This episode is a Q&A episode where I answer questions that have been submitted by listeners.

Questions for today’s episode include:

• How do you know if you’re eating enough when you’re recovering from RED-S? Is getting your period back the only way to know, or will there be other signs?
• I’m a marathoner and have a family history of Type 2 diabetes. My A1C has been increasing, and I’m not sure how to balance managing my A1C and weight with fueling for performance. Do you have any advice?
• I just finished my high school senior track season and am getting ready for cross country in the fall, but I have a break between seasons. Should I fuel differently during this time or should I keep my intake up?
• I’ve been struggling with chronic IT band issues. Do you have thoughts on some nutrition changes I could make to better address this issue?

Thanks so much to everyone who has submitted questions so far! If you would like to submit a question for future episodes, you can do so on my website HERE or email me at fuelingforwardpodcast@gmail.com.

This episode is an interview with professional runner for Saucony, Vanessa Fraser. Vanessa grew up in Northern California where she discovered and fell in love with running through Girls on the Run. She went on to run at Stanford University where she became a 10x All-American and the PAC-12 champion in the 10k. While at Stanford, she received her bachelor's degree in symbolic systems and her master’s degree management science and engineering. After college, she went on to run professionally, signing a contract with Nike and joining Bowerman Track Club right out of college. Vanessa has competed in multiple US championships in the 5k and 10k, and has a 5k time of 14:48. In addition to running professionally, she also works full time as a partnerships manager at a health care tech company.

In this episode, we talk about:

• How she found the sport of running through Girls on the Run and what her progression looked like
• How an assignment to track calories from a middle school health teacher led to hospitalization, and what she learned from the experience
• What it was like going through periods of weight restoration and why she’s thankful her coaches, parents and doctors put her health first
• How she ended up running for Stanford, her dream school, despite not earning a scholarship right away
• Her transition to becoming a pro runner and advice for being patient during periods of lack of progress and injuries
• How increasing her carb intake has been instrumental to her success, and why fueling on long runs has been a big part of that
• Why working in addition to being a pro runner has helped her mindset around the sport and finding life balance

You can keep up with Vanessa on Instagram or TikTok @nessafraser.

This episode is a Q&A episode where I answer questions that have been submitted by listeners.

Questions for today’s episode include:

• As a pre-med student, I feel like I’ve turned to running and training as a coping mechanism to handle stress. How do you know if a training load is too high and inching towards overtraining?
• I’m a high school senior who runs track and xc and I’ve been working on getting my period back for over a year. I’ve gotten one cycle, but haven’t had any since. I feel like I’m doing all the right things, but also feel like I can’t stop gaining weight. Do you have any tips or advice for how to get and keep my period?
• I’m a high school track athlete and mostly compete in field events, but I will also do the 800. How would my fueling differ from an endurance runner?
• I’m a former collegiate runner and current dietitian working in an athletic department with the track/xc teams. My body has changed over the past year since I’m no longer training at a high level, and I find myself struggling with comparison and body image. Do you have any advice on how to navigate this?

Thanks so much to everyone who has submitted questions so far! If you would like to submit a question for future episodes, you can do so on my website HERE or email me at fuelingforwardpodcast@gmail.com.