GLOSSARY

Male Athlete A male participant in sport whose nutritional needs depend on activity, health, life stage and individual circumstances.

Male athletes can experience underfueling, disordered eating and bone-health problems even when body mass appears stable. Low testosterone has several possible explanations and requires assessment in its sampling and clinical context. A single result cannot establish a sport-related endocrine condition or justify hormone use. The male athlete triad connects low energy availability, reproductive suppression and impaired bone health. Nutrition care supports adequate energy and nutrient supply while the medical team evaluates other causes and determines appropriate monitoring and training participation.

Relative energy deficiency in sport describes impaired health or function associated with problematic low energy availability and can affect female and male athletes. The duration, severity and individual context matter. No isolated body weight, symptom, hormone value or calculated energy-availability threshold can diagnose every case. Clinical assessment integrates history, signs, measurements and alternative explanations. The IOC assessment framework supports trained clinicians; it is not a self-scoring clearance tool. Management addresses energy supply and training while considering psychological support and the athlete's overall safety.

Energy availability describes dietary energy remaining after exercise expenditure, expressed relative to fat-free mass over a defined period. It differs from whole-day energy balance and from body-fat percentage. Calculations are sensitive to errors in food records, exercise expenditure and body-composition estimates. No single threshold or short observation establishes a diagnosis for every athlete. Persistent fatigue, impaired recovery or other concerning changes warrant assessment in the broader health and training context rather than a conclusion from one calculated value.