More than likely, you aren’t getting enough calories….
In my nutrition practice, I can’t tell you how many times my athletes talk about feeling fatigued, run down, and not seeing any gain in performance. Many think it’s an underlying issue they aren’t aware of…maybe a hormone imbalance, thyroid issue, autoimmune disease, or food sensitivity.
The truth is, as much as these situations or health issues CAN interrupt your workout routine and performance, the first and most simple question to ask is: “Are you eating enough calories?!”
I’m going to start with a little story to illustrate what I’m talking about. When I was in college, I ran competitively. I ran cross-country, and indoor/outdoor track and field…so, 3 sports. Every year. No breaks.
Ever since I was 10 years old, I had some issues with my body image, especially being in a sport where so many people are “small”. I’m built more athletically, with muscle mass, height, and a thicker body than most of my peers and most of the people you see on TV and in magazines in my sports.
In college, I felt like I was too big compared to my teammates, and blamed my “bigger athletic frame” on the reason I wasn’t performing well. So, what did I do? I cut my calories. I used my new knowledge from dietetics classes and calculated out how many calories I SHOULD be consuming (a whopping 2,700 to be exact), then subtracted about 1,000 calories off of that in an attempt to lose weight.
I’ll bet you can guess what happened.
My performance got worse…much worse. And not only that, but my entire body started to shut down. Instead of blaming it on the calories and energy I wasn’t consuming enough of, I questioned if I had a hormone imbalance, thyroid issue, or chronic fatigue syndrome.
It ended my student-athlete running career, forcing me to quit because I was . . . So. Incredibly. Miserable.
I don’t want this to happen to you.
It wasn’t until I got into practice as a dietitian and started helping others that I realized looking back…wow…the solution was simple. I simply was not eating enough calories.
If you aren’t eating enough calories, your body doesn’t have enough energy, and “blows a fuse.”
Calories are the energy our bodies need in order to survive. We burn calories sitting, breathing, thinking, and just….living! Calories provide what you need to achieve the day’s tasks, fuel your workouts, AND even help with workout recovery (1).
Think about this analogy. Picture being on the road in your car on a fun road trip. You’re so excited, you forget to fill up with gas (uh oh). You’re 300 miles in and your car gas light comes on, but you’re in the middle of nowhere without any gas to fill up with. So you slow down in an attempt to use your fuel more efficiently, and hope for the best. Finally, your car sputters and you drift off to the side of the road. The tank is empty.
Our bodies function very similarly. If we skip a meal, say because of a busy work day or just because we don’t “feel” hungry, the body recognizes, “Hey! Where’s my energy?!” and starts to react by slowing the metabolism to conserve energy. When your metabolism slows, you can experience excessive fatigue, poor performance, mood swings, depression, anxiety, and insomnia…a no-good combination when trying to train effectively (2)!
This is especially not a good situation for athletes, because then you don’t have any gas in your tank to effectively complete your workout!
No energy/calories = not enough energy to perform = no fitness gains!
If you aren’t eating enough, you are at risk of fatigue, brain fog, gut health issues, injury, and ultimately poor performance (2).
How many calories should I eat as an athlete?
This is a loaded question. In all honesty, there are TONS of different calculations to use when attempting to calculate your energy needs. I won’t lie, I generally don’t like my athletes to track their calories. Why? Because it can be a very daunting task, and can even provoke eating disorders or anxiety in some.
However, I do think we all need a reality check in terms of knowing how much is enough. Then, with the help of your sports dietitian (like myself!) we can come up with an eating plan that doesn’t require you to log all your food, rather help you focus on types of foods, timing of meals and snacks, and how often you should eat in a day.
When a sports dietitian is calculating energy/calorie needs, they start by calculating your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR). These are calories your body simply needs to stay alive! To put it simply, if you lay in bed all day breathing, these calories are what keep you alive during this process.
Once we know your BMR, we then add an activity factor, and this part is tricky. Why? Because we have to factor in your age, height, weight, and how often/how hard you workout every single day. Once we have all of that information, we can then provide your calorie recommendation and come up with a plan of action to ensure you’re eating enough.
In determining if you’re eating enough, I usually like to calculate your calorie recommendation in the office with you. Then, we go over your daily eating habits, and input the information in a database to “guesstimate” your daily calorie intake. If you’re low, we work on getting those calories UP!
What if I want to lose weight, should I still reduce my calories?
Okay, I get it. There are times when maybe losing weight is on your mind! A lot of times for my athletes, it’s not always a matter of losing weight, but losing fat mass and gaining muscle. To do this, I coach them to do the following:
- Add in weight training 2-3 times per week consistently.
- Increase caloric intake slightly (~150 calories) and focus on good protein intake to help build muscle.
- Add in a daily step count.
If you are looking to drop pounds, however, that’s okay…we can get through this!
If you’re losing weight, we can take off about 200 calories. Don’t do what I did and reduce it by 1,000! A slight decrease is STILL a powerful method and can help keep you properly fueled during your weight loss journey.
Key takeaways
Wondering if you’re under-consuming calories which is causing poor performance gains?! CALL ME! I can calculate an accurate calorie recommendation for you, and help you come up with a plan of action to meet those needs without you needing to track your calories.
CLICK HERE to schedule a call with me! You deserve the support of an expert, not free calculators you can find on the web.
Better yet…opt into my e-newsletter and receive a FREE sample meal plan! Obviously, the calories won’t be exact, but you can see what a typical eating structure would be for an average athlete! Click here to opt in!
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