Dr Gemma Sampson · 19. What is stopping you?

What is stopping you from achieving your peak potential as a cyclist?

Chances are your nutrition could do with a little bit of extra work.

I'm Dr Gemma Sampson I'm an Advanced Sports Dietitian specialising in cycling nutrition and I'm really passionate about changing the culture in cycling from eating is cheating to fuelling for performance.

Now going back to that question of what is stopping you?

I first got asked this question about 8 years ago when I was talking to someone about how I'd been thinking about doing a triathlon for about 10 years.

They came back to me and said, "Well, what's stopping you?"

And it was one of those lightbulb moments, "Why have I never thought of this before?"

What I realised was, it was me.

I was stopping me. It was only me.

There was no one going to MAKE me do a triathlon.

I was the one that responsible for actually taking action.

I got home, I signed up for a triathlon, I joined a club. I started training.

I did my first sprint and I absolutely loved it!

To the point where I then did a sprint, Olympic, half Ironman, full Ironman and in the midst of that I discovered that I LOVED cycling.

Now I was already a dietitian at this point.

This moment became so pivotal for me to realise that

actually, what I want to do for my life moving forward is

being a sports dietitian specialising in cycling nutrition.

Fast forward a couple years I then discovered Girona!

I'd been there on a cycling trip. I had never heard of Girona before I went there.

Straight away when I arrived I just felt, internally I realised that this is what I had been looking for in locations (to live).

I've grown up overseas.

I've been overseas most of my life and I was on this constant search of trying to figure out where's home? Where did I want to be? And Girona just felt right.

But then I went back to this question, What's stopping me from moving to Girona?

I was in the UK at this point of time. So I decided, I'd move to Girona!

Now it's about 8 years since I got first asked that question.

My life looks very different to what it did 8 years ago.

I'm an Advanced Sports Dietitian,

I've finished my doctorate, my PhD specifically looking at what endurance athletes (especially cyclists) are fuelling before, during and after in their training and in their racing.

Because what fascinated me, was that in cycling, nutrition can have such a massive impact on people's performance.

Yet I was seeing so many cyclists just downplaying it and ignoring it

or thinking that it didn't actually make a difference. When it does!

I am on a mission to help change the culture around cycling nutrition

from one of eating is cheating to fuelling for performance.

If you are a cyclist and you want to improve your performance on and off the bike using nutrition, Like, subscribe and fuel your ride and I will see you next time!

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