In college I ran track. There was very little advice given regarding nutrition. I did my best with the limited knowledge I had- lots of veggies and some chicken. I was completely clueless about how many calories I actually needed to consume to fuel the very active life I had. I even felt guilty when I thought I’d eaten too much. I fortunately escaped that time with very little time off due to injury. Other guys and gals on my team weren’t so fortunate.
Athletes (especially distance runners” were in boots MULTIPLE times a season for tibial stress fractures, or were instructed to rest completely for stress fractures in their femurs. I didn’t know much, but I did know something wasn’t right.
What I know now is that we were UNDERfueled and OVERtrained.
And what I know now is that so many of us are under fueled and overtrained. We;ve been instructed to restrict calories and increase cardio to lose weight and get healthy.
In years past, we’ve been told the best way to lose weight and get healthier is to restrict calories and increase cardio. But now we know what matters most is fueling our bodies well for activities. We depend on protein, carbohydrates, and fats to function. Why do we choose to deprive our bodies of things they need?
It’s difficult to know if you are underfueling if you haven’t calculated your individual caloric needs. But here are some signs you might need to fuel more:
- Poor performance- If you notice you are having a harder time with activities that aren’t typically a problem, you may take a look at your nutrition.
- Missed periods- underfueling is not only a female problem, but females who are underfueling will often miss their periods
- Fatigue- Unexplained fatigue might be a red flag.
- Stress fractures- When an athlete comes to me with stress fractures, my first question is “are you eating enough?”
If you are curious about your caloric intake, I encourage you to track your food without changing a thing! Apps like myfitnesspal and Lose It are handy and user friendly. You may be surprised about how few calories you are actually consuming AND what those calories consist of.
If you have more questions about issues with underfueling, holler at me!
Dr. Rachel Atufunwa PT, DPT