#PTonICE Podcast A Clinician's Guide to Nutrition Strategy
Apr 9, 2026
Dr. Madison Johnston, researcher and clinician focused on nutrition strategy and human performance. She shares practical fueling tactics for travel and meets. She explains choosing certifications, moving from aesthetics to performance coaching, and when to refer complex cases. She outlines simple plate templates, protein targets, and behavior-change approaches for clinicians and athletes.
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Carry On Cooler For Meets
- Madison often travels with a cooler to control protein sources when competing, bringing cooked chicken or sirloin plus microwave rice and veggies for hotel dinners.
- She learned the hard way that TSA will confiscate egg whites and sometimes Greek yogurt, so packing depends on travel mode and duration.
From Working Against Gravity To Research
- Madison started with a popular private certification (Working Against Gravity) to learn macros and basic coaching while doing strength training and grad school.
- She used herself as a lab, combined certification tools with coaching, and later dug into research during her PhD for nuance.
Different Camps Need Different Nutrition
- Two common client archetypes need different nutrition approaches: sedentary people needing health guidance and active CrossFitters at risk of underfueling.
- Social media messaging is noisy, so evidence-based nuance is required to match energy needs to activity level.