Two-Time Olympian Ryan Crouser Ready to Defend His Title

The last time we saw Crouser on the world’s biggest stage, he set a world record at both the 2020 U.S. Team Trials and the Games. And now, in just a few short weeks, “the GOAT” may be adding more to his resume as he packs his Thorne travel essentials for the long trip to Paris this summer where he hopes to defend his title for the second time.

But before doing so, he took some time to chat with us about all things training, health, supplements, and his future in the sport of shot put.

The Crouser name

Long before Crouser made a name for himself, several of his family members saw great success in track and field.

His father was an alternate on the 1984 national team in the discus, his uncle Brian threw javelin on the U.S. national team in the 1988 and 1992 Games, his uncle Dean set records in discus and shot put at the University of Oregon, his cousin Sam threw javelin on the U.S. national team in Rio in 2016, and his cousin Haley competed at the 2016 U.S. Team Trials.

That legacy might sound like a lot of pressure to live up to, but for Crouser, it’s a comfort. Because at the end of the day, no one understands better than his family.

“Track and field is such a cut-and-dry sport – the tape measure doesn’t lie,” Crouser says. “So, my family is there to celebrate when things go well but they can commiserate when I come up short.”

Training hard

With his wealth of knowledge and experience, Crouser’s father gave his son some guidance early on. But interestingly, Crouser has been self-coached since 2016.

The secret to staying disciplined? Planning. Crouser looks at his long-term goal and works backward, week by week, and eventually, day by day, setting specific goals for each session.

For Crouser, knowing where an intense workout fits into the long-term plan allows him to hold himself accountable. Although his schedule often changes, he does his best to stick to it and never misses a workout – not even on holidays.

“I believe that we are all creatures of habit,” Crouser says. “Training is my full-time job. Everything takes a back seat to that.”

Here’s what his workout schedule looks like during a normal week:

Monday: 

• Morning: High-intensity throw session
• Evening: Sprint session/heavy lower body plyometrics 

Tuesday:

• Posterior/upper body lift

Wednesday:

• Morning: Rotational-specific weight room session
• Evening: Throw session

Thursday:

• Sprints/dynamic lower body lift/plyometrics

Friday:

• Morning: Throw session
• Evening: Upper body dynamic lift

Saturday

• Rotational-specific weight room session/throw session

Sunday

• Rest/recovery

With years of insights from self-coaching, Crouser gets to share everything he’s learned with college athletes as a volunteer assistant coach at the University of Arkansas. Working with the program since 2019, Crouser says the experience has helped solidify his love of the sport.

“It can be a struggle to remember why I do it. The financial aspect and sponsorship struggles can lead to a jaded perspective,” he says. “But seeing the pure passion and enjoyment these younger athletes have reminds me why I do it and how lucky I am.”

Putting safety first

For athletes training at the highest levels, injuries are inevitable. But in Crouser’s case, it came in the form of a more serious medical issue.

In July 2023, shortly after winning another U.S. national title, Crouser was struggling with a bad calf. At his personal trainer’s recommendation, he took a Doppler scan. It revealed two blood clots in his leg, just a few weeks before he had to take an international flight to the World Championships in Budapest.

Crouser, who wasn’t experiencing typical blood clot symptoms, says it was a huge weight off his shoulders when he learned what the scan had found.

“For me, the most difficult part was before the diagnosis and dealing with the unknown and uncertainty,” he says. “After I was able to sit down with my medical team and develop a plan to safely travel, there was almost a sense of relief.”

Crouser was able to safely compete with the blood clots, repeating as World Champion and nearly breaking his own world record. Safety always comes first, says Crouser, and it’s his top priority in all aspects of training, especially his daily nutritional supplement routine.

When he was growing up, Crouser’s father ran a business selling sports nutrition products. As a summer job, Crouser would deliver shipments to 24 Hour Fitness gyms in the area. That early experience taught him a lot about the importance of fueling with quality supplements.

“I have the strict liability of being 100-percent accountable for what I put in my body,” Crouser says. “I’m always subject to random tests, so my knowing that the Thorne supplements I take are safe and free of banned substances gives me peace of mind.” 

Fueling for success

With such a demanding schedule, Crouser’s supplement routine is an essential part of the fueling equation, providing him with the nutritional support he needs to exercise and recover like a pro.

Some of his everyday Thorne formulas include Multivitamins, B-Complex and Protein. 

Even with the nutritional support from Thorne, Crouser’s calorie requirement is still extremely high – so much so that he sees his diet as a labour. Thankfully, he gets help from his girlfriend, former elite pole vaulter Megan Clark, who he says is the much better chef.

“Megan has to remind me to taste the food she makes,” he says. “I’ll rely on meal prep a lot and, at times, struggle with my relationship with food simply because it is my least favourite part of training.”

While some athletes celebrate post-competition with a “cheat meal,” Crouser’s version is skipping one altogether. After all, forcing himself to consume 1,000 calories per meal four times a day most days of the year is tiring. 

Just see for yourself. Here’s what fueling for a high-intensity training day can look like:

Breakfast

• 6 eggs
• 4 slices toast
• ⅓ pound turkey sausage
• 1 cup yogurt
• Berries

Snack

• 12 ounces trail mix (fruits/nuts only)

Lunch

• 12 ounces rice
• 1 pound lean ground beef

Snack

• Peanut butter and jelly
• Protein shake

Dinner

• 1 pound chicken or lean beef 
• 120 grams of healthy carbs 
• 50 grams fat 

 Night snack

• Casein shake

Preparing for competition

As Crouser prepares to perform on the world’s biggest stage for the third time, he’s sticking with the same strategy he’s always used – approaching it differently than he did the last time.

With the Games only coming around once every four years, time moves faster than other competitions. Crouser says he’s a completely different athlete now, and that means forgoing some competitions now that he’s in his 30s.

“I’m at the point in my career where I no longer have to establish myself in the sport, and I can’t compete as often as I could when I was younger,” Crouser says. “So, I’m focusing on being the best I’ve ever been on that specific day of the Olympic Finals.”

After the Games

For all the single-minded focus Crouser has, he’s just like the rest of us – a human being with other passions and interests outside of the daily grind.

For him, that daydream is competitive bass fishing. He went on a three-day fishing trip to Mexico in fall 2023 when he took two weeks off, the first vacation he’s taken for himself since 2012.

Crouser has a strong record in the few bass tournaments he’s participated in. He hopes to dive into professional bass fishing for a season or two and possibly go pro after he retires.

But for now, Crouser is still fully locked into his day job as he attempts to outperform himself once again, a goal that is becoming more difficult as his personal bests get further and further. 

Because if there has been one constant for Crouser – an adaptable athlete known for constantly tinkering with technique – it is his sole focus on improving his personal bests, a goal that comes before winning or breaking the records of others.

“There is no better feeling than throwing a new personal record,” Crouser says. “The pressure that I feel the most is what I put on myself to be better.”