When Performance Suddenly Declines: Could iron be the issue?

Your athlete has always been a top performer on their team. Maybe one of the fastest on the cross country team. Maybe a top performing gymnast or dancer at their level. Maybe they are on track to get a soccer scholarship to college. Everything is going great, until the one race, the one meet, the one performance, the one game where it suddenly isn’t. The athlete suddenly almost stops in their tracks. They tell you they are doing everything that they always do, but today they can’t quite get their legs to move faster, their body to turn quicker, or they feel stuck and tired and can’t advance. And it continues practice after practice, and event after event.

In some athletes it could be a more subtle decline in performance but this is the complaint that I hear the most often, and, regardless of how it presents, athletes still report frustrations like decreased performance, fatigue, dizziness and/or light-headedness, or “heavy legs”. Many athletes show up in my office with this as their main complaint or they mention this as they share with me their athlete journey and what all has brought them to see me today. They are baffled at what could be happening as they typically feel like they have not made any major changes to their diet, their hydration or their schedule.

As their sports dietitian I, of course, look at their overall nutrient intake, hydration status and the big picture. However, what immediately comes to mind to check when I get complaints like this is (1) IRON - what is this athlete’s iron status? And (2) WHY might the athlete’s iron status be low?

Often times I see low iron in my very high performing elite young athletes. The ones practicing hours almost every day at high levels. It can come from overlooking certain foods in their daily intake, from consistent underfueling (often unintentional), or from increased iron losses due to the nature of their sport.

In my 8+ years of practice, I didn’t realize how prevalent low iron was until about the last 4 or 5 years. Now, in the last couple of years I have really started monitoring it in the the athletes that have come to see me with these kind of complaints.

So this is what I’m going to talk with you about today.  Today I want to shed some light on this important mineral, iron. What it does for us, why our athlete’s levels may be low, and how it affects our athlete’s performance. Let’s dive in….

Iron is…

A mineral that is needed for the production of red blood cells and for the transport of oxygen throughout the body.

3 Reasons an Athlete May Have Low Iron:

1. Special diets

• An athlete that avoids meat or who is a vegetarian or vegan is at risk of not consuming enough iron.

2. Increased iron breakdown / losses

• Increased iron losses can occur in sports with repetitive footstrike like distance runners. This is called foot strike hemolysis.

• Small amount of iron can be lost in the sweat and in the urine.

• Inflammation can negatively affect  iron levels

• Iron lost each month in post-menarcheal female (have started their periods)

3. RED-S

• A high-performing athlete that has been restricting or unintentionally underfueling is at risk of low iron intake and therefore low iron stores.

• There is a tricky relationship between low iron stores and low energy availability (RED-S). If an athlete is suffering from low iron or anemia it can make it harder for them to get out of their state of RED-S. This is because, if the body is low or deficient in iron or iron stores, it makes it harder to do any given skill and definitely harder to perform at the athlete’s peak. This is causing their body to work harder than usual at any given skill, which expends more calories, making it harder to get out of their state of Low Energy Availability. And they have low iron because of their underfueling, It can become a tough cycle to break.

Reasons for Low Iron Specific to Young Athletes…

• Rapid growth and development that happens in childhood and adolescence can increase dietary iron needs. Participating in sports at a high level of training also places a demand on the body’s need for iron. The two together can create a significant increase in the body’s need for iron to function well.

• This increased need for iron often comes at a time when the athlete may be skipping meals, choosing to snack throughout the day vs sit down for balanced meals or try “special diets” that they see friends of celebrities promote. These factors all lead to an increased risk of low iron or iron deficiency with or without anemia in the young athlete.

Signs/Symptoms of Low Iron (or low ferritin)…

• Fatigue

• Shortness of breath

• Dizziness / light-headed

• Nausea

• Pale skin

• Complaints of feeling heavy (“heavy legs” is what I hear most frequently)

Checking Your Iron Levels…

I highly recommend that you get your iron levels checked before trying to supplement as iron supplements are known to have negative GI effects and, as it is a mineral, an athlete can get too much. If your athlete does have low iron levels, your MD or sports RD will likely recommend a certain amount of iron for a certain number of weeks and then recheck it. It is typically not something that you supplement at a high dose forever.

When you request iron labs, it’s important not to just get “an iron” and don’t just get a CBC (which looks at your hemoglobin, hematocrit, etc.) as these are usually not effected until a deficiency is more severe. Where you really want to start is with a ferritin as this is the body’s storage form of iron. Iron deficiency has 3 stages, 1 being least severe and 3 being most severe.

The 3 Stages of Iron Deficiency…

Stage 1: iron insufficiency or depletion.

• A low ferritin 

Stage 2: iron deficiency without anemia

• Further decreased ferritin

• Decreased transferrin saturation 

• Increased total iron binding capacity (TIBC)

Stage 3: iron deficiency with anemia

• Further decreased ferritin

• Decreased transferrin saturation 

• Increased total iron binding capacity (TIBC)

• Low hemoglobin

Iron Supplementation & Side Effects…

If your athlete is complaining of fatigue and decreased performance or you are worried they may have RED-S, I encourage you to get with a sports dietitian. Don’t just go out and start an iron supplement. Get your labs checked and meet with a professional! With my clients, sometimes all they need is to improve their dietary intake and we work together to achieve that. Others have lab values that indicate they need more than what they can get from diet alone and so I recommend a mix of supplement + teach them how to optimize their iron intake in their diet. Then I monitor any negative side effects they may have and either help them reduce those or alter their supplement if needed.

If you are at a point where you think your athlete needs their iron checked, it will be best to start working with a sports medicine physician and / or sports dietitian. We can help you interpret your results and get your numbers back to optimal levels, whether through diet, supplement or a combination of the two!

I have worked with so many athletes struggling with low iron from Stage 1 to Stage 3. If you would like to speak with me about working together, you can reach out to me any time at taylor@taylored-nutrition.com. I would love to chat with you!

Wishing you a well-fueled athlete!

Taylor

When You're Not Sure What Type of Hydration Drink Your Athlete Needs

Another common question I get from both parents and athletes and what I see a lot of confusion around is this topic of hydration beverages. Sports drink vs. electrolyte powder vs. water… what is the best choice? With all of the marketing and all the options and all of the different sports, it’s understandable why athletes are confused on what to drink and when.

In today’s blog, I’m going to break down some of the facts for you. These are questions I ask my private or group clients that I work with when helping them create a unique hydration plan and this is what you need to think about and when deciding the best hydration choice for your athlete.

5 MAIN POINTS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING A HYDRATION DRINK FOR THE YOUNG ATHLETE

1. HOW LONG WILL THE ATHLETE BE PLAYING / PRACTICING?

2. WHAT IS THE ENVIRONMENT / CLIMATE LIKE? (SUPER HOT, HUMID, COLD, MILD?)

3. WHAT TYPE OF ACTIVITY WILL THE ATHLETE BE DOING?

4. DID THE ATHLETE HAVE ANY PRE-EVENT FUEL?

5. HOW OLD IS THE ATHLETE? ARE THEY A HEAVY / SALTY SWEATER?

How you respond to each of these questions will determine which type of hydration drink is best for your athlete.

Three Categories of Hydration Drinks:

1. Water

2. Electrolyte Replacements

3. Sports Drinks

In my opinion, you can think of making your selection based on the general idea that the longer and more intense the practice / event becomes, the more you need in your drink. Let’s break it down by drink…

Water

• The gold standard

• Less than 60 minutes of activity in mild to moderate temperatures, with minimal sweating

• Examples:

  • 30 minute choreography class

  • 45 minute soccer practice

  • 40 minute figure skating freestyle session
    

electrolyte drink

• An event of varying duration with minimal to moderate exertion but still heavy sweating

• Basically, not enough energy is being exerted to require the carbs in a sports drink, but the athlete is sweating a lot and so benefits from replacing elextrolytes

• Examples:

  • One baseball game

  • Practice for a more skill-based sport or position in the heat
    

sports drink

• 60 minutes or more of moderate to high-intensity activity

• Extreme heat conditions

• The athlete is a heavy and salty sweater

• The athlete does not have a carb-rich snack on-hand during the event or the athlete has trouble tolerating solid forms of nutrition before and during events (ex: due to high nerves).

• Examples:

  • A figure skater has 2 back-to-back 40-minute freestyle sessions followed by a 20-minute on-ice power class

  • A soccer athlete has a soccer game in the intense Texas summer heat OR has a tournament weekend.

  • A baseball player has a tournament without time to grab meals or carb-rich snacks in-between games.

  • A runner has a 1.5 hour cross country practice in the intense heat

  • A gymnast has a 4 hour morning practice and very little time to snack during the practice.

In addition to these facts, I thought I would share some common questions I get around this topic and how I respond…

COMMON QUESTIONS ABOUT HYDRATION DRINKS for YOUNG ATHLETES

What about all the sugar in sports drinks?

I know many athletes who have struggled through sessions underfueled with low energy stores (read; “low carb stores”) because they are trying to cut out sugar. While I understand this can come from a place of good intention, we must remember that, for the athlete, Sugar = Carbohydrate = Energy = PERFORMANCE!! 

Right before an event or during an event is a place where the body actually benefits from sugar, from simple carbohydrate like that found in a regular sports drink! These can be especially helpful if you have trouble tolerating solids like fruit / bagels / bars around events.

I had an athlete come to me recently who was struggling with burnout not even half-way through soccer practices. They struggled with fatigue and some dizziness. As I worked through my material with them, a light went off. This athlete realized that they had cut out all sugar including any drinks with sugar completely. They added in some Gatorade before and during long practices and at our next session said they felt a huge difference in energy levels and the dizziness was gone.  Success!

what about those who don’t drink sports drinks due to the dyes?

That’s ok! Did you know you can make your own sports drink? If you prefer to go a more diy route you can make your own! I’ve stumbled across a variety of recipes and am linking a few for you below…

• Citrus Sports Drink & Watermelon Sports Drink

• DIY Sports Drink

What about this one that I’m seeing everywhere?

Do a comparison of the drinks you are considering. There are some trendy sports drinks out there, but when I look at the nutritionals, I find they are actually very low in key electrolytes like sodium. If your athlete truly needs a sports drink to (1) maintain energy levels and (2) replenish electrolytes lost in their sweat, remember that the main electrolyte they are wanting to replace is sodium!

what about energy drinks?

I can only say “No” to energy drinks. The caffeine amounts can be more than what is listed on the container and there is no recommended amount of caffeine for kids and teens in the US. I also think that many times an athlete will turn to an energy drink for energy when what they really need is MORE FOOD (ie, FUEL). To make matters worse there, energy drinks can blunt the appetite leaving a body already craving food and nutrients more underfueled. This is all I will say for now but I do plan to do a blog dedicated to energy drinks at a later date.

I hope you found this helpful today.

Hydration drinks can be confusing, but when the athlete gets it right, they really can feel an exciting difference!

If you think or know that your athlete is struggling with their hydration. If they need a more detailed plan and someone to guide them, I would love to chat with you about it. I work with my private clients and group program clients to create their unique fueling strategy all the time!

You can reach out to me at taylor@taylored-nutrition.com to schedule a quick call and see if working together would be a good next step!

Wishing you a well-fueled athlete,

Taylor

When Your Athlete Wants to Incorporate Protein Shakes

Today we are talking Protein Shakes. Probably one of the most common questions that I get from parents I work with…

• “Are they good?”

• “Should my athlete drink them?”

• “Which ones do you recommend?”

• “When should they drink them?”

My response and discussion of this popular question is always similar and it goes something like this…

Yes, I think that protein shakes CAN be beneficial and helpful…

1. in certain situations

2. with the right information and understanding to support it

Typical Instances Where Protein Shakes Can Be Helpful For Young Athletes:

• An athlete has early morning practice before school and needs a quick protein choice to pair with the carbohydrate in their recovery snack between end of practice and their first class.

• An athlete has a super packed school schedule and sometimes does not have the time (or make the time) for a full hot lunch.

• An athlete needs quick and shelf-stable protein ideas to have on-hand during long days of tournaments, back-to-back practices or competitions.

• The athlete is vegetarian or vegan and so their easy on-the-go protein choices are more limited throughout the day.

• The more mature athlete is struggling to meet protein goals for weight and / or muscle gain.

• An athlete has decreased appetite after intense practices and liquid nutrition is the only thing desired or tolerated.

While protein shakes can be helpful in scenarios like those above, it’s important for the athlete to understand a few important facts so that the shake fully benefits the athlete’s performance…

Key Points to Remember When Incorporating Protein Shakes:

• Low in Calories. Protein shakes are often low in calories and relying too much on these on their own can leave an athlete underfueled.

• Low in Carbohydrates. Protein shakes are often low in carbohydrates. Not being strategic about how a protein shake fits into the meal or snack can leave an athlete under-consuming carbohydrates. And we know that carbohydrates are key for (1) energy, stamina and performance, (2) building muscle and (3) recovery.

• Not a Nutrition Shake. Relying too much on protein shakes as a source of protein while not being intentional about other meals and snacks can leave an athlete deficient in other macro or micronutrients. Protein shakes are usually not equal to nutrition / meal replacement shakes.

• Contain Artificial Sweeteners. Many protein shakes do contain artificial sweeteners (to keep the sugar down, which means the carbohydrates are low as well) and these can cause stomach discomfort / upset in some individuals. If your athletes’ stomach is sensitive to these, it may be best to avoid.

• More isn’t necessarily better. Different protein shakes have different amounts of protein. The typical 12 or 13 year old athlete does not need 40+ grams of protein in their protein shake. It will not give them an additional benefit to building muscle over 15 to 30 grams (depends on weight, stage of development, etc.), especially if they are allowing that 40 grams to make up for very little protein or no protein in another meal or snack. Remember, we want consistent protein intake that meets the specific athlete’s overall goal spaced throughout the day. This is where, if the athlete has struggled with building muscle, I recommend you get with a sports RD who can give your athlete a total protein goal and the best way to break it up throughout the day.

And, or course, one other thing to consider is the question around if the athlete actually needs extra protein from a shake. Some athletes think they need to drink these because friends or teammates are drinking them. Here are some initial questions I start with when seeing an athlete who wonders about protein shakes…

Initial Questions To Ask Before Relying On Protein Shakes:

• “How much protein is the athlete currently getting?”

  • Many athlete are getting more protein than they think.

  • Take a look at current meal and snack patterns. What is the protein content of your athlete’s current food choices?

• “Does your athlete like a variety of protein-rich foods and drinks?” If the answer is “yes”, then I encourage them to try those first over shakes. Those foods and drinks will likely offer more overall nutrition and energy than a single protein shake (and can be more budget-friendly than more pricey protein shakes).

• “Can the athlete fit a variety of these foods in throughout the school day (before school, during school or after school)?” Once the athlete has identified protein foods they enjoy and that are available regularly (I go over this in depth with the athlete in our sessions), we need to determine the feasibility of actually getting these throughout the day each day. The athlete may have a bunch of protein-rich foods & drinks they love, but their school schedule makes it tough to get many of those foods each day. In my sessions with athletes, I’m here to partner with them. We incorporate what they like and what they will try with what is actually feasible with their scheduler and make recommendations and a plan from there.

If your answer these questions and you realize the athlete is meeting their protein goals, then a protein shake likely isn’t necessary. If, however, you determine that the athlete’s protein needs cannot be met from regular foods and beverages, then protein shakes may be a helpful advantage.

If you need help assessing your athlete’s intake…

or if your athlete needs help with getting enough protein each day to support recovery, performance and meeting their goals…

You can always reach out to me on Instagram (@taylormorrisonRD) or shoot me a quick email at taylor@taylored-nutrition.com. We’ll jump on a brief Discover Call to talk more about your athlete’s needs and goals and see if working together would be a good fit. I offer a variety of one-to-one packages as well as a group program throughout the year!

I hope you found this helpful today. Until next time!

Wishing you a well-fueled athlete,

Taylor

When Timing Is Everything

You might be reading this and thinking, my athlete knows what they like and don’t like. They know what snacks agree with them. They understand the foods that give them the quickest energy.  

However, even after including those foods in a regular training schedule, they are still having struggles. Maybe they still end up getting shaky and light-headed by the middle of a game. Or they get stomach cramps mid-way into their race. 

To this I would say, “You’re not doing anything wrong. You just don’t have the complete puzzle put together quite yet.”

In my professional opinion, there are two big pieces to the sports nutrition puzzle:

1. The fundamental facts. Know which macros are needed for what. And which micros are needed for what function.

AND

1. The application of the fundamentals - the science behind digestion rates and how our body uses the food we give it to create energy for different types of sports. i.e - TIMING.

You can know all of the fundamental facts… what’s a carb? What’s a protein? What’s a fat? What is iron? Etc. etc. etc. 

BUT, if you don’t understand TIMING, the way the body processes the foods, how long it takes to convert those foods to energy, then the athlete can still be left sluggish, with stomach aches, frustrated or confused.

In my experience, both as a teen athlete and as an adult sports dietitian coaching others, I have found that this timing piece is often what may take the most, well, time, to figure out. Because, while there are textbook recommendations of how many grams/kg of carbohydrate should be consumed before, during and after activity along with recommended timelines, it’s also true that bodies are all very different. So while one athlete may need a particular snack “x” minutes before warmup, their teammate may like that same snack but need it “y” minutes before or “z” minutes before warmup. 

The timing of your meals and snacks are determined by the composition of the meal/snack - what is actually in it, as well as the portions in the meal/snack AND the athlete’s genetics. 

General macronutrient timing guidelines…

We know that protein, fat and fiber should be consumed further away from exercise because they take longer to digest and longer to be used for energy. The further away from warmup the meal / snack is, usually the more leniency you have with the protein, fiber and fat content. And the closer you get to the event/warmup, the less of these nutrients that meal/snack needs to contain, leaning to eventually entirely easily digested carbs as you get right down to start time.

So, for today, if your athlete is struggling with stomach cramps or upset, or shakiness / dizziness / fatigue before the end of events and if you feel they really understand the fundamental of nutrition, then I wonder if they should start looking more at TIMING…

Maybe they need less time between snack and event, maybe they need more time. Maybe they need more time but also a bit more carb.  Maybe they don’t have much time so they need their snack + a simple snack to have during a game / practice / event.  

Take a little time and play with timing.  It’s great if the athlete can get this right straight out of the gate, but it often takes a little bit of time, a little bit of trial and error.  

And a general guide to remember:

~close to event time = simpler carbs (no protein, fat or fiber)

~ 1 to 2 hours out = carbs + a little protein

~3 to 4 hours out = carbs + protein + a little fat, as tolerated by the athlete

If you play around with nutrition this summer and your athlete figures out what really works for them, I would love to hear about it!  You can always comment below, find me on Instagram (@taylormorrisonRD) or send me an email!  I’de love to hear from you.

Much love and a well-fueled athlete,

Taylor

Oh - and if this post resonated with you.

If this is something your athlete has been working on or needs to work on. 

Maybe they already feel confident in the fundamentals or maybe they need that education as well, you guys would be a perfect fit for my virtual live sports nutrition program running this summer!!!

want to talk with me more about the program to see if your athlete is a good fit?

• Book a call through the website

• Or email directly at taylor@taylored-nutrition.com

When Your Athlete Gets Dizzy or Shaky During Practices / Events

Over the years I have had handfuls of athletes come into my office and tell me that they struggle with getting dizzy or shaky during long practices or games / tournaments.

They may associate it with nerves or a variety of other factors but, to my surprise, not their fueling strategy.  As a sports dietitian, that’s typically the absolute first thing I think about!

When I hear an athlete complains of dizziness or shakiness during performances / long practices my absolute first thought is always, “well, what did you eat before you started?” And that includes, (1) what you ate right before practice as well as (2) what you ate even first thing that morning leading up to stepping on the court / field / ice / floor.

If the athlete is struggling with dizziness / shakiness before / during / after events, it COULD be low blood sugars and today, I quickly want to run through some possible causes of why this could be occurring.

Here are a few things to consider if your athlete is complaining of dizziness / shakiness during or after their events…

1. Your athlete has not eaten in the last few or more hours and so their energy (carbohydrate) stores are depleted by the middle of a practice / event. 

2. Your athlete has eaten in the last couple of hours but it either (a) was not enough over all or (b) did not contain enough carbohydrates.

3. Your athlete did include carbohydrate foods in their meal about 3 hours before the practice / event but they forgot to include other foods that would steady blood sugars, slow digestion and so the fuel was used rapidly and they didn’t bring a quick energizing snack to eat / drink before this practice / event.

4. Your athlete is dehydrated and forgot to consume enough fluid throughout their morning and day to equip them for a long intense practice or game.

If this has been a struggle for your athlete, I encourage you to think through these possible scenarios. Does your athlete fall into one of these? Which one?

Next, I would encourage you and your athlete to get strategic and very intentional with meal and snack composition, fluid intake AND timing of all of these. Because all of these together are what create an ideal fueling plan that allows the athlete to perform their best.

I encourage the young athlete to:

1. Make sure they are having three meals a day.

2. Make sure these three meals are balanced with quality carbohydrates and protein. Plus some fat and fiber depending on where they fall prior to the event and the athlete’s tolerance of each of these.

3. Make sure they have a water bottle they can carry during the school day and that they have an idea of how much water they need before events (remember an athlete needs to drink smaller amounts throughout the day for adequate hydration. Chugging large volumes 30 to 45 minutes before will not adequately hydrate)

4. Make sure they have some snacks that provide quick energy (carbohydrates) that they can consume right before an event / practice if they are already feeling a little shaky or if they were not able to eat like they had planned prior to the event.

These are some suggestions of where to start if your athlete is struggling with today’s topic. I have seen some athletes start to feel better just with this general education and I’ve worked with others who need a little more support and specifics. 

If you or your athlete need a little more guidance on where to start when understanding how to fuel for strong practices and performances, you can also request a copy of my FREE Getting Started Guide to a Well-Fueled Athlete!  It provides a few points to know when fueling the young athlete and gives you a starting point to creating the best fueling strategy for your young athlete.

Also, if you have not already heard, I’m running a live virtual sports nutrition program this summer!!  It will teach young athletes the key fundamental sports nutrition information they need to know AND give them the time and support to use this knowledge to build their best fueling strategy.

If this interests you, I encourage you to:

• Book a call with me to chat more (reach out through the website or send a message directly to taylor@taylored-nutrition.com

• Read more on the program details HERE

I hope you have found this helpful today!

Much love and a well-fueled athlete,

Taylor

When Your Athlete Is Always Hungry

Hi there! Welcome to the blog where I do my very best to support young athletes and help them fuel when fueling feels hard.

Recently I had someone tell me that their athlete is struggling with always feeling hungry. I heard that and thought, “How have I not done a blog on this yet?!” If your athlete complains of always feeling hungry and you feel like you just can’t keep enough food in the house, you are absolutely not alone! I hear this often from the teen athletes that I work with. It is an uncomfortable feeling to never feel full or to feel satisfied from a meal for only about 1 hour and then feel ravenous again. I see this happen so frequently in growing high performing athletes with their multiple practices a day and long school schedules.  If this is something your athlete struggles with, then today’s post is for you. I want to give you a few nutrition takeaways that your hungry athlete can start implementing this week to help them feel more satisfied.

3 Initial Nutrition Strategies to Help Your Hungry Athlete Feel Full:

1. No skipping meals

   I would think this is a given, but you never know. And I know from years of experience that adolescent athletes can be regular meal skippers. Your athlete needs at least 3 meals a day, minimum, and if he/she is super hungry all the time, I would throw in a 4th meal, especially if it’s a season of higher training volume or intensity.

2. Consistent snacks

   Is your athlete including at least 3 snacks? Most of my athletes struggling with persistent hunger get more than 3 snacks a day. If your athlete gets 3 meals a day already, how could they start getting in 4 or 5 snacks / day?

3. Create variety on the plate

   What are the athlete’s meals and snacks made of? I think we often immediately think “protein, protein, protein” in the sports world. BUT we cannot forget those other macros. Carbs and fat are really big energy sources for the athlete’s brain and muscles. They also slow digestion.  

• Have your athlete take a look at their plate.  What is the plate made of?

• It needs to have a balance of foods that provide protein, carbs and fat. 

• Example: if your athlete’s go-to snack is a bagel, great! That is a great source of carbohydrates but, while carbs are fantastic energy sources, they get utilized by the body pretty quickly. So, let’s add some fat and protein by topping that bagel with a couple of tablespoons of peanut butter and maybe they need a glass of milk or a yogurt to go with it for a protein and carbohydrate boost (not to mention calcium for the growing bones)!

• Example: Or, maybe your athlete is drinking a protein shake for a snack.  While these do contain a lot of protein, they are typically very low in carbohydrates, calories and fat. What if you blended that protein drink into your own shake with banana and peanut butter for added carbs and fat?

Now, of course you have to take into account the athlete’s school and training schedule. If they can’t eat that many snacks, then we adjust accordingly. And if it’s a snack right before practice, we may need to leave that snack alone and really focus on ramping up the others.

But, these are a few “getting started” techniques to help your athlete feel more satisfied with meals and snacks and less hungry so he / she can focus on the other aspects of the day.

If your athlete needs more help implementing a nutrition strategy that fills them up and fuels the sport I have a few resource that might interest you!

• You can download my FREE Getting Started Guide to a Well Fueled Young Athlete

• OR, I’m running a VIRTUAL LIVE SPORTS NUTRITION PROGRAM FOR THE YOUNG ATHLETE this summer! It’s perfect for the young athlete wanting to learn the sports nutrition fundamentals so they can feel confident building meals and snacks and a fueling plan to meet their goals on their own. If you’re interested in learning more about this program opportunity, I encourage you to book a call with me to chat! You can also learn more details on our Confidently Fueled Young Athlete Info Page.

• Registration closes May 23rd!

Much love and a well-fueled young athlete,

Taylor

NEW! A Group Sports Nutrition Program Specifically for the Young Athlete!

Hello everyone!

I hope your Spring is going well. It’s my, hands down, favorite time of year :)

If you’ve been following along with me this year, whether via this blog or Instagram, you know I have been focused a LOT on this topic of underfueling. It is probably the #1 conversation topic I have with 95% of the athletes that come to see me because of an injury. Yes, it can be intentional but it is also often completely unintentional. Little changes in an athlete’s training schedule or school schedule or a sudden growth spurt with no change in intake can suddenly shift them into this state of underfueling. Underfueling can increase risk of injury, it can lead to poorer performance and it can be the underlying reason an athlete can’t build the muscle they need for a certain sport or position on the team. When I say underfueling, I can be referring to calories or specific nutrients or both. If an athlete is underfueling in energy (calorie intake) they are much more likely to be under consuming specific nutrients needed for growth, development, performance and injury prevention.

Last year I realized how, despite this underfueling being such a big deal, athletes and families are often uninformed about its severity and the risks associated with it. I know I was completely in the dark about this condition when I was a teen athlete. So, I decided at the start of this new year to do a deep dive into all different topics centered around underfueling, to at least help educate my followers and readers. And that’s what you will find if you look back through the blog topics from this year.

In the last couple of years I’ve talked a lot with athletes about how to eat enough for their training level, what nutrients to include to ensure best performance and help prevent injuries like stress fractures. I’ve also done a LOT of education on how to use nutrition to optimize recovery from injuries like a stress fractures but also other big injuries like ACL tears. I’ve worked hard to help coach and guide athletes through these long recovery periods to feel confident in how they are eating during this restricted period of exercise and help them understand how to create meals and snacks that will serve their recovery, helping them maintain muscle, build back muscle while healing from a surgery, and maximize bone health.

I’ve chatted with hundreds of athletes over the last couple of years and I’ve discovered a few things:

• So many young athletes don’t learn anything about nutrition in school (they might get a week of education from their health class)

• So many young athletes WANT to learn about nutrition and understand how they can use it to fuel their body, recover from injury, etc (many many athletes have visited with me simply to learn)

• While, of course, nutrition on its own is not the answer to preventing all injuries it is the driving factor in certain injuries, like stress fractures.

• And, while many factors contribute to an injured athlete’s recovery plan, nutrition can keep the athlete on track or it can slow their recovery down or make it a bigger hill to climb once they are cleared to return to sport

With all this to say, I’ve had this thought nagging at me for over a year of, “these athletes could really use a place to go to learn (1) nutrition fundamentals (2) key sports nutrition principles and (3) how to use this info for their own performance and injury prevention.”

With that thought, I’ve seen how my process of working with young athletes over the years has improved their sports nutrition knowledge, enabled them to implement this information into their own routine AND allowed them to see and feel a difference in their performance / health / recovery / etc.

That’s why today I’m EXTREMELY EXCITED to tell you that I have finally done something about it!!

I’ve created an EXCELLENT resource for young athletes (and their caregivers) who are ready to learn and ready to implement the nutritions strategies they need to perform well, prevent injury and more during these critical years of growth and development.

It’s an online group sports nutrition program geared specifically for the adolescent athlete! If this interests you, you can learn more HERE!

Want to chat first to ask quesitons and see if this program would be a good fit for your athlete? You can book a call through the website or email directly at taylor@taylored-nutrition.com.

I’m really so so excited to finally get to offer this resource to young athletes (and their families). I hope you can join us this summer!

Much love and a well-fueled athlete,

Taylor

Female Athletes: What your period is telling you

As someone who grew up in a house that NEVER talked about periods / menstrual cycles, I sometimes laugh at the irony of HOW MUCH I talk about periods every day. I really mean it.  It comes up weekly with the female athletes that I see. It comes up so much so that I don’t hesitate or even give the topic a second thought. I hope that continues so that my daughter feels totally comfortable talking about it as she gets older. Although, I’ll probably be the “embarrassing mom” that talks about it too openly. I can already see the eye rolls and hear the “ughh, moommmmm”s now.  But, oh well. It’s a fate I’m willing to embrace if it means she’s aware of its importance and how it can be a sign and indicator of her overall health.

TOday I’m talking all about female athletes and their periods from the sports nutrition angle

I want to discuss why a female’s period becomes a focus in the work that I do and why I put such importance on it. Having a menstrual cycle is a normal function of the female body as they reach and navigate through puberty. A young female athlete should get her period by 15 years old.

Typically if a young female has reached 15 years old without ever having had a period it is termed “primary amenorrhea” and she is typically referred to a specialist to determine if something is going on in the body that has prevented her cycles from starting. 

It is fairly normal for a young female athlete to reach menarche (her first period) and for her periods to be a little irregular at first. However if she gets further into her sport and you notice it stops completely and she goes months and months and months without having one, OR, it normalizes and then her training increases and she starts skipping her periods, that is not normal. Losing her period or going three months or more without it is not a badge of honor displaying what a hard core athlete she is. This is a medical condition known as “secondary amenorrhea”. 

Whether the athlete is experiencing primary or secondary amenorrhea, there is reason to take a look at what might be going on. I’ve seen and research supports that it can be a cause for concern in the sports world.

Annoying BUt important

I know that having a period as a young female athlete can be VERY annoying. The cramps, the fatigue, nausea, bathroom breaks. It’s very annoying and very inconvenient. So, when we skip one or more periods or delay ever starting, we may think, “sweet, one thing I don’t have to deal with”.  However, what we may not realize is that this period and regular menstrual cycle is very important for injury prevention and performance, specifically things including (but not limited to) hormone regulation like estrogen which impacts bone health. 

While there can absolutely be an anatomic or endocrine issue going on, amenorrhea can also be a result of underfueling, the theme we have been covering the last couple of months. And that is what lands so many athletes in my office and why I’m so concerned with the female athlete’s cycle. What is happening here is that the athlete is demanding a very high amount of energy due to training for sport. However, she is not consuming enough energy each day for the body to cover all of the demands being placed on it between energy needs for sport, school, growth and development and daily physiological functioning (breathing, heartbeat, digestion, menstrual cycle, etc.). So, I like to explain this as:

In this state of limited energy availability (or, Low Energy Availability) the body takes an inventory of the functions not absolutely needed in the immediate present to function and it starts powering down or even shutting off those identified systems. That’s when the athlete loses her period. The body says, “I don’t absolutely need you right now to live and function and so I will power you down or turn you off for a bit until I have more energy. Right now I need to use all of this energy for this other function over here”.

my thinking when a female athlete tells me her cylces have been absent or irregular.

When a young female athlete walks into my office and tells me she has not had a period in the last 3 to 6 months or more, I get very concerned about her health, performance and risk of injury, particularly the state of her bone health. If she isn’t already seeing me with a stress fracture, I’m  on heightened alert of her susceptibility to acquiring one in the near future. And, even if she is lucky and avoids a fracture, it can still put her at risk for low bone mineral density and osteoporosis later in life. Not having her cycle is also a sign that she could very likely have RED-S, which we know from my previous posts means she could be setting herself up for further complications like decreased performance, stomach issues, heightened anxiety, cardiovascular concerns, altered iron levels and more.

So, what can you take away from today’s post? Today I want to leave you with a few questions you or your athlete can ask regarding her period to determine if she is fueling well to prevent injury and perform her best…

Period check to determine if your female athlete is fueling well:

• Has your athlete started her period by 15 years old?

• Is your female athlete having monthly periods?

• Does your athlete have regular periods EXCEPT during her sports season? For example: “I have a monthly period all year with the exception of cross country season. I lose it for 4 or 5 months and then it comes back after my season is over”.

  • This indicates likely underfueling in-season

• Does your athlete only have her periods when injured?

  • This could indicate that she may be underfueling when she is fully training. When she is taken out of her sport and her activity decreases her intake is finally able to meet physiological demands and her periods resume.

• Is your young female athlete struggling with or has she in the past struggled with stress fractures?

  • NOTE: An athlete can still experience stress fractures with regular periods and an optimal energy intake. They could be more a result of specific nutrition deficiencies. However….

  • Make sure to at least ask, “is she having regular periods?”

    • If she is not, it should be a red flag to start taking an even closer look at her fueling and working on optimizing and increasing her energy intake as soon as possible.

    • In my practice, stress fractures are often a result of underfueling AND certain nutrient deficiencies (not getting enough food each day = not getting enough nutrients each day)

Now, or course, a young female’s athlete’s period, or lack there of, should always be checked on by the appropriate specialist (pediatrician, OB, endocrinologist, etc.). But, today, I encourage you to not gloss over the fact, that her FUELING could be the reason for her menstrual irregularities. Or, her STRESS INJURIES could be a result of her MENSTRUAL IRREGULARITIES, which could be a result of her UNDERFUELING.

For more info on underfueling you can check out my latest posts linked below….

• Is your athlete underfueled?

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

• Underfueling: Intentional or Unintentional?

Much love & a well-fueled athlete,

Taylor

Oh! And, if you do feel like your young female athlete is struggling with her fueling and you need a place to start, feel free to grab a copy of my Getting Started Guide to a Well-Fueled Young Athlete! 

Underfueling: Intentional or Unintentional?

Underfueling: Intentional or Unintentional?

And how it impacts reaching optimal energy intake and performance

I have worked with athletes with RED-S (or underfueling) for years, typically helping them ensure we are optimizing their bone health and iron levels as we optimize their fueling and put an end to any habits or beliefs or knowledge deficits that have led to the underfueling or could cause them to continue underfueling. 

In this process I start to discover that the reason athletes underfuel can vary:

• Some athletes’ underfueling is completely unintentional and accidental 

• Some is a result of disordered eating 

• Some is a result of what is likely a more severe potentially clinical eating disorder

Let’s dive into each of these categories of underfueling a little bit more…

Unintentional Underfueling

In my practice I have found that this is typically due to a combination of 

1. Sports nutrition knowledge deficit

   AND

2. Increase in training time and/or intensity

   Typically in this scenario there is an increase in training time or intensity that is not met with an increased intake. This could be because the athlete is too busy to add snacks or think about increasing their intake or because the increase has actually lessened their appetite. They don’t know or understand the necessity of fuel and nutrition to not only support performance but to also prevent injury.  And so at a time when nutrition needs to be amplified to support amplified training, it actually ends up being put on the back burner.

I’ve found that in many cases with unintentional underfueling once a young athlete realizes that nutrition can help them recover and heal or prevent injury, or they start to make small changes and realize how much better they feel and perform off of it, implementing the sports nutrition recommendations is relatively easy and painless. I stick with them for a bit after initial changes are made and positive outcomes start to materialize to make sure they can continue the changes and see desired results. 

This reason for underfueling, in my experience, can be met with a lot of direct education and support in implementation.

Intentional Underfueling

When it comes to intentional underfueling, I split this further into two categories:

• Disordered Eating

• Eating Disorder

Both stem from intentionally restricting intake but I have seen that one has more chance of reversal in the outpatient setting with a clinician that specializes in disordered eating and underfueling while the other really needs more intensive often inpatient treatment but at least outpatient treatment with a certified eating disorder specialist (CEDS). And, I think it’s important to understand that disordered eating can, in some individuals, slide into a clinically diagnosable eating disorder if not caught and taken action on. So, even if you think the athlete has some “weird eating things” going on, it’s best to watch it closely and intervene as needed or appropriate vs sitting back and letting it potentially get worse.

What could Disordered Eating look like?

Disordered Eating is the athlete that:

• Heard carbs were bad (NOT true) and so stopped eating sandwiches at lunch or the potatoes and rice with dinner.

• The athlete that has started skipping one or more meals

• The athlete that suddenly cut out any food group for a number of reasons (typical groups I see get cut include: animal proteins, grains, dairy, fats)

• The athlete that will no longer eat after 6 or 7pm

• The athlete that decided they should only eat one meal a day

• An athlete feels they “overate” one day so skip meals and / or snacks  or add a training session or two the next day to “make up for it”.

• …and the list continues.

An example of when I might see this, going off of my initial scenario above is…

The athlete is in a more aesthetic sport or sport that favors “leanness” (think distance running, dance, gymnastics, wrestling, figure skating, etc). Their training time and / or intensity increases (think - move from 1 to 2 practices a day, add an hour of training a day or a few hours a week, begin learning a new skill, move to a new level). They know their training has increased but they don’t immediately want to increase their intake due to fear of body composition or weight changes. Their underfueling is now intentional. This is where we dig a little deeper to determine the severity. Can that athlete learn the keys to sports nutrition, understand the major value in increasing their fueling and start implementing new strategies? Or are they stuck with their normal level of fueling and, despite the education (or even an injury) are not able to implement improvements in their nutrition?

I think that the key with Disordered Eating is that, after a few sessions with education and conversation, the athlete is able to start implementing some of the sports dietitian’s recs that involve adding foods or increasing portions or adding meals back in. They are able to meet the milestones set by the RD at each visit and eventually can get back to the place of balanced optimal fueling. We can challenge the false information heard and new eating practices believed to make them a better athlete, educating and walking though implementing new and better nutrition strategies together.

The National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA) defines Disordered Eating as….

“A spectrum of problematic eating behaviors and distorted attitudes towards food, weight, shape and appearance that include dieting, skipping meals, fasting, restricting food intake, eliminating specific foods / food groups, binge eating, excess use of diuretics, laxatives or weight loss meds, and compensatory behaviors (purging, excessive exercising). These eating patterns can vary in severity but don’t meet the frequency, duration or psychological criteria for the diagnosis of an eating disorder.”

What could an Eating Disorder look like?

When a clinically diagnosable eating disorder is the reason for an athlete’s underfueling, I find that they are not able to make any changes that involve adding food into their day.  Things like intense FEAR, UNCERTAINTY, ANXIETY, stop them from being able to add another food group or eat a food they used to eat or add lunch back in at school. And, sometimes, they cannot articulate exactly why they can’t make the change. There is very often a fear of weight gain or body composition changes, but that is not always the reason. There is a silent and invisible block between the athlete knowing what they need to do and actually carrying out the recommendations. I call this silent block the Eating Disorder.

When I see these actions, these concerns in my practice, I discuss with the athlete my recommendation for a higher level of care and additional support. I think all athletes struggling with increasing their fueling can benefit from a counselor but I think an athlete with a potential eating disorder 100% needs a therapist. Because a true diagnosable ED is not just about the food. This athlete needs support from an RD, a therapist and and MD. That is the way they will be able to start increasing and optimizing their fueling and, hopefully, get back to sport.

The National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA) defines an Eating Disorder as…

“A complex mental illness that is characterized by persistant disturbances in eating behaviors and impairment in psychological functioning. Specific diagnosis criteria for each major eating disorder is outlined in the DSM-5 TR and includes: Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, Binge Eating Disorder, Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder, and Other Specified Feeding and Eating Disorder.”

What does this mean for the athlete?

As you can see, there are a variety of reasons a young athlete might be underfueling. I write this post to make you aware in case you start to question if your athlete is fueling like they should be. If you do think your athlete might be underfueling, knowing or having an idea as to why can help you prepare for the route of support. If it’s unintentional, your time with the sports RD may be brief (unless you are working together to get a period back or improve labs or see certain longer term performance goals). If it’s related to Disordered Eating, the time to improvement will be longer but length depends on your athlete’s willingness and ability to consistently make the changes.. And if it’s an Eating Disorder, it could be very long. However, it’s important that the Disorder be handled first b/c there is no way the athlete will meet their potential with the eating disorder yelling in their ear.

This post feels a bit heavier than my usual ones, but I think it’s important that the athletic community starts to see the spectrum of underfueling and that, while it can be a relatively easy fix, it can also be something complicated and very serious. 

If we suspect underfueling in our athletes, it can never hurt to act or to inquire or to more closely observe. It’s only going to help them as an athlete, a performer and a person in the end.

More information on Disordered Eating & Eating Disorders can be found at the link below on the NEDA (National Eating Disorder Association) website.

https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/what-is-the-difference-between-disordered-eating-and-eating-disorders/

I hope you found today’s topic helpful.

Much love and a well-fueled athlete,

Taylor

DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE GUIDE!

PS - Looking for a place to start when it comes to setting a fueling foundation for your young athlete?  You can download my free Getting Started Guide!

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

RED-S: Is it the reason for your athlete’s struggles?

I know I’m talking a lot about underfueling lately. But, with what I know and all I’ve seen in the last couple of years, I feel like I would be doing my followers, clients and athletes a true disservice if I glossed over the topic or, worse, didn’t address it at all.

So, today I’m going to spend time giving you a surface-level overview on a relatively new medical condition known as Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport, also known as RED-S. 

I talk about this condition ALL THE TIME whether I’m in clinic or speaking in schools or speaking at a conference. I can speak in depth on this topic for 30 to 45 minutes if given the time but this post is just to give you an introduction to this important-to-know-about condition so it will be much more brief. So, today I hope to hit the high points on this important condition called RED-S.

BEFORE THERE WAS RED-S

Researchers have been studying underfueling, or as I explained in my last post, Low Energy Availability (LEA), for a long time. 

Lea in Females

Initially this occurrence of LEA was associated with females in what was termed the Female Athlete Triad. The Female Athlete Triad  is a medical condition in which a female athlete experiences one of the following: 

1. Compromised bone health

2. Irregular menstrual cycle

3. Underfueling (intentional or unintentional)

lea in Males

As researchers and clinicians continued to look into underfueling and its effects on athletes, their health and their performance they found that a similar condition to the Female Athlete Triad with similar consequences could present itself in males as well. And so a condition in male athletes was established called the Male Athlete Triad. 

In males the condition could manifest in several ways, very similar to females:

1. Compromised bone health

2. Altered hormone levels and cycles (testosterone levels, etc.)

3. Underfueling (intentional or unintentional)

In both Female Athlete & Male Athlete Triad…

Not all components have to be present to be diagnosed by a physician. It might be that the athlete only exhibits one. However, if one component is present, it is very likely that others are present as well and so further examination into the others is recommended. From my practice, I see that the root cause is the underfueling. And from there, if not noticed and managed leads to what we see and the athlete experiences - the bone injuries and / or the hormone changes. lost periods, etc.

In practice…

I typically come in when a female athlete has:

• lost her period for 3 months or more or 

• has experienced one or more stress fractures or

• when an athlete has exhibited some significant weight loss or a weight plateau in the last few months to years, causing her to start falling off her growth chart.

I’ve found that for some female athletes it takes a small amount of underfueling and for others it takes extreme underfueling for their menstrual cycle to be disrupted. But, just because a female athlete still has her period, it does not mean she is for sure fueling enough and appropriately. Just something to keep in mind.

I typically come in when male athletes have:

• had one or more stress injuries in the last year

• had altered labs at their last pediatrician visit  or 

• H=had recent weight loss or a weight plateau, causing them to start falling off their growth chart.

DISCOVERING RED-S

Researchers and clinicians were aware of the Female and Male Athlete Triad but continued to study the effects of underfueling and LEA (and we’re still studying LEA today).

the effects of underfueling and LEA can reach beyond decreased bone health, hormone regulation, and menstrual dysfunction

As they studied athletes and underfueling they started to see that the effects of underfueling and LEA can reach beyond decreased bone health, hormone regulation, and menstrual dysfunction. It can actually have a much wider scope of impact on the athlete’s health and performance. Underfueling can impact an athlete’s:

• mental health (seen or felt as increased anxiety for example), 

• cardiovascular health (ex: slowed heart rate as the body tries to preserve energy)

• metabolism

• gastrointestinal health

• immune system

• endocrine system

• haematological (iron deficiency anyone?)

• growth & development

DETECTING RED-S

Putting this into practice, some examples of when I would look further into RED-S and check an athlete’s fueling would be:

• A typical non-anxious athlete begins to struggle with anxiety.

• An athlete already diagnosed with anxiety has been feeling heightened anxiety lately.

• The pediatrician or other medical professional has observed a very low heart rate.

• The athlete has started complaining of GI issues like constipation or feeling like it takes a long time to digest food.  Maybe they just don’t get hungry anymore.

• The athlete is constantly getting sick or it’s taking a long time to recover.

• The athlete has experienced an injury and it’s taking a longer than expected amount of time to heal and recover.

• There are delays in growth and development. This could look like the athlete’s weight and height plateauing or falling off their growth curve. It could look like a 16 year old female athlete still not every having had a period.

• The athlete is complaining of extreme fatigue with exercise, weak muscles, hitting a wall. Labs come back from the pediatrician and patient has low iron levels.

• The athlete gets hormone labs at their well-check visit or another visit and they find low and altered levels of specific hormones.

what next?

Now, it’s important to take into account that there could be something very clinical going on and these complications have nothing to do with nutrition, so of course get it checked out by the appropriate specialist.  

BUT, at the same time, if there has been any change in the athlete’s training or the athlete’s intake, it may benefit the athlete to look at their fueling. Are they getting ENOUGH fuel each day? And then, are they getting enough of the best foods for them within those fuel choices? 

In practice…

Similar to what I included above, athletes with suspected RED-S typically show up in my office when:

• A female athlete has lost her period for 3 months or more

• A 15 or 16 year old competitive female athlete has not yet started her period

• An athlete has experienced one or more stress fractures

• An athlete has exhibited some significant weight loss or a weight plateau in the last few months to years, causing them to start falling off their growth chart.

• The athlete is experiencing repeated injuries or illness

• The athlete has had a sudden change in intake and food preferences

• The athlete has received altered nutrition labs like iron levels from the pediatrician or other markers that may indicate dehydration or altered nutrition intake

Sometimes taking a look at the athlete’s fueling plan and giving it a boost AND BEING CONSISTENT with these changes, can improve digestion, can help the athlete with their anxiety, can decrease illness and can allow appropriate, necessary and needed weight gain so the athlete can continue to reach their height potential and get through puberty.   

What I’m talking about today is something I see in my practice all the time. It’s also all found in the scientific literature. I’m linking a resource below in case any of you like to get really into the details and the science (like I do 🙂).

Resource for more reading:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9724109/pdf/nihms-1853616.pdf

And here’s a great graphic that explains RED-S by Keay & Rankin…

And, if you think your athlete could benefit from improved fueling, you can download my free Getting Started Guide HERE!

Until next time!

Much love and a well-fueled athlete,

Taylor

Is Your Athlete Underfueling? A Common Oversight

Is Your Athlete Underfueling?

Many of my posts have an underlying theme of underfueling but I realized I have not created a post specifically devoted to this topic. So, that’s what I’m going to take a few minutes to talk about today.

If you have been following along with me on Instagram lately, or in my Newsletters, then you have seen me talk about this topic. It has been the most asked for topic that coaches and athletic trainers have asked me to come speak on in this last year. And it is one of the top two reasons athletes have come to see me in clinic since the beginning of 2023 (with probably the other one being helping them navigate nutrition in their recovery, like from an ACL tear and repair).

Going into the field of sports nutrition and then, more specifically, pediatrics I didn’t think this is what I would spend the majority of time talking about. Although, it should not surprise me because for a time in my childhood I was absolutely another underfueled young athlete - even when I improved my fueling significantly, I was still underfueling. And I didn’t realize that part until I got into this field as an adult, started working with young athletes, and studying the field. So, I know how easy it is to say, “no, my fueling is good. It’s so much better than a year ago. There must be another reason for (xyz). Or, I’m doing well so my fueling must be optimal now”. 

If the young athlete is experiencing any of the signs or symptoms I’m about to mention, then they and their support team really need to take a closer look into their fueling. Improved food and energy intake can have a huge impact on performance, helping the athlete achieve the muscle gains they have been working on, it can improve endurance and speed, it can improve mental focus and, a big point, it can keep your athlete in the game and away from nutrition-related injuries that can have them out of their sport for months. From a health perspective, being well-fueled can improve the athlete’s mood, help keep anxiety down, promote heart health, metabolic health, and bone health. 

Maybe you are the athlete or have the athlete who has experienced some of the signs and symptoms below but they are still performing and practicing well. My thoughts to that are... 

“Ok, great. So you’re performing well off of minimal fuel. But, for how long? And, if you can perform well off not enough, JUST IMAGINE what you could do, how you could perform, the levels you could get to if you were fueling WELL. If you were fuleing your BEST. If you are talented and driven and scrappy enough to perform well off of too little fuel or the bare minimum, just think about what your body could do if it had all that it needed!! Imagine what it could do if it didn’t have to power down or compromise different systems so you could practice and perform?

I’m so passionate about this, clearly. And I get SO EXCITED when I see athlete’s performance improve with improved fueling. It could be small changes it could be big changes, but it makes a difference and I love to see this “click” in the young athletes I work with.

This is not just me talking about fueling and how important it is. This concept of underfueling has actually been studied and continues to be studied in great detail. From it has developed a term call Low Energy Availability, meaning the athlete does not have enough energy available at the end of the day each day to perform all of the functions demanded of it (think - exercise, studying, growth, development, breathing, eating, heartbeat, hormone cycles, etc.). Another way I like to explain this is that “if you have been underfuling consistently for a long period of time, you are likely in a state of Low Energy Availability (LEA)”. It can be intentional or it can be unintentional, but either way it means that some function of the body is very likely getting powered down or compromised (think loss of menstrual cycle in females, sluggish performance, fatigue, lowered heart rate, etc.) and can lead to decreased performance and injury.

Further research shows us that Low Energy Availability is often the root cause of a few other medical conditions now recognized in athletes.

These medical conditions stemming from LEA are:

• Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S)

• Female Athlete Triad

• Male Athlete Triad

I’m not going to go into detail about these today, but will instead devote a separate blog post to each topic. They all can lead to decreased performance, health problems or injury, none of which we want in our young athletes! In future posts I also want to talk more about potential reasons for underfueling - intentional vs unintentional. The reason the athlete is underfueling can have a big impact on how we help them get fueled and the projected timeline of return to optimal fueling (or return to sport).

So, I’ll leave you today with a handful of the signs and symptoms of underfueling. Is your athlete experiencing any of these? If so, it’s likely time to start looking into their fueling habits and create a plan. And, definitely stick around for future posts where I go a little deeper and provide insight into these medical conditions caused by underfuleing.

Signs and Symptoms of Underfueling:

• Dizziness

• Fatigue

• Weight Loss

• Hair Loss

• Growth Disturbances (athlete stops gaining in height)

• Unable to build muscle

• Lost period or not starting period by age of 16

• Heightened anxiety and/or moodiness

• Low iron levels / iron deficiency

• Low heart rate (but must distinguish between underfuling and lower heart rate that elite athletes tend to have)

Much love and a well-fueled young athlete,

Taylor

Oh, and if you’re looking for a little more direction and a place to start taking action, you are welcome to download my free Getting Started to a Well-Fueled Young Athlete!

A Key to Fueling Well in 2024

Happy New Year, Everyone!

How is your year starting off? For me, in my current season of life, it’s a time to take a breath after a very fun but very hectic December.

I sent out my first newsletter of the year last week (you can sign up here if interested) and thought I would pull my intro message from my newsletter for this first post of the year because it’s a message that I really want people to hear and I know that not everyone who follows or lands on the blog is a newsletter subscriber. So, as we kick off this new year, I share with you what I hope will be one key practice you and especially your athlete keep in mind going into and throughout this next year…..

---

An excerpt from my Winter 2024 Newsletter…

… I see young athletes in my practice for a variety of reasons. Some have sustained an injury, some have recurring injuries, some are struggling with body image related to their sport and some simply want to learn about sports nutrition so they can make food and fueling decisions on their own to improve their training and performance.

As I thought about this newsletter, I wondered, “if there was one thing I wanted athlete families and athletes to remember throughout this entire year, what would it be?” I reflected on most of the clients I worked with last year and, for our winter newsletter, I quickly landed on this…

If your athlete’s training increases, whether it’s the duration of practices, intensity of practices, or number of practices a week, then his/her intake should increase as well. Let me share a little more…

So many athletes have walked into my office over the last year due to injuries like stress fractures. Many are runners. Some play soccer. Some run and play soccer. Some are dancers. Some are gymnasts.Some play lacrosse. These injuries are not exclusive. Some are new to the sport and quickly take to it and some have been playing since they were six years old. Either scenario, they have recently been ramping up their mileage or hours in the studio or the gym or decided to play for school and club. During our conversation in my initial session I ask my usual questions about training schedule and level, food allergies, recent labs and appetite, specifically if there has been a change in appetite or intake over the last year or so. It’s often a casual conversation revealing no big allergies, altered labs or changes in intake or appetite and we continue on with our discussion.

Now PAUSE for a moment, as the sports dietitian I have already seen a big red flag. Did you see it?

It was the fact that there was no change in appetite or intake over the last year or so. What I would have wanted to hear, was “yes, we’ve seen an increase in his appetite” or “yes, she’s been packing bigger snacks or been snacking more since his training has picked up”. The fact that this adolescent athlete, who already has high energy and nutrient needs for growth and development, is intensely training daily, logging lots of miles or hours in the gym or on the field but without an increase in intake tells me he/she is very likely underfueling and likely has been underfueling for quite some time. And, if you have been following my blogs and social media, you know that underfueling puts an athlete at a high risk of stress fractures (and I’ll be talking more about this on the blog this year).

I share this with you today because I think we can (1) forget to think about our fuel when life gets busier and practices and school pick up and (2) get caught up in macros and micros and “healthy” and “unhealthy”. I know I did as a young adolescent athlete. However, it doesn’t matter what ratio of macros our athlete is getting or how much magnesium, potassium, calcium, etc. our athlete consumes if at the end of each day, day after day, they are at an energy deficit. If they are chronically in an energy deficit at the end of each day then they are still at risk of injuries like stress fractures, among other health concerns or it’s going to be super hard to reach goals for those trying to build muscle / gain weight.

So, this year, let’s help our athletes first and foremost fuel enough to help prevent injury and perform their best! Only when they are fueling enough will specific fueling strategies put in place be most effective.

This is what I intend to help you with this year. Over the next few months I plan to shed some light on underfueling. I saw this a lot in 2023. I saw injuries that could have been prevented if the athlete was optimally fueling. And the thing is, so much of it was unintentional. A lack of awareness of how food needed to change along with the athletes training and involvement in sport. I saw girls get their periods back, I saw runners reach new PR’s, I saw football and soccer players reach weight goals and I saw anxiety and moods improved as athletes learned nutrition fundamentals and built off of this foundational knowledge to improve their fueling. I’m even more passionate about this topic going into 2024 than going into 2023 (and I thought I was pretty passionate about it then). So, I share this with you today and shed a little light on what to expect in the months to come.

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Follow along my newsletter (sign up HERE), on my blog, on Instagram (@taylormorrisonRD) or on Facebook (Taylored Nutrition, LLC) where I will continue to share content with you and hopefully create more ease and understanding when it comes to fueling the young athlete. I know fueling can be really hard in different seasons for a variety of different reasons. My goal here at Taylored Nutrition is to guide you and your athlete through some of those difficult scenarios and give you both facts and resources so that your athlete can feel more confident in fueling enough and fueling well through those tough situations and perform his/her best.

There are other big topics I want Taylored Nutrition to cover this year such as: factors around recovery after injury, supplement use in YAs, energy drinks and more. But as we get started, this topic of underfueling (unintentional and intentional) is where I want to start.

Stick with me and I’ll talk to you again soon!

Much love and a well fueled athlete,

Taylor

P.s. -

If you’re looking for direction on where to start when it comes to helping make sure your athlete is fueling well, you can download my FREE Getting Started Guide HERE!

If you’re looking for a little more help and okay spending a bit of money ($30) to start off the new year, I’m excited to announce that I’m hosting our first parent chat of 2024! Our Winter Parent Group Chat will be held virtually on Thursday January 25th at 7:15pm CST! This is a great chance to discuss some basic nutrition info to know for fueling the young athlete with a registered sports dietitian (me) and other parents of young athletes. You can learn more about these by reading this blog here or reading more here. It’s only $30 per person and space is limited to allow for good discussion. If you would like to join us this month to kick of the year, you can REGISTER HERE!

Please don’t hesitate to reach out via email (taylor@taylored-nutrition.com) or send me a DM on Instagram (@taylormorrisonRD). I would love to hear from you!

When Your Young Male Athlete Wants to Make Body Composition Changes

Hi everyone!

How is it going? My family and I just got back from celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday with our family at the ranch and I always feel so refreshed and ready for the Christmas season (and more mentally equipped for the Dallas holiday hustle & bustle) when I return. As my children are getting older it has become such a source of joy to see the holidays and the celebration of family traditions through their eyes. This time is a mix of fun and excitement and I do my best to prevent it from creeping over into overwhelming.

Coming back from the Thanksgiving break, I wanted to make this week’s topic about a scenario I have been working with more often this past year. My post today will speak to a narrower audience, but I think that even if this isn’t 100% you / your athlete, you will still find it informative, helpful and maybe get your mind thinking. I have seen young male athletes (typically between ages 12 and 17 years old) with this request numerous times over the course of this past year. They have been in all different sports, which has been interesting and a fun challenge for me to work with, some have sustained an injury and are working through their recovery and others are healthy and well but going about changes in not the best way. However, despite these differences, they have one thing in common and that is the main reason they have come to see me is because they want to increase or maintain muscle but decrease body fat.

I’ve talked about weight gain a bunch on the blog, male athletes wanting to gain weight and build lots of bulk for their sport. Today I’m going to share information and my thoughts on something slightly different though. These young male athletes that I’m talking about today specifically want to build or just maintain muscle and lose fat or at least not increase their body fat percent. We have to remember, however, that young athletes are not just little adults. With this specific scenario there is a lot to consider and, I think, a lot to unpack so I want to outline that for you today. Todays’ post is not a how-to on getting a young male athlete to achieve body composition goals, but more of a “what to think about first” to (1) determine if he is ready for this goal and (2) to set him up for long-term success. Here are my thoughts when it comes to body composition change goals in young male athletes.

What To Consider for the Preadolescent Male Athlete Wanting to Build Muscle and Alter Body Fat

• First, how old is this athlete AND what stage of development is the athlete in? Remember that boys can begin puberty at different ages. It is not the exact same for each athlete. 

• Second, is this an appropriate goal for this athlete? Does this athlete already show signs or have risk factors for disordered eating or an eating disorder?

• I ask this because making weight changes, going on any type of restrictive diet and being focused on one’s physique can be triggering for some individuals and turn into more serious underfueling and, if not monitored and confronted, can develop into a very serious clinical eating disorder.

• The above could sound extreme, but I know and have seen the damage and hurt and pain that eating disorders cause, not only on the athlete, but also on the family, the friends and all involved. We want to avoid these AT ALL COSTS. To me, this means even if it looks like changes take longer or the athlete competes in a different weight class than he may like.

• Third, let’s talk about the developing male adolescent body…

• We know from the scientific literature that as males go through puberty their hormone shifts involve an increase in the production of testosterone (I am, of course, wildly oversimplifying their hormonal cycles here but this is the main thing I want to point out today). As they go through puberty and reach adulthood, their bodies start to naturally build more muscle and their body fat decreases (different from females whose hormonal shifts wire their bodies to store more fat). 

• We also know through recent research on the Male Athlete Triad and Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) that underfueling, ie not providing the body enough daily calories (and therefore under consuming micro and macronutrients, like carbs and fats), can set a young male athlete up for many complications including, but not limited to: compromised bone health, illness, GI complications, altered cardiovascular functioning, and endocrine dysfunction, including altered hormone production.

• That said, as a young male athlete, you really want to be careful with any extreme body composition change attempts. Puberty could actually work in your favor if you let it. In general (there are always exceptions and everyone is unique), children will have phases of childhood where they may have more fat on their bodies and that is ok! Their bodies need everything to allow them to have their growth spurts and to start puberty. If you get nervous about body fat at a young age and start to take measures to decrease that, there is a chance that you could mess with hormones, delaying puberty and delaying those hormonal changes that could actually help you reach your goals.

So then, if a young male athlete has body composition goals for his sport, what are some good nutrition guidelines?

• Make sure lean protein is a fixture in each meal and snack (although likely doesn’t need more than about 20 or so grams per meal for muscle maintenance)

• Make sure the protein in the meals and snacks are complemented by quality carbohydrates like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains

• Include fat as an accompaniment to the meals and to snacks, as desired

• Remember in past blog posts and in my new Getting Started Guide, we talk about how children actually tend to be more efficient at using fat as fuel and that it’s not until they get through puberty that they start to utilize carbs for fuel like adults do. This doesn’t mean we need to load their plates up with high fat foods, but it does give an extra point to why our children need fat (ideally making a majority of it the healthier fats as they will let us) and balance in their meals each day.

Ok, I hope this information I provided today has been helpful for any young male athletes already wanting to make body composition changes for sport. Don’t rush it. Be patient and work with your body as you get older. The best results that can support best performance for the long-run do not happen overnight. It takes time, patience, dedication and accurate information and understanding.

If you feel like this is you / your athlete and you would like to work together to figure out the best fueling strategy for your athlete, remember you can reach out to me here to chat more and see if working together would be a good next step. I am taking new clients in the new year and would love to make a spot for you if we feel it’s the right thing for your athlete.

Wishing you much love and a well-fueled athlete!

Taylor

When You're Not Sure Where to Start + Another new FREE resource for you!

Hi friends!

If you’ve been following along for a while now, you know most of my posts are directed towards specific scenarios of when fueling might feel hard. I’ve decided to go this direction because fueling the young athlete can be really tough for a variety of reasons and it can be hard for a variety of people - the parent, the coach, the AT, the PT or the athletes themselves. There is a lot that goes into optimally fueling a high-level athlete and different factors to think about in each stage and season of sport, of school and of growth and development. These are unique young people with unique needs, unique food preferences, unique thoughts and feelings about their bodies and unique thoughts and feelings about food.  Whew, so, where the heck do we even start when it comes to fueling our young athletes? Do we focus on meal composition? Do we talk about macros? Do we talk about micros? Do we focus on timing? Do we follow a popular diet trend? Do we talk about body image? There are a lot of equally important topics to discuss, so what takes priority?

Having worked in pediatric nutrition for 12+ years, working with young athletes and their families for 6+ years, and having been a competitive athlete myself growing up, I recently took a step back and started to think, “Out of all the discussions I’ve had and information I’ve shared, if I could give parents / caregivers of young athletes and young athletes, themselves, any initial advice, what would it be?” It felt like a big question to ask myself. So, I created some quiet space to sit and think about past consults, team talks, conferences, and Q&A sessions. I reflected on (1) what topics I brought up the most (2) what topics parents or athletes may have brought up the most and (3) where many of my athletes end up starting, regardless of the reason they are there to see me. I brainstormed and took notes and landed on what I think is a really great place for young athletes to start. Then, I went one step further, allowing myself to do something I love, and that is create, and compiled all of that content into a new free product! I’m excited to say that I now have a new resource that you can download for free that offers an initial checklist to go through to see if your athlete is on the right track to good performance, good health and preventing nutrition-related injuries along the way. I know, of course, other people out there may have different thoughts or opinions but this is what I believe is a great start, based on my years and years of clinical practice, my years of professional supervision in eating disorders and sports nutrition, the professional development I’ve completed to maintain my RD and licensure and the research journals I’ve consumed.

So, here it is! I’m really excited to finally be able to offer something like this to readers, followers and clients.  I hope you find it helpful! As always, feel free to reach out to me any time with questions by commenting on this post below or sending me a DM over on Instagram (@taylormorrisonRD).  

Your Getting Started Guide!

Ready to get started improving your fueling?

Download your FREE Getting Started Guide to a Well-Fueled Young Athlete!

Download!

Much loved and a well-fueled athlete,

Taylor

Oh! and one more thing…

Did you read my last post or see my social media posts about my new Small Group Parent Chats (virtual or in-person)? If so, we use this Getting Started Guide as our starting place and then jump into more detail or onto totally new topics from there! If you read about this offering and think you’re interested in joining a small group or you have a group of 7 or so parents that want to do this, reach out to let me know and I can answer any questions you have or we can go ahead and work on getting a chat scheduled!

NEW: Small Group Parent Chats!

Last week I got the opportunity to do something really fun! I got to spend about an hour and a half with a group of about 6 moms talking with them about nutrition for their young athletes. It was super casual, there was wine, we talked about nutrition, we talked about parenthood in general. It was fun for everyone in attendance. 

This was a chance for me to share some foundational sports nutrition information specifically pertaining to children and adolescent athletes - things that I really wish all parents and their young athletes knew. It was also a chance for these moms to ask me any questions they had, whether they centered around my basic topics or not. We went into chats about everything from sports drinks and electrolytes to protein to meal, snack  & recipe ideas to kids’ attitude and relationship towards food at this young age. These moms had kids in a variety of sports at different ages and it was such a great discussion! 

I’ve had an idea like this in my head for a while now and, by chance, this opportunity presented itself and I finally got to make it happen! It was so fun and I got such positive feedback that I have decided to offer more of these! 

So, if this is something that interests you, here are the details…

Small group chats for parents of young athletes:

• 7 to 10 people per group

• 60 to 90 minute meeting

• Virtual or in-person (depending on location of host)

• $36 per person

• You will receive copies of our NEW Getting Started Guide and our Grocery Guide + additional resources that we think may benefit the group

• Please note: this is not a time to get detailed specialized nutrition recs or meal plans for your kiddos. However, you will leave with a good understanding of the general needs of your athletes, the different nutrition needs of young athletes vs adult athletes, and what products out there are better options for your young growing athletes

If you are interested in doing something like this with other parents, please let me know by completing the form HERE! You can create your own group with parents from a team, or it could be a group of friends who all have young athletes in various sports, or you can ask to be added to a group independently.

Ideas to include when completing the form…

• Title: Parent Group Chat

• Do you want in-person or virtual?

• Do you have a group of 8 to 10 people who want to participate?

• Don’t have a group but want to be put into a group of 7 to 10 people that you don’t know?

• Is there a date range you would like to do this?

Have questions about these session and want to chat with me? You can find me on Instagram (@taylormorrisonRD) OR send an email to taylor@taylored-nutrition.com.

Wishing you much love and a well-fueled athlete!

Taylor

When Your Athlete is Losing Weight

Good morning! Well, on a personal note, our kids have started waking up very early in our household. Our 3 year old who has always been the best sleeper and slept easily until 7 or 8am is now coming in our room at 6am and takes five tries to get to bed at night. With that said, time to work has been limited and so this blog will be short.  However, I really wanted to get some content out to you that I feel is important as many athletes are well into their season. And that content is around weight loss. I work with and hear from many of you who are struggling to keep your athletes well fueled now that sports have really ramped up and school is in full-swing and maybe your athlete is involved in additional activities outside of their main sport. 

Today I am going to share a post that I actually wrote a year ago on this topic. I think it is super applicable to what many of you / your athletes are facing right now. We know that weight loss is a sign of underfueling (often unintentionally for this busy athlete population) which can lead to consequences in health and performance and so we want to try and reverse the trend as quickly as we can.  I hope this post gives you some guidance and initial steps to take with your athlete if they are facing the frustrating situation of weight loss during his/her season. 

Also, I got to speak on the topic of underfueling yesterday with a sports medicine center that I work closely with. If you are interested to learn more about the signs and symptoms of underfueling, I would highly recommend watching the recording. I plan to link to it in my last newsletter of the year.

If your athlete is struggling with weight loss this season, please give this post a read….

Help! My Athlete is Losing Weight

Initital steps to take to stop the weight loss and get your athlete well-fueled for their season

I hope this post is helpful for you and your athlete as he / she works to stay fueled for the remainder of this season.

If you work through the tips here and still are needing more, I am always happy to chat about working together. You can reach out to me here to schedule a free 15-minute call to chat about your athlete’s needs / goals and see if working together is the best fit.

Happy Fueling!

Taylor

We have a Newsletter! (and 3 reasons you should subscribe!)

Did you know there is a Taylored Nutrition newsletter?! Yes, there is! I created it as a way to stay in touch with my clients, followers and those I have spoken with at various speaking events. It’s a way I can continue to provide content in a casual way straight to your inbox. Today I wanted to use this space to share a little bit more about the newsletter, why it can be a valuable resource, and give you the opportunity to subscribe if this is something you think would be helpful for you.

So, with that said, what is the Taylored Nutrition newsletter and how could it benefit you? The newsletter is three things that I think we could ALL use right now….

Three facts about the

taylored nutrition newsletter

1. It is a TIMESAVER

   Life is busy and I know many of you don’t have the time to follow me daily and keep up with every time I post something new. Maybe you don’t even really love social media or Instagram (where I hang out on social the most) that much! My newsletter will give you a recap of all the website’s most recent content as well as any new resources that we have recently released! This way you can wait and scroll through our newest content all at once, choosing to spend time only on the articles / recipes / info that best serves you and your athlete!

2. It is a TRUSTED RESOURCE

   There is so much nutrition content out there! I know from talking with past clients that it can be hard to know what you should listen to and who you should follow. Honestly, I have never loved social media that much. However, I’ve seen what (false or harmful) info is out there and how much it can confuse parents, teens and children and so I choose to show up in the social space anyway to be one of the ones who provides valuable and trustworthy content. I’m committed to providing reputable science-based content because of my love and passion for this field and profession and because of my history as a young competitive athlete (figure skater & cross country runner) who also found herself looking for reliable sports nutrition info. And, in case you still have hesitancy, I also have professional credentialing and state licensure that demands I meet a code of ethics in all the ways I practice.

3. It is a source of INSPIRATION

   Meal planning and grocery shopping for our kids, not to mention our child / teen athletes, can become monotonous, tedious and exhausting! My newsletter strives to provide inspiration for you as you work to support your young athlete, whether that is through providing recipes, reliable information & resources your young athlete can use or conversation tips to have with your young athlete when it comes to all things food, eating and nutrition.

Some FAQ’s About Our Newsletter

How so I sign up?

You can sign up 3 ways:

1. Go to our Connect page on the website and click the, “Yes, please send!” button.

2. Find me on Instagram (@taylormorrisonRD) and send me a DM, saying, “Newsletter, please!” with your preferred email address.

3. Email us at taylor@taylored-nutrition.com and ask to be signed up for the newsletter with your preferred eamil address.

How often will I get the newsletter?

We send our sports nutrition newsletter our quarterly

Can I unsubcribe?

Yes, you may unsubcribe at any time (and, of course, re-subscriber if you find it valuable later)

What if I have questions about any of the content?

If you ever have a question about an article, recipe or resource, you can email us at taylor@taylored-nutrition.com OR you can find me on Instagram (@taylormorrisonRD) and send me a DM!

I hope this gives you a good picture of our quarterly newsletter and answers any questions you might have. We would love to see you join and stay connected so that we can best serve you as you support your young athlete.

Happy Fueling!

Taylor

The Building Blocks of "Optimal Nutrition"?

I recently got to speak with a high school cross country team to help prepare them for fueling well during their season this fall. I loved talking with this group. I was a runner myself growing up who struggled to fuel well. In fact running cross country is, partially, what lead me to study nutrition and become a sports dietitian. Nutrition plays such a big role in the performance and health of an adolescent runner. It also, I have realized as I see lots of injured runners in the sports medicine nutrition clinic that I’m a part of, plays a big role in injury prevention in this group of athletes.

In putting my talking points together for this group, I knew I wanted two main outcomes: (1) understand the VALUE of optimal nutrition for performance and injury prevention and (2) Understand basic nutrition fundamentals so that they can put together great meals and snacks throughout the day each day that support not only performance and injury prevention but also growth and development.

As I started putting my thoughts together I realized that what I really needed to define before I dove into any other sport nutrition principles was this term “Optimal Fueling” or '“Optimal Nutrition”. I mean, to me, it sounds pretty “buzz wordy”, right? Sounds kind of fancy, but what the heck does it mean? So, I decided to spend a chunk of my talk defining these terms and then decided that I really think this deserves a post of its own here on the blog.

So many athletes are starting school this week or next week or they started last week. And don’t we all want to make sure our athletes are optimally fueling? We tell our athletes we want to see them incorporate good fueling strategies, but what does this mean? What is the priority? Where should our athletes start? So, sit tight as I try my best to briefly and succinctly explain and put context to this term, “Optimal Nutrition” or “Optimal Fueling” from my clinical experience.

The 4 Building Blocks of “Optimal Nutrition”

1. ENOUGH food/calories/energy in at the end of each day

   This is the foundation of a good fueling plan for young athletes. If young athletes are not getting enough total food at the end of each day every day, they are (1) definitely not going to perform at their best and (2) putting themselves at big risk of injury.

   An athlete can be intentional about getting carbs and protein and fat at each meal but, at the end of each day, if enough food/calories are not consumed to support activity + growth & development, the athlete is setting himself up for injury.

   Injuries, like stress fractures, are serious and can take an athlete out of sport for months. These are typically caused by a number of factors, with one of the big factors being not consuming enough calories at the end of each day to support the basic needs of growth, development and daily life + the needs for sport and training. Getting enough calories at the end of each day is a big first step in the prevention of this particular injury.

2. Adequate macronutrients

   After focusing on getting ENOUGH total food each day, young athletes can think about the form in which they are consuming and meeting those energy needs. Are they including carbs, protein and fat? An athlete deficient in carbs is likely going to be a super lethargic athlete. The athlete could also experience moodiness, muscle cramps or hitting a wall during practices and meets. An athlete needs protein spaced throughout the day to aid in things like muscle recovery, building and repair of any little tissue wear and tear that naturally occurs after workouts, or preventing illness. Remember to space the protein in moderate amounts vs trying to get a ton at one meal.

3. Adequate micronutrients

   Next athletes can focus on those smaller but still very important nutrients. I typically focus on calcium, vitamin D and iron in the beginning because research and clinical practice has shown that these aid in performance and bone health in young athletes.

   One reason I tell my athletes to focus on whole foods vs supplements is because if we focus on the protein powders, the shakes, the bars, etc. we could be falling short on these super important micronutrients found in whole foods that keep our bones strong and energy levels up!

4. Timing of meals & snacks

   This top part of the pyramid, in my opinion, is like the icing on the cake. It’s really performance-focused. Once young athletes shows me they understand and can implement the first three tiers, then we get to focus on timing.

   This is where real strategy comes into play and we talk about how to build the meals and snacks and where to put them based on timing of practices, warm-ups, games, meets and performances.

   It’s difficult to talk about timing, though, when you don’t have a strong foundation and understanding of the first three tiers. And, when looking at overall big-picture performance and injury prevention for the child or teen athlete, timing is irrelevant if the athlete is not eating enough each day and therefore deficient in macro or micronutrients.

   Adequate nutrition timing will make the biggest impact in a well fueled athlete!

I hope you find this helpful as your athlete heads into a new school year and another season of sports. As always, please reach out to me with any questions or if you would like to schedule a call to chat about working together.

Happy Fueling!

Taylor

When Your Athlete Is Skipping School Lunch

Ok, guys. I feel like today’s post is a big one, skipping school lunch. So many athletes that come to see me skip school lunch! So. Many.  Maybe they don’t skip every day but they probably skip at least a couple of days a week in the school week. If that is your athlete, then today’s post is for you and feel free to pass this along to your young athlete 🙂.

Today I’m going to discuss (1) why skipping lunch is counterproductive or even harmful to a young athlete’s health and performance, (2) some reasons your athlete may skip lunch (that I have seen most often in my practice), and, then, (3) how we can help our athletes fuel better when they are accustomed to skipping lunch. I hope you find this helpful as we enter a new school year!

Why Skipping School Lunch Is counterproductive or Harmful to a Young Athlete’s Health & Sport Performance:

In many ways kids and teens are resilient.  We know they tend to bounce back faster after illness or injury than adults.  However, nutrition, or I should really say, a lack of proper consistent nutrition, in my pediatric nutrition experience, is not something that their bodies are more resilient with.  Why is this?  It is because:

• Their young bodies may only be able to utilize a certain amount of a nutrient at once, a lesser amount than an adult body. An example would be protein. 40 grams of protein at a meal / snack is not going to be as beneficial for a 13 year old soccer player as it would be for a 27 year old professional soccer player or 45 year old non-athlete.  At that young age the body will use roughly 20 maybe 30 grams of consumed protein to build / maintain muscle. It may use additional protein for other needs of the body but not to build muscle. And the rest may be stored or broken down and gotten rid of by the body.

So, with this being said, why then is skipping the lunchtime meal and often going most of the school day without eating, counterproductive or harmful to a young athlete’s health & sport performance? It is counterproductive because…

1. This extremely long period of time without fueling the body can cause the body to use protein for fuel (ie, break down muscle) because carbohydrate stores have been depleted. This can hinder goals of improved strength and muscle gain.

2. This extremely long period of time without fueling the body puts the athlete at risk of dizziness, fatigue and fainting during practices due to his/her brain and muscles being depleted of energy (in an energy deficit). This can of course lead to possible injury and certainly decreased performance during games and competition. I always say, “If you want to play or perform your best then you have to show up to practice your best”.

3. This extremely long period of time without fueling the body specifically after a practice (for example: an intense morning practice followed by nothing to eat, maybe some goldfish or chips until school gets out that afternoon) can hinder improvements in strength, power or technique because the athlete has failed to consume any recovery fuel to support replenishment of energy (carb) stores, building/rebuilding of muscle (protein) and hydration of the body.

4. On a more health-related note, we all want balanced blood sugars. Getting that mid-day meal helps balance blood sugars. Low blood sugars can cause someone to feel lightheaded and dizzy, it can make it hard to concentrate and it can enhance feelings of anxiety.  So, not only does it help with performance, but eating consistently throughout the day can also be helpful in managing anxiety as well as supporting academic performance.

Most young athletes that I see are (a) trying to improve performance (b) working on recovering from an injury or (c) trying to build lean muscle.  Skipping lunch and going from 7:30 am (breakfast that the athlete is hopefully eating) to about 3:00pm (after school snack), that’s almost 8 hours, is hindering each of the above goals. While some athletes may at least grab a snack, I remind them that having a small bag of pretzles or chips is not sufficient. A missed meal is a missed chance to fuel the brain and the body for a later practice or to help recover the body after an earlier practice and eating a meal twice as big at the end of the day is not going to make up for it. 

4 Potential Reasons Your Athlete Is Skipping School Lunch:

1. They say they don’t have enough time. 

2. They don’t like the food served in the cafeteria.

3. They would rather study, finish an assignment or hang out with their friends during lunch.

4. They are struggling with disordered eating behaviors that limits their ability or desire to eat during lunch.

4 Ways to Fuel Through Lunch / the School Day:

1. They say they don’t have enough time. 

• Trying several hearty, sport-supporitng snacks throughout the day during lunch and between classes.

• I remind athletes, “If you want to be a great athlete, play in college, get the scholarship, etc. you have to do the work and that includes EATING. Eating is just as important as practice, conditioning, cross-training and sleep!

2. They don’t like the food served in the cafeteria.

• If you are able, it’s time to start packing a lunch that the athlete gets to help plan. They can eat school lunch or they can eat a lunch from home, or, in some cases, they can have a bunch of larger snacks throughout the day in place of the one meal, but not eating is not an option. And there is nothing wrong with the classic BP&J!

3. They would rather study, finish an assignment or hang out with their friends during lunch.

• This would be a great reason to start packing a lunch. And pack foods that are easy and convenient to eat while studying, working on an assignment or hanging out with friends. Ideas include: cheese sticks, turkey slices, Greek yogurts, whole grain granola bars, grapes, apple slices, carrot sticks with hummus, homemade trailmix (with cereal, nuts, seeds, dried fruit), milk/chocolate milk, and popcorn.

4. They are struggling with disordered eating behaviors that limits their ability or desire to eat during lunch.

• I am not going to go too much into this topic today because it really is it’s own series of posts for another day. But if your athlete is struggling to eat lunch because of disordered eating thoughts, I highly encourage you to find a dietitian specializing in eating disorders and connect with a counselor that specializes in eating disorders quickly. This is a hard block and can take time to work through.

If your athlete is struggling with eating lunch at school, I hope this post has given you some points of discussion when chatting with your athlete as well as some ideas to break the barrier and start getting your athlete fueled through his/her school day.

Need help fueling your athlete this fall? You can follow me on Instagram at @taylormorrisonRD for more info and tips or you can reach out to me to schedule a call and see if working together would be a good idea!

Happy Fueling!

Taylor

When Your Athlete Has a Super Packed Schedule

Do you feel like you hardly see your athlete?  Like, you get in a quick groggy hello before they are out the door for early morning practice and then you get an exhausted “hi again” or “what’s for dinner?” after school? Maybe you don’t see your athlete until even later - like 8 or 9:30 pm because they have evening practices or had an evening game. Or maybe your athlete is in a sport like gymnastics, dance or figure skating where they could be at the gym/studio/rink for hours at a time with small school breaks in-between and in the evening.

Regardless which sort of schedule your athlete follows, with this time-consuming commitment to sport it can be really really difficult to get a good fueling strategy in place and meet the high nutrition demands of sport. I see this as a roadblock with so many of the athletes that I work with and so today I wanted to take a little time and give you 5 nutrition principles along with actionable strategies that your athletes can start putting into practice now to help them optimize their intake when they have a super packed schedule that makes it hard to fuel well….

5 Nutrition Principles for the Young Athlete

with a Packed Schedule

1. Snacks are their best friend.

• Have your athlete go with you to the store to pick out different snack-type items that he or she can have on-hand in a lunch bag throughout the day for easy fueling. These should be from a variety of food groups so that the athlete is getting a variety of nutrients and energy sources throughout the day.

• Some examples include: granola bars, whole grain crackers, string cheese, chocolate milks, yogurt, goldfish, nuts/seeds, deli turkey, carrot sticks, hummus, cottage cheese cups, dried fruit, fresh fruit.

• Need help strategizing how to mix and match? Grab a copy of my Sports Snack Survival Guide! DM me on Instagram or email me at taylor@taylored-nutrition.com to grab a copy!

2. Because they are snacking, they need to eat more often (than if they sat down for a larger more balanced meal)

• A young athlete should not go 4 + hours between snacks.  

• If the athlete is mostly getting fuel from snacks, he/she likely should be getting a snack about every 2 to 3 hours, depending on the content of the snack and the specifics (age, height, weight, sport played, etc.) of the athlete.

3. Fueling meals and snacks don’t have to be beautiful or look Instagram perfect to fuel the body well. - put away those perfectionistic ideals!

• I help my athletes put together a lot of fueling meals and snacks that they end up doing really well with and feeling really good about.  Many of them are surprised at how simple and basic the meals and snacks are! 

4. Meals & snacks need carbs + a variety of these other foods.

• When it comes down to it, your athlete needs carbs from a variety of food groups to keep those energy stores up. These should be in each snack and meal.  Alongside it, depending on when the snack falls in relation to a practice or training session, there should also be some protein, some fiber and some fat. 

• Have your athlete pick different food sources of carbs, protein, fiber, and fat that they enjoy so that they get a variety of micronutrients (vitamins & minerals) throughout the day as well.

• And while the athlete may have to rely on lots of snacks some days, they should make sure one or two meals is still a part of their day. That could be a great breakfast to start the day or a great dinner with family or friends to end the day.

• Smoothies can be a great way to pack in food group variety and energy that is easy and quick.  I, personally, feel the same way about oatmeal & overnight oats!

5. Don’t forget the water bottle.

• Water is still super important to keep those energy levels up and optimize performance. We want the athlete to be drinking throughout the day.

• Remember, items like milk, sports drink, flavored water, teas, smoothies, fruits, veggies, and applesauce all contribute to an athlete’s hydration goal!
  

I hope today’s post has given you 5 strategies that your athletes can start working on today and take with them into the school year. As always, reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns regarding fueling your young athlete. I would love to chat!

Happy Fueling!

Taylor

Image credit - https://historyofsoccer.info/