CSSD Practice Exam 2026 – Complete Study Resource

One of the treatment strategies for Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) is weight gain. This condition arises when there is an imbalance between energy intake and energy expenditure, leading to detrimental effects on health, performance, and overall well-being.

Addressing weight gain is crucial because individuals with RED-S often unintentionally lose weight or maintain a lower body weight than is optimal for their health and athletic performance. Gaining weight helps to restore proper energy balance, supporting physiological functions such as hormone production, bone density, and metabolic processes that may have been adversely affected. This strategy focuses on ensuring that the athlete has sufficient energy reserves to support their training demands while promoting recovery and preventing further complications associated with energy deficiency.

The other choices reflect practices that could further exacerbate the condition. Increasing exercise intensity may worsen the energy deficit, reducing energy intake would contribute to the existing problem, and avoiding rest periods could lead to overtraining, all of which would be counterproductive to recovery and the overall treatment of RED-S.