It’s a pleasure to be writing this blog to the entire Juice Plus+ community! My name is Solomon Simmons, I am (most importantly) a Christian, a husband, a brother, a financier, and an Olympic hopeful! I compete in the decathlon for the United States of America Track and Field. I’m aiming to bring back hardware for the US in the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games. I hope you’ll follow my Olympic journey by following Solo_Simmons on Instagram. Equally as important, I am striving for excellence on and off the track in 2021.
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How long has Juice Plus+ been part of your health routine?
I have been using Juice Plus+ products for the past 2 years after my wife, who is a Juice Plus+ Partner, introduced me to the product. I incorporate Juice Plus+ Fruit, Berry, Vegetable, and Omega Blend in my daily routine. My wife, Lindsey, has been a partner with Juice Plus+ for over six years. Her family’s health was positively impacted when they added more whole food plant-based nutrition into their diet. It is a product that is very close to my family’s heart and health journey so now I am excited to carry the torch and have the opportunity to take Juice Plus+ with me to Tokyo!
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How has 2020 impacted your mindset for 2021?
I feel that the entire world is united by excitement to leave 2020 in the past but as a natural optimist, I gained so much experience from a difficult season. 2020 brought me some of the highest highs, such as getting married and partnering with Juice Plus+, along with some of the lowest lows, including the pandemic and the Olympic season being postponed. This past year brought so much injustice into the forefront of the American mind. Much of the American sub-culture was brought to national attention with the BLM movements amongst such political unrest. As an African American man, I was mortified watching these events but became overwhelmed by the coming together of thousands in person and millions over social media in the middle of the global pandemic. Personally, I am confident in God’s ability to redeem the brokenness many have seen for the first time this year, and that many have experienced for years. Nonetheless, my mindset has been honed by everything that has happened in 2020. I am more dedicated to use my platform to speak truth through my experience with positivity, love, and joy.
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What keeps you motivated in these uncertain times?
One word: Legacy. My father is a plumber and a business owner. My mother is an artist, photographer, and business owner as well. My grandfather was the first black doctor in his New York hospital, a concert level tenor, and 2x cancer survivor. My family beat generational odds that I can’t even grasp. It’s now a pleasure to take on the task of leading my family to heights only achievable because I stand on the shoulders of the men and women who came before me. Also, I really do have so much fun while out on the track either in competition or practice. As the great Eric Liddell said, “I believe God made me for a purpose, but He also made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure”.
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How have you stayed ready with the Olympics being postponed?
Like most, it forced a huge change in my training plan. But change is something I embrace. It honestly forced me to slow down, in a great way. I had the time to address nagging injuries, focus on weak events in the decathlon and enjoy the “slower” things in life like gardening! My wife is a huge plant person, which lead to our house getting flooded with indoor plants and getting a Tower Garden! My wife is a health coach, so she’s been acting as my personal chef and dietitian. Olympic journeys live and die by what we can get out of training and you can only get out what you have in it. That being said, fueling my internal engine properly is nearly as important as the workouts themselves. Fortunately, my wife is always providing the best nutrition an Olympian can hope for. Sadly, we haven’t had a harvest from our Tower Garden yet, but we are excited to add fresh, homegrown veggies into my diet! I also took the year to reunite with my legendary coach, Andy Eggerth. Since moving to Texas to train and being reunited with my coach, I have had a laser focus on the first step of making the Olympic team, which is the decathlon taking place at the Olympic trials in Eugene, Oregon on June 18th.
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2020 has been the year of extra downtime, how have you used that time?
Like most, 2020 has given back so much time. My wife and I found ourselves working from home and have been blessed to get back the time spent in cars commuting. We have loved the benefit of sharing lunch each day, sleeping in, and taking on a few hobbies. My mother raised me to have a green thumb, always having a garden in the back yard. My wife has a natural love for plants, so our home has become overrun with monsteras, pathos, jades, and succulents. Additionally, I’ve been able to use the spare time to grow closer to my family that I have been away from while training.
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What kind of New Year's resolutions does an Olympian have?
I think the new year is a great point for self-reflection. My family is not big on resolutions, but my wife’s is. My goals are less number specific and more qualitive, including philanthropy, community service, and athletic goals. My focus this year is inspired from the Bible. I aim to listen better, reflect, and act upon what I have learned from scripture.
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How will Juice Plus+ help fuel your 2021 goals?
One of my main goals for 2021 is to focus on my overall health. I believe that the most important “thing” a product can do is supply clean support for my body to do what it does naturally. Everything within Juice Plus+’s product line is about providing whole food nutrition in a capsule. I choose Juice Plus+ because it’s never claimed to be a cure for a bad diet or magic pill that will alone put me on the next level athletically. Juice Plus+’s products are clean and provide a solid foundation of health that my Olympic campaign will be built on. The diet of this Olympic hopeful is very simple and clean, wanting to eat as processed-free as possible. Juice Plus+ gives me that support of micronutrients which assist my body to do what it was made to do- to jump farther and run faster!
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How do you keep your edge/mindset through uncertainty?
I have to be honest, my mindset (and athletic ability) is only where it is because I’m free. By free, I mean that I don’t hold my worth or identity in what I can or cannot do. I am free to perform without the weight of my own self-conscious holding me down. As an athlete, I get tense and lose sight of my “why” just like everyone else. When this happens, I tend to lean on the words of powerful people and stories of those that have come before me. A few specific points that help keep me grounded when tension is high, or when I see myself worrying about “this or that” are the words in the bible. I turn to stories such as that of Timothy in 1 Timothy 6:11, “But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.”
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How has your approach to training and life changed over the course of 2020?
2020 has caused me, like many people, to be refined. My athletic schedule has not been withheld from that. In my training and personal life, I’ve made specific changes to get the best out of myself on such a critical year. In training, we are always evolving thanks to my Coach. He builds a program to attack specific weaknesses in each of his athletes and bolster the strengths. He is a decathlon specialist and a tactful coach who takes every training detail into consideration. The largest evolution that has happened in my personal life is getting married. Learning how to incorporate my wife into this Olympic journey has its challenges, but she has been my biggest advocate by moving wherever training requires, guiding my nutrition, and being the support I need on and off the track. Change always forces a response; Through injuries, failures, and mentors, I’ve become extremely flexible in training, my expectations, and relationships, which has allowed development. At the end of the day, I believe that every change we go through is for our benefit. The obstacles we face can teach us how to enjoy the process and gives us the opportunity to grow.
I am very excited to kick off this journey with the support of Juice Plus+ and the community behind it! I look forward to sharing my Olympic dreams with you all and hope you get a closer look at my journey by following me on Instagram @Solo_Simmons. I wish you all the best in health and a happy new year!
