The 4 healthy habits Olympic athletes have that we everyday humans can have too

SALT LAKE CITY — What do you have in common with an Olympic athlete?

KSL Health Contributor Miki Eberhardt recently completed an intense sports nutrition program with the International Olympic Committee.

"It's been really fun for me personally to implement some of the things that I have learned just for myself, an everyday person that has a busy life," she said.

Eberhardt shared four truths she took away from the program for the everyday human.

Fuel For the Work Required

Eberhardt said a lot of people focus on one perfect eating plan that works every day. An Olympic athlete doesn't eat exactly the same way every day, and we shouldn't expect ourselves to either.

"An Olympian obviously isn't gonna eat the same thing every single day," she explained. "They're going to maximize carbohydrate when the training load really increases and scale back on a rest or recovery day."

Eberhardt said that should apply in our lives too. If we have an active workout in the afternoon or a stressful presentation that's going to take a lot of brain power, we should fuel with appropriate carbohydrates. On slower days, our approach should be different.

"If I'm sitting around at a desk all day, I could probably scale back, have more protein, really maximize my vegetables," she said.

More than trying to force the same nutrition plan everyday, we should focus on matching our food intake to our daily demands. One area where most of us get stuck is limiting carbs.

"Sometimes we fear carbohydrates a lot," Eberhardt said.

We often under-eat or avoid them completely, even when we need them. Carbohydrates provide energy, especially during mentally and physically demanding situations.

"If we can nourish the event that's happening with appropriate carbohydrate, we usually do pretty good with protein anyway," she explained.

We don't need to eat more carbs indiscriminately, we need to learn when they can help us perform, focus and recover better.

Treat Recovery as an Active Discipline

"Olympians treat recovery with the exact same rigor that they do training," Eberhardt said.

Sometimes we see rest as missed opportunity when actually, some of the most important physical improvements happen during recovery.

"The training adaptation where we get stronger, faster, sharper, that happens in the in between workouts," she explained. "If we're constantly grinding but never actually taking a break, we're never gonna have those changes."

Eberhardt said too often we try to 'biohack' things.

"We're gonna track everything, our steps, our calories, our macros," she said. "Then we totally do not pay attention to how we physically feel. Often our bodies are telling us, 'Hey, you need to go easy today. You need to take that break. You need more sleep.'"

She said one of the healthiest practices is learning to trust those signals. If we listen to those signs, our health will improve.

Master the Boring Basics Before Chasing Supplements

Supplements are everywhere, so it's easy to fall into the belief that powders, drinks and pills hold the key to better health. Eberhardt said to think of a pyramid that builds up healthy habits. The foundation is going to be timing of eating, what and how you eat, and at the very top will be supplements.

"We wanna master the boring basics before we really chase those supplements," she explained. "We can't out-supplement the poor stuff below."

If the foundation isn't there, supplements aren't going to solve the problem.

"If I'm not getting the right amount of food that I need, it doesn't matter if I'm taking a special powder or a pill," Eberhardt emphasized.

Use Routines to Eliminate Decision Fatigue

"Willpower is a finite resource," Eberhardt emphasized.

By the time the end of a busy day rolls around, we're feeling decision fatigue. That's when our healthy intentions fall apart.

"If I don't have things pre-prepared, ready to go, ideas in place," she said, "there's a friction that happens there that's gonna lead to the 'whoopsie' through the drive-through."

She explained that athletes don't rely on willpower. They rely on systems and preparation.

"I know at 3:00 PM I'm hungry every day," Eberhardt said. "I'm gonna have these planned snacks ready to go, nourish myself, and I won't fall."

Find more health advice from Miki Eberhardt on Instagram, @nutritionbymiki.

This story originally aired on KSL TV and has been reformatted for a digital audience using artificial intelligence.