20 Amazing Olympic Bodies 

Go behind the scenes of some of the most extraordinary athletes in the world. From gymnasts and figure skaters to snowboarders and hockey players, this collection of stories showcases the dedication, resilience, and unique perspectives of these incredible individuals. Learn about Jade Carey's commitment to self-care, Simone Biles' ability to block out negativity, and Aly Raisman's switch to a plant-based diet. Discover how these athletes navigate body image issues, embrace confidence, and find strength in their physical abilities. Get inspired by their journeys as they strive to be the best and leave a lasting impact on their sports.

1. Jade Carey

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Olympic gymnast Jade Carey talked about what motivated her in an interview with International Gymnastics. “Just paying attention to what my body needs and what I need to do to take care of it. I have a great team that helps with that. And my love for the sport keeps me going and continuing to being the best that I can.”

2. Simone Biles

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Simone Biles is prepping for her return to gymnastics. She tells POPSugar that she makes sure to drown out negativity when she competes. "Whenever I'm performing, or just on a daily basis, I try to block everything out. I also don't look at comments or anything just because I'm grateful and I love everything about myself, and I'm proud of who I am inside and out. That's definitely helped me not think about it."

3. Aly Raisman

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Retired gymnast, Aly Raisman has a new diet. In 2019, she told People that she is a vegetarian. “When I was training, I thought that you had to eat meat in order to be strong,” Raisman says. “Now I’ve been reading up on all the amazing things that plants can do for your body and your mind… “I started watching all these documentaries and it really freaked me out seeing how some of the animals are treated so poorly.”

4. Mirai Nagasu

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After competing at the 2018 Winter Olympics, Mirai Nagasu opened up about the experience to Cosmopolitan. She says that she wants to represent for the Asian-American community. "Growing up there weren’t a lot of Asian Americans in sports, and there’s a bit of a stigma that says Asian Americans are more the 'nerdy type,' so for me to be a part of this successful sports team that has so many Asian Americans and to represent that side of the U.S. means a lot to me.”

5. Megan Rapinoe

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US soccer player Megan Rapinoe opened up about her approach to eating in an interview. “Overall, my philosophy is just to put good things in my body. I don’t really eat anything artificial, fake, or that I can’t pronounce. I try to keep it simple and clean.”

6. Gracie Gold

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Gracie Gold opened up about her struggles with body image in an interview with TODAY Style. She talked about participating in the publications “Why I Love My…” series. "I decided to answer, 'I love my legs,' because I used to hate them," Gold said. "And a lot of times I still do hate them. However, I'm learning to love them. I love them most of the time. But sometimes, I think, oh, they're too big, they don't look like the legs you see in the magazines. But I love how strong they are. They can lift a lot. They can run far. I love how powerful they are."

7. Adam Rippon

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After competing in the 2018 Winter Olympics, Adam Rippon opened up about his struggles with eating and body image. “My friends who I was close with and who I was training with were like, ‘Adam, that's not good,’” he told The Advocate. “‘We're going to dinner, and you say you're just going to get steamed vegetables and water when you haven't eaten lunch.’ But it's scary because that sense of hunger is something I still associate with good and doing the right thing. So it was really pushing through that, trying to fuel myself for the right reasons. Now doing things more in the entertainment world, if you gain a few pounds, it's not do or die. You can still be funny, you can still be quick-witted. You don't lose your wit when you gain weight.”

8. Evan Bates

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Evan Bates talked about his diet in an interview with Delish. "As soon as we're off the ice or out of the gym we're replenishing and replacing those burned calories," he says. Bates says that he loves smoothies with spinach, chia seeds, and protein powder for this reason. He also says that he likes almonds and applesauce as snacks.

9. Mariah Bell

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After retiring from skating, Mariah Bell opened up about what it was like in an interview with TeamUSA.org. “I had to work through self-doubt,” Bell said. “Not being on the world team the year before (the Olympics) was a huge blow to the gut. I remember doing the long program at nationals in Las Vegas in 2021 and being scared to be on the ice. I thought, ‘How am I going to have the success I need to have, to be on the Olympic team?’ It was a lot of working through my own stuff, personal things I didn’t see coming. But it made me really tough.”

10. Justin Abdelkader

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USA Hockey team member, Justin Abdelkader opened up about his approach to the sport with Sports Illustrated. “We were playing confident and that’s a huge part of sports, confidence. When you can start winning games, putting games together, you can get on a run. That’s what we did. A lot of times it just starts with that one game, that one shift, that overtime goal that can put you in that position. In that case, for us, that got us rolling.”

11. Jamie Anderson

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In 2018, gold medalist snowboarder Jamie Anderson talked about her diet with Us Weekly. “I’m a big eater but I eat like really pure, whole foods. So thankfully I don’t feel like I really need to worry. Lots of different grains, ancient grains and different beans, vegetables.”

12. Chris Bourque

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Chris Bourque opened up about going to the Olympics in a 2018 interview. “It was unbelievable. Top three calls I’ve ever gotten in my life for sure. Obviously, to find out you’re on the U.S. Olympic team is something that is such a far-fetched dream growing up, to finally get that call, it’s unbelievable.”

13. Bobby Butler

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Bobby Butler opened up about his decision to keep playing hockey in the 2022-2023 season with the Telegram & Gazette. He says that he spoke with his wife about the decision. “We came to the decision to why not give it one more (shot) and have our kids watch me,” Butler said. “It also gave me a little spark last season to get a little taste, so it got me back in shape and it’s perfect timing.”

14. Nick Baumgartner

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Nick Baumgartner won his first Gold Medal in snowboard cross at last year’s Winter Olympics. He talked about the sport in an interview with CountryLines.com. “Snowboard cross is chaos in every sense of the word,” Baumgartner said. “We are doing something that is so unpredictable. We go down the course at highway speeds of 50–60 mph on a five-foot-long board with metal edges that are sharp as a sword, with nothing to protect us except for the helmet on our head.”

15. Shaun White

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Shaun White retired from snowboarding after the 2022 Winter Games. In 2021, he talked about some of his favorite workouts with Us Weekly. “I want to say recently, maybe a couple of years ago — was mountain biking. I did a couple of SoulCycle classes and things like that. They were fun, but you’re not going anywhere. I was like, ‘All right, well, this was fun. But I want to go somewhere. I want to see things.’ And mountain biking was great. Usually I’ll do a long uphill ride and then you get the reward of the downhill. So we’ve been doing a lot of biking and road biking and things like that. That’s been really nice cross-training.”

16. Kelly Clark

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Five-time Olympic snowboarder, Kelly Clark, talked about what it’s like to stay in shape on the road in a 2015 interview with Sports Illustrated. She says that she makes sure to do exercises in public. “I’m looking for parks to put my feet on swings and do TRX,” she says. “You can do full body weight circuits on a jungle gym and run cones in the park. I have to get creative and adjust.”

17. Chloe Kim

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After becoming both the youngest woman to win a gold medal in snowboarding and the first to win two gold medals in the halfpipe, Chloe Kim talked about her approach to the sport in an interview with Shape. “My training routine's pretty crazy," she adds. "I went to Switzerland for a month just to get all my tricks super dialed, and then I came home for like a week, and then we were off to Beijing." Kim also says that she makes working out a priority, even if she doesn’t always like it. “It's definitely helped me improve my snowboarding, so that's why I do it. But if I had the choice, I probably wouldn't be working out every day."

18. Ryan Cochran-Siegle

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Ryan Cochran-Siegle opened up about competing in skiing with Olympics.com. “At the end of the day, the reason why I was able to achieve that medal was because of my love for skiing and that passion and that drive. If you focus too much on the results, then you lose that. So it's also important to let your past results be as they are and really focus on the future.”

19. Colby Stevenson

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Colby Stevenson was able to recover from a tragic accident at 18 to win a silver medal at the 2022 Winter Olympics. He talked about his recovery in an interview with OutsideOnline.com. “I would do the tricks in my head,” he says. “Closing my eyes and visualizing was a big part of my recovery…Your toughest times can become building blocks. That’s when you find your true character.”

20. David Wise

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Three time Olympic skier, David Wise, opened up about how he deals with the pressure of competing at the games with People. "I've dealt with this before, and you just take it one day at a time," he explains. "In terms of how I've progressed as an athlete ... The more mature I've gotten in my career, the more I've realized that I want to do things that aren't just good for me, they're good for the sport. That's really uplifting."

The Summer Olympics are coming! The Games of the XXXIII Olympiad (aka Paris 2024) run from from Friday, July 26 to Sunday, August 11, 2024. So we're getting hyped for one of our favorite events: Swimming. Several women have made their mark on the swimming world. From Katie Ledecky, to Janet Evans, to Simone Manuel, these women have won medals, broke world records, and made history. How do they stay so fit? Read on for their wellness tips.

1. Katie Ledecky

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Katie Ledecky has won multiple medals in the Olympics. She shared her training secrets in an interview with E! News. Ledecky opened up about her diet in it. “I keep it pretty consistent. The only day that I don't train is Sundays, so even right now when I'm taking a little bit of time off, I'm trying to stick to a pretty regular routine. So oatmeal for breakfast, some sort of egg sandwich for lunch, or eggs with toast and then dinner is what varies the most but it is either carbs or some sort of protein: chicken, steak, salmon, something along those lines.”

2. Missy Franklin

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Missy Franklin has won multiple gold medals. She shared her favorite breakfast options with People. "Nutrition is a big part of my training. If I'm not fueling my body with the right things then I'm not going to perform the way I need to. "I'm very proud of myself because I've mastered the omelet flip in the pan. I almost always make omelets just so I can flip them—that's the most exciting part for me.”

3. Dara Torres

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Dara Torres is the oldest swimmer to win an Olympic medal. She opened up about her diet in an interview with Parade. “I had an eating disorder in college and it took me a while to get over it and I really developed a fear of foods. And so my philosophy is to eat healthy, but if you have a craving for something, don't deprive yourself; just have a little bit of it to help with the craving that you have. My philosophy is that if you are keeping yourself from eating certain things and not having what you want, you're gonna want it more than you should. So that's the biggest thing with me with diet. I try to eat my proteins every day and my fruits and vegetables. But I do have a sweet tooth. I can't deny that.”

4. Natalie Coughlin

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Olympic athlete Natalie Coughlin opened up about the importance of recovery in an interview with Kinetic Fix. “Recovery and rest is becoming much more important as I get older, but on the flip side there are some benefits to getting older: I’m much stronger, and I maintain that strength better than before. But as you age you tend to break down faster, so it’s really important for me to keep my strength and ease back when I swim, focusing more on race relevance.”

5. Emma McKeon

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Emma McKeon is an Olympic medalist, known for her butterfly and freestyle strokes. She shared her wellness secrets and her daily routine with Women’s Health. “Depending on what day it is, I’ll also have a physio appointment. They will focus on my shoulders because I use them so much, then just any other little niggly or tight things that need maintenance. So far I’ve been pretty lucky not to have any proper injuries, just little niggly things that will go away after some regular physio treatment.”

6. Lilly King

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Lilly King is an Olympic athlete. She shared how she prepares for meets in an interview with Swimming World. “It’s a little weird because I am always preparing for the race. I am constantly thinking about the outcome I want to achieve. I also only think about the best-case scenario, which I find not a lot of others do. I really try to only think about the positives.”

7. Sarah Sjöström

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Sarah Sjöström has multiple world records for swimming. She shared her typical diet in an interview with Irmas World. “During my hard training periods I try to make sure I eat enough protein and carbs to recover better. I don’t count calories, I have just learned how much I need. I also try to eat breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks in between meals at the same time every day. During competitions, I have protein/energy bars and after competitions and trainings protein and carb shakes or bars help me regain my energy.”

8. Rebecca Adlington

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Rebecca Adlington is a gold medalist in the distance freestyle. She revealed to Hello! Magazine that she loves avocado. "For me, I love avocados and stuff like that. Obviously they are high in fat - it is one of those difficult things - but I'm not going to tell you to eat four avocados, and certainly, be careful what you're eating it with. For me, it's great to just have a bit of avocado with some eggs or something like that, because it does fill you. I think a lot of things, when you're eating fruit and vegetables, you're kind of hungry an hour after, whereas things that last and can help you survive the whole day are obviously better. I love avocado and eggs, simple things."

9. Summer Sanders

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Summer Sanders is a gold medalist and a sports commentator. She shared her diet secrets in an interview with SELF. “My healthiest habit is eating a healthy breakfast every morning. I never miss breakfast. As a busy mom, there will be days when I'm cruisin' along and I'll look at the clock and I haven't eaten lunch. And I'll run downstairs and I'll start shovelin' stuff down the pie hole, and I'll think, ‘That was no lunch at all.’ But breakfast has sort of turned into the new dinner, where you can sit down with your family and have a conversation. And my kids talk at breakfast. We talk about our dreams, talk about our nights' sleep, talk about what we wanna do today and be positive.”

10. Janet Evans

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Janet Evans is one of the most successful female swimmers. She opened up about her diet in an interview with Mom.com. “I eat a banana prior to my morning workout. I think protein is very important when you are training as hard, as you’re breaking your muscles down. So I usually have a protein shake or some eggs or something that gives me a little protein after my workout. I also have a scoop of my Metamucil to keep my cholesterol down–I have a history of heart disease in my family. Then, for lunch, I usually have something that’s going to sit well in my stomach because I have to go back to training. So I usually have a turkey sandwich or something of that nature. And dinner, I come home and make something healthy for my kids and husband. Once again, kind of protein-based, but basically trying to get enough fuel to get back up and do it all again the next day.”

11. Leisel Jones

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Leisel Jones is a world champion in breaststroke. She shared her morning workout in an interview with Women’s Health. “It’s time for a full-body workout at Perform 360 at Enogerra, Brisbane. It’s an intense fitness session and it really works my whole body – it’s a strength session with some conditioning at the end. Strength and conditioning training is a great combo for improving speed and power and also mobility, mind and stability. I love it.”

12. Haley Anderson

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Haley Anderson is an open water swimmer in the Olympics. She tells Cosmopolitan that she likes to weightlift. “My lifting workout started with a 15- to 30-minute dynamic warm-up for mobility and muscle activation. Then I moved into some power-lifting moves (mainly medicine ball throws) and transitioned into a mix of lower and upper body exercises. I worked in some extra exercises with my weight-lifting coach to strengthen my shoulder blades and shoulders, areas that can get torn down when you swim as much as me.”

13. Simone Manuel

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Simone Manuel became the first African-American woman to win gold for an individual event. She revealed that she suffered from overtraining syndrome in 2021. Manuel talked about this to Sports Illustrated. “I think especially as athletes, we sometimes think that taking rest is a sign of weakness, but with the grueling and daunting schedules that we have, it’s really important to listen to your body, but also your mind when you need to take some time for yourself.”

14. Allison Schmidtt

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Allison Schmidtt talked about how her diet changes due to her cycle to Orreco. “I didn’t realise how important carbohydrates were and the need to eat more carbohydrates around certain periods of training. So many coaches throughout my career told us that carbs are bad for you and make you fat. I didn’t learn that training the female body is different to training the male body. We have to train differently and eat differently to men, and that knowledge has given me such a big advantage to help understand my body and reach the highest peak.”

15. Olivia Smoliga

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Olympian Olivia Smoliga shares her secrets for building confidence with Jolyn. “Don’t let the fear of failing stop you from doing what you want. Every time I stepped up on the blocks at Olympic Trials, the first time being when I was 17, I was so nervous! And that’s an understatement. At that time, there were no backstroke wedges so you just had to do a start on touchpads that had no gripping on them. So there was a huge chance I could slip. I practiced and practiced to make sure I wouldn’t, and yet I still thought about it as I walked out for the final. But I knew I wanted to be there! I knew I could do something special! No matter what my fears were telling me. And at those trials, I made it to the final of the 100 back. How will you know what you can do, if you never try? No one cares if you fall on your face. They will admire that you even had the courage to even go after your goals in the first place. You shouldn’t care what others think anyway, but let that give you some solace next time you wanna try something out of the ordinary.”

16. Cate Campbell

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Cate Campbell is a world champion and holds a medal for the Olympic sprint freestyle. She tells Body & Soul that sleep is a big part of her wellness routine. “Having a good sleeping routine is really important for me. I make sure the TV is off at 9pm, then I listen to music while I clean the kitchen and get ready for bed. I try and make my bedtimes as consistent as possible during the week – especially if I have training the next morning.”

17. Stephanie Rice

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Stephanie Rice won three gold medals at the 2008 Olympics. She shared how she trained for the Olympics with Body & Soul. “When I was training, everything was extreme and the focus was not on looking a certain way – it was on the actual performance element of looking like that, so food was fuel; it wasn’t an enjoyment thing. I needed X amount of calories, or X amount of protein for muscle recovery so it was very science based.”

18. Kathleen Baker

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Kathleen Baker is a champion in backstroke. She also has Crohn’s Disease. Baker tells Olympics.com that this has made her appreciate swimming a lot more. “Crohn's disease has given me an immense love and appreciation for my sport that I feel like you can really only have when you've had something taken away from you, or feel like it could be taken away from you. So when I compete, I compete for such a love of what I do and the process to get there, not only just the success or the racing, but truly just a love for my sport.”

19. Abbey Weitzeil

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Abbey Weitzeil won silver in the 2021 Olympics. She talked about how she overcomes challenges in an interview on Speedo’s website. “I train and do what I can control, and I tell myself that whenever I’m having a tough time… You’re going to have some good days and some bad days, and sometimes you’ll have bad weeks or months too. As long as you enjoy the ride and love what you do then these challenges are easier to face.”

20. Penny Oleksiak

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Penny Oleksiak was the youngest Canadian to win at the Olympics. In an interview with Narcity, she revealed how she is recovering from knee surgery. “My focus kind of shifted. Right now I'm strengthening my knee still and still kind of working on that and trying to make sure it's always healthy. But right now my shoulders are kind of my biggest rehab thing that I'm getting over.”

The world of elite athleticism is a realm of dedication, discipline, and determination, and the female Team USA Olympians exemplify these qualities like no other. From sprinting sensation Allyson Felix to swimming prodigy Katie Ledecky, these remarkable athletes not only achieve greatness on the world stage but also offer insights into their rigorous training regimens, dietary choices, and personal philosophies. Dive into the stories behind their enviable physiques as we explore the training secrets, workout routines, and nutrition strategies that power these phenomenal women in their pursuit of Olympic glory.

1. Allyson Felix

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Sprinting legend Allyson Felix revealed her diet in an interview. “I usually keep breakfast light: yogurt and granola. In transit to the gym, I’ll have an acai bowl or some type of smoothie. Lunch is a salad with protein and fruit. And then for dinner (that’s my biggest meal) I eat a lot of fish, brown rice or sweet potatoes and veggies. Asparagus is one of my favorites. And zucchini.”

2. Katie Ledecky

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Swimmer Katie Ledecky revealed her training regime to Prevention. “I swim 10 times a week,” she says. “It’s quite a bit of training. It doesn’t really change in an Olympic year. We have other big meets throughout the four-year, in this case five-year, cycle.”

3. Gabby Douglas

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Gabby Douglas shared her training secrets with HollywoodLife. “Honestly and here’s my secret — I don’t workout my arms as much as I workout my legs or as much as my body. I love a long, toned arm and not too masculine, but that’s just my body. You love what you love and so I just do stretches with my arms to try to elongate everything.”

4. Megan Rapinoe

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Megan Rapinoe broke down her workout routine in an interview. “My workout is a combination between cardio, strength training, and on-field work. It’s a balance of all of those three. When I’m in my club team environment, it’s more soccer. When I’m away from that, I focus more in the gym on strength work. I try to build that base. A lot of Pilates, interval cardio work when I’m in the gym, too.”

5. Alex Morgan

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Alex Morgan shared some of her diet and workout secrets with The Beet. She says that she believes in moderation when it comes to food. “There are times when I may find myself eating something that has eggs in it or dairy. Sometimes that slips into my diet and I am trying to eat healthy and plant-based but when that happens I tell myself to give myself some grace. So if you are trying to live healthily and vegan, you can forgive yourself. That's what I mean by giving yourself grace.”

6. Mikaela Shifrin

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In addition to skiing, Mikaela Shifrin likes to windsurf to stay in shape. She shared this post on Instagram of herself windsurfing. Shifrin captioned the post, “Windsurf & Training Camp on Maui ended a few days ago! Gonna miss getting catapulted off my rig on the daily and accidentally drinking the entire ocean in a session only for it to pour out my nose later in the day, but duty calls! Now it’s time to do more training in other parts of the world! Like… home… hahah.”

7. Simone Manuel

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Simone Manuel didn’t let the pandemic stop her from training hard. She told Yahoo in 2020, “I have been training in a backyard pool, so I'm still getting nine practices a week in. I have been doing weightlifting training at home. It's not my favorite because I don't have all the equipment that I'm used to. I'm kind of like putting books in a backpack and just adapting to the circumstance and just doing the best that I can with the situation.”

8. Aly Raisman

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Even though she’s no longer a gymnast, Aly Raisman is still working out regularly. "I actually feel like I've been able to work out a little bit more than I was before the pandemic," Raisman tells Shape. "It doesn't mean I'm working out for hours every day, but sometimes I'll do a little bit of a workout in the morning, and then even do a little bit more in the afternoon. I break it up throughout the day because that's what's working for me right now."

9. Carli Lloyd

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Carli Lloyd opened up about the changes she’s made to her workouts with Insider. "I do use weights now, but if the weights are used in the actual movements that you do on a normal basis and on your field and in your respective sport, then I think it's fine. But you're never in a squat position on the field with 300 pounds of a bar on you and doing that motion, you know, you're always on the move."

10. Gabby Thomas

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Gabby Thomas shared some of her health and wellness secrets with The Healthy. “As an Olympic medalist and a student, sleep is really important for me so I can ensure that I’m going to be my best self every day. I train at such a high level, every time I do something, it is 100%. Making sure that I am mentally and physically ready to take on the day is really crucial for me.”

11. Nastia Liukin

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Nastia Liukin shares a lot of her wellness secrets on her website. In this post, she talked about her typical morning routine. “I love the predictability of a routine. Maybe it’s because I spent the better part of my life in a strict routine training for the Olympics—it’s what I know, it’s what brings me comfort. My morning routine is ever-evolving. As I learn new things, speak to other entrepreneurs, and adapt with the changes my mind and body go through over the years, I incorporate, remove, and refine elements. Right now, I love my morning routine. It suits my current needs of setting the tone of my day, calming anxiety, and allows me to practice all of the self-care I need in order to move on to serving others.”

12. Dana Vollmer

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In an interview with ESPN, Dana Vollmer talked about how she avoids injury when swimming. “The pain in burning from using your muscles is different than the pain of hurting something. The 50 free is short, that's why I'm doing it. And my doctor said there is really no risk at all. I made a joke about doing a belly flop and [the doctor] said even that would be fine. As long as I'm cautious with the warm-up and keep some space between myself and the other swimmers, that's really the only issue at all.”

13. Jenny Thompson

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In an interview with The Daniel Island News, Jenny Thompson revealed why she decided to take up swimming again. “I started swimming again for mental health,” she said. “It was a growing up experience to not only start medical school, but also help my mom who was sick with cancer. It made swimming a lot lighter and put in perspective that there’s a lot more to life than sports. It was interesting to compete with that kind of wisdom.”

14. Maya Moore

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In this post on her website, Maya Moore talked about the impact basketball and playing in the WNBA has had on her. “I think being a part of the WNBA, whether that’s as a fan or a player, it’s a better time than ever just because of how good the players have gotten,” Moore said. “We’ve grown in athleticism and the speed of the game – the versatility of the players on the court. The games have really been fun to compete in, so I’m excited about the direction that we’re moving in. I’ve been a fan of the WNBA since I was eight, and I still am to this day.”

15. Missy Franklin

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Missy Franklin does a lot of weight training to stay in shape. She shared this video on Instagram of herself working out in the gym. Franklin captioned it, “Getting creative in weights yesterday! Shout out to @auphillips14 for coming up with such an awesome exercise! Love working with people who are willing to try new things and push boundaries💪🏻 Thanks @lorenlandow for being the best!”

16. Venus Williams

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Venus Williams makes sure to not only workout, but also recover. She shared her tips with CNBC’s Make It. “I do a lot of recovery, as well. Physiotherapy and massage. I like to take a lot of time to stretch … It feels amazing [and] I actually think it produces really great endorphins.”

17. Kerri Walsh-Jennings

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Prior to the 2016 Olympics, Kerri Walsh-Jennings talked about her training process with GQ. In it, she talked about the attitude she has when it comes to the sport. “I do have to keep reminding myself that it’s okay to be a work in progress. If I have a bad game it crushes me, but you can learn and grow a lot as long as you don’t stay in that place of devastation.”

18. Shawn Johnson

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In an interview with Morning Brew, Shawn Johnson talked about how she manages life in the public eye. “It's a challenge every single day. And my husband and I are very, very vocal about it with each other. And we've now hired an incredible team of people that work with us. But we do silly things every single day to protect ourselves from it. For many, many years, I wasn't allowed to read comments until I was able to get to a place where I was strong enough to digest them. Now we always say, ‘If you read something that doesn't sit well, you have to read it aloud,’ and you have to have the group validate or invalidate whatever it is.”

19. Lisa Leslie

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Lisa Leslie tells People that she is all about positivity. "Take three deep breaths. Let's find a positive affirmation that can you help you every single day, something that you can really settle into that makes you smile. Because for me, positive energy is so contagious and I think starting our days off with some sort of mantra or quote that really is inspiring, can really help you get through the moment."

20. Cat Osterman

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Cat Osterman broke down her typical meals to Us Weekly. “Breakfast can range anywhere from a smoothie to a yogurt parfait, which is yogurt, berries and granola,” she said. “This morning, I had a sweet potato hash that includes sweet potatoes, turkey sausage, peppers onions, and then I put an egg over top of it. Lunch can be anything from a salad to sandwich, occasionally maybe some chicken nuggets from Chick-fil-A. I try to do grilled chicken as much as possible. For dinner, we eat pretty well. We cook for the most part. I will substitute zucchini noodles instead of spaghetti noodles or have potatoes or sweet potatoes instead of bread and rice. I’ll put quinoa in there sometimes, I’m pretty conscious about what I eat.”

Discover the wellness and fitness secrets that power the world's most extraordinary athletes. From Simone Biles' radiant skin regimen to Usain Bolt's hydration tactics, delve into the health routines that fuel success. Lebron James reveals his game-day diet shift, while Serena Williams embraces plant-based eating. These elite athletes, like Michael Phelps and Ronda Rousey, share their motivational strategies, from chasing dreams to boosting metabolism. Explore Lionel Messi's workout dedication and Naomi Osaka's commitment to mental health. Join us in uncovering the 20 remarkable bodies of history-making athletes, each with a unique approach to greatness.

1. Simone Biles

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Simone Biles has amazing skin. She shared some of her secrets and favorite products with People. "This Pitera essence is seriously like a miracle water for my skin: it hydrates, moisturizes, evens out my skin tone and leaves my skin glowing. I love that it's super powerful, yet really lightweight. When I heard the legendary story – that it was discovered in a Sake brewery in Japan where all the elderly brewers had soft hands with no wrinkles – I knew I needed to try it, and now I love it."

2. Usain Bolt

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Usain Bolt talked about his diet and workout secrets in an interview with GQ. “I try not to eat too much up to a workout, but I stay hydrated. I drink Gatorade throughout the day because it’s so hot in Jamaica. You have to keep it up throughout the day.”

3. Lebron James

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In an interview with Men’s Health, Lebron James talked about a diet he recently went on. “I had no sugars, no dairy, I had no carbs. All I ate was meat, fish, veggies and fruit. That's it. For 67 straight days. Before competition for me would be like a chicken breast and maybe a little pasta. The carbs help because you're going out and playing a lot of minutes,” LeBron said. “But a salad and some veggies will have me perfectly fine. And before the game I might have a protein shake and some fruit, and I'll be ready to go.”

4. Serena Williams

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Serena Williams makes sure to eat healthy. One thing she is doing is eating a plant-based diet. She explained why in an interview with Women’s Health. "I want to have a healthy lifestyle and, so you know, [I'm eating] a lot of greens and mostly plant-based lately, just super healthy stuff."

5. Michael Phelps

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Michael Phelps did a virtual event with Panasonic in 2021, where he talked about how he stays motivated. “I think it's important to have a dream because that's what's going to drive you. That's what's going to help you. It's going to motivate you to get out of bed every single day. I had these dreams of being an Olympic swimmer, a world record holder.”

6. Ronda Rousey

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Ronda Rousey shared some of her favorite foods and diet secrets with StyleCaster. “I follow the Dolce Diet, and for breakfast I start the day off at 7:30am with a Dolce chia bowl. That’s two tablespoons of chia, hemp, and oats, add agave nectar, cinnamon, a couple blueberries, and a tablespoon of almond butter. My diet is about maximizing my nutrient intake instead of minimizing calories, and that keeps my metabolism burning fast.”

7. Lionel Messi

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Lionel Messi makes sure to stay in shape and workout on a regular basis. He shared this video of himself in the gym on Instagram. In it, he is seen doing Russian twists and sit-ups with a weight and running on the treadmill. He captioned the post, “Never give up. Never stop chasing your dreams.”

8. Katie Ledecky

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Katie Ledecky talked about her training process with E! News. “On a hard day, I'll have two swim practices and a weight session. I swim twice a day, four times a week and once a day, twice a week and then I have Sundays off. I swim nine to ten times a week and then three weight sessions per week.”

9. Zion Williamson

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In an interview on the Gil’s Arena podcast, Zion Williamson talked about where he is in his basketball career. "I'm at that point now because of certain things, I'm putting back the wisdom around me. I don't want to say older because they get defensive, but I'm putting people around me with wisdom. And just go from there."

10. Saquon Barkley

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Saquon Barkley shared his workout secrets with Muscle and Fitness. “Being a running back, you have to be explosive. So I focus a lot on keeping my power and foundation strong with explosive movements. I’ll do heavy squats, power cleans, bench for upper body.”

11. Novak Djokovic

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In his book, Serve to Win, Novak Djokovic talked about how he stays in shape. "Every morning I wake up ... I drink a glass of water and do my stretching, maybe mixed with some yoga or tai chi, for 20 minutes. I eat a breakfast perfectly calibrated to my body for the day ahead - the same breakfast almost every day of my life

12. Katie Taylor

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Katie Taylor talked about her approach to boxing with Balance The Grind. “You have to put absolutely everything into your craft. There are days when you’re not going to be in the mood for training, but they are the days which are most important. They are the days when you have to push yourself to the gym and put everything into those sessions.”

13. Naomi Osaka

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Naomi Osaka is all about putting her mental health first. She notably withdrew from the 2021 French Open because of her mental health. She explained why in a statement. “Anyone that knows me knows I’m introverted, and anyone that has seen me at the tournaments will notice that I’m often wearing headphones as that helps dull my social anxiety. So here in Paris I was already feeling vulnerable and anxious so I thought it was better to exercise self‑care and skip the press conferences. I announced it preemptively because I do feel like the rules are quite outdated in parts and I wanted to highlight that.”

14. Allyson Felix

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In an interview with EatingWell, Allyson Felix talked about how she stays in shape. “I train about five hours a day. Three of those hours are on the track -- warming up, stretching, doing drills and then the actual workout, which may be anything from very technical work on the starting blocks to speed work. From there, I go to the gym and spend a couple of hours doing strength and conditioning.”

15. Chloe Kim

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Chloe Kim talked about how she handles life in the spotlight with Refinery29. She says that she has learned to take the good with the bad. “It's not all good here. I struggle a lot. There's a lot of pressure. There's a lot of things going on in my life. I don't want people to think I am this person who says, ‘Oh everything sucks.’ But it does sometimes, and that’s okay.”

16. Carli Lloyd

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Carli Lloyd shared some of her workout secrets with Insider. She says that she has to do a lot of ab workouts. "Your core stabilizes everything," Lloyd explained. "I really realized throughout the course of my career how important the core was. It's for everything, it's for takeoff, it's for turning, so I spent a great deal of time doing a lot of core exercises, like jumps and high-knees, where I lift my knees all the way up to my chest."

17. Mikaela Shifrin

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Mikaela Shifrin takes the good with the bad when it comes to her training. “Some days, I have perfect moments,” she said in an interview. “Perfect turns. Perfect technique. I forget about the pain. I remember my dad from a distance, and when I get up on the mountain, it feels like the only place that I can truly breathe. And then some days, it still just sucks. Some days, it’s so hard to put one foot in front of the other. That’s grief. That’s being a human.”

18. Ash Barty

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Ash Barty talked about her approach to eating in an interview with Body & Soul. “Everything in moderation and listen to your body,” she says. “If I’m feeling run-down, I make sure I’m eating well and looking after myself by having plenty of fresh fruit and veg. A steak or red meat usually helps when I’m run-down, too.”

19. Gabby Douglas

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In an interview with HollywoodLife, Gabby Douglas talked about how exercise has changed since retiring from gymnastics. “I’m used to doing the same thing every single day, whereas now I get to switch it up. Like, today we’ll do HIIT. Today we’ll do trampoline. Today we’ll do a dance workout. Today we’ll just dive in and it’s been fun even to be creative with myself, coming up with workouts that I find enjoyable because I believe you should be having fun when you workout. I love hard work and I love to sweat but at the same time though, you should love what you do.”

20. Shaun White

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Shaun White talked about how he stays fit in an interview with UsWeekly. “Even though I’m training [for] snowboarding [and] not really competing in skateboarding right now, I’ll still go to skate parks for fun, stuff like that. I love surfing. The biggest thing I recently fell in love with it — I want to say recently, maybe a couple of years ago — was mountain biking. I did a couple of SoulCycle classes and things like that. They were fun, but you’re not going anywhere.”

Get into the training, mindset, and lifestyle choices of twenty remarkable athletes. From Simone Biles to Carli Lloyd, who believes in balance and occasional indulgence, each athlete brings their unique approach to their respective sports. Misty May-Treanor's rigorous exercises, Kerri Walsh-Jennings' focus on recovery, and Serena Williams' varied workouts all demonstrate the dedication required to reach the pinnacle of their fields. As they share their secrets to success, it becomes clear that physical fitness, mental strength, and self-care are essential components of their journeys.

1. Simone Biles

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Simone Biles isn’t just a great athlete, she’s also an advocate for survivors. She opened up about testifying against Larry Nassar on Today. “For so many years to go through everything that I’ve gone through, put on a front, I’m proud of myself, and I’m happy that I can be a leader for the survivors and bring courage to everybody speaking up, so I’m happy to be a voice for them.”

2. Misty May-Treanor

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Gold medalist beach volleyball player, Misty May-Treanor shared some of her favorite exercises in an interview with Women Fitness. “I love olympic lifting (cleans, jerks, snatches), squatting and explosive jump drills. I also implement track and hill workouts with a running instructor. Pilates helps me maintain a strong and healthy core since that is important in our sport. Since I am not the tallest player out there at times, my jump has to be strong from the very match to the very last match. Recovery is equally as important to the lifting as well and that comprises of massage, ice baths, and stretching.”

3. Kerri Walsh-Jennings

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Olympic gold medalist, Kerri Walsh-Jennings, opened up about her approach to training in an interview with Sports Illustrated Swimsuit. “When at home, we will have double and triple days all the time. When I get into competition, I want to be fresh and play good volleyball. It is like a mental game. For me, I am going to try something new, add another workout and see how I feel. You need to be humble enough to keep it and push through, or if to much, adjust. It is so important to listen to your body and sometimes the hardest work you have to do is chill out and recover and fine tune.”

4. April Ross

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Bronze-medal winning beach volleyball player, April Ross, opened up about her diet to Today. She says that there’s one thing she makes sure to cut out of her diet. "Sugar is so bad for your body. If you drink soda, the sugar causes inflammation. And it's bad for your joints, so, as an athlete, your joints are going to be more inflamed and you're going to be more prone to injury.”

5. Gabby Douglas

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Gabby Douglas tells HollywoodLife that she does a variety of things to keep herself in shape. “I’m used to doing the same thing every single day, whereas now I get to switch it up. Like, today we’ll do HIIT. Today we’ll do trampoline. Today we’ll do a dance workout. Today we’ll just dive in and it’s been fun even to be creative with myself, coming up with workouts that I find enjoyable because I believe you should be having fun when you workout. I love hard work and I love to sweat but at the same time though, you should love what you do.”

6. Serena Williams

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Serena Williams is considered one of the greatest athletes of all time. One of her secrets for staying fit is doing a variety of workouts. “For me, it's so important to mix it up,” she told Fitness Magazine. “I ran, and then I biked. Then I did elliptical. That didn't work out so well, because it was boring, so I tried yoga. I started dancing because I couldn't train when I was sick. We started making up moves, and it was fun. Now I run for 10 minutes, and then I dance.”

7. Venus Williams

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Tennis legend Venus Williams opened up about her decision to go on a plant-based diet with The Beet. “When I was diagnosed with Sjögren's syndrome back in 2011, I had to make some major lifestyle changes in order to put my health first. After trying everything the doctor suggested, I continued to experience muscle and joint pain, and constant fatigue. But when I started exploring a plant-based diet to help reduce my inflammation and support my immune system, I loved the way it made me feel, so I kept going.”

8. Julie Johnston ErtzUS Women’s Soccer Team star, Julie Johnston Ertz opened up about her exercise routine with Prevention. “I think core is really important,” she says. “Cause it’s the center of your body. C​​ore machines are great but I do everything on the floor. If I’m doing a plank, I like to do step outs with my feet. I like to elevate even a little more."Alex MorganIn addition to taking care of her body, Alex Morgan also takes care of her mind. She shared how she manages any anxiousness with The Beet. “I tell myself: ‘Take a breath and enjoy the journey I'm going on now.’ It's overwhelming to think about going somewhere in the future, so I am living in the now and remembering to breathe.Candace ParkerWNBA champion Candace Parker talked about how she approaches basketball with SBNation.com. “I think simplicity has always been difficult for me. I think physically because you know, I’ve been versatile and have played multiple positions. I think simplicity was always, you know, me dribbling and me doing this and whatever. And now I’ve just learned that simplicity is key, doing things with the least amount of motion is going to benefit me greatly. So I think that is the biggest thing to me is just yes, I can dribble and do that, but it’s more beneficial for me to be able to do it with less motion.”Nastia LiukinOlympic gymnast, Nastia Liukin, shared some of her wellness tips with Today. "I think the most important thing to know is, you'll never regret a workout when it's over. And it's just hard to tell yourself that before you've done it. But just try to remember how you feel after your workout, and know that when you feel good, you look good, and you have more confidence, and so I think that that's really important."Shawn JohnsonWhile expecting her first child, Shawn Johnson and her husband Andrew East did a lot of workouts together. She told Us Weekly, “We always thought [when we were] dating that we were going to be that couple that works out together, but we really can’t work out together because he says I’m too intense. And then I got pregnant, and then we’re matched now, my intensity. So we work out now that I’m pregnant, which is funny.” Adds the gold medalist, “Hey, gymnasts are intense.”Jordyn WieberGymnast Jordyn Wieber told StyleCaster that she struggled with insecurities growing up.“The older I got, the more I realized my body can do amazing things that not a lot of other kids at my school could do,” Wieber says. “So I tried my best to embrace that, and once I made the Olympics team, I was like, ‘Woah! OK. Now I know where you are all the time.’ I started to appreciate my muscles a lot more rather than thinking my body was not as good as the other girls in my school because I looked different than them.”Carli LloydCarli Lloyd opened up about her diet to NJ.com. She says that while she eats healthy, she also believes in indulging once in a while. “Well, I rarely eat carbs, like pasta, pizza or bread, or fried, greasy foods. They just don't make me feel good. But I do enjoy stopping at my favorite pizza place in Philly!...Only every now and then, and only in moderation.”Lindsey VonnLindsey Vonn tells Women’s Health that when she was competing in skiing, she wanted to break the mold. "I was always just myself,” she says. “You can be strong and feminine and opinionated and wear makeup and do all those things at the same time. You don't have to be the stereotypical athlete. You can be different. There's no limit to what opportunities are out there [for you], you just have to go get them."Lindsey JacobellisLindsey Jacobellis opened up about what exercises she likes to do on the road in an interview with Women Fitness. “On the road workouts can be challenging when gyms are hard to find, but not impossible. 1. Walking lunges with dumbbells 2. Single leg RDL (Russian dead lifts) 3. Hanging leg raises 4.Traditional or wide leg back squats 5. Bent over single arm rows (These exercises can be done when there are limited weights to work with in a hotel gym.)”Mirai NagasuFigure skater Mirai Nagasu opened up about her mindset for competitions in an interview with TeamUSA.com. “I just want to believe in myself, and, I know it’s the cheesiest thing to say, but believe in that 5-year-old girl who started this dream,” she said. “I know I’m mentally strong. I went to the Olympics when I was 16 and ended up in fourth place, beating all these people who were beating me consistently. I know it’s within me. I just have to pull it out at the right moment.”Carissa MooreCarissa Moore shared some of her favorite workouts in an interview with Balance The Grind. “I work out with my trainer three times each week, and we do a lot of circuit training. I don’t actually use too many weights; it’s mostly body weight. I train to make sure I can get in the water and do what I love every day. I love burpees, skaters and mountain climbers. I do intervals, like 45 seconds on, 15 seconds off. My regimen is always changing, because I get bored if it’s the same workout. Each week I go to Pilates once and I usually go for a run twice.”Tia BlancoTia Blanco shared some of her favorite wellness products with POPSugar. She says that she owns a juicer, and puts it to good use. “I love to go to the farmers' market and load up on a bunch of local produce in season that is great for juicing," she says. "I always find myself juicing celery, lemon, apples, and parsley. Sometimes I will do shots of turmeric and ginger to spice things up."Louise HazelLouise Hazel opened up about her diet in an interview with WhoWhatWear. "I grab a banana and a bottle of water and a bowl of gluten-free muesli with almond milk. I recently found out that I am lactose intolerant using a DNAFit test, and I would recommend this to anyone who is taking their health and fitness seriously. It will give you a blueprint from which to make informed decisions about your diet and fitness regimen."