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Why Am I Tired? Low Energy Availability Explained | Nutritionist Explains | Myprotein
Jan 30, 2025
Expert dietitian looks at what low energy availability (LEA) is, how LEA affects you, and how to avoid falling into it.
We know the importance of nutrition for supporting our performance and fitness-related goals, but we quite often forget that we require energy for essential, human functions too.
Expert dietitian, Elle Kelly, explains that when we don’t get enough nutrients and energy to support both of these elements, a host of clinical issues can arise. They not only affect performance but can also have detrimental effects on health, both physical and psychological.
Have you heard about low energy availability before? Let us know in the comments below what struck you bout this topic👇
Follow Elle on IG: ellekellynutrition
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Chapters:
00:00 - What is LEA?
02:18 - How LEA affects sleep
03:48 - How low leptin affects us
04:18 - Metabolism
05:08 - Mental health
05:32 - Negative impact on athletes
06:17 - What causes LEA
08:50 - How to prevent LEA
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0:00
we know the importance of nutrition for
0:01
supporting our performance of Fitness
0:03
related goals but we often forget that
0:05
we require energy for basic human
0:07
functions too when we don't get enough
0:09
nutrients and energy to support both of
0:11
these elements a host of clinical issues
0:13
can arise which affect not only our
0:15
performance but can also have
0:17
detrimental effects on our health too
0:19
both physical and psychological
0:26
my name is Al and I'm a specialist
0:28
eating disorder and sports dietitian
0:30
today we're going to look at low energy
0:32
availability what it is what the effects
0:35
of it are and how to avoid falling into
0:36
it so what do we mean by low energy
0:38
availability energy availability refers
0:41
to the amount of energy that the body
0:43
has remaining for biological functions
0:45
when the energy required for training
0:47
and movement of any kind is covered
0:48
because this is what the body will
0:50
always prioritize low energy
0:52
availability or Lea describes the state
0:55
where your body does not have enough
0:57
fuel to carry out normal functions in
1:00
very simple terms when energy
1:01
expenditure exceeds energy intake this
1:04
can result in low energy availability
1:06
Lea can be caused by an imbalance in
1:09
energy either created by a high energy
1:11
output or a decreased dietary intake but
1:14
we quite often see that under fueling
1:15
and over training go hand in hand
1:17
falling into Lea can be unintentional
1:20
where an athlete simply underestimates
1:22
the amount of energy that they need to
1:24
sustain their training as well as their
1:25
normal day-to-day functions but it can
1:28
also be caused intentionally where
1:29
someone is actively trying to restrict
1:31
their intake and increase their
1:33
expenditure either with the aims of
1:34
altering body composition or as part of
1:36
an eating disorder when your phone goes
1:39
into low power mode it limits functions
1:40
to only basic ones in an attempt to
1:43
conserve power and similar happens when
1:45
your body doesn't have enough energy
1:46
obviously the human body is a lot more
1:48
complex than an iPhone but essentially
1:50
when the body doesn't have sufficient
1:52
energy to maintain optimal functioning
1:54
it starts to down regulate systems the
1:56
body's main focus is survival and
1:59
anything that isn't completely essential
2:01
to this is not a priority so things like
2:03
the reproductive system the
2:04
thermoregulation system the digestive
2:06
system immune system and even the
2:08
cardiovascular system all take a hit
2:10
when the body is severely under fueled
2:12
restrictive eating and or increases in
2:15
training load cause an increase in
2:17
physical stress in the body cortisol is
2:19
a steroid hormone released in response
2:21
to stress and has Many metabolic
2:23
functions which are not all bad because
2:25
it can help to regulate our sleep cycle
2:27
and provide us with increased energy to
2:30
handle stress however continuously
2:32
elevated cortisol levels can disrupt the
2:35
production of estrogen and other sex
2:36
hormones which can lead to menstrual
2:38
irregularities leptin which is the
2:40
hormone that regulates satiety is also
2:43
affected during states of low energy
2:44
availability low levels of leptin can
2:47
stimulate appetite and auto metabolism
2:49
and this is the body's attempt at
2:51
increasing food consumption when energy
2:53
intake is insufficient Lea is often
2:55
linked with disrupted sleep which is
2:57
associated with increased stress but
3:00
Studies have also shown that there is a
3:02
link with low Latin levels and sleep
3:03
dysregulation with Lea it is proposed
3:06
that sleep becomes Disturbed as the
3:08
body's main priority is to find
3:10
nourishment for survival low leptin
3:12
levels can also impact luteinizing
3:14
hormone production which is responsible
3:16
for the production of testosterone in
3:18
men and stimulates the release of the
3:20
egg in women this can account for
3:21
periods becoming irregular or even lost
3:23
with Lea and low sex drive which is seen
3:26
in both men and women with Lea your
3:28
period is not just a marker of fertility
3:30
as there is so much more associated with
3:32
the loss of a period than just fertility
3:34
such as bone density the pituitary gland
3:37
is responsible for hormone production
3:38
but when the body is under stress either
3:40
for psychological or physical like with
3:43
excessive exercise or undernourishments
3:45
insufficient amounts of sex hormones are
3:48
produced low levels of estrogen can lead
3:50
to a loss of or irregularities with the
3:53
menstrual cycle but estrogen is also
3:55
required to develop and support bone
3:57
density therefore the loss of
3:59
menstruation is associated with
4:01
decreased bone density which makes
4:03
active individuals more at risk of
4:05
stress fractures and can also increase
4:07
the risk of bone diseases like
4:08
osteoporosis which can affect us from an
4:11
earlier age than most people think in an
4:13
attempt by the body to conserve energy
4:15
for Vital functioning metabolism is
4:17
often down regulated as we can see from
4:19
the reduction in hormones produced the
4:22
thyroid hormones are responsible for
4:23
controlling metabolism and there is a
4:25
direct link between low T3 levels and
4:28
low energy availability as well as this
4:30
reduction in metabolism there is often a
4:32
shift in body composition where the body
4:34
becomes more inclined to hold on to body
4:36
fat rather than lean muscle tissue
4:38
putting all of this together the
4:41
physical effects of Lea are caused by
4:43
this down regulation of metabolism which
4:45
leads to the slowing or shutting down of
4:47
different systems this can result in a
4:49
reduced production of hormones which can
4:51
lead to the loss of periods and sex
4:53
drive which will impact fertility but
4:55
also bone health in both men and women
4:57
Lea can also lead to poor immunity
4:59
feeling cold disrupted sleep and
5:02
obviously feeling low in energy but Lea
5:04
can also affect our psychological Health
5:06
too brain fog and impaired cognitive
5:09
functioning are common features of Lea
5:11
and this is because our brain requires
5:13
energy too low mood is associated with
5:15
Lea and Studies have observed increased
5:17
anxiety levels in those with Lea quite
5:20
often this anxiety can be related to
5:22
food and exercise and it is expected 40
5:25
of those of Lea also have disordered
5:28
eating behaviors
5:29
so there are various consequences of Lea
5:32
on health but Lea can also have a
5:34
negative impact on performance in
5:36
athletes as mentioned Lea impacts bone
5:39
density and for those who are active
5:41
this can mean an increased risk of
5:42
injury but Lea can also lead to a poor
5:45
response and adaptation to training
5:47
particularly due to the improper fueling
5:49
and impaired recovery athletes for the
5:51
Lea are also more likely to struggle
5:53
with decreased endurance performance
5:55
impaired judgments concentration and
5:57
coordination as well as a decline in
6:00
strength attributable to muscle loss a
6:02
study in 2014 found that there was
6:04
almost a 10 decline in swimming velocity
6:07
related to energy deficiency in contrast
6:09
to an 8.2 percent Improvement in
6:12
swimmers who had regular Cycles over a
6:14
12-week training period so what causes
6:17
Lea there's a lot more to Lea than just
6:20
not eating enough as we can see Lea is
6:22
heavily linked with stress in the body
6:24
and how and what we eat can influence
6:26
this for example not eating enough
6:28
carbohydrates is associated with
6:30
increased cortisol levels in women and
6:32
The receptors which signal for the
6:33
release of hormones like ludazizing
6:35
hormone estrogen progesterone and
6:37
testosterone are glucose sensitive which
6:40
stresses the importance of adequate
6:41
carbohydrates energy availability around
6:44
training can also influence the risk of
6:46
falling into Lea eating prior to and
6:49
after training is particularly important
6:51
for reducing the levels of physical
6:52
stress and carbohydrates are again
6:54
pretty important here for that in the
6:56
absence of sufficient carbohydrates
6:58
muscle protein is broken down to serve
7:00
as a substrate for glucose three
7:02
synthesis which can lead to muscle loss
7:04
as opposed to repair or even gain so
7:07
whilst overall energy is important and
7:10
protein is essential for recovery and
7:12
repair sufficient carbohydrates are also
7:14
important and a recent study found that
7:16
short-term restriction of carbs can have
7:18
a greater negative impact on health of
7:20
athletes in comparison to short-term
7:22
restriction of calories
7:24
speaking of calories have you ever tried
7:26
saving calories or macros for meals in
7:28
the evening or even restricting during
7:30
the week and saving them for the weekend
7:31
whilst this can promote the likelihood
7:34
of what we call within day deficits
7:36
within day deficits are classified
7:38
differently in studies but most defined
7:40
within day deficits as any one hour
7:42
window where energy deficit exceeds 300
7:45
to 400 calories a recent study looks at
7:47
the intake and expenditure of elite
7:50
endurance athletes with normal periods
7:52
and with irregular or absent periods the
7:55
overall energy intake and energy balance
7:57
was similar among all of the athletes
7:58
within a 24-hour period however the
8:01
individuals with menstrual dysfunction
8:03
spent more time in a catabolic State
8:04
caused by these within day deficits
8:07
similar findings were observed in Men in
8:09
another study where despite having
8:11
similar overall energy intake men who
8:14
had within day deficits also had lower
8:16
metabolic rates higher cortisol levels
8:18
and lower testosterone to cholesterol
8:21
ratio this highlights the importance of
8:23
both regular eating and fueling training
8:25
sessions appropriately as those who
8:27
train are more at risk of falling into
8:29
within day deficits as mentioned Lea can
8:32
happen unintentionally too when an
8:34
individual may not be aware of their
8:35
requirements and therefore unable to
8:37
support their nutrient needs adequately
8:39
limited access to food due to financial
8:41
reasons limited kitchen access and
8:44
knowledge can all influence this as well
8:46
so how can we prevent falling into low
8:48
energy availability
8:50
fundamentally Lea is caused by not
8:52
having enough energy to support
8:53
biological functions as well as training
8:56
so it's important to support both
8:58
lifestyle and training requirements many
9:01
people forget that being human also
9:02
requires energy and a certain amount of
9:04
nutrients and for most exercise may only
9:07
account for a very small proportion of
9:09
energy expenditure the next important
9:11
thing to remember is that exercise is a
9:13
stress on the body and pre and post
9:15
workout nutrition should be prioritized
9:18
to support fueling the session and the
9:20
recovery from it energy distribution is
9:22
also important to consider research has
9:25
shown that energy deficits within
9:26
24-hour bytes can actually disrupt
9:29
hormone levels more than consistent
9:31
energy intake for example not eating
9:33
enough throughout the day and then
9:34
making up for it later in the evening
9:36
early intervention is very important to
9:38
help limit The Chronic health and
9:40
performance consequences of Lea this can
9:42
involve increasing intake to support
9:44
needs decreasing expenditure and
9:47
psychological stress and often improving
9:49
relationship with food and exercise
9:50
please speak to a qualified health
9:52
professional if you think you may be at
9:54
risk of this Lea is a serious clinical
9:56
condition and needs to be treated as one
9:58
I hope you found this video helpful but
10:01
please leave any questions in the
10:02
comments below and be sure to like And
10:04
subscribe to the my protein YouTube
10:05
channel for more great evidence-based
10:07
nutrition information
10:10
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