Performance Nutrition Collective

23/12/2025

17/12/2025

🍳 Can You Have Too Much Protein?

In short - yes.

And I see it all the time with many teen athletes 👀
They’ll sit down to breakfast with 40 g of protein and barely 10 g of carbs… then wonder why they feel flat at training later in the day 😴

When you’re going to school first and training after, that’s a fueling mismatch - your body’s running on protein instead of glycogen, which means:
💥 sluggish sessions
💥 poor recovery
💥 and sometimes, hello breakout city 😬 (we will cover this another day)
Protein is essential, but so is balance.
Think of it like this - protein builds, but carbs power.

And when we get that mix right?
We see glowing skin ✨, sharper focus, and faster times on the board 🏃‍♀️💨

Because my goal for every teen I work with is simple:

Beautiful skin. Powerful performance. Happy gut.

15/12/2025

As I wrap up 2025, I just want to say a huge thank you to every athlete, parent, coach and supporter who has been part of this big year 🤍

It’s been a huge one behind the scenes while I’ve been deep in postgraduate study 📚💪 refining my clinical skills and expanding how I support athletic performance and long-term health goals.

I’m incredibly grateful for your continued trust and commitment throughout the journey 🤍
You’re truly the reason I love what I do 🙏✨

Clinic Update 🗓️
My last day in clinic for the year will be December 18th.
I’ll be offline and in holiday mode 🎄☀️ with sporadic emails until mid-January, so if you need any last-minute prescription updates, supplement requests, or plan tweaks, please send them through ASAP 📩

For those training or racing over the holiday period
fuel well 🍞🍌, train smart 🔁, and recover like it matters… because it does 💤🧠

I can’t wait to help you lock in your 2026 goals and continue building stronger performance, better health, and long-term resilience 🚀

Thank you again for an incredible year 🤍

11/12/2025

I talk about this a lot… and I’ll keep talking about it particularly as racing and training schedules hit their peak, because RED-S shows up quietly… until it doesn’t.

The signs can be so subtle you can miss them - or mistake them for “random teen stuff.”
But the body always whispers before it screams. 👀

When fuel is chronically too low and training is high, the body slips into survival mode.
It can look like… 👇

🍽️ Loss of appetite
(Your body is slowing everything down to conserve energy.)

🐢 Slower bowel transit - constipation and bloating
(When the gut doesn’t get enough fuel, it literally powers down.)

😴 Fatigue that doesn’t match the training
(Even on “easy” days.)

🤯 Irritability or mood shifts
(The brain needs carbs too - not just the legs.)
📉 Training flatness
(Effort up, output down.)

These can look like “normal” changes… and you can almost talk yourself out of them -
especially in a high-intensity training cycle when everything already feels a bit weird.

But these are the subtle signs the body gives before the louder ones arrive. 🚨
When energy intake falls, the body starts choosing what to shut down first.

And it will always prioritise survival over sport performance.
Fuel like an athlete. Fuel before the whispers become screams. ⚡️

09/12/2025

Hard training weakens your immune system.
✅ Newer Research (Walsh, 2019):
Shows intense exercise does NOT directly suppress immunity.
Rather your immune cells shift from the blood into your tissues - a normal, protective response.
So, what makes athletes so prone to illness?

🚨 THE REAL DRIVERS OF ILLNESS IN ATHLETES
1️⃣ Underfuelling (Low Energy Availability)
This is the #1 cause of reduced immune resilience.
When athletes don’t eat enough:
Cortisol increases
Mucosal immunity drops (↓ IgA)
Gut barrier weakens
Inflammation rises
➡️ More colds. More fatigue. Less progress.

2️⃣ Low Carbohydrate Intake
Constantly training in a low CHO state increases stress hormones and puts pressure on your immune system.
Research: Carbs before/during long or intense sessions blunts the immune-suppressive stress response.

3️⃣ Poor Sleep
Consistently

03/12/2025

Beyond Macros: Getting to the Root Cause

Yes, I talk a lot about what to eat, but when we’re chasing that extra 1%, we also need to understand what’s happening inside the engine room 🔬

That’s where metagenomic gut sequencing comes in - one of many integrative tools I use… this one maps the whole microbiome and uncovers what’s really driving performance, recovery, and resilience 💪

For athletes dealing with digestive complaints like
💨 bloating
💩 diarrhoea
🚫 constipation
🤕 abdominal pain
🤧or repeated illness,

there are often telling markers such as low Secretory IgA 🛡️, which can indicate a weakened mucosal immune defence.

These insights help us move beyond surface-level symptoms to develop more personalised and effective strategies 🎯

Beyond digestive health, this assessment can also reveal insights into:
💫 Immune function
🔥 Inflammatory load
⚖️ Hormonal balance and stress response

Even when diversity looks “normal” 🌿, subtle microbial shifts like high methane- or hydrogen-sulphide-producing microbes, can quietly hold athletes back by affecting gut integrity, energy, and recovery ⚡

Once we address what’s happening underneath, everything shifts:
⚡ Faster recovery
📈 Better HRV & sleep data
🥗 Improved food tolerance
🦠 Fewer colds & stronger immune resilience

Fuelling is vital, but fixing the system that absorbs, defends, and recovers from that fuel is where real performance begins.

Because a well-functioning gut doesn’t just support training, it drives the adaptations 💥

Interested in getting to your true root cause? Get in touch today to book an appointment.

01/12/2025

The integrative edge: looking beyond bloods 🧬

Athlete life is tough long hours, early mornings, travel, pressure, expectations, and endless training cycles. 🏋️‍♀️🚴‍♀️🏊‍♀️

What I see, time and time again, is athletes walking a fine line between peak performance and complete burnout.

This is why I blend integrative testing tools alongside traditional blood work to understand the whole athlete, not just the surface markers.

Because performance isn’t only about macros and meal timing 🍽️

It’s about the invisible systems driving recovery, resilience and adaptation:
🧫 The microbiome that fuels, protects and modulates inflammation
🧬 The genes influencing how athletes adapt, recover, detoxify, handle stress and even how robust their bones and connective tissues are under load
🩸 The biomarkers revealing stress load, nutrient status, immune function & inflammation

Over the next few posts, I’m taking you behind the scenes into the integrative tools I use every day from advanced metagenomic gut testing to nutrigenomic genetic profiling.

These are the frameworks that uncover what’s really driving (or limiting) an athlete’s performance - the hidden levers behind energy, recovery, resilience, gut function, immune strength and adaptation.

If you’re an athlete who feels like you’re doing everything right but still not performing the way you should…
…these next posts are for you. 🚀🔥

This is where performance nutrition meets integrative practice.

When we understand the whole athlete, we can fuel smarter, adapt faster, and stay stronger for longer. 💪

14/08/2025

Can young athletes thrive on a vegetarian diet? 🌱

Absolutely, but it takes smart planning. While vegetarian diets can fuel growth and performance, they also come with unique challenges for youth athletes.

🏃‍♂️ High-Intensity Performance Risk
Low-carb vegetarian diets may downregulate carbohydrate metabolism, compromising performance during intense training (Burke, 2015; Thomas et al., 2016). Prioritise grains, legumes, and starchy veg for fuel.

⚠️ Higher Risk of RED-S
Vegetarian athletes may be more prone to Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) due to low energy-dense, high-fibre food choices paired with high training loads. This can reduce energy availability, disrupting s*x hormones (like estrogen and testosterone) and impairing reproductive and bone health.

🧠 Omega-3 Imbalance
Plant-based diets are often high in omega-6s but low in omega-3s. Add flax, chia, walnuts or consider a DHA-rich algae supplement (Geppert et al., 2005) to support cognition and recovery.

🩸 Watch out for these nutrients as vegetarian diets may lack:
• Iron
• Zinc
• B12
• Vitamin D
• Calcium
• Iodine

While they shine in potassium, folate, and antioxidant-rich vitamins (A, C, E, K), filling key gaps is essential , especially during growth spurts. Bloodwork helps guide supplementation.

🥦 Bottom line? Vegetarian diets can support athletic growth but require intentional fuelling and nutrient monitoring.

📌 Save this for your plant-based athlete checklist!

11/08/2025

Before protein powders and sports supplements, there was chocolate milk, and it's still a GOAT for refuelling 💪

Here’s a quick, clean, and kid-approved version you can make at home:

DIY Chocolate Milk Recipe
🥛200 mL milk (cow’s or plant-based alt)
🍫1 Tbsp (7 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
🍯 1 tsp honey or maple syrup
🧂 Pinch of salt (for electrolytes)

👉 How to make it:
1️⃣Whisk cocoa + salt into a few tablespoons of milk to form a smooth paste
2️⃣Stir in the rest of the milk + honey
3️⃣Serve chilled or gently warmed

Why it works:
✅ Carbs + protein combo = ideal recovery
✅ Calcium, potassium, and electrolytes
✅ Budget-friendly + gut-friendly

Perfect for young athletes after sport or as a nourishing afternoon boost.

Hit SAVE on this post and share with your training buddy.

04/08/2025

Choc-Berry Crush Smoothie Bowl 🍓

Refuel never looked this fun 💪
A high-protein, energy-boosting smoothie bowl teens will actually be excited to eat.
Perfect after training, school or gym, or just being awesome all day.

What You Need:
1 frozen banana 🍌
½ cup frozen strawberries or mixed berries 🍓🫐
½ cup Greek yoghurt or vanilla protein yoghurt 🥣
½ scoop chocolate or vanilla protein powder (optional but delicious) 🍫
1 tbsp peanut butter or almond butter 🥜
Splash of milk of choice (oat, almond, dairy) 🥛

Topping Party (do your thing):
Fresh strawberries 🍓
Dark choc chips or cacao nibs 🍫
Granola
Drizzle of nut butter
Coconut flakes 🥥
Crushed freeze-dried raspberries 💗
A sprinkle of fun (aka h**p seeds, crushed pretzels, even a few mini marshmallows 👀)

✅ Why it fuels like a boss:
Carbs + protein = recovery win 🏆
Berries = antioxidant boost 💥
Yoghurt = gut & muscle love
Nut butter = happy hormones + staying power
Chocolate = joy. Always joy.

Hit SAVE on this one and share with your training buddy 👯‍♂️

28/07/2025

Struggling with low iron? Do you also have allergies or gut issues? 🤧

They might be more connected than you think. 🧬

Athletes with hay fever, asthma, eczema, or frequent sinus issues often struggle with low iron that doesn’t improve, even with supplements or infusions.

But sometimes the problem isn’t how much iron you’re giving… It’s whether the body can use it.

🚧 Inflammation blocks iron. When the immune system is inflamed from gut issues, allergies, or immune stress, the body increases a hormone called hepcidin.

🛑 Hepcidin = “NO ENTRY” signs for iron
It blocks absorption in the gut and stops your body from releasing stored iron.
So giving more iron at the wrong time?
➡️ Doesn’t fix the root problem
➡️ Can actually make inflammation worse

Fix the system. Don’t just patch the symptoms.🧩 Before jumping into infusions or high-dose iron, ask: Is the immune system inflamed? Are there nutrient gaps (think low B12, folate, or vitamin A) Is the gut-lung axis out of balance?

What can we do to support iron use and absorption in the body?
🦠Calm the immune system - Gut-lung probiotics support Th1/Th2 balance
Helps to reduce IgE, allergic reactivity, and chronic inflammation

🤯 Support histamine + gut sensitivity - Quercetin + Vitamin C help stabilise mast cells
May ease hay fever, bloating, skin flares - even period pain

💪🏼 Rebuild nutrient foundations - Vitamin A helps unlock iron at the cellular level, B12 + folate are essential for red blood cell formation
Without these, iron won't work - no matter how much you give

🫐 Anti-inflammatory nutrition - Omega-3s, turmeric, berries, leafy greens
Swap packaged snacks for real, nutrient-dense options that support recovery and immune balance

Bottom Line.... Iron isn’t a quick fix.
If inflammation is high and nutrient foundations are shaky, the body simply won’t let iron in.
✨ Lower inflammation
✨ Replete nutrient cofactors
✨ THEN add iron if still needed - with a system that’s primed to absorb it

If you're looking for support, send me a DM today.

24/07/2025

Are you suffering from central fatigue? 🧠 When the brain burns out before the body....

Athletes push hard, but sometimes, too hard for too long.
When training load exceeds recovery, central fatigue can hit.
It’s not just muscle tiredness, it’s the brain and nervous system saying:
🛑 “I’m done.”

Signs of Central Fatigue:
🧠 Brain fog
😴 Fatigue that doesn’t go away with rest
😐 Loss of motivation or enjoyment
😠 Mood swings, low tolerance
🚫 Slumping performance
🛌 Poor sleep or “tired but wired”

🔥 What’s Going On?
Chronic stress =
🔹 Depleted neurotransmitters
🔹 Altered cortisol and circadian rhythm
🔹 Central nervous system overload
🔹 Inflammation + poor recovery

What Helps?
✅ Pull back training- rest is part of the plan
✅ Fuel the system - especially carbs for nervous system support
✅ Rebuild neurotransmitters - protein, omega-3s, B vitamins
✅ Prioritise deep sleep:
💤 Magnesium glycinate before bed may boost sleep quality
🍒 Tart cherry extract or juice can support melatonin + reduce inflammation
✅ Support adrenals - magnesium, electrolytes, adaptogens
✅ Ease back into load once energy returns

You can’t push through central fatigue.

You have to listen, reset, and rebuild.

Train smart. Recover smarter.

Ever suffered from central fatigue? You definitely aren't alone - it's a common theme I see in my clinic weekly 😢