You're working hard at the gym and enjoying the endorphin rushes you get from lifting weights, sprinting or just sweating. You like the feeling and want more of it.
If you work out often, it is critical to give your body the nutrition it needs. Not providing enough food for your body can lead to health problems.
This article discusses the dangers of not taking in enough calories to maintain energy levels, a serious issue in sports and performance that affects professional and amateur athletes alike. It covers the root causes of what is now referred to as Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) and discusses the potential consequences. It also provides commentary on how to ensure that you are appropriately nourishing your body to fuel optimal performance and health.
A Primer
Proper fueling is essential for sports performance and has been recognized as such for many years.
[3] The female athlete triad is a problem that has been observed by coaches and medical professionals for years. It is a term coined by the American College of Sports Medicine, and describes the interrelationship between menstrual dysfunction, low energy availability (with or without an eating disorder), and decreased bone mineral density (BMD).
The Triad is a spectrum of conditions that an athlete could present with, ranging from having optimal energy availability and health, to low energy availability and poor health.
Low energy availability was found to be the repeated underlying cause of the Triad. This means that there was a mismatch between the amount of energy intake from diet and the amount of energy expenditure required for exercise and other physiological functions.
There was a problem with the amount of energy going in compared to the amount of work being done. This caused athletes to perform poorly and have health problems.
Operationally, energy availability (EA) is defined as follows:[6]
The amount of energy available to the body is equal to the amount of energy intake from food minus the amount of energy expended during exercise, divided by the weight of fat-free mass.
This method of calculation takes into account your diet and how much exercise you do. The amount of energy you expend during exercise is calculated and compared to how much energy you expend doing daily activities. The difference is expressed as a percent of your fat-free mass. This method accounts for how your body metabolizes energy.
The evidence suggests that most people need 45 kcal/kg of fat-free mass per day to maintain healthy physiological function. Below that level, many body systems are impaired, making it a target for diagnosing low energy availability.
The Female Athlete Triad is important because it highlights the need for all populations to properly fuel their activities, and the dangers of under-fueling. Young girls may be more exposed to unrealistic ideals of body image and performance, but anyone who is trying to train hard while under-eating is at risk. The underfed athlete is not a good role model for anyone who is trying to make the most of their hard work.
If you fail to give your body the fuel it needs, it doesn't just stop working like a car would. Instead, it starts to use up stored energy from the body to continue running. If you don't replenish this stored energy, your body will start to experience negative effects.
RED-S
In 2014, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) published a consensus statement entitled ‘” Beyond the Female Athlete Triad: Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S).”[10] The IOC recognized that the issues were more complex and wide-ranging and that male athletes are also affected. They needed a more appropriate terminology.
The RED-S syndrome is a condition where “impaired physiological functioning” is caused by not having enough energy. This can include things like problems with metabolism, menstrual function, bones, immunity, and protein synthesis. It can also affect the heart.
The treatment for RED-S requires the help of multiple professionals such as physicians, dietitians, physiologists, athletic trainers or therapists, and psychologists. The goal is to fix the energy deficit by either increasing energy intake or decreasing energy output.
12 Symptoms of Undereating & Under fueling
It can be difficult to train for a sport while also maintaining a healthy diet. People are often prescribed different diets that may not be healthy for athletes.
We will be talking about the silent killer in the world of health and fitness that often goes undetected by even the highest caliber of athletes, consuming a hypocaloric diet.
Once you know what these five warning signs are, you can take steps to get your diet on track. We've all been there at some point, pushing our bodies to the limit without any idea of the major obstacles we're facing as a result. Improving your nutrition, which is the most important variable in performance, starts with being aware of the top symptoms of not eating enough. Once you know what these five warning signs are, you can adjust your diet accordingly.
Physical Signs of Not Eating Enough & Undereating Frequently
We find that our athletes have become so used to surviving on fewer calories that their bodies have practically learned to survive on an infant's diet! (We understand now, after having kids, that infants can eat a lot, proportionally speaking.)
There is often a short time after starting a new exercise routine when performance may improve slightly. However, this is followed by a rapid decline in performance. Do not be fooled by this temporary improvement, as it may lead to health problems down the road.
Are there any physical signs that I am not eating enough?
1.Low energy
Do you find it impossible to walk up the stairs when you're in between morning and afternoon sessions?
A new study suggests that these feelings could actually be symptoms of major depression in adults over the age of 50. Chronically dragging your feet or feeling unmotivated to complete daily tasks of living could be symptoms of depression, according to a new study. The study suggests that these feelings are not simply a result of “aging” or “not sleeping enough.”
Our bodies rely on the constant production of ATP, the body's form of usable energy, to keep normal biological function going, not to mention exercising intensely and other activities that use calories but don't count as exercise, like cleaning the house or walking up and down stairs.
The fatigue may be driven by actually undereating calories OR you may be eating ample calories with a lack of nutrient density. This will may result in micronutrient deficiencies in:
- Thiamin (vitamin Bl)
- Riboflavin (vitamin B2)
- Niacin (vitamin B3)
- Pantothenic acid (B4
- Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)
- Folate (folic acid or vitamin B9)
- Vitamin B12 (cobalamin)
- Biotin (vitamin B7)
B vitamins have been referred to as “energy vitamins” because they help convert dietary energy into ATP. This process is carried out by the mitochondria, which is known as the “powerhouse” of the cell.
2. Lack of menstruation/irregular periods
Sounds pretty clutch? Nope. Far from it. Ladies, if you take one thing away from this article, it is this:
Your period can give you insights into your overall health, as well as your emotional state.
Our menstrual cycle is the best indicator of our underlying health. If it has become irregular or even stopped, this is a reflection of our bodies' response to nutrition, lifestyle, exercise, environmental exposures, hormonal imbalance, or underlying health conditions.
In addition, you are missing out on performance benefits because having a regular cycle regulates hormones that are helpful for building more lean muscle, recovering faster, and working with more intense effort.
Are you thinking about stopping your monthly donation? Don't worry, you can do it! Increasing your calorie intake is the first step.
Related: 7 Chemicals & Foods that Cause Hormonal Imbalance
3. Insatiable hunger
You always feel unsatisfied no matter how often or how much you eat and you find yourself opening the fridge every hour.
It's not just how often you're eating that's important, but also what you're eating.
We typically come across two situations causing this symptom:
- Eating like a rabbit: Maybe you’re hyper-focused on “clean-eating”, relying merely on low-calorie, high fibrous fruits and vegetables all day. While the volume may curb your cravings for a few minutes, you’re not effectively producing the proper fullness hormones like leptin that tell the body “okay, stop shoveling in the food!”
- Sugar Fein: Running off bars, pre-packed snacks, or fruit alone all throughout the day? Sugar, sugar, sugar! The physiological response to sugar in your body is one that is reward-driven. In other words, the more we give it, the more it wants, resulting in continuous blood sugar spikes and consequently, insatiable hunger.
If you want to feel full, eat a mix of protein, healthy fat, and high-fiber carbs. These nutrients will help you feel satisfied.
For example:
- Instead of having only a banana for your morning snack, top it off with a tablespoon of your favorite nut butter
- As a replacement for your chocolate granola bar, consider a clean protein bar that’s lower in sugar and balanced in fat and protein.
- If you love munching on veggies, great! Dip your cucumbers and carrots in some hummus or guacamole for increased fullness!
4. Frequent waking during the night
Perhaps you manage to fall asleep initially, but then you wake up frequently throughout the night. You toss and turn, and can't stop thinking about things.
Glucose is the brain's main source of energy, so if it isn't getting enough energy at night, it will wake you up so you can get some more.
We do not advise eating a large steak before bed, but having a nighttime snack 1-2 hours before bed will improve sleep quality and balancing cortisol levels.
5. “Counting Macros” to a T
If you're always thinking about your next meal after finishing your current one, you may be someone who counts their macronutrients. This is a common symptom among people who do this.
Some people become too focused on how many grams of chicken or egg white they need to eat in order to get the right amount of protein. While it's important to be precise, many people take this too far and refuse to eat anything else, even if their bodies are telling them they need more.
There are many online calculators and nutrition coaches that do not consider the individual's needs or the micronutrients that could be significantly underestimated.
We see athletes who are beginning to feel hungry more often and are worried about using up all their food for the day too early. They don't want to be completely famished by 4:00 pm. Not only is their physical stress at play, but the mental and emotional impact of this type of restriction can be more offensive to the body than just eating an extra scoop of rice.
Many athletes often don't eat enough calories because of their real-life experiences.
Your body is always giving you valuable data that can help you improve your daily life and training routine.
If you want to improve your training, work with a functional dietitian to develop a meal plan that includes enough calories and the right balance of macronutrients. This will help you go 3 hours without getting ravenous and improve your performance.
6. No appetite
When you are dieting and not eating enough calories, it can be hard to believe that you are not actually hungry. This is because when your metabolism slows down from not eating enough and working out, your hunger cues become mixed up.
7. Avoiding fat
We challenged you to reconsider skipping out on the nut butters or higher fat meats because “fat makes you fat”.
There is a common misconception, particularly among athletes, that eating dietary fat will make them fat. This is not true, even though fat has more calories per gram than other macronutrients.
Commercial performance supplements are often marketed as fat-free, low in cholesterol, or “light”, in order to appeal to vulnerable consumers who are looking to lose weight. However, these claims are often false, and the supplements are not actually effective for weight loss.
We need to take into account an individual's genetic makeup when deciding what kind of nutritional approach to take, especially when it comes to processing nutrients like fat.
Around 30% of people's cholesterol levels may go up if they eat eggs often. However, scientists have looked at the scientific evidence carefully and concluded that, for about 70% of the population, eating eggs does not have any noticeable effect on blood cholesterol levels.
Dietary fat is essential for athletes, especially females, for hormone production, cell protection, and fat-soluble vitamin absorption.
Less obvious symptoms of undereating
8. Nagging injuries
The body will start to break down muscle and bone for nutrition when it is not getting enough food.
When tissue breaks down, inflammation increases, and muscles cannot effectively repair themselves, this can result in a range of injuries such as tendinitis, muscle strains, and stress fractures.
Both preventing and improving injuries in endurance athletes requires consumption of adequate amounts of protein and calories. There is a large body of evidence to support this claim.
Natural anti-inflammatory supplements can be useful for managing intermittent soreness or for providing immediate attention to an acute injury, but should not be used as a Band-Aid for the bigger issue at play when you’re not eating enough calories.
9. No change in body composition or unable to lose weight
If you want to maintain your weight, you need to eat enough calories to support your body's basic functions and any physical activity you do. If you want to lose weight, you need to take in fewer calories than you burn through exercise and other activities.
If you are chronically undernourished, your body will not function properly. For example, if you are stranded on an island with a backpack of food, you would ration every morsel of food. This is because your body would be downregulating metabolism to conserve fat stores. In addition, suppressed hunger would occur as the body downregulates hunger hormones, making you feel a false sensation of satiety.
1. You lose muscle. 2. You lose strength. 3. You lose energy. 4. You lose motivation. 5. You lose confidence. 6. You lose focus. 7. You lose sleep. 8. You lose sex drive. 9. You lose muscle. 10. You lose strength. 11. You lose energy. 12. You lose motivation. 13. You lose confidence. 14. You lose focus. 15. You lose sleep. 16. You lose sex drive. 17. You lose muscle. 18. You lose strength. 19. You lose energy. 20. You lose motivation. 21. You lose confidence. 22. You lose focus. 23. You lose sleep. 24. You lose sex drive. 25. You lose muscle. 26. You lose strength. 27. You lose energy. 28. You lose motivation. 29. You lose confidence. 30. You lose focus. 31. You lose sleep. 32. You lose sex drive. 33. You lose muscle. 34. You lose strength.
10. Stalled strength gains
The reason you cannot build muscle when you are not eating enough is because your body is using all its energy to maintain essential functions.
