Dan Benardot is an Associate Professor in the Department of Nutrition and an Associate Professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Health at Georgia State University, and he co-directs the Laboratory for Elite Athlete Performance at Georgia State University.
Benardot received his doctorate in human nutrition and health planning from Cornell University in 1980, and he received a Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa, in 2002 from Marywood University for his work in the area of sports nutrition.

He is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine, and a Registered Dietitian. His research focus on energy balance and related issues in competitive athletes has been funded by the United States Olympic Committee, the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, the Georgia Research Foundation, and the American Cancer Society. His findings in the area of within-day energy balance have been published in highly regarded professional journals and have been presented at national and international conferences. He authored ?Nutrition for Serious Athletes? (Human Kinetics Publisher © 2000, 336 pgs), was editor-in-chief of ?Sports Nutrition: A Guide for the Professional Working with Active People, 2nd edition? (American Dietetic Association © 1993, 335 pgs), and co-authored ?The ACSM Fitness Book ? 3rd Edition? (Human Kinetics Publisher © 2003, 175 pgs). Dr. Benardot's latest book ?Advanced Sports Nutrition [(c) 2006, 341 pgs]? has just been published by Human Kinetics. He is co-author of the American and Canadian Dietetic Association position paper on ?Physical Fitness and Athletic Performance for Adults? (1993), and has authored numerous refereed journal publications. Benardot is on the editorial board for ACSM?s Health and Fitness Journal, and is a manuscript reviewer for The Journal of the American Dietetic Association, The International Journal of Sport Nutrition & Exercise Metabolism, and for Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.

Dr. Benardot was the first American appointed to the Medical Commission of the international governing body for gymnastics (Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique), is an officer/member of the Sports Medicine Society for United States Figure Skating, and was a founding member of the Athlete Wellness Committee for USA Gymnastics. In 1993 he received the Sports and Cardiovascular Nutrition (SCAN) achievement award, in 1995 he was initiated into the Alumni Honor Roll for the State University System of New York, and in 1996 USA Gymnastics presented him with the Outstanding Educator Award. Dr. Benardot was in charge of the nutritional health of the gold-medal winning United States Gymnastics Team at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, and was nutritionist for the medal-winning USA marathoners at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.