Alexandra Cook - The Sports Dietitian

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Alexandra Cook - The Sports Dietitian

Alex Cook is a Sports Dietitian specialising in endurance athletes, RED’s & eating disorders.

Alex is a sport performance dietitian at Diet360 where she can provide consultation on-line and face to face consultation in her clinic (www.thesportsdietitian.co.uk). She has written for numerous publications such as Trail running magazine and Athletics Weekly and has worked alongside brands such as Adidas Terrex and The North Face. She specialises in endurance sports nutrition and is herself an ultra distance runner. She has a passion for helping beginners to advanced athletes achieve positive change in their day-to-day lives and excel in their Sports including Running, Swimming & Cycling. As an athlete juggling competitive running, two children and a career she understands how daily life can impact health, fitness and food choices.

18/11/2025

Working with athletes who are dealing with bone stress injuries is one of the most meaningful parts of my job.
🦴
As a dietitian specialising in REDs, I see firsthand how often low energy availability plays a role — and how preventable many of these injuries can be with the right support.
🏃🏻‍♀️
That’s why I’m excited to partner with over the next few months to dive deeper into bone stress injuries: what causes them, what recovery really looks like, and how to reduce your risk while staying strong in your sport.

28/10/2025

Two years ago this month, I made a tough decision to stop competing. I haven’t shared this with many but feel now is the time to say the real reason why and start bringing more awareness to heart health for athletes.
Back in 2008, an ECG showed something called an inverted T wave (for most people it points up — mine goes down!). At the time, doctors believed it was just the mark of an endurance athlete so it was ignored 🤯.

Then, in 2019, just before the London Marathon, I started feeling strange sensations in my chest. I went to see leading sports cardiologist Professor Sharma in London, who confirmed the same inversion ( apparently very rare in females). Everything else looked fine, but he warned that it could be an early sign of cardiomyopathy — a condition that can weaken the heart over time. From that day, I was monitored every year.
Fast forward to September 2023 — the week of the Great South Run. I got my latest results: my ventricular wall had thickened 🥲. Not enough to be diagnosed as myopathy, but enough to show change — and movement in the wrong direction.
Even though I was told I could keep competing, I knew deep down this was my moment to stop. My body had given me a warning, and this time, I heard it loud and clear.
So I stepped back. I left my club, stopped racing, and took the pressure off my heart — running only for joy, not for numbers.
One year later, October 2024, the results came back: the wall had reduced by 3mm. My heart had started to heal.
Tomorrow, I head back to London for my annual check-up. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous — especially after a year of training differently and starting CrossFit — an unknown load and pray my heart is happy with it .
I’m lucky enough to have the world leading expert in sports cardiology looking after me . As always , there is not enough research on women vs men and he admits my presentation is a mystery . Let’s hold out for more research for female athletes so we can get explanations faster

26/06/2025

Tracking macros can be a helpful tool — but for many (especially athletes or those with disordered eating histories), it can create the feeling of control while disconnecting you from your body.

Here’s why: ⠀ 🔸 It values numbers over intuition 🔸 It’s based on imperfect data (labels, apps, wearables = estimates) 🔸 It reinforces rigid thinking and guilt around food 🔸 It ignores how stress, sleep, hormones, and training affect your needs 🔸 It can mask disordered patterns as “discipline” ⠀ Eating well for your health and performance doesn’t come from perfect numbers. It comes from flexibility, awareness, and trust in your body.

✨ If control feels like safety, ask: Is this truly fueling me — or feeding my fear?

What should you do instead ?

⭐️Seek an Individualized, whole-food–based meal plan which will help create sustainable eating patterns tailored to your training demands and lifestyle—not chasing numbers

⭐️Focus on food quality, fueling timing, recovery, and mindset: Prioritizing performance and wellbeing over rigid tracking.

⭐️Periodic check-in vs daily logging: For many athletes, regular reflection and adjustments trump obsessive daily tracking.
 If you want to know more drop me. DM on how I can support you 

12/06/2025

Creatine is on the lips of everyone at the moment. One of the most researched & effective supplements around to aid performance .
We know the benefits for strength focused athletes but what about for Endurance Athletes ?
The message is not so clear cut ….

💥 What It Does?
Creatine increases phosphocreatine in muscles, boosting short bursts of high-intensity effort—helpful for sprints, hills, or strong finishes.

🏃🏼Enhanced High-Intensity Performance:
Creatine can improve short bursts of high-intensity effort—like sprinting, hill climbs, or surges in a race—common in endurance sports.

💪Improved Training Capacity:
By boosting phosphocreatine stores, athletes may be able to train harder and recover faster between intervals or strength sessions

🥯Increased Muscle Glycogen Storage:
Creatine may help store more glycogen in muscles, which is crucial for endurance performance, especially in long events.

🧠Neuroprotective & Cellular Benefits:
Emerging research suggests creatine could support brain function and reduce oxidative stress—both important during prolonged exertion.

📖In summary creatine helps endurance athletes most when the sport includes short, powerful efforts—or during training phases focused on strength, speed, or recovery. It’s less helpful for long, steady-state events.
If you want to know more about this & interested in working together DM me for more info.

02/06/2025

”The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.”
There has been lots of change for me this year which at times has been unsettling but feel there is more to come.
I said I wasn’t interested in competing…..how many of you knew I was lying? 🤣

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http://www.thesportsdietitian.co.uk/

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Alex is a sport performance dietitian and UKA athletics coach at Diet360 where she can provide consultation on-line and face to face consultation in her clinic (www.thesportsdietitian.co.uk). She has written for numerous publications such as Trail running magazine and Athletics Weekly and has worked alongside brands such as Adidas Terrex and The North Face. She specialises in endurance sports nutrition and is herself an ultra distance runner. She has a passion for helping beginners to advanced athletes achieve positive change in their day-to-day lives and excel in their Sports including Running, Swimming & Cycling. As an athlete juggling competitive running, two children and a career she understands how daily life can impact health, fitness and food choices.