Before working with Solana, I really thought I knew how to manage my nutrition. I had read all the articles, listened to all the podcasts — and I had about four decades of pretty healthy eating under my belt. I was active, in my mind anyway, and I lifted. But I wanted to build my total, and figured I should probably put on a little weight to do it. I had tried to do it on my own, but a lifetime of congratulating myself for being thin kept interfering.
So I reached out to Solana. I chose her from the hundreds of nutritionists out there because I listened to her podcasts as soon as they drop, tuned in to 2WL whenever she was on, and followed her lifting on Instagram. Unlike a lot of powerlifting figures, never pushed gym bro science bullshit, and she had built a supportive community on Facebook that, if you’re asking me, was a model for what powerlifting needs to grow.
When I signed on, I knew Solana would be engaged and enthusiastic as a nutrition coach. What I didn’t know was how hard she would push me to confront my eating patterns, increase my activity level, and generally up my game. Fats? Gotta have them. Carbs? Get every single gram in. Steps? I doubled the miles I was walking under her guidance. Throughout, Solana texted me back within minutes whenever I had a question or concern. And, heading into meet day, she was there for me literally morning and night for my first water cut, which turned out to be a godsend, because water loading and cutting is a whole adventure into itself. I made weight, and a bunch of unofficial M3 records while I was at it.
Bottom line: If you want to take your lifting — and your life — to the next level, I could not recommend Solana more highly.
- Jessica Marshall, PhD