RED-S:

(Relative Energy Deficiency in sport)

RED-S is a real issue that not only affects an athlete’s performance but can go beyond that to affect their overall health and well-being. Athletes’ struggling with RED-S may get sick more frequently, have delayed growth and development, have gastrointestinal complaints, and increased anxiety, just to name a handful of complications. Of course, these then impact the athlete’s performance in one way or another. And it’s not always evident that this is what is happening if you are not fully aware of how much nutrition growing athletes need. In the literature we really have just started to discover how high our young athletes energy and nutrient needs really are. Some of the most common comments I get from parents when they visit me with their athlete due to RED-S is:

• “Never would I have guessed their fueling, or underfueling, was the issue. I feel like they are always eating!”

• “I’m shocked nutrition is the issue. They eat so healthy!”

• “But he/she knows a lot about nutrition. I’m surprised nutrition is the issue!”

RED-S is a fairly new condition that can have a huge negative effect on an athlete’s performance but it is also a condition that, when identified, can be resolved with some education, intentional nutrition improvements and strategizing. And when your athletes realizes what all they need and just how much, and then start implementing strategies each day that allow them to meet their needs, it is so incredibly exciting to see how excited THEY ARE when they get through entire practices feeling energized, when their times improve, when they master a new skill, when they make it through a practice or performance without feeling weak or dizzy… when they see their performance IMPROVE.

If you are not familiar with RED-S and would like to learn more, I encourage to read through the following articles:

• RED-S: The reason for your athlete’s struggles?

• Is Your Athlete Underfueling? A Common Oversight

• Female Athletes: What your period is telling you

Working with Taylor:

In working with athletes with RED-S, I follow a protocol that I have fine-tuned over the years. Here is what you can expect to learn and take away while working together:

• Review of nutrition-related labs 

• Assessment of initial Energy Availability (EA). I continue to monitor EA as the athlete optimizes their intake to ensure we are reaching their goal EA for performance, growth and development.

• Key foundational nutrition information

• Key nutrients to support bone health and promote injury prevention (because you are at a higher risk of injury if experiencing RED-S)

• Key performance nutrition information (specifically supporting practices, games, performances and tournaments)

• Support as the athlete implements the information into their daily routine

If you think your athlete may be or you know they are struggling with RED-S and are in a state of low energy availability and you would like help getting them out of their current state and into a state where they feel and perform their best, you can reach out any time to schedule a free 20 minute Discovery Call. I would love to chat with you about working together!