Blog Takeover: Meet Laura

Hi! My name is Laura and I am a former basketball player, with extra emphasis on former. Now five years out of college, I could count on one hand the number of times I have picked up a basketball. My college self - whose entire existence revolved around being an athlete - would probably be shocked at how quickly I abandoned the game after graduation. Within a few months of leaving CWRU, I had moved across the country, started a desk job, and mentally retired my identity as an athlete.

Living in California, it certainly did not take long to fill the void left by basketball. After work, I’d do yoga in downtown LA or go for a run in the Hollywood Hills. On weekends, I would ski Tahoe or mountain bike along the Pacific coast. I tried a little bit of everything -- surfing, rock climbing, trail running, backpacking, etc. -- loving the adventure that came along with a new state and a new phase of life. I was pushing my body and always active, but I didn't think of myself as an athlete -- merely as an adventurer. 

Within a few years, I had moved to Seattle and was ready to start upping the ante on some of these adventures. I wanted to turn my 3 mile after-work runs into a marathon. I wanted to turn my 4 mile weekend hike into a 40 mile hike. But to do that, I had to train. I had to figure out what and when to eat. I had to start thinking of myself as an athlete again. 

I will be the first to admit that I never fully mastered my nutrition as a basketball player, but one thing I remembered from college nutrition talks is the idea that nutrition looks different for everyone. What I hadn’t yet realized was how different nutrition would look for me – the same person – across each activity that I engaged in. It quickly became obvious that the banana and Clif bar I ate to make it through a basketball game was never going to sustain me for 10,000 feet of elevation gain on a multi-day thru hike. And the entire box of mac n' cheese I ate for dinner on a multi-day thru hike would absolutely make me vomit if eaten during a marathon training run. And the GU that I ate on a training run was probably not an appropriate lunch for a Monday in the office. My nutrition plan didn’t just need to be tailored to me; it also needed to be tailored to each and every thing I was doing. 

For so many years, my identity as an athlete centered on basketball and my interest in nutrition centered on my identity as an athlete. But I’ve learned that nutrition is just as important for weekend warriors, after-work runners, and those of us stuck at our desks all week. If we are active, we are athletes and understanding how nutrition supports us through all of the things we do is crucial – even if we’re no longer trying to set a PR, win the playoffs, or qualify for the next level. Nutrition is what fuels our ability to do the things we love.

So yes, I am a former basketball player. But I am still – and always will be – an athlete. I have simply chosen sports that lend themselves to eating an entire box of mac ‘n cheese in one sitting :)

-Laura