Blog Takeover: Week Wrap Up
This past week we heard stories from three athletes. A struggling track star turned elite triathlete, a dancer who found her calling in endurance events, and a wrestler who has had to work hard to get his nutrition habits back on track after a grueling athletic career. It has been so great to hear their takes on how nutrition has impacted their athletic career. I think we can all learn a lot from them.
From left to right: Paige (elite triathlete), Bery (wrestler turned cyclist), Alison ultra endurance athlete.
The first main takeaway, across the board, was that nutrition is a journey. No one wakes up and just has nutrition figured out- it takes work to create a plan that works for each individual, and each journey to get there will look different.
Second, nutrition doesn’t have to mean that all the joy of eating has to be eliminated. Balance was a common theme we heard through all these stories- from allowing yourself to eat a “treat” when you felt the craving, french fries as a mid ultra-endurance event, or a pizza with friends, you can still enjoy eating and your favorite foods, and still have good nutrition.
Nutrition is as much for your soul and mind, as it is for your physical health. We heard how Paige’s journey was as much an emotional and mental journey as nutritional- after years of the intake of inaccurate and unsafe nutrition information, she had to figure out how to untangle the complex. Bery notes the connection of stress and eating habits. Allyson notes the negative connotation between diet culture and body image. Good nutrition helps support a healthy soul and mind, while incomplete or restrictive nutrition can have the alternate effect.
We learned so much from these athletes, and I am so grateful for them being willing to share their stories. Keep an eye out for the next round of blog takeovers to hear from more athletes.