Is Sasha Cohen Too Thin?

[soogar]

IMO it is her natural body type. Some people are just thin, no matter what they eat or don't eat. I think the thin frame works for her, just the way a different type body works for Irina, and worked for Midori. When Midori became too thin she could not skate well (96 worlds?). If Sasha builds more muscles or weight, she may lose some of the advantages in her skating.

JMHO.

Vash

It's not really her natural bodytype. Sasha's weight appears to fluctuate and when she was coming off of injury, she was naturally rounder with curves. She diets strictly to achieve that physique. That said, she's doing triple jumps and a thinner frame leads to less stress on her body. There's no doubt that whatever pain she feel (her back or hip or whatever ails her) is significantly less when she weighs less. After the Olympics, she'll get back to her normal weight.

As for Khorkina: she definitely overdid it for the Olympics but she's fine now (she just gave birth!!). Bela Karolyi (the king of forcing his gymnasts to purge and starve) made the comment "Look at Svetana starving herself" to the media.

[R.D.]

As for Khorkina: she definitely overdid it for the Olympics but she's fine now (she just gave birth!!).

OMG. You're serious? I didn't think that was possible anyway, congrats to her.

[bronxgirl]

NEWS BULLETIN: Selfproclaimed DR. MILLIE says that Sasha is fine, no need to worry your little heads, just checked her out. She's fit as a fiddle. All you other Doctors misdiagonised her. She got a second opinion from me.

As an MD PhD, I advise you to not take the problem of anorexia and bulemia in elite atheletes in such a flip manner. It has lead many young men and women (yes men too) down a dangerous path to sacrifice themselves for their sport or art. Melodramatic, but true.

And I'm not saying that Sasha does or does not have an eating problem. I don;t know her, and have only seen photographs, so they can be distorting.

[Bowers]

If she's healthy, she is not too thin! Many, many, many more Americans suffer the ravages of bad health over obesity than from starvation. There are several obese people in my tiny town who have undergone gastroplasty procedures to literally save their lives. In my books, obesity is the cruelest eating disorder of all. Back to Sasha....I don't believe she could continue a vigorous solo skating career at her present level if she were not reasonably healthy. Very strange that at the first cheesefest of the season, someone remarked about her looking heavier. She looks great to me!

[Joesitz]

The Sasha fans are out in droves. Defending; asserting, predicting. And they won't admit they are fans. hmmm That's ok.

The lady is a good skater and her weight is not affecting her competitive drive. Over and Out.

Joe

[R.D.]

The Sasha fans are out in droves. Defending; asserting, predicting. And they won't admit they are fans. hmmm That's ok.

What did you say? Sasha fans? On GS? Really? Could have fooled me.

[LBC]

It's not really her natural bodytype. Sasha's weight appears to fluctuate and when she was coming off of injury, she was naturally rounder with curves. She diets strictly to achieve that physique. That said, she's doing triple jumps and a thinner frame leads to less stress on her body. There's no doubt that whatever pain she feel (her back or hip or whatever ails her) is significantly less when she weighs less. After the Olympics, she'll get back to her normal weight.

As for Khorkina: she definitely overdid it for the Olympics but she's fine now (she just gave birth!!). Bela Karolyi (the king of forcing his gymnasts to purge and starve) made the comment "Look at Svetana starving herself" to the media.

ITA about that Sasha diets to keep that physique she feels best for her jumping.
The studio shots at her site were taken in the summer of 2004 when she got "out" of shape when she wasn't training as much.

http://www.sashacohen.com/studioshots.shtml

I'm sure there is some air brushing going on but that is what she would look like more if she wouldn't train as hard.

[Eeyora]

Unfortunately I am not a doctor and I don't know. Maybe she herself doesn't know and is just training hard. I do think Sasha is a naturally thin young lady but I do agree she has looked thinner and thinner lately.

[perry125]

I thought she looked a little gaunt in the kiss and cry at TEB. But not like she has an eating disorder. More like what people look like when they've had a sleepless night or after catching a bad cold. I remember wondering if she was completely healthy or if it was her makeup.

[JOHIO2]

LBC,

there is a difference between those studio pics and the action pics. She is relaxed in the studio. She is working hard in the action pics, just the definition you see in her neck and upper chest alone could be different under those circumstances.

Weird thing is, looking at those studio pics again, I never realized how much she can look like my daughter. I would probably not think that way when I see her usual pulled back hair, but the long hair hanging and blowing about her face really play up similarities I never noticed before.

[Mathman]

As an MD PhD...

Smarter than bugs.

[Linny]

I'm not as certain as other posters that elite figure skaters have medical experts around them. Another elite figure skater got so out of spinal alignment that we could see it on TV! Also, considering the amount of time it takes to get tests done and see a doctor, I doubt they take the time out from their practice schedules. Linny

[Joesitz]

It would be nice if someone could come up with som facts of Sasha's health. Otherwise for me, this thread is reading like a gossip magazine based on speculation. She is skating well, and getting ready for Nationals. That's important.

Joe

[bronxgirl]

Smarter than bugs.

Fraid some of those nasty nosocomial Gram negatives are coming close to having me beat

[millie]

As an MD PhD, I advise you to not take the problem of anorexia and bulemia in elite atheletes in such a flip manner. It has lead many young men and women (yes men too) down a dangerous path to sacrifice themselves for their sport or art. Melodramatic, but true.

And I'm not saying that Sasha does or does not have an eating problem. I don;t know her, and have only seen photographs, so they can be distorting.

Bronxgirl, I was not being flippy about the subject of anorexia and bulemia. I know that these are serious diseases and a subject that should not be taken lightly. But what I was fliping about was the fact that people were diagnosing Sasha as if they were Doctors. It's also a serious matter for people to be even stating that she has this disease. Yes, Sasha may be thin, but being thin and being anorexic are two different things. I don't think that this subject should be discussed on a skating forum. When the poster started this thread, she advised that the word anorexia and bulemia should not be used in thread for this very reason. Me personally, I don't think its ethical for people to be labeling Sasha as being anorexic. Just my opinion. I know that this is only a discussion but people are walking on dangerous ground with this subject.