The heroic background stories of our favorite Olympic athletes are all well and good, but what does the public really want to know?

What in the world do those super-human sport machines eat?
 

Thankfully, CNN answers our most burning question with an overview of Olympic star diets:
 

“If carb-loading were an Olympic competition, U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps would probably medal there, too. His day starts with three cheese-tomato-onion-fried egg sandwiches, an omelet, three powdered-sugar-covered slices of French toast, a bowl of grits and three chocolate chip pancakes to top it off, according to news reports…

[Sports nutritionist] Clark described a typical gymnast's daily menu: a breakfast of cereal, milk and a banana; a lunch of a sandwich and soup; snacks of trail mix, energy bars and fruit; and a dinner of  chicken, rice and vegetables.

A weight lifter, Clark said, would eat the same kinds of things, but in larger quantities and with more of a focus on protein. Add eggs and yogurt to the gymnast's breakfast, and multiply the portions of all of the meals -- piles of rice, vegetables and two or three pieces of chicken for dinner.
   

Dinner for the long-distance runner would be carbs -- potatoes, rice, bread -- with some protein -- salmon, chicken, lean beef -- and vegetables mixed in, [Tara Gidus, dietician for the Orlando Magic] said.”
 

With 66 percent of the U.S. population overweight and 32 percent obese, it’s no wonder Americans have a love of affair with Michael Phelps.

Everyone wants to be like Mike and it’s not because of the gold medals, but rather the sweet, sweet taste of French toast AND pancakes in the morning.