The Gymnast Nutritionist® Podcast

With the 2025 competition season upon us, today's episode focuses on the varying needs for competition nutrition strategies for gymnastics at the different levels.  Every new level brings with it new challenges and opportunities. It's easy to get distracted with things your gymnast doesn't need yet. Or spend years (and money!) on things that aren't what they really need in the...

Have you fallen victim to the mentality of "team no days off for your gymnast? Believe it or not, this could be what's keeping your gymnast stuck + struggling. And is the fastest way to ruin your kids gymnastics career. A lot of the young, high level gymnasts we work with these days were just babies a few years ago during COVID. So, they don’t understand one of the most valuable lessons...

To wrap up our introduction to the team podcast series, today I'm pumped to chat with Megan Robinson. She is our final dietitian on team TGN® and one of our pediatric/adolescent sports dietitians who supports our gymnasts + parents inside The Balanced Gymnast® Program.  And on today's episode, we're covering a variety of topics including injury recovery nutrition for gymnasts! Not o...

In today's episode, I'm sharing why its critically important for your gymnast to be plotted on their growth chart multiple times a year. And how things can go sideways when they aren't. I know parents spend so much time seeing specialists for their gymnasts that often the pediatrician well-checks are pushed to the back burner. But without those visits and plotting the gymnast on the...

Injury and time off is by nature stressful for the athlete and parent. But unfortunately, in an aesthetic sport like gymnastics that is steeped in backwards thinking, navigating weight gain or management in injured gymnasts takes it to a whole other level of stress. I know gymnasts fear gaining weight or growing will cause them to loose their skills when they're back to full training. So, to...

I'm so excited to introduce you all to the next dietitian on team TGN®, Ryann Mayer. She is another one of our pediatric/adolescent sports dietitians who supports our gymnasts + parents inside The Balanced Gymnast® Program. And she's making life a whole lot easier for parents of gymnasts who are picky eaters! Ryann is a former level 10 gymnast herself and knows the sport inside and out....

A LONG overdue episode, on the podcast today I'm introducing you all to dietitian Melissa Wallinga. One of The Gymnast Nutritionist® team pediatric/adolescent sports dietitians who supports our gymnasts + parents inside The Balanced Gymnast® Program.  She is a former NCAA athlete, current peds/adolescent sports dietitian (and super smart clinical dietitian with her doctorate--- that's Dr...

At this point of the year, parents ask if nutrition is something their gymnast should focus on while they're injured. A lot of gymnasts are injured right now and won’t even have a competition season. Or some are in the process of coming back and things feel uncertain. Or others are currently in pain but in are denial and hoping it will go away. It's easy to assume there are other things...

Is your gymnast ready to crush it? Or will your gymnast implode part way through this competition season? Is there a way to predict or prevent it from happening? Preparing for competition season begins the day after the last season ended, right? There's no real "time off" in gymnastics. And each season brings it's own challenges and struggles to focus on. "Off season"...

How your gymnast consumes and behaves around the sweets and treats on the holidays is indicative of their relationship with these foods the other 364 days a year. I know that's a big statement, but stay with me. For example, if on Halloween your gymnast ate so much candy or sweets on the holiday they made themselves sick...more than likely they feel restricted and are probably underfueled and...

Could your gymnast be underfueled and you just not know it? What does that look like and what signs should parents be on the lookout for? Welcome to the first episode of our series, Fueled Gymnast Fall . I'm so excited to take the next few weeks to address a handful of specific issues that could be affecting your gymnast at this point of the year. Now is the time to make changes and adjustmen...

Today's episode is all about NCAA recruiting and how nutrition will impact a gymnast in the college recruiting journey.  This is a huge topic for my junior and senior gymnasts who are actively going through recruiting. I hear a lot about their experiences in the process, and it's left me thinking about how essential nutrition is to your gymnast being successful, in the sport and in colle...

If you've been listening to the podcast for awhile but have been wondering at what age does your gymnast need nutrition support, then this episode is for you! There's definitely no one hard rule when it comes to what age gymnasts should seek out nutrition support. It would be unrealistic to say the perfect age to start is 10, 11, or 12 years old. This is because 10, 11, 12 years old can...

We have a super special episode on the podcast for you today with some of our alumni parents who went all in with nutrition for their gymnasts.  We asked parents who were once in your shoes all about how they've seen nutrition work for their gymnasts. Hear answers to your burning questions about our signature TBG Program. Our panelists, who are all experienced TBG Alumni, address a variety of...

Today I'm peeling back the curtain to discuss a very nuanced topic that definitely deserves a spotlight of it's own: the role of vitamins and minerals in your gymnast's diet. I'm taking you into the world of minerals for gymnasts and the impact they have on their overall long-term health.  Here at The Gymnast Nutritionist, I talk a lot about addressing adequate fueling first; a...

I'm sharing 6 surprising benefits from fixing your gymnast's fueling issues that they might see over the course of weeks, months, and years of nailing their nutrition. Of course every gymnast is different, effort into fueling is different, and overall baseline of where they're starting varies.  But after years of working exclusively with gymnasts, I want to share with you six common...

There is NOTHING worse than feeling behind in Pre-Season, especially if your gymnast is injured and unsure if they'll even have a competition season.  There are 3 main reasons we see gymnasts and parents (and coaches!) alike panicking this time of year, and nutrition has to do with all of them.  1. Poor energy, poor focus (accused of not trying hard enough) 2. Not ready bc injured, sick, etc...

I have special guest Melissa Lodge, MS on the podcast today and we're discussing the nitty gritty in terms of underfueling's long term impact on your gymnast's bone health.  Melissa Lodge, MS is a third year PhD student (@fed_collaborative) is currently doing her PhD focused on female athlete physiology, but particularly under conditions of low availability aka RED-S. She got into t...

Today I'm discussing the 5 stages of underfueling in high level gymnasts. It can be easy to miss, especially in the beginning and go on for YEARS before being identified. Why do we talk about underfueling so much over here at The Gymnast Nutritionist? Sadly, it is the number one career killer when it comes to the high level gymnast. And it can be really sneaky; unfortunately years of underfue...

It's a sensitive topic, but one that we need to address: is your gymnast a "tiny gymnast" or is she actually underfueled? It can be a tricky conversation to have due to the fact that there are still stereotypes of what a gymnast body "should" look like. And is it always an issue? The fact is, some of the population is just smaller. That's why we have growth and height...

It's back to school time and that usually means more rigid schedules and more time away from home. Your gymnast's sleep and nutrition are typically the aspects most effected by this transition. Most start the year off fresh, swearing to do things differently than previous years. And then are overwhelmed and exhausted by all the things two months into the school year.  One of the first th...

It's that time of year! It's back to school time and all the extra hurdles that entails. Including navigating school lunch nutrition for your gymnast.  It's already hard enough; ensuring your gymnast is getting enough nutrition, at the right times, to fuel for the work required in this sport. But school + lunch brings along even more challenges to making sure your gymnast is getting...

The Redemption Tour. The Golden Girls. Paris 2024 was BY FAR my favorite Olympics yet! Lots of incredible lessons learned about mental health, physical health, body diversity. And the crucial aspects these Olympics taught us about gymnast nutrition in those pressure moments.  Listen in today as I'm covering the top 3 lessons learned from these Olympics in not just gymnast nutrition, but in al...

How much does it cost to keep a level 10 gymnast happy + healthy, and competing in this sport? Gymnastics is expensive. No one needs to tell parents that. The costs add up quickly from the very beginning, but they sky rocket once your gymnast reaches those upper levels. And I think an honest convo in a sport where we’re already spending money is crucial. Some of you listening to this have little g...

Does your gymnast need a sports drink at practice this summer? What is the difference between a sports drink and oral rehydration drink? Are sports drinks bad?! Who needs them?  Do I recommend them? In today's episode, I'm breaking down what exactly is a sports drink and when/if they could be beneficiary for your gymnast. Just take a look at any grocery store shelf and you'll see th...