Our Unique Nutrition and Athletics Program

At Washington University in St. Louis, our position to educate student athletes is unique. Unlike many universities, our Division III athletics program does not have a dedicated sports nutrition department. Instead, our campus dietitians operate under Dining Services and work in close collaboration with our Habif Student Health & Wellness Center and Athletics. Our unique program allows a consistent message and cohesive nutrition approach to the entire campus community.

Historically, our nutrition team primarily only had the capacity to focus on one-on-one consultations, team talks, nutrition seminars for coaches and the athletic administration, as well as pre-season meal coordination. In discussion with our partners in Athletics regarding the needs of student athletes, we initially recognized the need for nutrition education and marketing within athletic spaces. In early 2022, we dedicated time within our nutrition team to focus on creating sport nutrition-specific education and marketing materials. Additionally, we were able to advocate support for an additional registered dietitian to be brought onto our team with the dedication of specific time each week for Athletics. With the growth of our team, we were able to expand our program and offerings with Athletics. Our program expansion includes additional pop-up and educational events, increased number and frequency of team talks, individual consultations, dedicated training room office hours, and increased attendance at team practices and events.

Our first marketing publication was our Key Nutrition Strategies for Performance posters. The poster topics included strategies for optimal daily performance, fueling pre, during, and post-workout, as well as daily and post-workout hydration. From there, we created the Key Nutrition Strategies for Athletes booklet for students to take this information and apply it to their daily routine. This booklet includes the information from the posters and additional tips for promoting a healthy relationship with food and their bodies. We educate our students that if their basic needs are not met, including adequate sleep and nutrition, their performance may ultimately suffer.

Using these strategies in conjunction with a gentle approach to nutrition greatly liberalizes what athletes feel they are allowed to eat, thereby fostering a culture of Health at Every Size. Reinforcing this positive relationship with food may also help with athletes who struggle with disordered eating patterns, alleviating some of the stigma around snacking, carbohydrates, weight, and "what athletes are supposed to look like."

Our Program Goals & Objectives

Our goal is simple: to educate athletes how to adequately fuel their bodies while also encouraging a healthy mindset and relationship with food.

We meet our goal through four objectives:

Design and distribute effective educational and marketing materials to Athletics to promote our nutrition services on campus.

Implement nutrition education sessions through one-on-one consultations with student athletes, conducting team talks as well as nutrition-specific learning seminars with coaches and the Athletics Administration. Conduct pop-up events to provide nutrition education resources and fueling opportunities to student athletes. Collect data on our implementation efforts to determine effectiveness of information provided and areas for future opportunities.*

*Data collected to evaluate implementation efforts is incorporated throughout objectives 1-3 in this submission.