Beyond getting ready for a game, energy availability thresholds are important. Whether you're keeping or bulking, your hormones, recovery, and performance stay on track as long as you stay above 30 kcal/kg of fat-free mass. Most people say that 45 kcal/kg is the ideal, but your real goal will depend on how hard you train. If you don't pay attention to these numbers unless you're making a cut, you're probably missing out on gains.
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When you're cutting, the chance of not having enough energy for sports increases. If you cut calories too quickly while keeping up a high level of training, you might not have enough useful energy available. Your goal should be a modest deficit that doesn't hurt either performance or recovery. No matter what phase you're in, your energy availability should match your actual training load, not just a number on a meal plan.
To find the energy availability, divide the amount of energy you take in by the amount of energy you use during exercise. Then multiply that number by the fat-free mass.
Keeping an eye on this over a few days gives you a more complete picture than a single picture. If the data show that you aren't getting enough energy, you can change how much you eat before it starts to affect your recovery or athletic performance.
If you don't eat enough, your body usually doesn't react in a big way at first. It's easy to mistake warning signs for regular training fatigue because they show up slowly over time. All year long, whether you're dieting for a non-competition event or just working out hard, having little energy can slowly hurt your health and performance.
Keep an eye out for these signs:
Regularly keep an eye on objective signs. Keep an eye on your body weight, how well you're training, how much you sleep, how hungry you are, and how well you're recovering between sessions. If several markers go down at the same time, slowly raising the amount of energy you eat is a good place to start.
You don't need to keep up your peak calorie intake during lower-volume stages. Cut back on input slowly instead of quickly. The goal is to match your energy level to what your workouts actually require, not to stick to the same number all year.
What Energy Availability Actually Means (And Why 45 Kcal/Kg FFM Matters)
If you take the amount of energy you burn during activity out of the total amount of energy you take in and divide it by your fat-free mass, you get your energy availability. Your body uses that extra energy to keep hormones healthy, organs working, muscles growing, and you recovering. Many researchers say that 45 kcal per kilogram of fat-free mass is a good level, and that below 30 kcal/kg is usually considered low energy supply. They do, however, have some real downsides. They are the averages for the whole group, not individual advice. The threshold alone doesn't tell the whole story because your training load, body composition, and metabolic history all play a role
Does Your Energy Availability Target Change When You're Bulking vs. Cutting?
It depends on whether you have too many or too few calories to think about how much energy you have. The main idea stays the same, tho. When you're bulking, eating more calories helps your muscles get bigger and helps you heal from training, so your energy availability threshold naturally goes up as you train harder. You don't need a big reserve, but you do need enough to help people adapt.When you're cutting, the chance of not having enough energy for sports increases. If you cut calories too quickly while keeping up a high level of training, you might not have enough useful energy available. Your goal should be a modest deficit that doesn't hurt either performance or recovery. No matter what phase you're in, your energy availability should match your actual training load, not just a number on a meal plan.
How to Calculate Your Daily Energy Availability in Practice
It's not as hard as it might seem to figure out how much energy you have each day, but you do need to keep track of a few different factors. First, figure out how many calories you'll be eating for the day. Next, figure out how much energy you use during structured training sessions and not just when you're moving around every day. Subtract the amount of energy you used during training from the total amount of energy you took in. Then, divide the number by the kilograms of your fat-free mass.To find the energy availability, divide the amount of energy you take in by the amount of energy you use during exercise. Then multiply that number by the fat-free mass.
Keeping an eye on this over a few days gives you a more complete picture than a single picture. If the data show that you aren't getting enough energy, you can change how much you eat before it starts to affect your recovery or athletic performance.
Warning Signs Your Energy Availability Is Too Low Year-Round
If you don't eat enough, your body usually doesn't react in a big way at first. It's easy to mistake warning signs for regular training fatigue because they show up slowly over time. All year long, whether you're dieting for a non-competition event or just working out hard, having little energy can slowly hurt your health and performance.
Keep an eye out for these signs:
- Loss of performance or stopped strength growth despite regular training
- Sleep problems or long-term tiredness that doesn't go away with rest
- More irritability, trouble focusing, or lack of motivation
- Period problems or changes in hormone function, such as men's testosterone levels dropping
- Not getting better quickly after getting sick or hurt
- Constant hunger, thinking about food a lot, or mood changes
- Unexplained weight loss and issues with keeping muscle
How to Adjust Your Energy Availability Target as Training Demands Change
As the seasons change, so should your training needs. Your energy intake should also change to keep up. When you do more cardio, do more intense workouts, or train more often, your body needs more fuel to keep up performance and recovery. If you don't change what you eat during these times, you might find that you have less energy than usual without even realizing it.Regularly keep an eye on objective signs. Keep an eye on your body weight, how well you're training, how much you sleep, how hungry you are, and how well you're recovering between sessions. If several markers go down at the same time, slowly raising the amount of energy you eat is a good place to start.
You don't need to keep up your peak calorie intake during lower-volume stages. Cut back on input slowly instead of quickly. The goal is to match your energy level to what your workouts actually require, not to stick to the same number all year.
