Edited by Carolyn Kent Women’s Football Hub
In this episode of the Women’s Football Hub podcast, we welcome Velvet Klass — a PhD researcher from Flinders University in Australia, specialising in Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (REDs) and multidisciplinary support in elite women’s football.
REDs is a topic that isn’t spoken about enough in the football world, yet it has a profound impact on athlete health and performance. Velvet shares her journey from player to researcher and explains why understanding REDs should be a priority for anyone working in women’s sport.
What is REDs?
Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport, commonly known as REDs, occurs when there is an imbalance between an athlete’s energy intake and the demands of training and daily life. Simply put, athletes aren’t eating enough to meet the needs of their body. This energy mismatch doesn’t just affect physical performance — it impacts every major system in the body, from bone health to cardiovascular function, immune health, and even psychological wellbeing.
One of the key messages from Velvet is that REDs extends beyond the older “female athlete triad” model. While that focused on disordered eating, bone health, and menstrual dysfunction, REDs is more inclusive, recognising that the condition affects men, women, and non-binary athletes alike, and that the consequences go beyond the physical to include mental health.
How Common is REDs in Women’s Football?
Despite the rise in professionalism within women’s football, REDs remains surprisingly prevalent. Velvet’s research in Australia — and conversations with experts in England and America — suggests REDs is a global issue. Alarmingly, it’s not just elite players who are at risk. Sub-elite, youth, and collegiate players often experience the same risks, compounded by fewer resources, less medical support, and a lack of education around fuelling appropriately.
Even more worrying is the misconception that only athletes with eating disorders are vulnerable. As Velvet points out, REDs can occur without any disordered eating behaviours. It can be entirely unintentional — players simply underestimate their energy needs, struggle with busy schedules, or receive poor nutritional advice. Social media adds another layer of pressure, promoting unrealistic standards around food and body image.
Early Warning Signs: What to Look For
REDs can be difficult to detect because the early warning signs are subtle and easily missed. Velvet encourages coaches, physios, parents, and athletes themselves to watch out for:
- Psychological changes: Increased mood swings, frustration, anxiety, and emotional responses to minor setbacks.
- Persistent fatigue: Feeling constantly tired, needing extra recovery time after matches or training.
- Injury patterns: Recurrent soft tissue injuries or slow healing times, particularly stress fractures.
- Gastrointestinal issues: Regular bloating, digestive discomfort, or changes in bathroom habits.
- Menstrual irregularities: Lighter periods, longer cycles, or loss of periods altogether (amenorrhoea).
Weight loss is not always present — in fact, many athletes experiencing REDs maintain stable weight, making it even harder to spot without looking deeper.
Why Multidisciplinary Support Matters
A key takeaway from Velvet’s research is that managing REDs requires a multidisciplinary approach. Traditionally, REDs has been seen as a nutrition problem, but Velvet stresses that no single practitioner can address it alone — especially given the lack of access to nutritionists and dieticians in women’s football.
Instead, clubs must rely on a network of professionals:
- Strength & Conditioning Coaches: Monitoring training load and adjusting it where necessary.
- Physiotherapists: Identifying injury trends and supporting recovery processes.
- Coaches: Noticing behavioural or performance changes and creating an environment where players feel safe speaking up.
- Doctors: Overseeing medical assessments and blood work.
- Psychologists: Supporting mental health and the psychological impact of REDs.
Importantly, Velvet highlights that while doctors and nutritionists are crucial, they are often not present day-to-day in women’s football environments. This makes it even more important for coaches and physios to be educated and alert.
The Role of Governing Bodies and Policy Change
Velvet also discusses the need for broader structural change. Without mandatory education or policy frameworks in place, much of the responsibility for detecting and managing REDs falls on individuals. Governing bodies have a real opportunity to embed knowledge of REDs into coaching licenses, club accreditation standards, and player welfare policies.
Without systemic change, the progress made at club level can be easily undone when staff move on. Policies that require menstrual health monitoring, education on REDs, and proactive player welfare programmes could safeguard athletes long-term.
Practical Advice for Players and Coaches
Velvet’s advice for players is simple but powerful:
- Listen to your body: You know your body best. If something feels wrong — fatigue, mood changes, irregular periods — seek help.
- Track your cycle: Even minor changes to your period can be early signs of REDs or hormonal disruption.
- Get a second opinion: If you feel your concerns aren’t being taken seriously, don’t hesitate to seek another medical opinion.
- Be critical of social media: Understand that as an athlete, your fuelling needs are different from the general population.
- Prioritise recovery and nutrition: Your long-term health is more important than short-term performance gains.
For coaches and support staff, the message is clear: create environments where players feel safe to talk about their health without stigma or fear of losing their place in the team.
Final Thoughts
REDs is an issue that sits at the intersection of performance and health. It’s not just about helping players win on the pitch — it’s about protecting their bodies and minds for the future.
This episode is a must-listen for anyone working in women’s football. The earlier we start these conversations, the better we can support the next generation of female athletes.
🎧 Listen to the full episode now
#WomensFootball #REDs #FemaleAthleteHealth #SportsScience #FootballPodcast #AthleteSupport #WomensSport #PeriodHealth #FootballCoaching #PlayerWelfare
This blog post was created with assistance from OpenAI’s ChatGPT (OpenAI, 2025).
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