It takes more than just practice to become an Olympian. Gold medal performances require some serious nutrition. Have you ever wondered what these elite athletes eat to stay in peak shape？

Keri Glassman， a registered dietitian and founder of Nutritious Life Meals， appeared on “Good Morning America” to give you a glimpse into the diets of some top athletes. Some of their meals could surprise you.

Crazy Calorie Count

Glassman said Olympians eat a lot of food—quantities that for ordinary people would constitute pigging out. One secret of swimmer Michael Phelps astonishing performance in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing was consuming as many as 12，000 calories in one day.

Athletes can eat like this and not gain any weight because their workouts are intense. According to Glassman， Phelps workouts can burn 4，000 to 6，000 calories in a day， and those calories must be replenished in order to train the following day.

Snacking Secrets

Some athletes eat wacky foods that they swear to improve their performance.

Yohan Blake， the Jamaican sprinter and 100-meter world champion， has been making waves for stealing champion sprinter Usain Bolts thunder on the track during the Olympic trials. When asked about how he gets his stamina， Blake answered that he eats 16 bananas per day， Glassman said.

Jonathan Horton， the lead gymnast on the US team， has a blood sugar problem. His solution is honey. When he starts to feel shaky at the gym， he takes swigs of honey to boost his energy， Glassman said. According to Horton， the sugar rushes to his blood right away and he feels amazing for the next hour or so.

Foods for Recovery

What are the best foods to help the body recover after rigorous competition？

For Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte， the recovery meal is grilled chicken breasts with Alfredo sauce， whole-grain spaghetti and a salad with lemon juice and olive oil. Lochte， who cut out junk food， candy and soda， has undertaken a rigorous strength-training regimen that involves flipping tractor tires， dragging shipyard chains and tossing beer kegs， Glassman said.

Lochtes recovery meal has all the important macronutrients necessary for recovery.

要成為奧運選手，僅靠刻苦訓(xùn)練是不夠的。要獲得金牌，選手需要一些重要營養(yǎng)的攝入。你是否好奇過這些精英運動員是靠吃什么來保持巔峰狀態(tài)的呢？

克里·格拉斯曼是注冊營養(yǎng)學(xué)家和膳食營養(yǎng)生活組織的創(chuàng)始人，他在《早安美國》節(jié)目中會讓你看到一些頂級運動員的膳食。他們的一些飲食可能會令你驚訝。

瘋狂的卡路里數(shù)量

格拉斯曼說，奧運選手們會吃很多的食物——其分量相當(dāng)于普通人處于狼吞虎咽狀態(tài)的食量。游泳名將邁克爾·菲爾普斯在2008年北京奧運會驚艷表現(xiàn)的秘訣之一就是，他一天會攝入高達12000卡路里的熱量。

運動員高強度的運動量使他們?nèi)绱孙嬍硡s不會增加體重。根據(jù)格拉斯曼的說法，菲爾普斯一天的訓(xùn)練會消耗4000到6000卡路里熱量，而這些消耗掉的熱量必須補充回來，以應(yīng)對第二天的訓(xùn)練。

零食秘密

有些運動員會吃一些他們宣稱能提高他們成績的古怪食品。

牙買加短跑運動員兼百米世界冠軍約安·布萊克曾在奧運會測試賽的跑道上搶去世界短跑冠軍尤塞恩·博爾特的風(fēng)頭。格拉斯曼說，當(dāng)問到他的耐力從何而來時，布萊克回答說他每天都會吃掉16根香蕉。

美國體操隊主力隊員喬納森·霍頓的血糖有問題，而他的解決方案是吃蜂蜜。格拉斯曼說，當(dāng)霍頓在訓(xùn)練館開始感到身體發(fā)抖時，就會吃幾大口蜂蜜來補充能量。據(jù)霍頓說，這樣他的血糖很快就上去了，在接下來的一個小時他都會感覺很棒。

康復(fù)飲食

在激烈的比賽過后，能幫助身體盡快恢復(fù)狀態(tài)的最佳飲食是什么呢？

對奧運游泳選手瑞安·羅切特而言，恢復(fù)餐就是烤雞胸脯肉配阿爾弗雷多醬、全麥意大利面和一份加檸檬汁和橄欖油的沙拉。格拉斯曼說，羅切特戒掉了垃圾食品、糖果和蘇打汽水，開始了一項嚴格的力量訓(xùn)練養(yǎng)生法，其中包括拋拖拉機輪胎、拖船鏈及投擲啤酒桶。

羅切特的恢復(fù)餐中包括了所有恢復(fù)身體狀態(tài)所必需的重要常量營養(yǎng)元素。