When it comes to eating, I’m all about listening to hunger and fullness cues. Our bodies usually do a good job of letting us know when we are hungry and full. However, there is one situation in which our hunger and fullness cues can’t be trusted. This is post-workout. Read on to find out why. Hard or long workouts can lead to a suppression in appetite. This tends to be especially true for exercise such Read more…
Nutrition misinformation is rampant. Unfortunately, some of the worst nutrition advice I’ve heard has come from elite level runners. This advice is not meant to be detrimental, but typically comes from a lack of knowledge of evidence-based sports nutrition guidelines. This can be misleading to the fans of these athletes, who take this advice as a performance and health enhancing way to eat. However, there are some Registered Dietitians with expertise in sports nutrition that Read more…
If you have been following my blog, then you are most likely aware of Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S). In a nutshell, RED-S occurs when insufficient calories are consumed by athletes, which has negative impacts on health and performance (for more detailed information, click here). While RED-S can occur in any sport, long-distance runners tend to be especially prone. Various aspects of the sport make it the perfect storm for undereating. Read on to Read more…
How we distribute our food throughout the day can impact our health. Athletes often have workouts in the morning and fail to properly refuel afterwards, often waiting until the evening to have a large meal. As a result, most of the day they are in a calorie deficit. This is called “within day energy deficiency.” While calorie intake may be sufficient over a 24-hour period, many hours throughout the day are spent in a calorie Read more…
Who hasn’t heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day? In my opinion, it’s also the most delicious meal of the day. A consistent theme that I see in practice is suboptimal protein intake at breakfast. No wonder people feel famished only a few hours later. The ideal breakfast contains a mixture of complex carbohydrates to provide us with energy and a good quality source of protein to not only keep you Read more…
Last week, I touched on the outcomes of RED-S on metabolic rate. Click here if you missed that blog. This week, I’ll touch on one of the less talked about outcomes of RED-S, gastrointestinal (GI) function such as bloating, nausea, gas, constipation and/or diarrhea. Altered GI function can be the result of the reduced metabolic rate seen with RED-S. As I touched on last week, when too few calories are consumed the body acts to Read more…
Last week, I touched on the negative impacts of RED-S on bone health (click here). This week, I’m going to highlight the impact of RED-S on metabolic rate. Resting metabolic rate (RMR) refers to the amount of calories the body is burning at complete rest. I often find that athletes forget that the body still requires a lot of calories, even if they were to lie in bed all day. This is because the body Read more…
Last week I touched on the negative impact of RED-S on menstrual function (click here). This week I will be discussing bone health. Bones are more than just a static tissue. They are living, growing tissue that are constantly being maintained and remodeled. During childhood and teenage years, new bone is added faster than old bone is removed. Up to 90% of peak bone mass is achieved by 18 years in females and 20 years Read more…
In my latest blogs, I’ve highlighted what RED-S is (click here), how it differs from FAT (click here) and how it impacts male athletes (click here). I now want to transition to some of the health and performance outcomes of RED-S. More specifically, I want to talk about some of the less well-known consequences such as impacts on gastrointestinal function and immune health. Today, I’ll start with a more well-known outcome that I’ve briefly touched Read more…