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Jump Higher - An Olympian's Pursuit of The American Dream

by Joy Wang | May 03, 2018

What “clicked” between a Rio Olympian from Latvia and sho Nutrition? Besides our shared passion for better nutrition, healthier lifestyle, and helping others live better, we are both on the journeys of carving out our own marks and pursuing the American dreams.

In today’s #shoWisdom healthy role model interview series, we are very honored to feature Pauls Pujats, a professional athlete, model, and author, who has done many cool things by the age of 25: competed in pole vault as a finalist at Rio Olympics; published a book of Healthy Food for Athletes; represented University of Memphis during his schooling there, and is now coaching athletes and educating more people to live healthy. Let’s hear what he has to say about living a simple, healthy, organized – sho lifestyle:

Tell us a bit about who you are and what you do?

I followed my brother Karlis’s footsteps and joined the University of Memphis which gave me a great opportunity to advance my athletic career. I competed as a pole vaulter in Rio 2016 Olympic Games and placed 12th in Final.

Because I grew up in a former Soviet Union environment, I realized the diet that my grandparents and parents had was not healthy. Knowing what are the right and wrong things to do for your health and fitness, I really wanted to share my knowledge and help more people make the right choices, so I wrote a book of “Healthy Food for Athletes”.

Here is an excerpt from the book:

“Another important point is that some people might say eating healthy is expensive. It is comparable to the phrase, ‘Penny smart, dollar foolish’. You may save a couple of bucks on groceries, however, what a lot of people do not know is that unhealthy foods have an adverse effect on our bodies that eventually leads to poor immune system, higher risk of diseases and sicknesses. This eventually means more trips to the doctors, hospitals, and more medical bills to take care of, only for a few seconds of sugary sweets or fried chips in a few days’ old oil (which might have already converted into motor oil) simply to please your taste buds.”

What does “healthy” mean to you? What is your typical diet and exercise?

“Healthy” to me is mind, body and spirit working together in harmony. When you feel peace within you, energy flows through your body and you feel fully alive.

I try to cook my own food, I take a deep interest in what I put in my body, doing research about nutrition, exercises, and everything I could benefit from. I train almost every single day, so supplements play an important role in my life. Being a professional athlete takes a lot of time and a big toll on the body that I need to carefully maintain every day.

What challenges do you face in keeping your daily health routines?

It takes more time to make my own dishes, and working out while working is a tough combination. Staying strict to the routine is challenging and sometimes skipping meals seems to be the only way to get everything or partially everything done.

For me, a good time saver is meal preparation for the week or at least a day before, so there would not be any surprises.

sho Nutrition Pauls Pujats

What has been your experience of taking sho Nutrition?

I enjoy the design of sho’s capsules, but most of all, I felt the effects of the supplements in the second week of using Sho Energy+ and sho Balance. It gave me more drive and willpower to do more and be more efficient in practices.

I do not use dairy products and meat in my diet, mostly because of my own belief, so I also like the fact that sho supplements are vegan-friendly and dairy free – I know vitamin Bs are really important for energy boost and they work great for me.

I take them daily 30 min till 1h before my workouts so it's not hard for me to remember, but I still think the packaging is cool and smart.

Could you share a piece of #shoWisdom to help people live a simple, healthy, organized - sho lifestyle?

Write down everything on paper, the things you want to achieve or do throughout the day, week, month and year. Staying healthy is everything, and don’t rush into workouts. Build your daily routine and healthy habits.

Pauls Pujats