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Fueling Up: Holly McPeak on Eating and Nutrition

Beach Volleyball, Olympic medalist, NCAA national champion, AVP Defensive Player of the Year

You might not be able to tell by looking at me, but I have a sweet tooth. It all began when I was a kid. My mom didn't let us have any sugar in the house. She was totally into healthy eating and fed my twin brother, my sister and me only good food – no junk. Feeling deprived, I'd go a little overboard when I went to a friend's house and raid their sweets.

When I was a teenager, I liked to eat a lot. I moved in with my dad, and all the rules were different. He didn't cook very much, so I survived on a diet of pizza, hot dogs, and my favorite - sweets. It was no big deal for me to put back a whole pint of ice cream at once. Lucky for me, I was naturally thin and really active. Videos and television weren't an option for us after school. We were outside playing sports all the time. But that doesn't mean that my unhealthy eating didn't affect me. It did. Big time. I started to get serious about sports and didn't have the energy I needed to do my best. I wasn't eating the right kind of protein, and I was super sleepy all the time.

All that changed when I got to college. I talked to healthy people, read some books and learned a whole bunch about balanced eating. I figured out what works for me as a female and an athlete. When I eat well and drink lots of water, I recover from hard training much faster. And I train pretty hard. At this point in my life, I do three hours of drills and training on the beach. I go lift for two hours. And then I'm off for an hour of cardio work, usually running on the track.

Don't get me wrong. I still eat a lot – six small meals a day to be exact. But I eat stuff that's good for me and geared toward the amount of training I do. I get hungry every two hours. If I don't eat, I feel nauseous and horrible. I have learned to keep healthy snacks with me all the time – fruit, raisins, bagels and energy bars. I don't go anywhere without them. All my eating is based on a balance of protein, carbohydrates and even a little fat. Plus, I drink lots of water – never soda. I keep a water bottle with me in my car, at the gym, at the beach, wherever. I am always thinking about fueling and watering my machine.

I see girls all the time who don't eat right. They are the ones who are fading at the end of the workout – when I am going strong. It seems like a lot of work, at first. But after awhile, it just becomes habit. You have to listen to your own body and learn what works for you. Don't base your diet on someone else's. In the end, the key is always balance.