Your Sports Nutrition Marketing Sucks

Aug 28

Your Diet Sucks is back, and today Zoë and Kylee are diving into the Wild Wild West of sports nutrition marketing, where sugar is the enemy, ketones are “tactical,” and somehow, gels need to be labeled “guilt-free.”

In this episode, we break down how sports nutrition marketing plays on fear, misinformation, and diet culture to sell products that may or may not actually improve performance. From buzzwords like “clean” and “sugar-free” to influencer-driven carb paranoia, we unpack the tactics brands use to stoke confusion and push pseudoscience.

We also dig into the shaky science behind metabolism-boosting formulas, carb-phobic electrolyte mixes, and bold promises of “GI distress-proof” products (because let’s be real, burritos happen).

Most importantly, we show you what does matter when choosing sports nutrition products, so you can fuel smarter without getting duped by marketing hype.

Zoë Rom

Zoë Rom is a science and environmental journalist with bylines in The New York Times, Outside, and High Country News. She co-hosts Your Diet Sucks, an evidence-based nutrition and wellness podcast, with registered dietitian Kylee Van Horn, RDN, where they investigate how wellness culture distorts science and how athletes can do better. A Colorado-based ultrarunner, she finished second at the Leadville Trail 100 and top five at Run Rabbit Run 100. Her reporting and commentary focus on the intersection of sport, science, and the wellness industry's long history of selling women their own anxieties.