Breakfast of Champions

By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom

Even if you don’t follow Olympic swimming, I bet you’ve heard about the rivalry between Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte in the 2012 summer games. In an upset in the first race between them, the “always second” Ryan Lochte came out on top with the gold medal. While there are many reasons for Ryan’s win, I’d like to focus on one interesting lifestyle change that Ryan himself attributed to his incredible performance — his diet.

Top athletes need thousands of calories a day to fuel their workouts, and most of us assume they’re consuming nutrient-packed foods and avoiding empty calories. But Ryan Lochte was a self-acknowledged lover of fast food, which contributed to a major portion of his calories.

Making overall changes in his performance strategies, Ryan switched his diet plan to an energy and nutrient-rich diet . . . and it paid off. He credits his healthier diet as one of the factors in his improved performance. That’s great news for those of us who believe in the connection between healthy eating and better performance in whatever you do.

It encourages me that when asked about his recent performance boost, Ryan didn’t have to say he was eating a diet of fast food, milkshakes, and soda. That would send the message to millions that it doesn’t matter what you eat, as long as you have sufficient calories. Ryan’s Olympic gold medal is yet another example that healthy eating certainly does pay off!