From Pro to Average Joe: Nutrition for Performance vs Health from a Former CrossFit Games Athlete & Dietitian
Food & Nutrition is ever changing, not only with new studies, myths, fads, products and recommendations, but our own nutritional needs. Our growing body’s nutrition changes with age, activity levels, food preferences, body/food reactions and not to mention life events, good or bad. No wonder why nutrition is so individualized, right? The increase in supply & demand of individualized meal plans, nutrition coaches, dietitians, as well as the diverse food products are additional proof that nutrition needs for Diane are entirely different than for Karen or Helen (see what I did there).
So, now that we are on the same page about nutrition’s personalization, the next question to ponder is why we try to mimic other people’s diets. Well, that seems somewhat simple, because we want something they have, and eating like them may give us that very thing. Let’s start with all the fad, yo-yo diets, shakes, cleanses, detoxes etc. in the world. You see the before and after photos, you hear what it did for Susie, ‘she lost 20 pounds in 3 weeks!’ Now, you want to be like Susie and all the people who lost weight and now look happier. So you do what brought them this so called success (not taking into account anything else). At times like this, our hope blinds us of reality and the fact again, that our energy needs, schedules, allotted time, and preferences are completely different and thus, how, what and why we eat is different. Again, nutrition is very much individualized.
CROSSFIT AMY
Now, let’s bring CrossFit into the mix (so we can get to my story & how my nutrition changed going from a CF Games to Everyday Athlete). Amy is a CrossFitter at her local gym. She looks up to many Pro Female CrossFit Athletes, following them on social media. Amy wants to learn how they train, recover and moreover, fuel their bodies in order to do all that they do. She aspires to have a body like them as well. The pro’s have impressive bodies, most with six pack abs, and look immensely strong in their sports bra and booty shorts. Amy wants to be just like them. She see’s the athletes track their macros, so Amy begins to do this as well. She follows their instagram stories to see what they are fueling with at meals, post workouts, and the supplements to take for optimal recovery and performance. If Amy wants to look and try to train like them, she needs to start eating like them.
(Important note: I am not dissing these insanely talented women. Quite the opposite, I have so much respect for them. Many are very open, like Amanda Barnhart, shares what she eats but also tells her audience that this is what works for her to fuel her training and does not necessarily mean it will work for him/her, nor the need to look like her to be healthy). PS love Amanda.
So, why do we see so many Amy’s in CrossFit but not many other sports? You don’t see adult athletes who begin golf, tennis or any other sport, begin mimicking everything those pro’s do...
CROSSFIT VS OTHER SPORTS
But, it makes sense because CrossFit is very different than any other sport in one particular way. It is the only sport where an ‘average joe’ or athletically gifted adult possibly go pro. CrossFit is still very new and yes, more youth and teenagers are getting involved in the sport, however, the majority of professional CrossFit Athletes did not begin the sport until after retiring from their ‘first’ sport. For me, that was soccer, but many have come from gymnastics, swimming, football, hockey or even just a fitness background. The key difference is, in all these other sports that we are familiar with, you begin at an early age, you specialize in the sport and spend many years/decades playing and training to become a professional in it. For, it is almost unheard of for someone to go pro in a sport he/she began as an adult, let alone in college, or even in middle or high school. A dietitian friend of mine hit the nail on the head when she recently told me, “In CrossFit, you can start at any age and any time, and still have a chance of making the big leagues.” -Ashley Marolo, RD. This is great right? Adults, young or old, like Amy, who have stopped playing competitive sports after high school or college can jump back on the athlete train. Hope and determination flows through her veins as she believes athletic fame, glory and greatness is accessible again. The CrossFit Games is also open to all ages. The age divisions go from 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59 and 60+. So athletic glory in the CrossFit world is not only for little Johnny, but John, and John Senior.
THE AESTHETIC DIFFERENCE
Hope of athletic glory or competing at the Games may not flow in most everyday CrossFit athlete’s veins, but many may want to look like the muscular, strong badass pros. OR let’s even take it down one notch, they may want to look like the ‘top’ athletes in their gym. CrossFit is well known for their athletes wearing very little clothing. A Female’s normal attire is as simple as booty shorts and a sports bra while many men’s shirts are off more times than not. The visibility of these strong, defined and muscular bodies in gyms, ads and on social media make them more desirable, normal and attainable. So, whether an everyday athlete is motivated by looks, performance or fame, CrossFit’s culture and set up can cause many to feel much closer to the pro’s. If she looks like that, then why can’t I? I’ll tell you why through my own story.
from 12% to 19% Body Fat
I am actually HEALTHIER now then when training for the CrossFit Games.
CROSSFIT GAMES ATHLETE TO EVERYDAY
Yes, I qualified, trained and shortly competed at the 2018 CrossFit Games. It was a dream come true. I will always cherish this time for not only the opportunity to push my body to its limits, but also all the love and support that was shown to me while making my dreams a reality. It was not a fairytale ending unfortunately, for with only 50 yards from the finish line in Event 1, I ‘fell’ off my bike, causing substantial damage to my left wrist. With a entire dislocation, tearing of all ligaments and tendons and a crushed scaphoid bone, not only did my CrossFit Games end but my entire CrossFit Career came to a ‘crashing’ halt (no pun intended). And, just as my training intensity and volume dramatically changed, so did my visible abs, 12% body fat, and eating habits. I went through the 5 stages of grief with my injury (no joke) but my positive outlook on life, the belief that everything happens for a reason, and the never-ending support and love from my husband, friends and family, I currently could not be in a better place and have embraced my new everyday athlete life. Since this could be an entire blog post, however let’s get back to how my nutrition (and body) changed from pro to average joe.
We already covered that nutrition is individualized. If you do not know, I am a Dietitian with a private practice, FIt Plate Nutrition, so being a nutrition expert is my profession. Which has made this transition so much easier because the knowledge was already in place. However, training for the Games, I worked with another Nutrition Expert, Mike Molloy of M2Performance in order to help fuel my body optimally with the high intensity, training load and crazy schedule I was following. Most Pro CrossFit athletes train multiple times/day. Their body is their job (like any professional athlete) and part of that job is to fuel their body with enough and the right kind of fuel in order to continue to perform, stay healthy & succeed at a highly competitive level. Pro athletes not only train multiple times a day but can be in the gym two plus hours each session. So, Mike wasn’t worried about my quality (he knew I could handle that aspect), rather, his focus was on making sure I ate enough.
It’s also important to keep in mind the mental toughness professional athletes have. This mental toughness allows professionals to push much harder than most average joe’s. What does this mean nutritionally? To put it simply, my hour or any average joe’s hour in the gym does not equate to the pro’s hour nor does it mean we should eat similarly.
During Games Training, fueling my body was a job. Prioritizing my fluids/electrolytes, food, carbs and protein all increased while my quality actually probably decreased due to the pure volume of food I needed to consume. Nutrition needs to be a priority for professional athletes and remember, it is part of their job, and thus, time and effort need to be spent in the kitchen. Could you tell your boss, you’re coming into work late because you need to meal prep? No, probably not.
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So, now that I am not working out a crazy number of hours at high intensities multiple times a day and week, how do I nourish & fuel myself. What has changed other than working out 45-60 minutes/day, 5-6 days/week?
AS AN EVERYDAY ATHLETE, I….
Eat less volume of calories, protein, and carbs
Stopped Tracking my Food: I didn’t track prior to Games Training and did not continue after as I do not need someone telling me how much to eat anymore which leads me to my next point….
Trust my body to tell me when and how much to eat rather than needed to force myself to eat past fullness in order to get enough fuel for my activity level. This is a game changers aka I have completely embraced intuitive eating.
I know there is NO perfect nutrition. The quantity of food I eat can change every.single.day depending on what I eat, my activity level, hormones and so forth. When I am hungry, I eat and choose nourishing food the majority of the time.
I do not care how many grams of carbs, fat or protein I need. I have knowledge of foods high and low in macros and can choose foods to try and balance each of these, just like in the old days before my fitness pal existed. If I had oatmeal (high carb breakfast loaded with health nutrients/fats), then I might go for a less starchy lunch such as a loaded salad. Had peanut butter, hemp seeds, and flax meal in my oatmeal, maybe I’ll pass on the trial mix or seed bar for a snack and choose a red pepper with cheese stick instead. Again, there’s no perfect nutrition...
Follow a gentle nutrition approach. Where I eat in a way that feels and tastes good. I try and take as much stress out of eating as possible and truly enjoy the food I choose to nourish my body with.
Focus on quality of foods rather than quantity. Yes, quantity matters, but I am allowing my body to take over that responsibility. It’s on me then to: listen to my body to know when and how much to eat and then make sure nourishing, high quality foods are available to eat when I am hungry.
I eat more non-starchy vegetables due to their 1) immense amount of antioxidants, minerals and vitamins and 2) lower calorie content since I do not need as much energy
Eat less starchy carbohydrates like potatoes, pasta, rice, oats and other grains again because my body isn’t using as much for fuel. Now, if I am at an Italian restaurant or special occasion yes, I will most likely be eating more carbs than normal but again, balance my friends, no guilt and no stress.
Do not take supplements. You heard me right, ‘eat real food RD’ right here! I DO NOT take any supplements (pre or post) or vitamins currently besides Vitamin D3. Since I prioritize quality (micro-nutrient density), I am able to get my recommended (or close to it) amount of protein and nutrients through food.
Accept and embrace my ever evolving body, even with the additional fat around hips and boobs. This can be VERY difficult to accept, and it’s important to know, I still have my ‘bad body image days’ every now and then. However, I know my weight or my ‘abs’ do not define who I am or my worth as a person. Abs will not make me happier. I do not have the 6 pack I once had (first and only time I had one was going into the CrossFit games aka my peak season) and that’s perfectly okay.
Healthier NOW then when I was training for the games, for that training and fueling was not sustainable. I am now in my healthy weight range, a weight that is sustainable, that I feel nourished and energized in, as well as healthy and happy.
Intuitively exercise & Enjoy other types of Fitness & Exercise I see working out, not as a job, chore, or punishment for eating a certain meal or food but rather, as something I enjoy and form of self care.
I workout not only for my physical but mental health. If going out with my husband for a glass of wine is going to benefit me more than going to the gym, I have zero guilt in doing that. Does that happen often, no but it does happen when I need/want it to.
I am currently training for a half ironman (I never said I quit challenging myself) and so, I swim 2x/week on a local master swim team, bought a Trek road bike (yes, even after my crash) and ride once, soon twice a week all while still going to the CrossFit gym at least 2 times a week because I love CrossFit. I have FREEDOM to move my body how I want to and I love it!
Are you seeing the differences? You do not need to and most likely, shouldn’t eat like or look like a professional CrossFit Athlete. It’s simply not healthy much of the time. Let me say that again…
You do not need to, and most likely shouldn’t eat like or look like a professional CrossFit Athlete.
My experience and expertise in nutrition and sports allow me to better help my competitive and everyday athlete clients. Not only is my Nutrition Coaching different for each client but my approach between Wellness and Sports Nutrition coaching can be entirely different. This is not rocket science as you can see above how my nutrition, body, health and mindset has evolved.
I love CrossFit, it is special and different in many ways (there’s no doubt about that), however, the Average Joe falsely thinking he/she should be/do what the Pro’s do, needs to be slapped back into reality, specifically, when it comes to nutrition and aesthetics. For, I do not have adult runners come to me wanting to look and eat like the Kenyan marathon runners (thank goodness) so why do adult CrossFitters get to?