We’re hearing a lot about “low energy availability” these days. 

The standard advice? Eat more. Eat more often. And always load up on carbs. But what if that approach is solving the wrong problem?

In this clip, Peter Defty and endurance athletes Tony Konvalin and Kate Hubber cut through the noise and share real-world insight into what actually works when it comes to sustaining energy—day in, day out—without becoming a slave to constant feeding.

Start With the Foundation, Not the Fuel

Tony puts it bluntly: the mainstream message starts at the wrong end of the story. Rather than fixing energy availability with more calories and constant snacking, the better solution is getting your metabolic house in order. That means starting with a foundation of fat adaptation—training your body to tap into its natural energy reserves efficiently, especially during workouts.

Tony shares that 90% of his rides are fasted. No breakfast, no gels—just a cup of coffee and he's on the bike. And yet, whether it’s a one-hour spin or a two-hour Zwift session, energy isn’t an issue. Why? Because his body knows how to burn fat. That’s real “energy availability.”

When Carbs Make Sense—And When They Don’t

Let’s be clear: this isn’t anti-carb dogma. As Tony explains, he still uses carbs—but situationally. For short, hard Zwift races where the start demands a sprint effort of 600–700 watts, he might take a gel 30 minutes before. But he doesn’t rely on constant carb top-ups. Instead, he uses carbs to enhance his performance, not prop it up.

In longer efforts (like a 100-mile Zwift ride), Tony might take in just 100 grams of carbs—total. That’s less than what elite athletes currently take in per hour. The benefit? No gut issues. No sugar crashes. No need to lug around a case of gels.And, most of all, no overconsumption of sugar.

Why OFM is particularly important for the Female Athlete

Low Energy Availability (also known as REDs = Relative Energy Deficiency) is especially prevalent in female athletes. Again, the common solution is to eat more, more often, mostly carbohydrate based foods and fuels. While this works short term for most females, it has profound effects on both female hormonal balance and hormonal health which exacerbates Low Energy Availability, often leads to weight gain and impacts the cycle. 

At 43 years of age, a full time engineer, wife, mum to two young children and ultra-runner, Kate Hubber is constantly on the go and should be a prime candidate for Low Energy Availability yet she is thriving. But as Kate explains in this clip, it wasn’t always this way. Prior to learning about VESPA and OFM Kate was paying for ‘expert’ nutritional advice to fuel her activities and lose weight using the approach of eating more, more often, more carbohydrates. 

The Result? 

In her twenties and early thirties, single and without the responsibilities she has now, she was gaining weight and always hungry. Hormonally, her periods were painful as were the mood swings. To cap it off, when she and her husband decided to start a family she was unable to conceive and, after a year of trying, had given up on having children. 

The Solution

After experiencing using VESPA at a half marathon, Kate signed up for the OFM program to train for a 100K ultra and this is where the story takes a dramatic turn. Within a month of doing the Metabolic Reset, Kate fell unexpectedly pregnant without even trying. Though Kate had to delay her ultrarunning aspirations to have her first child, she picked right up and has run several ultras, marathons, half marathons, 10K’s, 5 K’s, etc. in between having children and now raising them. She is currently training for a 100 K all while having a full time career as an environmental engineer, raising two active children, managing a household, a dog and a husband! . . . As you can see in the video clip Kate is full of energy, never gets ‘hangry’ and, like Tony, does most of her workouts in a fasted state just using VESPA.. 

Metabolic Freedom = Performance Gains

When your foundational physiology is aligned with Nature, you have metabolic freedom. You don’t need to eat “just in case.” You don’t hit walls mid-session. And best of all—you recover better. Your body taps the right fuel at the right time without burning through glycogen and, subsequently, crashing your energy levels.

It’s about developing your metabolic engine to fuel you according to how we were actually designed/evolved to be—instead of relying on external calories by defaulting to high-carb dependency.The OFM solution is comprehensive and individualized rather than the one dimensional solution of more carbs, more often. 

Conclusion

Tony Konvalin and Kate Hubber’s stories echo what OFM athletes have experienced time and time again: low energy isn’t a fueling issue—it’s a metabolic one. When you become performance fat-adapted, you unlock the ability to go harder, longer, stronger and recover faster—all without constantly feeding the carb dependent fire. As both Tony and Kate describe, OFM is also a simpler and easier way to fuel. Carbs have a place, but it’s strategic, instead of the constant. If you need to rethink your fueling strategy to avoid Low Energy Availability this