How Olympic Speed Skater Shani Davis Relies on 'World of Warcraft'

I start my day with a nice bowl of oatmeal—Quaker Oats or steel-cut—with a bit of honey, butter and some good water. I have a special machine, an Enagic LeveLuk SD501, that creates water with a pH of 9.0 and lots of electrolytes. I also have a TYgo Portable Alkalizer that enhances water and lowers its acidity. It might not be important, but I like it.

My favorite game is “World of Warcraft.” In the off-season, I could play it for hours on end. Now it’s important to get to bed early to get that recovery so I wake up feeling energetic. I also play “FIFA 18” with some of my friends on the Xbox One. It’s very frustrating losing. I have some good friends who really like to get on my nerves because they’re so good. Sometimes I look at YouTube videos to try to learn how to make my game a little better.

I love to bake, so sometimes I go on YouTube and look up how to make random things, like treats from Korea or Canadian holiday cookies. Normally I stick to the recipe unless I see some ingredients I don’t really like. I love my KitchenAid Stand Mixer. I bought one a long time ago, and whenever I bust that thing out it’s time for serious baking.

I always listen to the All Out Show on Sirius XM. Host Rude Jude is just insane. It’s a music-slash-entertainment show where he interviews celebrities, rappers, musicians, porn stars…the guy does it all. He can be really cool, but he knows how to get under your skin. He’s very honest. And if he feels a certain way, he’s going to tell you.

For running drills, I have this app called Interval Timer. You can program how long you want to run, how long you want to rest and how many intervals you want to do. When it’s time to go hard, the app makes whatever sound you like. When it’s time to rest, it blares again.

—Edited from an interview by Chris Kornelis