage had plummeted. She had already been working with a nutritionist for several months because of her low weight. Now the psychiatrist Finn Skårderud, who was an expert in eating disorders, was also involved. Egil Kristiansen worked closely with Johaug when she struggled. Here from a training session at Gjøvik in August 2010. Photo: Terje Bendiksby / NTB “If I didn’t manage to reverse this trend, my whole career could be headed for the ditch, and not just because I could get sick or injured,” Johaug writes in the book. She was also told that she would not ski fast with the body she now had. Losing weight and eating had become a recurring theme over the past year. Becoming a celebrity and meeting other people’s expectations had also become tough. – I ended up back in a bad rut with diet and nutrition. I myself knew that I should eat more, but one shoulder said yes and the other shoulder said no, says Johaug to news. She struggled to admit to herself that she had a problem. – I think that is the starting phase of something to do with nutritional problems. But today I see it very well, says Johaug. Serious talk Before the WC success, she had also gradually lost almost 10 per cent of her body weight since she won bronze at the WC in 2007 as an 18-year-old. She was now 22 years old. Two and a half months before the championship in Oslo, then national team coach Egil Kristiansen had an important serious talk with her. She received a clear warning. If she didn’t step up, she could be denied both the ski race and, in the worst case, the WC on home soil. – He says that I look very thin, and he wonders if I feel good about myself. I might not then fully realize the problem. But I also understood deep down what he meant, and I wanted to go skiing, says Johaug. A long-term strategy was drawn up. Kristiansen tells news that he followed along, but that at the same time he challenged her to do whatever it took to turn the problem around. Therese Johaug won WC gold in the three mile in Holmenkollen 2011. She then had a relapse. Photo: Håkon Mosvold Larsen / NTB – If Therese herself and we in the support apparatus had not done something, I think it could have gone really badly. It certainly could. The fact that we managed to turn it around over time was alpha and omega, says Kristiansen. When she came home to her family for Christmas, after the serious talk, she was frustrated and sad and says that the weight gain was slow. In the book, she says that, among other things, she sat crying with her mother at home in the kitchen. There, Johaug was put on what she herself calls a fat cure. – Mum forced sour cream into me, and I drank cow’s milk every day. I gained weight, says Johaug. She realizes afterwards that she did not have a healthy cross-country skiing body during this period, but that the situation turned around in autumn 2011. She had contact with Olympiatoppen several times a week about how she could get enough food, and she reported back what she had eaten . She thanks the support system for turning things around. Egil Kristiansen was one of those who became important. – It is something I value enormously, says Johaug. Unhealthy food culture Johaug says that during this period a bad food culture had developed in the women’s national team. – I was perhaps one of those who contributed to the fact that it has been bad. Because maybe in the uncertain period I left the table and thought “oh, I really should have eaten more”. I was one of those who created a bad culture. I see that today, says Johaug. The relationship with food among other runners on the national team, early in her own career, is also something Marit Bjørgen touched on in her autobiography, which was published last autumn. However, Johaug believes that things have improved in the team later in his career, even if individual athletes have struggled. Therese Johaug publishes the autobiography of her life on Friday. news met her ahead of the book release. Photo: Nils Christian Mangelrød/news Egil Kristiansen points out that weight and eating is a difficult topic to work on and that it can be a bit painful. He says this was taken even more seriously over time. – It wasn’t just Therese. There were several there that we had to deal with. It was something we worked on quite a lot. And it was something we spent an incredible amount of energy on. It was also required, says Kristiansen. Johaug points out that after autumn 2011 she was never in the danger zone again during her career, but was followed up closely. Among other things, a lower weight limit was set for her not to fall below. Reacting to the lecture The former ski star describes in the book that she had a one hundred percent natural relationship with food up until the first junior national team meeting at the Olympiatoppen in 2006. There, professor Jorunn Sundgot-Borgen gave a lecture on diet and food. Johaug is sure that the intentions were good, but that the consequences were not only positive. Among other things, weighing food and giving feedback on food intake became a topic, which the athletes followed up afterwards. She says that it became a huge topic in the team when one of the athletes received feedback from Sundgot-Borgen that she should not have eaten a bowl of butter, brown cheese and jam, but should have chosen a slice of bread with mackerel in tomato and cucumber. Johaug believes that teaching young athletes to weigh food can help create an unnatural relationship with food, especially accompanied by a warning against jam on the cheese. Professor Jorunn Sundgot-Borgen at the Norwegian Sports Academy, expert on eating disorders. Photo: Morten Holm / NTB Sundgot-Borgen tells news that the background for the lecture was a concern from the coach about the nutritional intake in the team. – We were of course concerned with minimizing the risk that several of the girls ended up in such a situation that there was an increased risk of consequences linked to too low an energy intake and an increased risk of eating disorders. In that connection, it was said that it might be relevant to map the intake to see if it was sufficient in terms of energy and nutrition. It is true that some were followed up in relation to diet and blood status, writes Sundgot-Borgen in an e-mail to news. She says that she tells athletes, who are restrictive with their nutritional intake, that the smartest thing is to first eat slices of bread with valuable toppings, such as mackerel, and then take the bowl if they can take it. – What do you think of Johaug’s opinions about weighing food and athletes’ diet? – I completely agree that if athletes are only told to weigh and register food without it being set in a context where they are followed closely by professionals, then it is absolutely not recommended. Johaug himself believes that weight and eating problems are not something you will get rid of in sport. – It is a problem that has existed in the past. It is a problem that exists today, and it is a problem that will remain in the future. It doesn’t just happen in sports. It is a societal problem. Then we have to prevent it and prevent it in the best possible way. I feel that an incredible amount of work has been done there, says Johaug.
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Therese Johaug opens up about weight problems – the alarm went off after the WC – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcasting schedule
