Responsibilities
Rachel Higginson holds a Master’s in Public Health, is a Registered Dietitian, and a Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics. She founded the sports nutrition program and Nutrition Center for BYU Athletics—a dedicated space that fuels and supports student-athletes with performance-driven meals and recovery-focused nutrition.
Rachel currently oversees BYU’s sports nutrition team, which includes sports dietitians and student employees. The sports nutrition program offers a range of individualized services through on-site nutrition labs, including sweat and hydration testing, body composition analysis, bone density screening, and dermal carotenoid scanning as a non-invasive indicator of fruit and vegetable intake.
In addition to overseeing these services, Rachel educates student-athletes on making informed food choices to enhance performance and build sustainable, lifelong habits. She teaches Health 201 and provides both team-based and individual nutrition education on topics such as performance fueling and recovery, weight management, meal planning, travel nutrition, and medical nutrition therapy for conditions like celiac disease, food allergies, nutrient deficiencies, eating disorders, and diabetes.
Years at BYU
- 2006-Present
Education
- Master's in Public Health from BYU, 2023
- BS in Dietetics from BYU, 2003
Prior to BYU
- Clinical Dietitian at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center
- Wellness/Clinical Dietitian at the Central Utah Clinic and Provo Canyon School
- Completed a one-year internship at Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria, Illinois
Personal
- Resides in Spanish Fork, Utah, with her husband Kevin and their son Ty and daughter Ava
- When she is not at work, Rachel enjoys spending time with her family, cooking, hiking, camping, fishing, gardening, practicing Pilates, and yoga.
- Hometown: Rapid City, South Dakota