My story is not unlike that of many young athletes. I grew up in a small community as a four-sport athlete, where nutrition was an inherent part of daily life. After landing a DI track and cross-country scholarship to Mizzou, I expected to achieve the same success I attained in high school.

Like so many athletes, the struggles I experienced in college had nothing to do with lack of commitment. I dedicated myself to every strenuous workout and everything asked of me by the coaching staff—including losing weight to compete. As someone who was only taught calories in versus calories out, I downloaded MyFitnessPal—and my entire body broke. 

Being chronically overtrained and underfueled took a mental and physical toll, one that made me question my future as an athlete. Just four weeks into my freshman year, I was diagnosed with my first stress fracture—the first of five over my career. I skipped breakfast daily, worked out with nothing but half a PB&J and banana in my system, and exhausted all mental energy in practice. For the first half of my collegiate career, I spent more time in the training room than actually training.

When I switched my major to dietetics, I found the missing piece of my training regimen: performance nutrition. Suddenly, my body composition changed, I recovered faster, and everything began to fall into place.

To every athlete who’s had their confidence shaken or felt as though their body was working against them, know this: I have been in your shoes. My goal is to help you navigate the same challenges I once faced. 

Today, I work with developing athletes to fill in the vital gaps many training regimens leave out: recovery, nutrition, and injury prevention. This is not just about becoming a better athlete—it’s about feeling good about yourself when you step up to the start line. And we do this through something we all need and love: food.