Taryn Kloth and Kristen Nuss are basically a package deal: They’re partners in beach volleyball, roommates in Louisiana, and even wear matching PJ’s to bed. And together, they completed the journey to the 2024 Paris Olympics—though it wasn’t an easy one. It started almost four years ago when they met at LSU and first started playing together.
“It was then that we decided that Paris 2024 was at the top of our list, Kloth says. “We had zero international points to our name and everyone kept saying we should probably break up and play with someone else. We didn’t like what people were saying and said no, we’re gonna make our own path and rewrite the script.”
Even the director of USA volleyball suggested the two split up. But it was their friendship (that’s more like a sisterhood) that kept them together.
“We had to seize the moment,” Nuss says. “When one of us gets a gut feeling, it’s kind of an unwritten rule between us that we have to listen to that person. No questions asked.”
That gut feeling is what got them a spot to represent Team USA in Women’s Beach Volleyball in their first Olympic games. Here are four things Kloth and Nuss rely on when they’re not dominating on the beach.
4 must-haves Taryn Kloth and Kristen Nuss use to succeed off the sand
1. Their favorite hydration
Kloth and Nuss never leave the house without water. Staying hydrated is important whether you’re an Olympic athlete or not, but the heat and humidity of Louisiana sure doesn’t help.
“Being in Louisiana and it being so hot, we never leave without it,” Kloth says. Their favorite hydration products are Kaged Electrolytes, Gatorade Zero packets and Propel Raspberry Lemonade powder.
“Drinking plain water sometimes does get old, so having it flavored is ideal, ” Kloth says.
“I drink one of each at least once a day, sometimes twice if it’s really hot. We’re definitely very well hydrated with lots of electrolytes,” Nuss says.
2. DIY massages
The Olympic beach volleyball players train hard on the sand and in the gym. Their favorite way to recover is getting a massage, but if that’s not possible, they’ve got tools at home to get the job done. Normatec boots and the massage gun by Hyperice are their go-tos.
“We’ll use these products after a hard practice. We’ll come home and use them while we’re watching TV and feeling exhausted,” Kloth says.
3. Ninja Creami
The Ninja Creami is one of the hottest kitchen appliances on the market right now—and for good reason. Imagine having a fresh, ice cream shop–worthy dessert with the press of a button. And there are so many Ninja Creami recipes to choose from, you’ll never run out of new ways to whip up a fresh frozen dessert.
“It turns basically anything into ice cream. So we turn our Fairlife protein shakes into ice cream,” Kloth says. “At night we eat our ice cream and sit on the couch in our Normatec boots.”
4. Matching pajamas
Kloth and Nuss don’t spend much time apart, besides holidays when visiting family. That’s when they coincidentally got the idea to start wearing matching pajamas.
“We spend two weeks apart for Christmas, and while on Christmas vacation both of us had the idea to order the other person pajamas,” Kloth says. “When we got back to Louisiana we exchanged presents and they were both pajamas.”
Now it’s a competition tradition for Kloth and Nuss to wear matching pj’s on the nights before competition. They have several different sets, and alternate which pj’s to wear each night.
“As long as the pj’s are silky, soft, and comfortable,” Kloth says.
You can catch Taryn Kloth and Kristen Nuss competing in Women’s Beach Volleyball on July 27. NBCUniversal is the official U.S. broadcaster for the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics, but you you can also watch on Peacock, NBCOlympics.com, NBC.com, USA Network, CNBC, and E!
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