Meet Our Athlete of the Month - Laura Alexander

2021 & 2022 USAW National Champ, Laura Alexander, uses Ice Age Meals as her go-to meal prep because our meals are frozen to lock in nutrients and flavor making it easy and convenient to get macro-friendly meals during a busy training day.

Continue reading to learn more about who Laura is and her journey here.

Tell us about yourself?

I am a native of Seattle, WA and still super in love with the Pacific Northwest.  I moved to Southern CA for college, played softball and studied to become a certified athletic trainer. I moved up to San Jose in 2011 to work as an athletic trainer for SJSU Football and I've been at San Jose State ever since! I was with the Football team for 11 years and was the Head FB Athletic Trainer for 5 years.  Just this year, I transitioned into a more administrative role (I'm now a Senior Associate Athletic Director), so I get to work a bit of FB still but I also get to make an impact on a bigger level within the Athletic Department which is super rewarding.  Working full time and also being a full-time weightlifter is HARD, but both are so rewarding so it's worth it!  I currently live in the Bay Area with my amazingly supportive husband Chris and my pup Phoebe!

How and when did you come to be a member of the Weightlifting community?

After college I found CrossFit, it was such a fun community based way to exercise so it felt natural, just like playing a sport which is what I was used to.  I competed in CrossFit for a few years until I took a break after Regionals in May 2018 and decided to dabble in some weightlifting.  I qualified for my first in December of that year, started working with Greg Everett of Catalyst Athletics, and never looked back!!

 

What advice would you give anyone starting Weightlifting and/or a healthy lifestyle?

If your starting something new, like weightlifting, it's OK to make a mistake and it's OK to feel out of place! The only way to get better is just to keep showing up and commit to getting better even if it's just 1% better each day. So often when people start weightlifting they say how they feel so uncoordinated and weird and that's totally normal and OK and everyone has been there. Just keep showing up. 

If you're working on a healthier lifestyle, start small and work to change small habits one by one.  Maybe its, I'm going to eat breakfast every day, or I'm going to drink 80oz of water.  Whatever it is, commit to doing that one thing, make it a habit, then pick a new one and commit to that. Pretty soon you'll have accumulated some pretty awesome habits!

Have you noticed any change in your performance at the gym since using Ice Age Meals?

I have been an Ice Age Meals loyalist for YEARS. I learned early on, the key to keeping myself healthy in the gym is keeping myself fueled properly and adequately and keeping my stress as low as possible. IAM does ALL these things for me! I get more sleep cause I don't have prep my lunch the night before, I stress less because its one less thing for me to worry or think about.  They are an absolute game changer for me and always have been!

What is your favorite Ice Age Meal and what do you enjoy most about the products?

I go through phases!!! Lemon Pepper Chicken with Rice will always have my heart, but I also LOVE the Pork Carnitas and the Chili Colorado with Sweet Potatoes.

When you aren’t working out or enjoying Ice Age Meals, how do you like to spend your time?  

I love camping with family, friends, and the pup, going to the beach, being a plant mom, or just spending quality time with my people!

Stay up to date with Laura and her adventures on Instagram, @lauraalexander1!