Eatin' with Eaton

Brianne Theisen-Eaton, BA ’11, 2014 Commonwealth Games heptathlon gold medalist, 2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships pentathlon gold medalist, and 2016 Rio Olympics heptathlon bronze medalist is a woman used to excelling in multiple areas.

Being one of the best in the world at clearing hurdles and the high jump bar, throwing the shot, leaping into a sand pit, throwing a javelin, and running 100, 200, and 800 meters? Done, done, done, done, done, done, and done.

Now retired from international competition, Theisen-Eaton is ready for a new set of challenges—namely, running marathons (she made her debut in the Chicago Marathon in October), creating healthier versions of your favorite foods, and preparing to take on the Food and Drug Administration.

All in a day’s work for a former professional athletic multitasker.

Theisen-Eaton took time off after winning the bronze medal in Rio, but when the time came to start preparing for the 2017 season, found the fire no longer burned quite as bright as it had in the past.

“Most of the time I’m excited to get back into training, and I’m already texting our coach, ‘When is the first workout? What are we doing?’” she said. “But I just had no interest in going back.”

Not motivated by money, and disinterested in the paycheck that would come with being an Olympic medalist, Theisen-Eaton enlisted the help of her sports psychologist.

“I​ ​was​ ​asking​ ​her,​ ​‘Is​ ​this​ ​what​ ​it​ ​feels​ ​like​ ​when​ ​you’re​ ​ready​ ​to​ ​retire?​ ​I’m​ ​just​ ​scared​ ​to​ ​not​ ​be​ ​an athlete​ ​anymore,​ ​to​ ​not​ ​identify​ ​as​ ​an​ ​athlete.​ ​I​ ​don’t​ ​know​ ​what​ ​I​ ​am​ ​now,​ ​I​ ​have​ ​to​ ​create​ ​a​ ​whole​ ​new identity.’”​ ​said​ ​Theisen-Eaton.​ ​“And​ ​she​ ​basically​ ​told​ ​me,​ ​‘Yes.​ ​Delaying​ ​retirement​ ​is​ ​not​ ​going​ ​to prevent​ ​these​ ​feelings​ ​from​ ​happening.​ ​If​ ​you​ ​do​ ​the​ ​2017​ ​season,​ ​you​ ​wouldn’t​ ​be​ ​doing​ ​something​ ​you loved,​ ​you​ ​might​ ​be​ ​miserable,​ ​wishing​ ​you​ ​were​ ​doing​ ​something​ ​else,​ ​and​ ​you​ ​would​ ​just​ ​have​ ​to​ ​deal with​ ​creating​ ​a​ ​new​ ​identity​ ​at​ ​the​ ​end​ ​of​ ​2017.​ ​So​ ​why​ ​waste​ ​a​ ​year​ ​when​ ​you​ ​could​ ​be​ ​doing​ ​other stuff​ ​now?’

“As soon as she said that, I was like, ‘That makes total sense.’ The decision was made at that point to move on.”

But after Brianne hung up her spikes, javelins, and shots, there were no more athletic struggles, breakthroughs, highs, or lows to be shared—but there was still a website that needed content.

“When I decided to retire, I was sitting there and Ashton said, ‘What are you most passionate about? Why don't you follow that route for a while?’” she said. “I love food and I love cooking, and I think I can make it simple like we've made it very simple. I didn't feel like we sacrificed much on taste or not being able to have a treat every now and then. I made things in healthier ways, and I feel like I'd like to share that with people.”

Cue the relaunched site—same URL, but now simply branded “eaton.” The new site features healthy recipes alongside posts from Brianne and guest posts from other notable athletes. Want to see how Olympic silver medalist Evan Jager trains and what he eats in a week? Want a healthy recipe for chicken fingers? Want marathon training and fueling tips from two-time Olympian Kara Goucher? Want to search for recipes tailored to your specific dietary needs? Want advice on what to shop for in the grocery store? The site contains a little bit of everything, much like an online healthy lifestyle version of a heptathlon.

Theisen-Eaton’s recipes are a combination of meals she and Ashton make—they love chicken fingers, pie, lasagna, and burgers—and meals she sees and decides to find healthy ways of replicating.

“You need to eat what makes you happy, but is there a way that you can make it a little bit healthier?” she said. “Can you have a turkey burger instead of a bacon cheeseburger? Could you do it in a lettuce wrap instead of a bun? Don't totally take away all the stuff you really enjoy eating.”

Naturally, the trial and error nature of cooking has involved plenty of error. There were cakes that resembled bricks. Chicken lettuce wraps that were made with the wrong syrup. And, legendarily, a beef stroganoff in college that came out inedible when Theisen-Eaton used tablespoons of Tabasco sauce instead of drops.

“It was brutal,” she admitted. “That was my biggest cooking failure ever, I think. They still talk about that, and say no one could eat it.”

Not even Ashton, who has been known to eat Brianne’s brick-like cake misfires.

All recipes are created in the Eatons’ kitchen, and Theisen-Eaton photographs the food in a spare room—quickly, if it’s something like ice cream or a smoothie that could melt, though some shoots have taken the better part of an hour. In Eugene, the photos were taken in an upstairs bedroom with a north-facing wall, though the couple have recently moved to San Francisco, so the studio will have to be “rebuilt.”

“In San Francisco we have a two bedroom, one-story apartment,” she said. “I’m sick of carrying food up the stairs constantly and setting it all up.”

But long term, Theisen-Eaton’s goals are loftier than just helping people save 200 calories and 10 grams of sugar when they prepare chicken lettuce wraps. She wants to improve the way we all eat, all the time.

“My mom and my aunts are constantly dieting,” Theisen-Eaton said. “They’re dieting and losing weight and then gaining weight back and are not able to eat something at Christmas parties because it’s not in their diet. I’m sick of the diet pills and losing weight, the ‘lose five pounds a week’ and stuff like that. Ashton and I have found a really nice lifestyle balance where we can enjoy food and eat what we want. I just want everybody to be able to eat food and not feel guilty about it. I want to help them find a balanced lifestyle, and understand what food is good and what is bad.

That latter point is easier said than done due to certain FDA policies, but Theisen-Eaton is undeterred.

“The FDA requires food companies to put how many grams of sugar are in things, but not how many grams are in added sugar,” she said. “Pasta sauce and marinara, for example, are full of added sugar. [Note: added sugar is, essentially, pure calories added. Lactose and fructose, the two naturally occurring sugars, are also accompanied by other important nutrients which, when combined together, are less likely to lead to overeating and spikes in blood sugar levels.] That knowledge is important because it’s your health. If you’re eating something filled with chemicals that a food company has labeled ‘100 percent whole grain,’ you might read on the back that it’s full of sugar.

“Major food companies frustrate me. They’re making all of this money on screwing up people’s health. I’ve seen it with my own family members, and I don’t think it should be allowed to keep happening. Hopefully I can get involved with trying to change some of these policies, but for now I’m just educating people so that they can take care of themselves.”

- Damian Foley
Assistant director of marketing and communications

All photos courtesy Brianne Theisen-Eaton