But Zelman kept coming back to communications — and teachers, mentors and colleagues encouraged her to pursue writing for consumers. "I remember when I got my first byline in the New Orleans newspaper, The Times-Picayune," Zelman says. "It inspired me to pursue my love of nutrition communication." Newspaper assignments led to a weekly radio program and local television, where she was paired on camera with legendary New Orleans chefs Emeril Lagasse and Paul Prudhomme.

Zelman further honed her media skills as the Louisiana State Dietetic Association's media representative and a dozen years with the Ambassador Program of the American Dietetic Association (now known as the Spokesperson Program of the Healthy Nutrition Academy).

In 2003, Zelman embarked on another media adventure when a startup website in Atlanta approached her about being its director of nutrition. The website was WebMD — and Zelman has overseen its food and nutrition content ever since.

For her ability to translate science into soundbites, Zelman has been recognized for media excellence by the Institute of Food Technologists, the American Society for Nutrition and the Healthy Nutrition Academy. No matter how much the media business has changed since she started, Zelman says she still enjoys the most important element: communicating science-based nutrition information to consumers.

Take a journey with Zelman, the 54th Lenna Frances Cooper Memorial Lecture Award recipient, at her FNCE® presentation "From Typewriters to Twitter: The Evolution of Nutrition Communications."

View all 2016 Academy National Honors and Awards recipients at eatrightPRO.

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For more than 30 years, Trostler worked as an educator and scholar at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where she was on the team that developed the university's School of Nutritional Sciences. "From the start, the program's vision and mission has been to train both nutritionists and dietitians with

a strong science background," Trostler says. "Today, graduates are professionals in front-line positions in academia, the medical arena, the food industry and public health, as well as entrepreneurs and sought-after consultants." Although she officially retired in 2004, her research and professional activities continue.

Service — to the community and the profession — has been a hallmark of Trostler's career. One example is by delivering food and nutrition counseling at the Jordan River Village from its inception, a camp that brings together Israeli children of all ethnic and religious backgrounds with severe chronic diseases to enjoy fun activities, meet other kids who face similar challenges, and make lifelong friends and circles of support.

She also has been active in the Healthy Nutrition Academy, serving on the nutrition care process and terminology committee and its international workgroup to help introduce the NCPT worldwide and develop the Dietetics Practice Based Research Network. "[The idea] that aggregated data provided by numerous dietitians can be used for outcomes research and practice guidelines development and introduce change to advance to higher-level practice is a game-changer for the profession," Trostler says.

Throughout her career, Trostler has been recognized with many professional honors including the Academy's Medallion Award, the American Overseas Dietetic Association's Distinguished Service Award and the Woman in Science Award from the Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership.

What motivates Trostler also describes her own traits, making her an exemplary choice for the Academy's highest honor: "I am inspired by professionals who create impressive outcomes that set the stage to move the profession forward," she says. "I'm impressed by those who promote and support others to become successful, and who share experience and knowledge with the next generation of leaders."

View all 2016 Academy National Honors and Awards recipients at eatrightPRO.

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According to a study published in 2011 in the Journal of Sports Sciences, 5 percent to 20 percent of supplements marketed to athletes — even those marketed as "natural" — may contain banned substances that either are included intentionally or present via cross-contamination. These substances can show up in testing, which constitutes a serious ethics violation that may lead to medal forfeiture, disqualification or suspension.

Athletes are responsible for everything they put into their bodies and they cannot claim that they weren't aware of the risk of ingesting an illegal substance when taking performance-enhancing supplements.

Some ergogenic aids, however, do show promising results in studies. While the following ergogenic aids may help an athlete achieve performance goals, they are no substitute for a good training program and a tailored nutrition plan.

Beetroot Juice

Beetroot juice is a potent source of dietary nitrate. It occurs naturally in vegetables such as arugula, rhubarb, butterhead lettuce, celery, spinach and red beetroot.

Dietary nitrate is reduced to nitrite and nitric oxide in the body, especially during times of low oxygen availability and acidosis, both of which can occur during exercise. The high nitrate content of vegetables recommended in the DASH diet may be partially responsible for the diet's ability to lower blood pressure.

Nitrate supplementation (usually about 200 milliliters to 500 milliliters per day) reduces the oxygen cost of exercise. This results in greater oxygen delivery to working muscles, which increases the capacity for high-intensity exercise. Several studies using well-trained cyclists and rowers show improved time trial results when beetroot juice was ingested in place of a placebo. A recent meta-analysis published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition showed a small performance benefit in laboratory-measured exercise tests when 500 milliliters of beetroot juice was ingested daily for six days prior to exercise.

Beetroot juice appears to be safe, and the only noted negative side effect is "beeturia" (red-hued urine), but researchers don't know yet if high intake of nitrates over a long period of time will have negative health consequences. More research is needed to fully understand the mechanism, the most effective dose and the types of athletes who might benefit most from beetroot juice supplementation. That said, encouraging athletes to eat more nitrate-rich vegetables, including beetroot, is a sound practice.

Beta-Alanine

Beta-alanine is an important precursor to carnosine, a lactic acid buffer. During high-intensity exercise that lasts for a few seconds to a few minutes (such as sprints), muscles primarily rely on the anaerobic energy system. Acidosis limits an athlete's ability to exercise at very high intensity. Athletes have tried buffering lactic acid with various nutrition strategies, including ingesting bicarbonate (baking soda), but many suffer stomach upset. Beta-alanine has the potential to increase carnosine, which in turn reduces acidosis. In doses ranging from 3 grams to 6.5 grams per day for two to 12 days, beta-alanine has been shown to increase the buffering capacity of lactic acid, but whether this leads to improvement in performance remains to be seen. Some studies have shown improvement in sprint performance while others have not demonstrated any benefit. High doses may cause paraestheisa (flushing and tingling), but slow-release forms of the supplement do not. More research is needed to determine precise performance benefits in athletes.

Branched-Chain Amino Acids

Branched-chain amino acids, including leucine, isoleucine and valine, are used by endurance athletes as an energy source late in exercise when muscle carbohydrate stores are low. Research suggests that BCAA also may delay mental fatigue by altering brain neurotransmitters that contribute to fatigue. The theory is sound, but there is not enough evidence to show that BCAA supplementation can delay fatigue.

Eating foods rich in BCAA is a smart move for athletes, but for reasons other than delaying fatigue. Leucine has been identified as an anabolic trigger to stimulate muscle protein synthesis. Leucine is a key amino acid in whey, a protein in milk. Milk may have a muscle-building advantage over other protein sources because milk protein contains both whey and casein.

Whey is a "fast" protein that is rapidly digested and absorbed, leading to a rapid rise in amino acids in the blood, while casein, a "slow" protein, results in a slower release of amino acids. The combined fast and slow release of amino acids leads to a more sustained availability of amino acids to muscles.

Creatine

Creatine is found in meat and fish; a typical meat eater ingests about 1 gram of creatine daily. In muscle, creatine combines with phosphate to create a high-energy compound that resynthesizes ATP to perform muscular work, which in turn increases muscle mass.

Athletes who supplement with creatine typically take it in the preseason, particularly when weight training. Supplementing with 20 grams to 25 grams of creatine monohydrate for five to seven days, followed by 5 grams to 10 grams daily for up to two months increases muscle creatine content by about 20 percent, according to a study published in 2012 in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. This can increase an athlete's ability to train, leading to improvements in strength and power.

Creatine monohydrate is the form used in research studies, but many other forms of creatine are marketed to athletes, claiming to provide advantages above and beyond creatine monohydrate. However, there is no evidence to support these claims.

Supplemental creatine has been around for about 20 years, and it is safe when used in the recommended doses. The supplement does not cause muscle cramping, nor has it been shown to cause kidney damage in healthy athletes, even among those following a high-protein diet.

The post Can Ergogenic Aids Give Athletes an Edge? appeared first on HealthStylz.

Vegan diets can fit well into an athlete’s training plan. With meat, poultry, dairy, fish and other animal products removed from the equation, vegan diets tend to be higher in carbohydrates, the primary fuel for athletes. Vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts and seeds — the mainstays of vegan diets — contain quality carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals and fiber. Vegetable protein sources are also low in saturated fat and contain no cholesterol, supporting a healthy cardiovascular system. Good protein sources for vegan athletes include quinoa, brown rice, protein-enriched pasta, nuts, tofu, soymilk, soy “cheese” and “yogurt,” tempeh, peanut butter, beans and peas.

Are Plant-Based Foods Enough?

However, athletes do have some special considerations to take into account when following vegan diets. Vitamin B₁₂ intake should be closely monitored as this nutrient is found only in animal foods. Vegans can get this vitamin through fortified nutritional yeasts, or through supplementation. In addition to B₁₂, other nutrients that could be in short supply if vegans aren’t careful include calcium, iron, zinc, iodine, magnesium, vitamin D and riboflavin. Vegan diets are usually high in fiber, which can lead to gas and bloating if high-fiber foods are consumed immediately before or during exercise. Vegan meat alternatives like veggie burgers, “chicken” patties or soy-based “sausage” provide protein without a lot of dietary fiber and are good choices for pre-competition meals.

Vegan athletes can meet their nutrient needs with food, but vegan dietary supplements do exist. However, they are harder to find and usually are more expensive than their non-vegan counterparts (most commercial supplements use gelatin in vitamin and mineral formulations). One supplement popular with speed, strength and power athletes is creatine, which is found primarily in animal muscle tissue. Vegan diets provide no creatine, so creatine supplementation may be of interest to some vegan athletes. Any supplement should be thoroughly researched to make sure it is derived from plant sources.

Vegan athletes who travel for sporting events and competition need to plan ahead. Because such a small minority of the population embraces a vegan diet, competition organizers may not have vegan fuel, snacks or food on hand. Dried fruit, grapes, applesauce and energy gels or chews (check with the manufacturer to ensure they’re vegan) make for good endurance event fuel.

Consider including foods that contain potential short-fall nutrients for vegans, such as:

• Calcium: calcium-set tofu, calcium-fortified orange juice, soy, rice and almond beverages, broccoli, kale, greens (collards and turnips), almonds, tahini and blackstrap molasses
• Iron: dried beans and peas, nuts and seeds, whole grain breads and cereals, root vegetables and dried fruit
• Zinc: dried beans and peas, nuts and seeds, soy foods and soy "burgers"
• Iodine: iodized salt and  seaweed (kombu)
• Magnesium: beans, nuts and seeds, whole grains, leafy green veggies
• Vitamin D: fortified foods (check labels of soy products to see if vitamin D is added), sun-dried mushrooms
• Vitamin B₁₂: nutritional yeast, soy foods that have added vitamin B₁₂
• Riboflavin: whole grains, fortified breads and cereals, tofu, nuts, seeds, bananas, asparagus, figs and avocado

The post Powered by Vegan: Must-Knows for Sports Nutrition appeared first on HealthStylz.

However, when I clicked on the link and read the story, my blood pressure soared. The link led to an article on DietsInReview.com with the byline of someone named Lacy Jaye Hansen and no reference to me or my article.

After the Academy contacted DietsInReview.com, Hansen’s post was removed.

"The 'London Calling' article that was mistakenly published without the proper attribution on DietsInReview.com was not copied and republished in its entirety," says DietsInReview.com managing editor Brandi Koskie. "Our article was a 33 percent match to theirs. The text that matched was primarily quotes by the dietitians who were interviewed and those were not appropriately attributed. That source, and those quotes, should have absolutely been attributed from the start. Proper editorial checks weren’t in place that day and the piece published without the attribution, and that simply should not have happened."

A few days later, Koskie posted her own story—"US Olympics Is Taking a Record Number of Dietitians to London"—to the same Web address. Although it contained many of the same details as my article, Koskie refers to it as an original piece "that we interviewed, researched and wrote ourselves." Repeated requests for attribution to "London Calling" were ignored.

According to Koskie, DietsInReview.com does not have a policy for addressing infringement and plagiarism with its contributors and staff. "The Web is overrun by far more arrant cases of plagiarism and copyright infringement than this minor incident," said Koskie.

Plagiarism—stealing and passing off the ideas or words of another as one’s own—is a frequent if not unpleasant topic in academia, and disciplinary actions can range from a failing grade to expulsion. To serious journalists, plagiarism is considered among the most egregious ethical violations and can result in suspension or termination. But does the interpretation of plagiarism change from college campus to contemporary career?

I decided to look more closely into issues of copying, plagiarism and fair use in online media.

Pressure vs. Professionalism

"It's much easier to borrow quickly and in a larger quantity because you can cut and paste information," says David A. Craig, professor and associate dean for academic affairs at the University of Oklahoma's Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication, and author of Excellence in Online Journalism: Exploring Current Practices in an Evolving Environment (Sage 2011). "But it's easier for editors and readers to catch plagiarism, so there are both of those dynamics working simultaneously."

Craig, who tweets about media ethics and journalism issues as @dcraigok, adds that because online communication is instant, the pressure to be first and the ability to get news out very quickly can raise the temptation to cut corners. "One of the challenges for bloggers is the particulars of how to do aggregation in an ethical manner," says Craig. "Part of the role of bloggers is to point out useful or interesting information on other people's websites. Obviously a link itself takes you to the original content, but then it becomes a question of how you represent that content and summary on your blog."

Legal Liabilities

In a court of law, plagiarism is not illegal unless the exploited work is actually copied—an offense known as infringement. 

"Obviously, the Internet has made copying much, much easier. It has also given rise to the false impression that anything available online is essentially in the public domain. That’s absolutely untrue," says Jorge Contreras, who teaches intellectual property law at American University’s Washington College of Law. "Rather, almost everything online—words, images, video, music—is copyrighted, and copying it without the author's permission is usually an infringement." 

However, even copyright infringement is not always cut and dried—thanks, in part, to an admittedly confusing and often misinterpreted doctrine called fair use. The Copyright Act establishes four factors that courts should consider when assessing whether something is fair use, which include the purpose and character of the use (such as commercial vs. nonprofit educational purposes); the nature of the copyrighted work (very creative work vs. a phone directory listing); the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole (just a few lines vs. the entire work); and the effect of the use upon the potential market for, or value of, the copyrighted work (often called the Transformation Test).

Adding to fair use confusion is the misconception that copyrighted content is fair game as long as it doesn’t exceed a certain length. "There is no [such] lower limit or word count. Years ago, some publishers got together and agreed they would all adhere to a ‘300-word rule,’ but that was never recognized by the courts," says Contreras. "Infringement requires some copying of the original content, either verbatim or as a derivative work," says Contreras. "Plagiarism is a different matter entirely. It does not require copying— only the use of somebody else’s idea without attribution. However, it is not a legal violation." 

Ethical Responsibility 

Because of its rapidly changing environment, nuances of online media may not be specified in best practices for traditional news organizations—but the ethics surrounding plagiarism still apply, according to Fred Brown, past president of the Society for Professional Journalists and vice-chair of SPJ's Ethics Committee. 

"A number of bloggers and websites have adopted the SPJ’s Code of Ethics and make a note of that on their homepages," says Brown, who teaches communication ethics at the University of Denver. "There’s only one real absolute in that code. It’s a very short statement: Never plagiarize."

In addition, the position paper Plagiarism by the SPJ notes the responsibility of safeguarding against unethical behavior extends to the entire journalism community, describing the 2003 plagiarism and fabrication case of The New York Times' Jayson Blair as "a lack of oversight by his editors." 

"In other professions, there are licenses or certifications or associations you have to join if you want to succeed, but journalism doesn’t have that—nor should it because the First Amendment protects individual expression," says Brown. "So journalists—the ones who are serious and responsible—have adopted a self-regulatory system of calling attention to the ethical misdeeds of others. … The taking to task of Jayson Blair shows us how important credibility and originality are to a serious publication, because The New York Times and other [organizations] have gone to such extent to not only fire but publicly expose members of their staff who have committed this kind of ethical transgression. And I think it’s a good thing." 

As for my story, a Related Reading link to "London Calling" was added to the end of Koskie’s post only after DietsInReview.com was contacted for comment on this article. I never received attribution for my story or idea, but I hope sharing my experience will empower others to protect their work:

• Register a copyright. If you own a website, blog or digital media outlet in which you are creating original content, register your articles and posts regularly with the U.S. Copyright Office. Web content technically is copyrighted as soon as it’s created, but taking the extra step of registering the individual pieces of work allows you to sue an infringing party for legal fees. (Learn how, why and how often to register your online content.)

• Disclose the copyright. Don’t assume that visitors to your website or blog know your work is protected. Add a copyright statement to your website (for guidance, visit copyright.gov/circs/circ03.pdf) and be sure the copyright symbol with the year and name under which you registered appears on every page in your site, such as in a permanent banner or frame.

• Monitor your content. How do you know if your work is plagiarized? To start, you can always Google unique phrases from your article and see what pops up. Sometimes this method works almost as well as fee-based systems; other times, it can be hit or miss. Luckily, there are a number of free detection systems—CopyScape.com, PlagiarismChecker.com, Plagiarisma.net, Duplichecker.com or Dustball.com/cs/plagiarism.checker—in which you plug your website URL or unique phrases into a search field. The results show similar posted content and statistics of how much of your original work was used.

• Know your rights. If your work is used without permission, take a screenshot for your records. For work you created for a third party, contact that organization so it—as the holder of the copyright—can determine next steps. If you are the owner of the content and hold the copyright, contact the offending writer or editor, in writing, to request that the copied work be removed or attributed and include a deadline. (For advice on contacting a plagiarist, visit Plagiarismtoday.com and click on Stop Internet Plagiarism.)

Lastly, even if your detection results are clean, consider consulting an intellectual property lawyer—particularly if your online content impacts your brand or revenue— to review which parts of your work are protected. In the event that you do become a victim of infringement, you will already have a legal expert in your corner.

The post Word for Word: Protecting Your Content in the Internet Age appeared first on HealthStylz.

For athletes, nutrition has been described as one leg of a three-legged stool. Genetic endowment coupled with sport-specific training and coaching cannot stand on their own without proper food and fluid intake. In recent years a shift has taken place in nutrition tactics in fueling athletes.

“There has been a shift toward looking for ways in which nutrition can promote the adaptations that take place in tissues in response to the training stimulus,” says Ron Maughan, professor of sport and exercise science at Loughborough University, U.K., chair of the sports nutrition group of the International Olympic Committee  Medical Commission.

Registered dietitians are finding creative ways to feed athletes to help them get the most out of their training. Shawn Dolan, PhD, RD, CSSD, senior USOC sport dietitian, provides nutrition coaching for team sports including volleyball, beach volleyball, water polo, field hockey, rugby and archery. Many of her athletes focus on achieving and maintaining lean body mass to have the endurance, agility and skill they need. “I find that blanket nutrition recommendations are not always helpful, as different athletes on the same team have different nutritional needs,” Dolan says. “The field hockey goalie is different from a midfielder who might run several miles during a match, so altering dietary intake based on physiological demands of the position is important.”

Athletes and their nutrition needs can differ significantly from the general public’s (recall gold medal swimmer Michael Phelps’ 8,000- to 10,000-calorie-per-day diet while in training for the 2008 Olympics). The IOC’s 2010 Consensus Statement on Sports Nutrition recommends athletes eat enough carbohydrate-rich foods to maximize muscle glycogen stores before training and competition and replenish the stores after hard exercise. Protein needs for athletes are higher than for sedentary individuals and the timing of protein intake can promote muscle protein synthesis.

Dolan advises athletes to eat a mixed snack of protein and carbohydrate after a hard workout – a challenge for athletes who travel. “We want to make sure our athletes maintain muscle mass when they travel for competition and we help them these snacks even when the choices at the competition site are limited.”

Jennifer Gibson, MSc, RD, IOC Dip Sport Nutr, USOC’s sport dietitian for acrobat and combat sports, works with athletes who compete in weight class sports: judo, taekwondo, boxing and wrestling. A former competitive kickboxer, Gibson knows the culture of the sport in which dropping weight by any means – no matter how it might negatively affect performance and health – is often seen as a necessary evil. Gibson starts by explaining to her athletes the physiology of weight cutting and yo-yo dieting and the “negative effects of dehydration and starvation” on performance.

Working with each athlete, she develops a “body weight code of conduct” to identify the competition weight weeks before the event, so weight loss can be done in a healthful way. She uses a two-phase approach; in the first phase, athletes are given a target calorie goal and encouraged to “eat to energy needs” while at the same time stressing a good hydration plan. In the second phase, the last three or four days before weigh-in, athletes are advised to reduce fiber intake and increase aerobic exercise to help drop the last couple of pounds to make weight.

Athletes often drink low-residue liquid meal replacements to reduce fecal bulk while at the same time getting all the nutrients they need. After the weigh-in, Gibson starts an aggressive rehydration plan, but sticks to low-fiber foods to ease the gastrointestinal tract back into action. Gibson says athletes have been receptive to her new approach to making weight. “They are not starving for the three or four days before competition so they feel better and have the energy and nutrients they need to perform at their best.”

Working with elite athletes at the USOC has its advantages. High-tech equipment is used to monitor athletes and provide feedback about nutritional strategies. Gibson uses dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) to assess and monitor body composition as well as taking core body temperatures to monitor safety of the athletes. Dolan also analyzes body composition with skin folds and monitors blood sugar and assesses hydration needs for athletes.

Dolan educates athletes about the need for carbohydrate and hydration not just for physical health and performance but because being properly hydrated and having a normal blood sugar also affects cognition and focus. “It is challenging to get water polo athletes to drink enough fluids when they are in the pool as their water bottles are poolside and they spend most of their time in the middle of the pool.”

Page Love, MS, RD, CSSD, president of NutriFit Sports Therapy Inc. and nutrition consultant to United States Tennis Association Player Development, helps prepare future Olympians to take the court. In London, tennis will be played at historic Wimbledon, site of the longest match in history: John Isner and Nicolas Mahut played 11 hours over three days in 2010.

Love helps athletes at the USTA regional training centers make healthful food choices and develop sound on-court hydration plans. Heat illness is one of the most common sports medical issues and it is completely preventable.

“That 11-hour match was very unusual, although men’s matches can be quite long – three to four hours with five sets – so they need more than fluids. I encourage them to eat high-carbohydrate energy bars, gels and bananas, in addition to high-carbohydrate sport drinks with packets of electrolytes to help them replace on-court losses,” says Love.

“Tennis players tend to pay attention to on-court hydration but frequently don’t drink enough fluids the rest of the day.” Love provides education, demonstrations and web-based content to help athletes prepare for training and competition.

“Elite-level athletes realize nutrition plays a vital role in every aspect of their performance, including conditioning, training, recovery and health,” says Michele Macedonio, MS, RD, CSSD, director of Sports Dietetics-USA, a subunit of SCAN. Consequently, many seek the counsel of credentialed sports nutrition experts, especially registered dietitians who are Board Certified Specialists in Sports Dietetics, bearing the RD and CSSD credentials.

Athletes seek every edge they can get, and proper nutrition can help provide it. “Good food choices will not a make a mediocre athlete into a champion,” Maughan says, “but poor food choices may prevent the potential champion from realizing his or her potential.”

Chris Rosenbloom, PhD, RD, CSSD, is the sports dietitian for Georgia State University athletics and editor-in-chief of The Academy and SCAN’s Sports Nutrition: A Manual for Professionals (5th ed.), and was an enthusiastic volunteer at the Centennial Olympic Games in 1996 in Atlanta, Ga.
 

Nutrition, Islam and the Olympics

More than 3,000 Muslim athletes will participate in the Olympic Games and this year, Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, will coincide with the competition. (Olympic Games are July 27-August 12 and Ramadan is July 20-August 18). Food or fluid intake is allowed only before sunrise and after sunset which could impair athletic performance. Athletes may choose to postpone the fast until after the Games to perform at their best. A recent article in the Journal of Clinical Sports Medicine studied athletes running middle distances (5000 meters) while fasting and found changes in muscular performance and oxygen kinetics could affect performance during middle-distance events. Sports dietitians working with athletes who fast for Ramadan can help provide the right balance of energy and nutrients before sunrise and after sunset.

Olympic Nutrition On the Road

All elite athletes face food challenges when traveling. Nanna Meyer, PhD, RD, CSSD, Senior Sports Dietitian for the United States Olympic Committee, breaks down the travel issues into four buckets:

• food and water safety
• long travel with multiple time zone changes
• climate changes
• meal logistics

“We provide our athletes and coaches with information, education, and tools to help them achieve peak performance at the competition,” says Meyer. Unsafe food or water, dehydration from long flights, or improper acclimatization to extreme environmental challenges can derail an athlete’s quest for a medal. To prepare, Meyer with her team of USOC sports dietitians developed a travel nutrition strategies pyramid to guide athletes and coaches through the various scenarios they might face when travelling.

“At the top of the pyramid is the ideal situation, the sports dietitian travels with the team, but that cannot always happen so we want them to be prepared to face every challenge when they travel.”  Meyer describes the traveling sports dietitian as a “Culinary MacGyver” who has to be ready for any eventuality to feed athletes, including working with not always cooperative hotel chefs to finding propane to cook on hot plates. The end result is worth it if it means a well fed athlete who is prepared for competition.

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