Training Secrets of
Olympians to Help You Stay Fit
Provided
by American
Council on Exercise
While you
may not be suiting up to compete in the Paris Olympics, non-Olympians like you
and me can learn a lot from the world class athletes who are. The same process
that helps these champions hone their bodies and minds to set world records can
actually help non-Olympians improve their health, fitness and overall
well-being. From the importance of coaching to effective recovery strategies,
these training secrets can take your fitness to the next level.
Prior
to the Sydney Olympics in 2000, I had the opportunity to work with Olympic
hopefuls as a resident intern strength and conditioning coach at the ARCO
Olympic Training Facility in San Diego, Calif. Many of the basic principles I
learned living, eating and training with these “superhumans” for an entire year
continue to impact my approach to health, fitness and performance.
Whether
your life mission is to bring home the gold or just to feel great into your
golden years, these training secrets of Olympic athletes can help you create
and sustain lifelong health habits and empower you to become a “super” version
of yourself.
Get a Coach
Despite
being blessed with unimaginably rare talent and work ethic, Olympic athletes
turn to a coach to help them weather the storms of training and competition. In
addition to expertise, a coach provides critical outside perspective,
accountability and motivation. This mentor also provides a soundboard for
insights, frustrations and questions.
If
the most talented, motivated athletes in the world turn to a coach to help keep
them on track, it’s safe to say that everyone could benefit from this type of
mentorship. Hiring a coach, whether that is a personal
trainer or a health coach, to help you create and sustain
healthy habits can provide the expertise, accountability and motivation needed
to accomplish your goals in the safest, most efficient way possible.
Trust the Process
When
you see an Olympic athlete ceremonially dipping their head to receive a medal,
that moment is the result of following a carefully designed, strategic plan.
Success at the world-class level comes from years, sometimes decades, of
preparation.
During
this time, the athlete and their coach continually assess what is needed to
accomplish their goal. They practice trust and patience while focusing on
simple details done consistently. They know that success doesn’t come
overnight, so they create a plan and stick to it. The plan is modified, when
necessary, but never fully abandoned.
If
athletes and coaches abandoned their plans because of panic, doubt or
distraction, they wouldn’t be able to build on their successes. They would
constantly return to the drawing board to create another approach without
giving their original plan the time it needed to yield results.
If
you want to change your habits to improve your health, create and stick to a
plan. Don’t assume changes will come overnight. Establish a realistic
longer-term goal and create incremental goals you can accomplish along the way.
Commit to simple, consistent steps that develop over time. If you follow the
plan and continue to fall short of your expectations, make modifications but
don’t abandon it altogether.
Recovery Is King
One
of my biggest takeaways from working with world-class athletes is that they
train hard but recover even harder. Just like training, their recovery time
is planned and intentional.
Olympians
understand that training is the stimulus for growth, but recovery is when
growth and improvement occurs. Without managing sleep, stress, nutrition and
other aspects of recovery, they know the impact of their training is
diminished.
For
us non-Olympians, the role of recovery is still critical. We are inundated with
stress throughout the day. Believe it or not, most of this stress pushes us to
grow physically, mentally, emotionally and even spiritually. However, just like
with Olympic athletes, this growth only happens when we recover. Stress without
recovery is the formula for burnout.
Recovery
can come in the form of sleep, healthy nutrition, meditation or other simple
practices that refill your tank. These should be planned and intentional.
Relentlessly pushing yourself all day only to come home and fall face down on
the couch is hardly an effective stress/recovery relationship. Consider simple,
time-efficient habits you can do throughout your day to sustain your energy and
performance.
Take
the time to monitor how hard and how frequently you work out. If you find
you’re always sore, injured or stagnant, consider swapping a high-intensity
exercise day for a low-intensity day, or take the day off.
Training Quality Over
Training Quantity
World-class
athletes train with an unimaginable level of attention to detail. They know
that while a certain degree of training quantity is important, the quality of what they
accomplish during training separates the “goods” from the “greats.”
Olympians
know that training correctly and strategically will ultimately pay larger net
dividends than merely training more. Additionally, they don’t want to put any
more training stress on their bodies than is necessary.
The
same holds true for anyone who wants to improve their health and fitness. If
time is a barrier to exercise for you, understand that you can often accomplish
more in 20 to 30 minutes of a strategic and focused exercise plan a few days
per week than you can in hours a day of wandering around the gym.
Improving
the quality of exercise doesn’t always mean you have to make your heart rate
skyrocket. It could mean paying attention to different aspects of technique or
switching up the activities you do to be more specific to your intended goals.
Hiring a professional is a great first step to maximize the quality and
efficiency of your fitness plan.
As
you watch the Paris Olympics, consider how these principles could help you on
your journey to lifelong health and fitness.
Author
Brett
Klika
Brett
Klika, CEO of SPIDERfit Kids (www.spiderfitkids.com) and an IDEA Personal
Trainer of the Year is a personal trainer, author, and international
motivational speaker inspiring men, women, and children around the world to
create a culture of wellness in their home and live the best version of their
life. Contact Brett with questions or comments at brett@spiderfitkids.com.