Olympic athlete Sarah Lindsay, 42, reveals crazy diet eating steak for breakfast

Londoner Sarah Lindsay made her debut for the Great Britain team at the Winter Olympics in 1996 before competing on two more occasions as a professional short track speed skater.

Born in Kingston upon Thames, the former athlete last represented Britain in the Olympics in 2010 after which she became the British Ladies Champion for nine consecutive years.

Now 42, Sarah runs several Roar Fitness gyms and helps everyone stay healthy from Made in Chelsea’s Sophie Hermann and Strictly pro Katya Jones to Spice Girl Mel C.

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In an interview with MailOnline , the Olympian revealed how she keeps in shape saying the most common misconception she faces as a retired athlete is that it “must be easy for her” to stay fit.

Prior to retiring, she used to train up to eight hours a day and eat 6,000 calories. Sarah said: “We trained six to eight hours per day, most days for 11 months of the year so I ate constantly. It was a full-time job and I was always worried that I’d run out of energy and not be able to perform in training or not be able to recover in time for the next session, so I was hitting around 6,000 calories on training days and 4,000 on rest days.

“Every meal contained plenty of carbs and protein and then I’d make up the rest of my calories from fat when I was full up. It sounds like a lot of food but almost half of those calories were in my post-workout shakes and snack twice a day.”

Now that Sarah is no longer a professional athlete, she trains in the gym several times a week and has changed her diet accordingly.

“I train in the gym three times a week now with varying goals,” she said. “I do one to two Roar Classes a week, and I make sure I walk every day, usually in the morning before or on the way to work.

“I am well educated in nutrition which I think helps me make good, healthy food choices and I tend to save my treats and alcohol for social occasions and also travelling rather than at home.”

A typical day for Sarah includes having eggs or steak with spinach for breakfast followed by chicken, potato and vegetables for lunch. After the gym, she usually drinks a post-workout shake and snacks on some fruit. For dinner, the former Olympian likes to have sea bass with salad and, as a snack, she will let herself drink a couple of coffees early in the day and eat a few squares of dark chocolate after dinner.

She said: “I enjoy a fairly busy social life and like to enjoy the moment and I want to indulge in new food experiences when I’m in different countries so I keep things pretty healthy at home.

The fitness junkie admitted that the quality of her food remains the top priority when choosing what to eat before adding that it took her body some time to adjust to her new lifestyle after changing careers.

“I gained a lot of muscle when I retired,” Sarah said. “But since then I have opened three of my own gyms so although I don’t have the same time to focus on training, I am a little spoilt for facilities and equipment. I have no excuses.”