The Long Game: Q&A with Coach Jason Russo
After more than two decades of coaching, Jason Russo knows that good results don’t mean much if they come at the expense of athletes’ health. At Haddonfield Memorial High School, he’s created a space where performance and wellbeing go hand in hand.
Jason’s open approach to topics like REDs, mental health, and rest has helped shift the culture for his athletes. And for the parents, staff, and coaches around them. He doesn’t claim to have all the answers, but he does ask the right questions. We were lucky enough to sit down with him to chat about how his thinking has evolved, the conversations he’s having with his team, and what gives him hope for the future.
So Jason, can you tell us a bit about your coaching journey and your current role at Haddonfield Memorial High School?
I’ve been coaching high school cross country and track for over 20 years, and I currently serve as the head coach of the indoor and outdoor track and field team, as well as the cross country team, at Haddonfield Memorial High School in New Jersey. I’m also a math teacher here, which means I get to support student-athletes in multiple areas of their lives.
I should preface this by saying I wasn’t a collegiate runner. I was actually a pretty terrible runner myself, but I’ve been getting better in adulthood! What I’ve always loved, though, is connecting with young people and helping them grow. I’m driven to help them be better athletes, yes, but more importantly, better people.
When did REDs first come onto your radar, and how has your understanding of it evolved over time?
When I first started coaching, I really bought into the idea that more = better. More training, more mileage, more effort = more success. But over time, I started seeing the consequences of that mindset.
Something that really changed things for me was working with an athlete named Sarah. She was a standout runner in high school but began experiencing stress injuries and missing periods. Her and her mum were incredibly open and supportive. Instead of placing blame, they came to me asking, “How can we do better?” That hit home for me. I made it a goal to understand what was going wrong and how we could prevent the same issues from happening to others.
Since then, I’ve brought in experts like Jill Colangelo, who studies the relationship between mental health and endurance sport, to speak with our athletes. These talks have helped put REDs on our radar in a real way - not just for the girls, but for their parents, too.
In your experience, what are some of the early signs that an athlete might be struggling with REDs or low energy availability?
One of the first signs is inconsistency in performance, mood, or recovery. If someone’s not performing the way they normally would, my first question isn’t about effort. First I’ll ask, “Could this be related to your menstrual cycle or overall health?”
Early on in my career, I was nervous about asking these questions. I worried that I was overstepping as a male coach, but now it’s just part of our conversation. The girls don’t always come forward on their own, but I do what I can to keep the door open through Jill’s talks, my own language, and the presence of our assistant coaches and athletic trainers, who are great at picking up on things, too.
How do you foster a team culture that encourages healthy relationships with food, fueling, and rest?
Honestly, I just tell them: “Eat, eat, eat.” I don’t care what it is, just make sure it’s enough. A lot of the nutrition advice they’ve heard in the past has been about “eat this, not that.” I wanted to flip that script.
We also emphasize rest. My athletes have proper rest days built into their training, and I keep weekly mileage lower than you might expect, even in a state like New Jersey where competition is incredibly intense.
And we talk. We talk about mental health, periods, fueling - all the stuff that used to be taboo. Once you normalize those topics, they stop being weird. They just become part of being a smart athlete.
What are some of the biggest challenges coaches face when addressing REDs - and how have you navigated them?
One big challenge is the pressure to perform, from schools, from parents, from the athletes themselves. But I’ve been lucky. Haddonfield is a high-achieving school academically, and the families here really understand that what we’re doing isn’t just about race times. We just won sectionals for Group 2, and no one’s knocking on my door asking why we aren’t running faster.
Another challenge is communication. Athletes don’t always tell you when something’s wrong and as a male coach, there’s always the question of how to bring up sensitive topics. That’s why I bring in experts and make sure we have female assistant coaches on staff. I don’t try to be the expert on everything, I just try to create the conditions where the right conversations can happen..
Have you found effective ways to collaborate with parents, athletic trainers, or healthcare professionals when you’re concerned about an athlete?
Absolutely. I hold a preseason meeting with parents where we go over all the topics we’ll be discussing with their daughters, including fueling and menstrual health. Some of them are meeting me and hearing this stuff for the first time, so at first I was nervous about how it would go down. But when you lead with genuine care, they’re incredibly receptive.
I also work closely with our athletic trainers, who are very clued in on REDs. If something’s up, we talk. And if an issue is beyond me, I get someone who knows more. That’s part of being a good coach.
What advice would you give to other coaches who want to better support their athletes and reduce the risk of REDs in their programs?
Be open. Be curious. Ask questions, even if they feel uncomfortable at first. And most importantly, don’t try to go it alone. Bring in people who know more than you. That’s not weakness - that’s leadership.
Also, take a hard look at your training philosophy. Are you giving your athletes time to rest? Are you rewarding them for more, or helping them understand that enough is often the goal?
Looking ahead, what gives you hope or motivation when it comes to athlete health and performance?
The girls themselves. They’re becoming more aware, more willing to talk, more confident in advocating for themselves. That wasn’t the case 10 years ago.
I see more parents getting on board, too. They’re recognizing that high school sport should still be fun - that it’s about the long game, not just the next meet.