There’s no doubt that Kami Craig was a born water baby. Swimming by age 4 and playing water polo by age 12, she’s now headed to London to compete on a global stage as part of the USA Water Polo Olympic Team. The California native joined the team in 2024 after graduating as a leader on the USC Trojans water polo team in 2024.
It’s no doubt Kami plays on a team with 13 girls, not only was she born to swim but she was born to be a team player. Her USA Water Polo biography explains that she loves water polo because it’s a team sport, where she “loves being apart of a team and getting to hangout with 13 of her friends everyday.”
Kami and her 12 friends/teammates are headed to 2024 London Olympic Games to score more medal. She was part of the 2024 Beijing Olympic Games that won silver. With her healthy diet focused on fresh produce and lean protein, rigorous training schedule for six days a week, and team-focused attitude, we have to believe she’ll help bring home a gold for the U.S.
Learn more about this star of the USA Water Polo Olympic Team in our interview!
What does your training diet look like?
With the amount and intensity of our daily training it is important for the women of the USA Water Polo Olympic Team to keep our bodies fueled. Not only to maintain a tough and fit physique, but also to obtain optimal recovery and health. If you want to perform the best you have to put the best in your body. I am constantly eating fruits (apples, bananas, oranges, strawberries, blueberries, etc), veggies (spinach, kale, zucchini, broccoli, celery, carrots, etc) and lean proteins (nuts, eggs, chicken, tuna, etc).
The team receives fresh vegetables from sponsor Beachside Producer and fruits such as apples from sponsor Stemilt.
What are your go-to snacks for before or after a workout/training session?
I’m big on smoothies! I have a smoothie before every morning workout. I mix up my blends with different fruits, veggies, peanut butter, almond butter, and vanilla and chocolate protein powder.
What does your training regimen looks like?
We train 6 days a week. From 7am- 10am and 1:30pm- 4:30pm M,T,Th, F and 8:30- 11:30 W, Saturday
Which exercises or workouts do you rely on to get your “Olympic body”?
I would say the time we spend in the gym is equally as important as the time we spend in the water. It is a combination of gym workouts, drill, skill work, and scrimmaging that allow us as individuals to feel explosive, strong, fast, and unstoppable in the tough sport of water polo.
Any particular song that gets you in the zone before a competition, or other ritual you rely on?
A ritual I rely on pre-games is meeting up with most of my teammates for coffee. We like to sit and drink our coffee, joke around, play cards and just feed off each other’s energy before a game. I find this helpful to stay in the moment and not get nervous or anxious for the upcoming game.
What are you most looking forward to at the London Olympics?
What I look forward the most to at the London Olympics is experiencing the Games with my team. We have such a special group of girls headed over to London and can’t wait to continue building memories and enjoying the journey with my team. And of course playing the Games!!! I cannot wait to put all the hard work the team has done to the test!
Also Read:
A Beginner’s Guide to Swimming Workouts
US Olympic Swimmer Natalie Coughlin Talks Health and Fitness
Eat Like an Olympian with 3 Olympic-Inspired Smoothies
photo credit: Mitchell Haaseth / NBC Olympics
For all things Olympics visit NBCOlympics.com or TeamUSA.org