Losing your period isn’t a sign you’re training hard. It can be a sign your body doesn’t have enough fuel.
In this episode, Peta Titter (WHEN Founder and CEO) is joined by sports physiotherapist Chrissy Tadros and sports dietitian Alicia Edge, who has worked at the Australian Institute of Sport and with the Matildas. Together they unpack RED-S (Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport), what happens when the body isn’t getting enough energy for everything it’s being asked to do.
They explain why RED-S replaced the “female athlete triad”, why it affects males as well as females, and why you don’t have to be an elite athlete to develop it. They look at how it’s picked up, often through a stress fracture or missing periods, and why eating more isn’t always the answer if nobody asks why someone is underfuelling in the first place.
Alicia talks about the pressures young people face around food, from schools where eating lunch is frowned upon, to weight comments in sport, to “what I eat in a day” videos that start with a body check.
The episode ends with practical signs for parents and athletes to watch for, why periods should be talked about at the dinner table, and how to find the right support, including self-referring to a dietitian.
