Sunisa Lee's Ultimate Diet and Workout Secrets: How She Achieved Olympic Glory

Sunisa Lee, a three-time Olympic medalist and Tokyo artistic gymnastics champion, has captivated audiences with her incredible athleticism and inspiring journey. At just 21 years old, she has achieved remarkable success, but her path has not been without challenges. This article explores Sunisa Lee's diet, workout routine, and the health obstacles she has overcome to reach the pinnacle of her sport.

Sunisa Lee's Gymnastics Journey

Lee's dedication to gymnastics is evident in her rigorous training schedule and commitment to maintaining peak physical condition. She made her comeback at the US Classic at the beginning of August, where she scored a 14.500 on balance beam and 13.500 on vault, qualifying her for the Xfinity US Gymnastics Championships from Aug. 24-27 in San Jose, CA. This journey included her participation in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, a testament to her resilience and determination. She secured a spot on the team, marking a significant milestone in her career.

Pre-Competition Rituals

Before competitions, Sunisa Lee follows a specific routine to prepare both mentally and physically. This routine includes a stop at Starbucks, where she indulges in her favorite drinks. "I get Starbucks in the morning and I always have to get my two drinks," Lee tells POPSUGAR. The first drink is usually either coffee or matcha. When Lee opts for matcha, she orders "a venti iced matcha latte with coconut milk and two pumps of vanilla." Her other favorite drink is a strawberry lemonade refresher.

Lee also emphasizes the importance of journaling to manage anxiety and focus on her goals. "I'll journal my goals and just write down how I'm feeling before the meet because I do get a lot of anxiety and stuff," Lee shares. After journaling, she takes a nap to ensure she is well-rested for the competition.

Getting ready for competition is a meticulous process for Lee. "I take 2 1/2 hours to get ready," Lee tells POPSUGAR. During this time, she listens to her favorite playlist to get hyped up, focusing on artists like SZA and Bryson Tiller. "I'll do my makeup, my hair, and then I'll get my leo on, take some pictures, and then I'm ready to go," she says.

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Sunisa Lee's Diet Plan

Sunisa Lee carefully plans her meals to fuel her demanding schedule, which combines gymnastics and college life. Her diet balances healthy choices with comfort foods, providing her with the necessary energy and nutrients to perform at her best.

Daily Diet Overview

Lee usually starts her day with a strawberry banana smoothie with vanilla protein powder, topped with eggs and sausage or bacon to ensure her protein and nutrition intake is high. She uses this breakfast as nutrition for her early workouts. For lunch, Suni Lee’s favorite lunch options are a protein and quinoa bowl or a salad. She claims, “I pretty much eat anything,” adding that she is not a particular eater. Lee’s diet consists of eating loads of protein and limiting carbohydrates, fried foods, and sweets since she wants to support muscle repair and preserve her athletic form. For dinner, Suni Lee usually has steak with green vegetables, such as green beans or Brussels sprouts. This meal gives her more energy after a tough training day.

Specific Food Choices

Breakfast: Eggs and sausage or bacon, or a strawberry banana smoothie with vanilla protein powder.
Lunch: Salad or protein and quinoa bowl.
Snacks: Protein wafers, cheese sticks, banana chips, almonds, pita chips, and hummus. She acknowledges that her favorite snack is a quality cheese with crackers and salami.
Dinner: Steak with green vegetables (green beans or Brussels sprouts).
Dessert: Ice cream (strawberry is her favorite) or a milkshake.

Dietary Habits

Lee has never followed a specific diet but tries to stay away from carbs, fried foods, and sweets. She focuses on consuming plenty of protein to aid muscle recovery. "We are working out so much and then we're competing every week,” she says. “[So] it's important to keep my body fueled and strong and healthy because it's easier to get injured now that I'm just competing every single weekend." Despite her healthy eating habits, Suni Lee allows herself occasional indulgences. "I always have a pizza after every meet," she admits.

Importance of Snacks

Snacks are a crucial part of Sunisa Lee's diet, especially during training. "When I'm in practice, we have like a really big snack bar," she says. Her preferred snack items include protein wafers, cheese sticks, banana chips, almonds, pita chips, and hummus.

Sunisa Lee's Workout Routine

Sunisa Lee does not have any specific workout routine buts he works on a lot of areas to cover up for the games. She would work on her conditioning, strength, and flexibility at the same time. This means that she would need exercises like strength training, bodyweight workouts, and even yoga to keep herself going. One thing she makes sure to do is warm up which is an important part of her routine. Even though Sunisa Lee does not have a fixed routine scheduled for her, here is a sample workout routine of what Sunisa Lee would do in her normal practices.

Warm-Up

The first step to a great workout is a dynamic warm-up to get your blood flowing. You should keep moving during your warm-up, as studies have shown that dynamic stretching produces better results than static stretching. This simple warm-up is provided, but you are free to do it your own way or the way the national team does it:

30 Jumping Jacks
30 seconds of jogging in place with high knees
30 seconds of jogging in place kicking your bottom
Swing arms from side to side, up and down 5 times each
Roll wrists and ankles 10 times each
Walk across the floor in relevé, and then on heels
High kicks - forwards, backward, each leg 10 times each
Stand in straddle, lean-to right leg, middle, left leg, and hold for a second each - do this 10 times
Stand in a left lunge, twist to one side hold, twist to another side - do this for right lunge also
Sit on the floor in straddle, lean-to right leg, middle, left leg and hold for a second each - do this 10 times
Sit on the floor in pike with feet pointed, hold for 10 seconds, flex feet hold for 10 seconds
Stretch out splits and hold each for 10 seconds
Bridge-push through shoulders hold for 4 seconds, tuck and roll - repeat x 2

Whenever you feel anything else that isn't yet warmed up, warm it up as well. You can choose to work out on just one or a few events once you warm up. If you are going to do conditioning, do it at the end so you don't exhaust yourself before you practice.

Conditioning Exercises

The following are descriptions of the exercises included in each workout plan:

Push-Up: Start by doing a straight-body plank with your elbows over your shoulders. You need to squeeze your core and butt while bending your arms. Maintain control over your movement as you go as far down as you can while maintaining your body position. Continue raising your body and straightening your arms until you have completed the repetition.
Bent Over Rows: With your feet slightly apart or together, hold a light dumbbell with your arms at your sides. Keeping your back flat, lean forward slightly. Your core should be squeezed. You want your mind to remain neutral. As you squeeze your shoulders together, raise your arms until they are near your hips. Complete the repetition by lowering the weights back to their starting position with a controlled movement.
Chin-Ups: In addition to your hands gripping the bar differently, the chin-up is similar to a pull-up. A chin-up is performed by grabbing a bar with fingers pointing towards you, approximately shoulder-width apart, and grasping the bar. In a completely dead hang position, squeeze your shoulders and lift your head to the height of the bar. A repetition like that is one. Slowly lower the weight and repeat.
Hip Lift: With your knees bent and your arms at your sides, lie on your back with your feet on the ground. Your hips should rise toward the ceiling a couple of times, and then fall back down to complete the repetition. Ensure that you and your back are flat and you are squeezing your butt.
Kettlebell Deadlift: Standing shoulder-width apart, place yo &ur feet about six inches apart. The kettlebell should be placed between your thighs, roughly aligned with your ankles. Look in front of you, bend from the hips, and grab the kettlebell with your hands between your legs. You should position your shins vertically and hold your lower back flat. After that, turn your back to your legs and stand up again.
Squats: Standing with your feet shoulder-width apart, place your hands between your knees. If you prefer, you can do squats while pointing your feet out (perhaps at a slight diagonal angle) or with your feet facing forward. Your feet will point in different directions when you do squats, so be sure to use the correct direction. Your back should remain straight, and you should squeeze your core as you lower yourself. Straighten out your arms so they are parallel to the ground in front of you to make this process easier. As much as possible, you want your thighs to be parallel to your calves, but you should only go as far as you can control the movement. To complete this repetition, push your heels against the floor and lift yourself back up to a standing position.
Fitness Ball Leg Curl: Your heels should rest on a fitness ball as you lie on your back. Using your butt and core, lift your body off the ground until you are positioned in a line from heels to shoulders. Your heels should be pulled toward your hips as you squeeze your butt so that they are bent at an angle of 90° or more. You must reach your starting position before straightening your legs and returning to it.
V-Ups: Lay flat on the ground with your arms overhead, legs straight, and your elbows and knees pressed together. You need to pull both your legs up and your upper body off the floor at the same time. You need to keep your back straight. To touch your feet, you should put your hands on them. After completing the repetitions, let both your legs and your upper body reflect your weight onto the floor.
Planks: Exercises involving planks can either be done with the wrists or with the elbows. If you are performing a plank, you must squeeze your quads, hips, and shoulders. If you have shoulders above elbows, and your body is in a straight line from your head to your feet, you should be in good shape. You should breathe throughout this exercise. Squeeze all your muscles and maintain an upright position.

Workout Tips and Tricks

Sunisa Lee emphasizes the importance of core building, consistency, recovery, goal setting, cardiovascular fitness, and stretching in her training regimen.

Core Building: Gymnasts train their core as an important element of their daily workout. Gymnasts most commonly perform the v-sit exercise as their core exercise. In addition to the v-sit, tuck, straddle, and pike, there are many other variations. You will be challenged by all of them, but the pike v-sit will be most difficult.
Consistency: Gymnastics enthusiasts train 20 hours a week on average. The main reason why they are in such good shape is because of their consistency of training.
Recovery: It is important to ensure that the body has time to recover after gymnastics, which can put excessive strain on joints and muscles.
Goal Setting: Gymnasts are always working toward a goal during their workout. It is beneficial for their training to set goals, whether they want to become more flexible, stronger, or train for a competition.
Cardiovascular Fitness: A gymnast's daily workout should include cardio.
Stretching: Performing stretching exercises daily prevents gymnasts from getting injured.

Health Challenges and Overcoming Obstacles

Sunisa Lee has faced significant health challenges, including being diagnosed with two incurable kidney diseases and eczema. She has been open about her struggles and how they have impacted her career and personal life.

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Kidney Disease

In February 2023, Lee started experiencing abnormal swelling all over her body. After several tests, doctors discovered that Lee had a rare, incurable kidney condition. They would later discover that she had not one, but two forms of kidney disease. This condition forced her to modify her training and take time away from the sport.

“I have been dealing with a non-gymnastics health related issue involving my kidneys. I am blessed and thankful to be working with the best specialized medical team to treat and manage my diagnosis. My focus at this time is my health and recovery.”

Despite the challenges, Lee remained determined to return to gymnastics. She worked closely with her medical team to manage her condition and modify her training accordingly. By January 2024, her condition went into remission, allowing her to gradually return to her normal training schedule.

Eczema

Lee has also struggled with eczema since a young age. "Eczema is a type of dermatitis. Dermatitis is a group of conditions that cause skin inflammation," according to the Cleveland Clinic. She has described her skin as red, itchy, and "always uncomfortable." Stress is a significant trigger for her eczema flare-ups.

With the help of her doctors and dermatologists, Lee has learned to manage her eczema and believes the condition isn't “something to be ashamed or embarrassed about.”

Mental Health

Similar to her friend and teammate Simone Biles, Lee has been open about the mental health challenges that come with being a gymnast in the public eye. She has experienced imposter syndrome and anxiety attacks, particularly after winning gold at the Tokyo Olympics.

“I feel like after the Olympics, there’s just been so much doubt in like, ‘Oh, she shouldn’t have won Olympics, blah, blah, blah,’ and it really hits my soul,” she told ESPN in 2022.

Lee has sought therapy and learned coping mechanisms to manage her mental health. She also emphasizes the importance of journaling and asking for help when needed.

“It’s always good to have the outside help and just to be able to talk to somebody that doesn’t really know what’s going on,” she told Women’s Health.

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