A Day of Eggs & Athletes
What do an egg farmer’s daughter, a motivational speaker and a doctor-in-training at McGill University have in common? Besides the fact that they are all internationally ranked sports stars, they all credit the nutritional benefits of eggs on their journey to greatness.
Alpine Ski team member Valérie Grenier, five-time International Long Drive Challenge (ILDC) champion Fareen Samji and Kansas City Chiefs offensive lineman Laurent Duvernay-Tardif were among the speakers at the 2017 Canadian Egg Farmers Summer Conference hosted by Egg Farmers of Ontario in Toronto this July.
Joining them at the conference was Women’s World Curling Champions Team Homan, Olympic Shot Putter Tim Nedow and short track speed skater William Preudhomme.
The day of eggs and athletes looked at how not only eggs, but a supportive team, and a drive to do better pushes these athletes to be their best selves, both on and off their respective courts, rinks, sheets, fields or tees.
Alpine Skier and egg farmer Valérie Grenier (https://www.instagram.com/valeriegrenier/, https://twitter.com/valeriegrenier7 ) started the day off talking about how growing up on the farm and seeing her parents work hard together instilled in her a work ethic that has pushed her to not only become a world ranked alpine skier in all 4 disciplines (Downhill, Super G, Slalom, and Giant Slalom) but also to be named Alpine Canada’s 2017 Female Athlete of the year!
Throwing a 16 pound shot put ball over 65 feet is no easy task. Its something that #1 Canadian ranked shot putter Tim Nedow (https://twitter.com/timmaythrows ; https://www.instagram.com/timmaythrows/ ) has been working towards since joining his track and field team when he was 13 years old. Now, with one Olympic games under his belt, he’s looking forward to the next. While his training regime includes throwing practice and visits to the gym (where he can bench 450 lbs) he is also upping his game in the kitchen. On average, Tim consumes a whopping 300 grams of protein a day, which includes “6-8 eggs with either goat or feta cheese mixed in with spinach and topped with Nanny Hudson’s Ketchup,” (which you can pick up at these locations) http://www.nannyhudson.com/where-to-buy .
In 1988, when the now ILDC champion Fareen Samji (https://www.instagram.com/hititwithfar/ ; https://twitter.com/hititwithfar/ ) came to Canada, her first memories of her new home were working on an egg farm just outside of Clappisons Corners. Far didn’t just rely on skill to get her to where she is today, but on her drive to improve. “We have to be better,” she says “No matter what we do, we have to be better.” To be able to drive a ball 330 yards, she credits not only her physical skill, but innovative science and constantly improving equipment, very similar she says, to what egg farmers must deal with to be constantly improving their barns and farms.
World Women’s Curling Champions, Team Homan(https://twitter.com/TeamHoman; https://www.instagram.com/team_homan/ ) (consisting of lead, Lisa Weagle(https://twitter.com/lweagle19; https://www.instagram.com/lweagle/ ); second, Joanne Courtney(https://twitter.com/JoanneMCourtney ); third, Emma Miskew (https://twitter.com/emmamiskew ; https://www.instagram.com/emmamiskew/ )and skip, Rachel Homan(https://twitter.com/RHoman89; https://www.instagram.com/homan89/ )) recognize the great protein that eggs are. “[In Beijing, at the World Championships] we ate a lot of eggs. A lot, a lot of eggs,” says Emma. They plan on taking the recipe for success they used at Worlds and tweaking it to get to the 2018 Olympics. “Communication as a team is important. Just like egg farmers, everyone has a specific job to do, so we need to keep communication going to make sure everyone is doing the best they can.”
Playing in the NFL is an incredible feat on its own, but doing so while obtaining a medical degree is something that Laurent Duvernay-Tardif (https://www.instagram.com/laurentduvernaytardif/ ; https://twitter.com/LaurentDTardif ) will soon be able to say only he has accomplished. It’s no secret that the six foot five, 320 pound, 26 year old has to eat a lot. But he decided to stick with eggs, his protein of choice, rather than invest in protein supplements. While both of his careers may result in a large amount of stress, he says the secret to coping with that stress is keeping a routine. Creating a routine before a game or before a night of training in the ER both require a significant amount of preparation mentally and physically. “Mental preparation is key,” says Tardif, “So is eating well.”
Short track speed skater, William Preudhomme (https://twitter.com/WPreudhomme ; https://www.instagram.com/willpreudhomme/ ) says eggs have a place in his Olympic dreams. He is required to be on the ice training 10 times a week so he doesn’t have much time to spend in the kitchen. He incorporates the protein packed superfood into his daily routine as scrambled eggs for breakfast or a hard-cooked egg as a post training snack. The Toronto native is the first from the city to represent Canada in short-track speed skating and he has set his sights on the 2018 Olympics in Pyeong Chang.
On or off the ice, field, track or farm, eggs seem to bring something to the table whether you’re looking for a high protein food, or just a healthy snack. These athletes love their eggs, how do you love yours?