Ms. Namita Nayyar:
Do you take some special diet or have a strict menu that you follow to remain healthy and physically fit?
Ms. Deedee Trotter:
When I was competing it didn’t take me long to settle on a dietary regimen. The secret for me was eating and then assessing. I would eat certain things and then watch very carefully to how my body responded to them. By doing this I was able to eliminate foods that were not the best energy source for me and increase foods that gave me a positive response. Nutritional diet became very simple for me. I basically illuminated fried foods and eating out, I ate lots of fruit and vegetables mostly fresh instead of frozen or canned, I ate healthy small snacks throughout the day to keep my metabolism going and to prevent from getting too hungry and eating large meals at night, and lastly I watched my portion sizes.
I was very lucky that throughout my entire career I never had to monitor weight gain, even after I turned 30. My eating was always about fueling my body with the best so that I could perform at my optimal level. I have two sayings when it come to giving healthy eating tips.
1. “You can grill it, Fillet it, sauté it, do whatever you want to it, just don’t fry it y’all…. just don’t fry it”.
2. “Don’t deprive yourself or you will binge. Have a cookie, just don’t sit there in front of the TV and eat the whole box! Moderation and exercises!”
Ms. Namita Nayyar:
Your London fans had nicknamed you the “Glitter Face Warrior.” What is the story behind this fantastic nickname?
Ms. Deedee Trotter:
I wish I knew who to give credit for the awesome nickname Glitter Face Warrior but all I really know is that I woke up the morning after competing in the women’s 400m final, where I won the bronze medal and my face was on the cover of a London news paper with a headline that read “Put Your Games Face On”. I would then read in other articles quotes that said “They call her the Glitter Face Warrior”. The truth is, the glitter was pretty but when I put it on it was definitely my warpaint. I believe I might’ve said that and a few articles preceding the games and maybe this is where the terminology was created to describe me. When I googled myself I really saw why the word warrior made so much sense. Some of the photos I didn’t even recognize myself! I definitely had my game face on.
Ms. Namita Nayyar:
How did you feel before and after winning your first individual Olympic medal, bringing home the bronze in the women’s 400m race, at the 2012 London Summer Olympics?
Ms. Deedee Trotter:
Coming into the 2012 Olympic Games I had the motivation from three years of prior failure. After the 2008 Olympic games I had a knee surgery that basically destroyed every year in between. By the time 2012 Harold around people had pretty much forgotten about me and no one was even thinking or considering me for an Olympic team. This would prove to be my most triumphant year because I had to overcome so many obstacles and breakdown so many barriers in order to make what was said to be the impossible happen. I didn’t go to the 2012 Olympic Games racing to get the bronze medal if you witnessed or look this race up to watch, you will see that I ran in pursuit of the gold.
With getting the bronze medal you have to imagine that there was some sense of a bittersweet moment within the victory however my time of 49.72, was the fastest time I have been able to run since 2007 because of the knee injury that occurred after. I’m very fortunate that I recognize what winning looks like for me so I can walk away from that race extremely proud of myself knowing that I gave my absolute very best, I left it all on the track and because of that I view my bronze medal as simply a different shade of gold.
Ms. Namita Nayyar:
Who has been your greatest influence and motivator in your success in the field of your career?
Ms. Deedee Trotter:
The greatest influence throughout my career has been my spiritual belief that God gave me a great gift and it was my responsibility to use it to the best of my ability. I believe there was purpose in my running so I did that until I couldn’t anymore. It’s that simple.
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