In the Quality Time series, we’ll be featuring Q&As with our accomplished chef partners, notable food industry figures, and more. From kitchen life to family dynamics to embarrassing moments, anything is on the table.Professional track & field athlete Magnolia Howell is chasing her dream. The Trinidad & Tobago National Team member recently relocated to Made In's home base of Austin, Texas in order to train with one of the world's best coaches. Her goal? Finally qualifying for the Olympics after narrowly missing the cut previously. We caught up with Magnolia to learn about her training, her diet, the process of qualifying for the Olympics, and more.
Which Olympic events are you training for specifically?
"I'm training for the 400m and the 200m, but the 400m specifically is where I have my focus on. I want to not only make the Olympic team, but to break the record in Trinidad & Tobago for their 400m."
How does one qualify for a track & field event at the Olympics?
"The process of making an Olympic team (once you've made a country national team) is that you train 4 years for your country's Olympic trials, which I competed in back in 2012 and 2016. After qualifying for trials, you have to make it down three rounds. There's prelims, semifinals, and finals, and you have to be top 4 in finals to qualify for the Olympic team. So I've made it down the rounds to finals but I haven't made the team, and this is my last effort. It's crazy because it's 12 years of my life for 50 seconds of a race (for the 400m)."
Just how intense is the training regimen of an Olympic hopeful?
"We train 5 days a week. Normally the training sessions are weights and then we have the track afterwards, so that could be like a 5 hour day. Sometimes we'll train 6 days a week depending on what our coach requires from us."
Wow! You work out more in one week than I have in the past 5 years combined... What do you do to recover after a five-hour training session?
"It can be a variety of different recovery systems. Sometimes we'll do ice baths, sometimes it'll be cryo, magnesium salt baths... Sometimes we'll have a therapist at the track, and I also have my own massage therapist. Recovery and diet combined are like 75% of the game."
What impact are Made In products having on your routine as you train for the Olympics?
Timing is something I look at with training this much, as I don't have a ton of time to cook. I want to be able to cook healthy food at a rate that is fast, but also one where my food still tastes good. Made In's cookware has a great system where everything is heated quickly and evenly and it's well-balanced so I don't have to worry when I'm rushing in the morning that like 'this part of my eggs is cooked and this part isn't.' It feels like I spent hours on a meal even though it only took a few minutes because of the quality of the cookware.
Can you speak a little more to how Made In's quality adds more time to your day?
"I used to have a problem where I'd be in a rush and I'd start cleaning a pan then think, 'I'll deal with this later.' Then I'd come home and have to deal with that mess after thinking about it all day. Whereas now, with my Made In Non Stick Frying Pan, I can cook my food quick, it's done in a few minutes, then I can take a napkin and wipe the whole thing off and I'm done."
"Having cookware that lends itself to efficiency, I would equate that to almost like having a good pair of running shoes or having a good pair of spikes. If you don't have a good pair of running shoes, it doesn't matter how fast you are. Even if you're the fastest in the world, someone who has a really good pair of running shoes AND they're really fast will run faster. People think about quality in other areas, but sometimes with cookware people can have a nonchalance (as I used to have about it). The cookware that you use to make your food is as important, if not more important, than your shoes or tights because it elevates your diet and recovery."
"I was really interested in working with Made In because their products are the best that I've seen thus far, both in regards to the way the food is cooked in it and how quickly I'm able to cook it as well."
We're so happy we're able to help you out on your journey! Okay, last but not least: If you were to cheat on your strict diet, what would be your cheat meal?
"If I were to have a go-to splurge food or eat badly, I would say In-N-Out."
Want to save time cooking and cleaning like Magnolia? Check out our trusty line of Non Stick Frying Pans.
