Extraordinary Health Magazine EHMagazine Vol 38_Final | Page 31

“Players already have to deal with an enormous amount of stress, so it’s important to pump good
nutrition into your body and for that reason, Garden of Life has been awesome,” says Elliott.
It’s no wonder the tennis world continues to take notice of the
fight within this champion. But the road hasn’t always been serve
and volley.
“This was a fulfilling year, but in the past, I did struggle and
actually took two and half months off from tennis season,
doubting whether to continue,” says Davis, who credits playing
for the wrong reasons for the burnout she experienced. “I put a
lot of pressure on myself and my ranking dropped, so it was an
uphill battle to get my mojo back.”
With help from coach Eddie Elliott and a whole lot of
introspection, Davis found her way back to the heart of the court.
“Time off makes you appreciate what you have, and Eddie helped
me to regain and find the love I had for tennis once again,” says
Davis. “I was forced to look for that in myself and realize that at
the end of my life, I want to look back and see that I have made
use of the God-given talents I’ve received.”
In addition to beating Kerber at Wimbledon, Davis’ memorable
experiences since her tennis rebirth include being center court
at the Australian Open, which to this day is one of her most
enjoyable matches.
“It was just such a really cool experience, playing my best tennis
and fully expressing myself, and though there were several match
points I didn’t convert, it was a really good game,” says Davis, who
possesses an enviable backhand.
Australia is a meaningful place for Davis. It claims the top spot as
her favorite place to travel, not just for the tennis, but for the ease
in which it delivers a healthful lifestyle.
“The food is amazing in Australia, clean, and organic, with salads
and acai bowls on every corner, which is not the case at many
tournament locations,” says Davis. “It’s tough eating clean on the
road and you have to really make an effort, like taking an Uber to
a vegan or organic restaurant.”
Davis steers clear of processed food, something coach Elliott
champions both for his player and in his own life. Davis credits
Elliott with helping her take a healthful lifestyle to new heights.
“The smallest detail can give you an edge and might cause you to
win one more round,” says Davis, who takes probiotics, turmeric,
green superfoods and mykind Elderberry Gummies. “I’ve noticed
I don’t get sick as often and I recover faster after matches and in
between matches, and I have a sense of a more sustainable form
of energy.”
Coach Elliott helped Davis improve her game exponentially, but a big
part of her advancement was how Elliott encouraged Davis to take
care of her spirit. The tennis coach known as much for his inspiring
nature as his skillset, recognized a fighter beneath the frustration.
“Lauren has an unbelievable fight in her, so part of our path
was getting her to realize her strengths and that no one could
take that away from her – because she was already a top athlete
and there was no reason she couldn’t go higher,” says Elliott.
“As a coach you are looking for the strengths of your player,
understanding what makes a player tick and making sure the
player knows themselves.”
Elliott fondly recalls something he learned from his father, in that
the farthest difference is between knowing and doing.
“You can talk the talk, but if you haven’t made that connection
of understanding, it’s not going to work, so it’s better if there is a
natural progression towards what your player is striving to be and
that path has to match,” says Elliott. “We have had an awesome
year with Lauren’s hard work resulting in her rankings going from
260 to 150 and into the 60s, so we look forward to continuing that
momentum and that focus.”
For Elliott, connecting the spiritual self with the body is in the
bloodline. He comes from a family of missionaries and attributes
how he helps others handle tough situations to his parents.
The values he learned from his parents help Elliott to be there
for Davis along her journey. The world of tennis may look shiny
on television between grand slams and traveling 40 weeks
out of the year, but Elliott says players need a team. Elliott’s
philosophy on coaching is a holistic approach. He advocates for
clean and organic supplements and says if athletes aren’t careful
to avoid processed food, the body will break down and build up
inflammation, leading stress to jump in.
“Players already have to deal with an enormous amount of stress,
so it’s important to pump good nutrition into your body and for
that reason, Garden of Life has been awesome,” says Elliott, who
helps Lauren rise above the typical nutrition challenges with
recovery meals and other nutrient supplements. In the preseason,
Davis and Elliott will train two-five hours a day, which requires
good fuel that won’t hurt the body. It can get complicated, so
Elliott advises keeping to simple examples of clean eating, whole
foods and avoid processed food and white sugar.
“The biggest thing about diet is sustainability and if zero to 100
works for you, great. But if you will hate yourself in a week, it is
better to consistently draw you to where you want to be,” says
Elliott, who works with WOW Sports Agency as Davis’ full-time
coach. “I’m a big advocate of the active lifestyle, so there should
not be a negative connotation to fitness–as much as you can,
make it enjoyable–go rollerblading by the beach, surf in the
afternoon, jump into a fun class like yoga.”
Elliott is a dedicated fly angler who has Lauren begin her
preseason training at higher altitudes engaging in activities.
“When you come back to sea level, your lungs are in great shape
and there is an inspirational factor to that part of training.”
Elliott’s go-to Garden of Life products include apple or chocolate
flavor Perfect Food ® super greens, Dr. Formulated CBD Relax
and CBD Sleep to help adjust to various time zones. For immune
support, like Lauren, he takes mykind Organics Elderberry
Gummies and uses the Vitamin C spray daily.
Follow along with Davis’ journey @laurend1092 and
Eddie Elliott @eddie_elliott both on Instagram.
Extraordinary Health ™ • Vol 38 29