Katie Rainsberger explains why she struggled this year at USAs in the steeple after finishing 5th last year

katieREDs wrote:

Twitter thread that contains the full interview where she mentions that her struggle was a product of RED-s (relative energy deficiency in sport) and overtraining.

Tweet:twitter.com/slorgebutler/status/167720...

I wondered what was going on with Katie after a disappointing USAs where she finished 12th in her steeple semi heat (10:25), after a breakout 2022 where she finished 5th at USAs in the steeple (9:29).

She explains that she developed RED-s because she did not eat enough to meet the high caloric demands of running 85-90 miles a week at altitude & had to take basically two full months off earlier this year.

RED-s seems to be a super common problem among runners, especially female runners. I wonder why elite running seems to be so problematic as opposed to elite cycling or swimming where athletes are out working out for 6-8 hours a day. Regardless, glad Katie is bringing more awareness to this issues & wishing her the best with her career.

bah. wrote:

katieREDs wrote:

Twitter thread that contains the full interview where she mentions that her struggle was a product of RED-s (relative energy deficiency in sport) and overtraining.

Tweet:twitter.com/slorgebutler/status/167720...

I wondered what was going on with Katie after a disappointing USAs where she finished 12th in her steeple semi heat (10:25), after a breakout 2022 where she finished 5th at USAs in the steeple (9:29).

She explains that she developed RED-s because she did not eat enough to meet the high caloric demands of running 85-90 miles a week at altitude & had to take basically two full months off earlier this year.

RED-s seems to be a super common problem among runners, especially female runners. I wonder why elite running seems to be so problematic as opposed to elite cycling or swimming where athletes are out working out for 6-8 hours a day. Regardless, glad Katie is bringing more awareness to this issues & wishing her the best with her career.

Happens in elite cycling and swimming too but not being impact sports, the risk of stress fractures is near nonexistent unlike in running where it can be painful and show-stopping.