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Most triathletes love to eat, and many of us consider it just another hobby when we’re not swimming, biking, and running to the finish line. Destination races are often chosen based on their ability to be seen as a “race-cation” due to lively social gatherings, appetizing meals, delicious libations, and incredible tourism. While consuming calories is more complex than just providing energy for the body to function physiologically, many athletes intentionally or unintentionally adjust calorie (energy) intake, resulting in lower body weight or body composition. Do athletes participating in triathlons and other sports have these same fluctuations in energy expenditure and energy intake from preseason to postseason? In a new study, Jesus et al. (2022) examined energy expenditure and energy intake in various weightless and weight-sensitive sports during an athletic season during the preparatory phase and the main stage of competition to compare and contrast these values within the season and between types of sports.
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What is energy availability?
Energy availability (EA) is the difference between energy intake and energy expenditure to fat-free mass (FFM), as defined by Locks and Thuma in 2003. Through decades of research, it has been recognized that maintaining optimal EA is critical to the health and performance of active individuals. When EA is not supported and energy intake does not match energy expenditure, low EA is associated with negative consequences, including implications for altered hormonal profiles, impaired reproductive function, and decreased bone mineral density. The difficulty lies in quantifying low AD, which in many studies is evaluated through the dietary records of athletes. These records are considered “self-report” and can easily be biased toward overestimation or underestimation of energy intake. Along with the assessment of energy intake, body composition and activity energy expenditure must be assessed to accurately address the FFM part of the equation and calculate EA. Body composition and energy expenditure measures must use an appropriate methodology that is accurate but also reliable and specific to calculate AE.
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Comparison of energy availability in triathlon with other sports
The original data for this research was collected by Silva et al. (2017). As part of a secondary analysis, Jesús et al. (2022) analyzed 88 athletes (27% female) for AE from basketball, handball, volleyball, swimming, and triathlon in the preparatory phase and 56 athletes (30.4% female) in the same sports for AE during the middle part of the phase. of competition. of an athletic season. Inclusion criteria for participation included the following:
- Training for more than 10 hours per week,
- A negative test for performance-enhancing drugs,
- The athletes were not taking medications or dietary supplements.
- Female athletes were excluded if they were taking oral contraceptives or did not have a regular menstrual cycle (28 +/- 7 days).
Body composition (fat mass and FFM) was assessed through a four compartment model including doubly labeled water to assess total energy expenditure, while resting energy expenditure was determined by indirect calorimetry. EA was based on energy intake minus estimated energy expenditure divided by FFM. Three levels of AE were defined, including 1. clinically low AE (<30 kcal/kg FFM), 2. subclinical low AE (30-40 kcal/kg FFM for men or 30-45 kcal/kg FFM for women), and 3 .optimal AE (>40 kcal/kg FFM for men and >45 kcal/kg FFM for females).
The results suggested that in all types of sports, participants increased their EA values from the preparatory part of the season to the competitive phase, including 14% in basketball, 41.1% in handball, 16.3% in volleyball, 18.3% in swimming, and 29.3% in triathlon. Lower EA was observed at both measurement points for triathletes compared to the other sports. Triathlon is considered a weight-sensitive sport because lower body weight during cycling and running results in an advantageous power-to-weight ratio. During the preparatory phase, 11 (12.5%) athletes across all sports were classified as clinically low AD, 25 (28.4%) as subclinical low AD, and 52 (59.1%) as optimal AD. However, based on competitive phase measurement, no athletes, regardless of sport, were classified as clinically low AD, 11 (19.6%) were classified as subclinical low AD, and 45 (80.4%) were considered to achieve optimal level of AE.
One reason for the improvement in EA throughout the season may be related to what an athlete perceived as a negative result of increased body weight during the low season. During the transition to the preparatory phase, athletes can manipulate body weight and composition creating a more extreme caloric deficit. If an athlete is too rigid with these strategies, the undesired result could be low AE.
In contrast, during the competitive season, athletes may be more aware of the importance of performance-enhancing strategies that require additional energy at critical times (such as recovery from exercise) and overall energy intake that translates into best practices and training sessions. . Of note, handball players, who had the largest increase in AD from suboptimal to optimal during the sporting season, did not experience a significant change in fat mass, but did experience a significant increase in bone mineral density. Lastly, triathletes participating in the study experienced significant metabolic adaptation or resting energy expenditure, which reduced metabolic activity for energy conservation purposes.
The bottom line
While it may be tempting after the off-season to cut back on calories and attempt to quickly lose unwanted body weight, a more pragmatic and practical approach for triathletes is to include a slight calorie deficit and keep protein to 1.6- 2.0g/kg weight. body weight is advisable for triathletes. Furthermore, knowing the acute and long-term negative physiological consequences of low EA should deter athletes from overexerting themselves and depriving their bodies of much-needed calories and nutrients, which could ultimately cause unwanted metabolic adaptations to as the body attempts to conserve energy.
The goal of educational programs and health professionals should be to increase awareness of the importance of adequate EA throughout the season to meet the energy and micronutrient demands of healthy and happy triathletes.
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kim schwabenbauerPhD, RD, CSSD, LDN, is a former professional triathlete turned registered dietitian, teacher, consultant, speaker, and triathlon coach with an emphasis on general health, wellness, and sports nutrition.
