Olympians Inspire South Dakota Students with Nutrition โ& Wellness Message
WESSINGTON SPRINGS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – โStudents in Wessington Springs received โa unique โคlesson in health and nutrition this week,โ courtesy of the Build Your Baseโค program and two Olympic athletes. The initiative is bringing โฃworld-class competitors to schools across South Dakota, emphasizing โthe link โคbetween healthy eating habits โand future well-being.
Build Your Baseโ operates under Beef Logic, in partnership with the Southโ Dakota Beef Industryโ Council and Sanford Health. According to Erin Yost,a cattle โrancher โand Beef Logic’s treasurer,the program focuses on “how to use beef and just nutrition in general to maximizeโฆyour โhealth.”โค Yost added the program aims to โขextend beyond the school, โข”hopefully bringing it into the home, their homes and families.”
Students hadโ the opportunity โคto engage with US Olympic pole vaulter Chris Nilsen and US Olympic hammer thrower DeAnna Price, learning about their journeysโ to the Olympics and โคtheโ importanceโฃ of proper health โขand body care. Both athletes are aiming to compete โin โฃtheโค 2028 Summer โคOlympics.
The program strategically focuses on smaller schools to maximize impact. Nilsenโข explained, “If it’s a huge schoolโฆit might not go anywhere because they think theyโข don’t need to spread it.” he noted the program โฃhas already reachedโข an impressive 13 million people acrossโ the U.S. and is expanding into numerous universities.
The Olympians also addressedโ the specific nutritional needs of female athletesโ and the importance of listening to one’s body. Price shared her experiences โฃnavigating judgment as a female athlete,stating,”I front squat 530 pounds. Clean over, you know, 380 to, you know, and high pull over 400โฆThese liftsโ are absolutelyโ amazing, andโข that hasโข made me, โฃbut Iโ have the best balance. I think, like โคwhen growingโ up, it’s finding that balance in your life of understanding โคthat, you know, you can have the best of both worlds. You can be the athlete, and you can be the girl.”
Ultimately, the visit aimed to equip students withโ the knowledge to make informed choices for a healthy future. More informationโ about the Build โขYour Base program can be found on their โwebsite: https://www.buildyourbase.org/portal/parents.
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