A couple months ago I started working with Erica to get my nutrition under control as I was approaching the Olympic Year. This time in my life has been so crucial for me to make sure my nutrition, recovery, and training are at the best they can be in so I am ready to take on Olympic Trials in June.
Erica started putting a plan together for me, and it was great! Everything was going smoothly and then we decided to test my DNA to further see what my body actually needs. The kit was so easy to understand, all I had to do was swab my cheek 3 times with 3 different swabs for 30 seconds each. Then I put the swabs back in the specimen envelope and off it went to be shipped and tested! A week later, I received an email saying they received my sample and another week later I received my results.
WOW. The things I found out about my DNA and genes was incredible. I received a 46 page report all about my sensitivities, exercise, fitness and nutrition. I won’t take you through my entire report but I want to point out a couple specific things that changed for the best for me!
First, my previous multi-vitamin was basically poisoning me and I would not have known without this test. So, I changed my multi-vitamin to one that is better for my genetics and is NSF safe. I kid you not, I already felt my body change. I was also low on B6 so I started adding salmon and tuna into my diet and other good B6 foods and my recovery was getting way better! AND MY TRAINING!
*I forgot to mention, I have a WHOOP. This band tells me how much sleep I get at night, how much strain I put on my body through swimming, lifting, etc. and how much my body recovers based on daily activities, nutrition, and sleep. When I first started with Erica, I was poorly recovered, 50-60% going into tough workouts. Now I am sleeping 10 hours, training amazing, putting A LOT of strain on my body each day, and still waking up and going into training at 80-100% recovered. AMAZING.*
I also have this pretty cool endurance gene and athlete gene that only 14% of the population has….I was STOKED to hear that!
So now that I know what things I needed to incorporate into my daily nutrition as well as what my body didn’t need, I feel like a brand new person. I also have a great go to AM breakfast that I love and I think you will too. It’s an acai bowl 🙂
Trader Joes has the best frozen acai packets. I use one of those with a frozen banana, unsweetened almond milk, honey, and frozen berries – blended in a blender. I top it off with some of my homemade granola, fruit, coconut, chia seeds, peanut butter, and sliced almonds. You really can’t go wrong with any toppings as everything is good! When I have this meal, I drink Suja Uber Greens with it to get my greens in. It tastes really good, I promise!
One last thing before you see my amazing bowl. PLEASE take charge of your health and fitness. When you take this DNA test, you have the answers for LIFE! Everyone is different and responds to different foods and exercise and it has been amazing to know what my body actually tolerates. My entire family has taken the DNA tests and are so grateful they did. Invest in yourself, you deserve it!
