Why Your Young Athlete Isn’t Gaining Weight

Think losing weight is hard?

Teen athletes often have a harder time gaining weight!

This is a frequent issue I help parents with. It’s usually a concern that their young athlete is losing too much weight, not being noticed by College recruiters, not performing competitively enough, or just not being as healthy and robust as they could be.

Not putting on muscle is a big deal for young athletes to have the edge, and maintain stamina in their sport in addition to all of their other activities in life that take up their energy. Did you know female teen athletes can require up to 5,000 calories per day, and males up to 7,000? That’s a lot of food!

And young female athletes who are afraid of gaining weight are eating only around 1,500! See my blog that dives deeper into this: Let’s Talk About Female Athlete Triad.

Here are the top reasons young athletes aren’t gaining weight.

1. They’re training too much and burning excessive calories.
2. They’re not eating enough and taking in enough calories to support their activity level.
3. They’re relying too much on supplements instead of food and don’t understand that diet matters more than supplements for performance and building muscle.
4. They’ve become too much of a perfectionist and a picky eater and as a result, not getting enough variety.
5. They’re not spacing out their food and are not eating enough throughout the day.
   
   
   

Parents – watch the video for my tips for addressing each of these:

Be sure to watch my video for more tips to add muscle with easy meal-bulking examples:

How to Bulk Up Your Young Athlete’s Meals to Add Muscle

Also check out my online, self-paced course which can be a game-changer for your young athlete:

The Sustainable Sports Nutrition Academy!

This program teaches how to put together a fueling plan customized to their goals, and provides the A to Z for Sports Nutrition.

Do you need customized support for your young athlete?

Contact me to schedule a free 30-minute consultation, so we can discuss your particular situation and goals.

What’s the fastest way to boost your performance without supplements? Download this free report!

Fuel Your Workout Cheatbook