Choose the starting move

Open the saved week, stay inside this rollout, or reset only for a true Week 1 launch.

Decide whether to jump back to the saved current week, stay on this week's rollout, or tune a brand-new season.

Most coaches

Open the saved current week now

Use the role-aware current-week route when this team is already in motion and you want the default week first.

This week

Stay on this week's rollout

Keep this module open when you intentionally came here to send, say, share, and close one exact week.

Reset only

Tune season before Week 1

Only move the saved starting point when this team is launching a true brand-new season from Week 1.

Summer XC · Week 11

RED-S, Menstrual Health, and Bone Stress Red Flags

This week is the preseason protection week. The goal is to make low energy availability, bone pain, repeated fatigue, and menstrual disruption visible early. Coaches do not need to diagnose. They do need a cleaner, safer next-step framework.

Do not overthink this page. If you follow the four steps on the right in order, you are using the curriculum correctly for this week.

Timing

Before the season officially starts and before warning signs get normalized

Objective

Give families clear performance-first language for low energy availability, bone stress, and menstrual red flags.

Start here

Do these 4 things in order.

Share the family note

Use the full family note if this is a true family update. Use the quick-share note if you are posting in TeamSnap, Remind, or a quick coach update.

Fastest option

In a rush? Copy the quick-share note first. It is the fastest clean version for TeamSnap, Remind, or a quick team update.

Say this at practice

Read the short talk to the team so the athletes hear the same message the families got.

Red flags are not drama

Share this handoff

This is the main tool, handout, or follow-up resource attached to the week.

Energy Deficiency Screener

Open handoff

Follow the checklist and move on

Start with this coach action: Send the email before the first race block.

If you are unsure what to use

If you want the easiest version, start with the quick-share note. Use the full family note only when you are sending a true family update. Then use the practice talk, share the handoff, and move on.

Back to Summer XC Open Week 12 next

No planning required

This week's exact rollout

Use this default sequence unless your team schedule is unusual. The point is not to customize first. The point is to send, say, share, and check one behavior.

1. Before your first practice or team update

Share the note

Copy the short note if you need speed. Use the full family note if this is a true parent or guardian update.

2. At the next practice

Read the team talk

Say "Red flags are not drama" and keep it under five minutes. Do not turn it into a lecture.

3. Midweek

Share the handoff

Open Energy Deficiency Screener and send, print, or project it so the week becomes visible.

4. Before the week ends

Check one behavior

Use this first coach action: Send the email before the first race block.

Copy block library

Every message this week needs is already separated.

Use the two-minute, ten-minute, or full rollout path without rewriting. Each block has a clear audience, use case, and safe escalation boundary.

Families

Full family note

Use when preparing a true family or guardian update.

Families, TeamSnap, Remind, or quick coach update

Quick-share note

Use when the coach has two minutes and needs the cleanest short version for a family or team update.

Athletes

Team talk

Use at practice so athletes hear the same theme families received.

Coaches choosing the right execution layer

2-minute / 10-minute / full rollout

Use when the coach needs to choose the fastest safe layer without watering down the week.

Coaches and support staff

Staff handoff

Use when another adult needs the week objective, rollout, evidence line, and escalation cue.

Coaches

Coach checklist

Use to keep the week operational instead of informational only.

Athletes

Athlete checklist

Use when athletes need the behavior version of the week.

Families

Family checklist

Use when parents need the household support version of the week.

Families and athletes asking follow-up questions

FAQ replies

Use when a parent or athlete asks for clarification without creating a custom answer.

Coaches and support staff

Red-flag escalation

Use when the pattern may need referral, medical review, or a safer adult handoff.

Step 1

Send this to parents

This is the full version to email to families.

Subject

Before the season starts, know the red flags we do not ignore

Dear [Team Name] Families,

I want to be direct about something before the racing season gets busy: repeated fatigue, recurrent bone pain, menstrual changes, or a pattern of under-eating should not be written off as normal runner behavior.

Sometimes these problems connect back to low energy availability, iron issues, bone health, or a training load the athlete is not supporting well enough with food and recovery. The earlier we notice it, the easier it is to act before it becomes a bigger problem.

Please pay attention to patterns like:
- shin, foot, hip, or back pain that keeps coming back
- unusual fatigue or repeated poor recovery
- frequent illness or feeling constantly run down
- missed periods, menstrual changes, or concern about body changes
- eating that seems increasingly restrictive as training climbs

This is not about blame or panic. It is about paying attention early and using the right next step. Coaches are not clinicians, but we do need families to understand that health and performance warnings are part of the season, not separate from it.

If concerns are showing up, talk with the coach, athletic trainer, or clinician sooner rather than later. Small concerns become bigger when athletes keep training through them in silence.

We are pairing this week with the low energy and red flags tools so families have a place to start when a simple question becomes a more serious conversation.

If you want the free starting point first, join Aspire Runner Fueling Lab here: https://aspireperformancerd.com/runner-fueling-lab?source=coach-curriculum-email

Best,
Coach [Your Name]

Fastest coach path

Short coach note

Use this first when you want the fastest clean version for TeamSnap, Remind, or a short update.

Week 11 focus: do not ignore repeated fatigue, bone pain, restrictive eating, or menstrual changes. Early attention is safer than waiting until the season is already in trouble. If you want the free starting point first, join Aspire Runner Fueling Lab here: https://aspireperformancerd.com/runner-fueling-lab?source=coach-curriculum-quick-send

Step 2

Say this at practice

Red flags are not drama

Repeated fatigue, bone pain, or cycle changes are not things to hide.
Health and performance are not separate conversations.
Speak up early so a small problem does not become a season problem.
We fuel to support training, not to shrink ourselves for training.

Coach-only logic

Why this week belongs here

Why this week now

This is the last safe moment to address RED-S and bone stress signals before the formal season makes every athlete want to hide them.

What makes this week work

The week is elite because it treats RED-S as a performance, health, and development issue without using fear tactics or turning the coach into a clinician.

Coach guardrails

What to avoid and what to watch for

Common mistake

Making RED-S sound like a rare crisis for only the visibly struggling athlete instead of teaching coaches to notice performance, recovery, menstrual, and bone-stress patterns early.

Do not say this

If you look healthy, you are probably fine.
Missing periods or stress injuries are just part of being a serious runner.

Watch for this

Skipped or irregular periods, repeated bone stress history, falling performance, or athletes chronically under-recovered.
Rigid eating, body comments, or pride in low intake relative to workload.

Escalate when

Escalate anytime bone stress, menstrual disruption, rapid weight change, or strong low-energy-availability concern is present.

Implementation tracks

Run this week in 2 minutes, 10 minutes, or full rollout

2-minute version

Send the note and frame the topic as protecting health and performance, not policing bodies.

10-minute version

Use the handoff, say what coaches should notice, and make clear where coach scope ends.

Full rollout

Run the full family message, staff alignment, and referral language so nobody improvises on a high-risk topic.

Evidence anchors

Why this week holds up

These are the research anchors behind this week. They are here to keep the curriculum coach-safe, current, and specific to adolescent XC and track reality.

Evidence coach note

Evidence coach note for Week 11: Use the evidence to support this behavior, not to diagnose or prescribe: Give families clear performance-first language for low energy availability, bone stress, and menstrual red flags. Research thread: AND/DC/ACSM 2016 Nutrition and Athletic Performance; World Athletics 2019 Nutrition for Athletics; Performance Nutrition for the Adolescent Athlete (2019); IOC RED-S Consensus Statement (2023) Coach translation: The week is elite because it treats RED-S as a performance, health, and development issue without using fear tactics or turning the coach into a clinician. If the concern looks clinical, stop at the escalation line: Escalate anytime bone stress, menstrual disruption, rapid weight change, or strong low-energy-availability concern is present.

Evidence-use rule for coaches

Use these sources to explain the why behind the weekly message, not to diagnose, prescribe, promise performance gains, or override a physician, athletic trainer, or dietitian. When red flags cluster, escalate instead of trying to solve it in a team message.

AND/DC/ACSM 2016 Nutrition and Athletic Performance

Foundational sports nutrition guidance on fueling, hydration, recovery, and the role of planned eating patterns in training and competition.

Open source

World Athletics 2019 Nutrition for Athletics

Track-and-field specific consensus guidance emphasizing periodized nutrition across training, competition, recovery, and travel.

Open source

Performance Nutrition for the Adolescent Athlete (2019)

Youth-athlete guidance that keeps growth, maturation, practicality, and family reality central instead of applying adult performance language blindly.

Open source

IOC RED-S Consensus Statement (2023)

Consensus guidance on low energy availability, RED-S risk indicators, bone health, and the need for multidisciplinary escalation rather than coach improvisation.

Open source

Step 4

What the coach does this week

Send the email before the first race block.
Point families to the red flags tools and referral language.
Watch for athletes who are combining fatigue with body-talk or food restriction.
Be ready to escalate when red flags cluster together.

Athlete checklist

What the athlete does this week

Say something if bone pain or deep fatigue keeps repeating.
Do not treat restrictive eating like a performance badge.
Notice if your recovery is trending the wrong direction.
Ask for help early instead of after the problem gets louder.

Family checklist

What the family does this week

Take repeated pain and fatigue seriously.
Use performance-first language instead of body-size language.
Ask earlier when menstrual or recovery changes show up.
Loop in the right clinician when the pattern looks bigger than one bad week.

Step 3

Share this handoff

Energy Deficiency Screener

This is the main tool or resource attached to the week.

Open primary handoff

Bone Health Screener

Open resource

Red Flags and When to Refer

Open resource

Coach Language Guardrails

Open resource

Common questions

Use these answers if parents ask follow-up questions

Is this only a concern for elite or very thin runners?

No. Low energy availability and related warning signs can show up across a range of body sizes and performance levels.

Should coaches talk about this directly?

Yes, but in performance-first, health-first language. The goal is not to diagnose. It is to notice, name, and escalate appropriately.

What is the next step if multiple red flags are present?

Use the clinician or sports medicine lane early. Do not keep the issue inside normal team chatter and hope it resolves on its own.

Watch for this

Stop and escalate if you see this

Escalate promptly when repeated fatigue appears with bone pain, menstrual disruption, recurrent illness, or significant food restriction.
Avoid framing red flags as discipline or motivation issues.

Go to Week 10 Done here? Open Week 12

Loading…

RED-S, Menstrual Health, and Bone Stress Red Flags

Do not overthink this page. If you follow the four steps on the right in order, you are using the curriculum correctly for this week.

Timing

Before the season officially starts and before warning signs get normalized

Objective

Give families clear performance-first language for low energy availability, bone stress, and menstrual red flags.

Do these 4 things in order.

Share the family note

Use the full family note if this is a true family update. Use the quick-share note if you are posting in TeamSnap, Remind, or a quick coach update.

Fastest option

In a rush? Copy the quick-share note first. It is the fastest clean version for TeamSnap, Remind, or a quick team update.

Say this at practice

Read the short talk to the team so the athletes hear the same message the families got.

Red flags are not drama

Share this handoff

This is the main tool, handout, or follow-up resource attached to the week.

Energy Deficiency Screener

Open handoff

Follow the checklist and move on

Start with this coach action: Send the email before the first race block.

If you are unsure what to use

If you want the easiest version, start with the quick-share note. Use the full family note only when you are sending a true family update. Then use the practice talk, share the handoff, and move on.

Dear [Team Name] Families, I want to be direct about something before the racing season gets busy: repeated fatigue, recurrent bone pain, menstrual changes, or a pattern of under-eating should not be written off as normal runner behavior. Sometimes these problems connect back to low energy availability, iron issues, bone health, or a training load the athlete is not supporting well enough with food and recovery. The earlier we notice it, the easier it is to act before it becomes a bigger problem. Please pay attention to patterns like: - shin, foot, hip, or back pain that keeps coming back - unusual fatigue or repeated poor recovery - frequent illness or feeling constantly run down - missed periods, menstrual changes, or concern about body changes - eating that seems increasingly restrictive as training climbs This is not about blame or panic. It is about paying attention early and using the right next step. Coaches are not clinicians, but we do need families to understand that health and performance warnings are part of the season, not separate from it. If concerns are showing up, talk with the coach, athletic trainer, or clinician sooner rather than later. Small concerns become bigger when athletes keep training through them in silence. We are pairing this week with the low energy and red flags tools so families have a place to start when a simple question becomes a more serious conversation. If you want the free starting point first, join Aspire Runner Fueling Lab here: https://aspireperformancerd.com/runner-fueling-lab?source=coach-curriculum-email Best, Coach [Your Name]

Evidence anchors

Why this week holds up

These are the research anchors behind this week. They are here to keep the curriculum coach-safe, current, and specific to adolescent XC and track reality.

Evidence coach note

Evidence-use rule for coaches

AND/DC/ACSM 2016 Nutrition and Athletic Performance

Foundational sports nutrition guidance on fueling, hydration, recovery, and the role of planned eating patterns in training and competition.

Open source

World Athletics 2019 Nutrition for Athletics

Track-and-field specific consensus guidance emphasizing periodized nutrition across training, competition, recovery, and travel.

Open source

Performance Nutrition for the Adolescent Athlete (2019)

Youth-athlete guidance that keeps growth, maturation, practicality, and family reality central instead of applying adult performance language blindly.

Open source

IOC RED-S Consensus Statement (2023)

Consensus guidance on low energy availability, RED-S risk indicators, bone health, and the need for multidisciplinary escalation rather than coach improvisation.

Open source