Fitness Tips From Olympians

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    FITNESS TIPS FROM OLYMPIANS

    Try these fitness tips from the top athletes in the worldBy John Brant, By Ben Court, Photographs by Peter Yang, Posted Date: December 19, 2011

    Pillar 1: Set Clear Goals

    Olympic gold? That's probably not in the cards. But a best-ever bench press, or completing a halfmarathon, or losing 20 pounds? Those could happen. Your first step, as it was for Usain Bolt, is to

    state your goal. Tell your wife, your training partner, your dentistsomeone who will remember it and

    hold you accountable. And hold yourself accountable. Write your goal down and post it on your

    refrigerator. Going public with your goal creates the kind of contract that's hard (and embarrassing) to

    break.

    The difference between a goal and a daydream is whether you take action to achieve it. So your

    second step is to give yourself a deadline and count backward from there to come up with incremental

    benchmarks. Or count forward from where you are now.

    Third step: Create a program to achieve both the incremental goals and the grand prize. "My coach,

    Glen Mills, splits the season into cycles with specific goals," Bolt says. "Then he breaks down the

    cycles by the week and by the day, with each unit having its own goal. There is a purpose to

    everything we do. Each session we know what we want to accomplish."

    It's an approach approved by Martin Rooney, P.T., C.S.C.S., creator of Training for Warriors. "I have

    every client write down goals. Your goals become your 'why,' and if that's powerful enough, you will

    figure out a 'how.' " Set monthly goals for body-fat percentage, strength, and performance, with weekly

    checkups to see how you're progressing.

    You can get cool exercises, innovative workouts, and fast fitness fixes by signing up forour freeExercise of the Week newsletter.

    Pillar 2: Upgrade Your Workout

    You probably don't have a cadre of coaches armed with camcorders and calipers, stopwatches and

    syringes to analyze your every move. And luckily, you don't need that kind of prodding and poking to

    tell if your routine is working. Just take this quiz, formulated by MH'sdream team: Craig Ballantyne,

    C.S.C.S., creator of Turbulence Training in Toronto; Joe Dowdell, C.S.C.S., founder of Peak

    Performance in New York City; and Nick Tumminello, a strength coach in Boca Raton, Florida.

    Does your workout feel like forced labor?

    NO, IT'S THE HIGHLIGHT OF MY DAY = 15

    YES, BUT ISN'T THAT THE POINT? = 10

    SOMETIMES = 5

    You won't achieve your goals if you're averse to hard work. You don't have to love it, but you have to

    understand that it's a key to success. Not psyched to sweat? Make one of these adjustments.

    CHANGE YOUR PROGRAM

    Ask a buddy for his favorite workout. Or try a new training plan likeSPEED SHRED,which has 18

    workouts and hundreds of cutting-edge exercises to constantly challenge your muscles. You can also

    take a class to learn a new sport or to reach a higher level at something you enjoy.

    http://www.menshealth.com/fitness/exercise-newsletterhttp://www.menshealth.com/fitness/exercise-newsletterhttp://www.menshealth.com/fitness/exercise-newsletterhttp://www.menshealth.com/fitness/exercise-newsletterhttp://www.speedshredworkout.com/speedshredworkout/indexhttp://www.speedshredworkout.com/speedshredworkout/indexhttp://www.speedshredworkout.com/speedshredworkout/indexhttp://www.speedshredworkout.com/speedshredworkout/indexhttp://www.menshealth.com/fitness/exercise-newsletterhttp://www.menshealth.com/fitness/exercise-newsletter
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    CHANGE YOUR ENVIRONMENT

    If you work out at home, join a gym. If you don't like your gym, join a different one. If you're indoors, try

    training outdoors.

    COUNT YOUR WORKOUTS

    Give yourself weekly, monthly, and quarterly goals for total number of workouts. Make the number

    ambitious and the totals nonnegotiable, with rewards for reaching them and penalties for falling short.

    Does your warmup make you sweat?

    YES = 10

    A LITTLE = 5

    ONLY IF THE A.C. IS DEAD =-5

    Your warmup should take 10 to 20 minutes, progressing from slow, easy movements to drills that test

    your power, balance, coordination, and range of motion. You can start with a couple of minutes of

    foam rolling for your major muscles, focusing on areas where you're typically tight or frequently

    injured. Proceed to basic movements like body-weight squats, lunges, and pushups. Follow that with

    more ballistic movements, like forward and side-to-side hops and jumps, and then finish with power

    movements, like skips, shuttle runs, and box jumps.

    Are your muscles sore the day after your workout?

    ALMOST ALWAYS = 10

    RARELY = 5

    ONLY IF I DROP SOMETHING ON ONE OF THEM = 0

    Technically, soreness just means you did something your muscles weren't prepared for. It's not

    directly linked to muscle growth or improved strength. But if you're pushing yourself, you're probably

    going to feel it the next day. A muscle might feel a little tender or maybe just a bit heavier than it did

    before the workout. If you're so sore it hurts to lie down in bed, you'll know you took it too far. And if

    the pain is in your joints rather than your muscles, you may have done something wrong.

    How often do you change exercises, sets, and reps?

    EVERY 3 TO 4 WEEKS = 15

    WHEN IT STOPS WORKING = 10

    ONCE EVERY PRESIDENTIAL ADMINISTRATION = 0

    If you're a beginner, you can probably stick with the same workout for up to 8 weeks and continue to

    grow stronger while mastering the basic exercises. But once you're beyond that stage, you should

    change your workout every 3 to 4 weeks. That doesn't mean dropping one program and picking up

    another that may have been designed for a completely different purpose. You simply want to freshen

    up your routine by subbing in new exercises, changing the order, increasing or decreasing the total

    weight lifted, raising or lowering reps, or some combination of those four.

    Are you nearing your goals?

    YES = 20

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    NO = 0

    GOALS? = *5

    You need to identify benchmarks that prove you're making progress. If your goal is weight loss, you

    need to know two things. First, are you losing weight? The answer is easy if you weigh yourself at the

    same time every day. (First thing in the morning is best.) You also need to know you're losing fat and

    not muscle. Measure your waist at least once a week, and the circumference of your upper arms,

    thighs, and calves once a month. If your waist shrinks but your arms and legs stay the same, you're

    losing the right kind of weight. (Test your fitness limits like the best. Be sure to read theFitness

    Secrets of Top Olympians)

    How long can you hold a plank?

    UNTIL TOMORROW = 20

    30 TO 60 SECONDS = 10

    LESS THAN 30 SECONDS = 0

    Stability of your core musclesa marker of their endurance, strength, and coordinationis crucial for

    maintaining good posture, training effectively, and remaining pain-free.

    Score Your workout:

    60+ = Rocks!

    3059 = Needs a tuneup!

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    bitefor at least 3 days. To figure out total calories and tally your daily average, use an app (try Lose

    It!) or an online calculator (try fitday.com). This drill works only if it includes typical workout and

    nonworkout days.

    Step 2 is to estimate the calories you actually need. MH nutrition advisor Alan Aragon recommends

    this formula.

    Don't work out?Multiply your body weight by 10. If you weigh 200 pounds, that's 2,000

    calories a day.

    Work out once or twice a week?Multiply your weight by 12. That's 2,400 calories for a

    200-pound person.

    Work out three or four times a week?Multiply by 14. Now we're up to 2,800 calories.

    Work out five or more times a week?Multiply by 16, bringing the daily feast up to 3,200

    calories.

    These are just estimates, Aragon says. Human metabolism is notoriously resistant to simple math. But

    we need to start somewhere, and Aragon's formula allows you to focus on how much you eat and burn

    in an average 24-hour day. This determines whether you end up with more body fat or less.

    That brings us to Step 3: Figure out when, where, and how you can tweak your daily calories to create

    a bigger deficit.

    The timing of your meals matters, but not for the reason you think. "Your nutrient timing should be

    personalized to whatever maximizes your training or doesn't hinder it," Aragon says. Training on an

    empty stomach might work for your buddy, but if hunger pangs derail your workout, you're better off

    with a light meal before hitting the gym.

    That applies to postworkout nutrition as well. Aragon says that while short-term studies find that

    protein and carbs increase markers of muscle protein production, recent long-term research suggests

    that making sure you meet your daily needs for protein, fat, and carbs will benefit you more than a

    postworkout meal or protein shake. Of course, you can also do both! (Want the best way to work out

    every muscle in your body? Find hundreds of tricks in theBig Boo k of Exercises.)

    Pillar 4: Target Weaknesses

    "If you work only on what you're good at, you may get good," says Rooney. "But if you work on what

    you're not good at and make that good too, you can become great." This strategy improves

    performance and helps prevent injuries.

    Exhibit A: Bolt. "I started working with Coach Mills in 2004, when I failed to qualify for the finals in the

    200 meter at the Athens Olympics," Bolt says. "Glen rebuilt me from the ground up." Back then, Mills

    saw in Bolt a gifted but flawed athlete. Bolt's height, the attribute that now seems his greatest asset,

    was slowing him down. He was imbalanced, Mills observed, running behind his center of gravity. He

    also suffered frequent hamstring injuries. Mills realized that both problems could be addressed by

    building Bolt's strength, which helped him increase his stride length and maintain his maximum

    velocity. Longer strides would help him use his height advantage but only if his feet could hit and leave

    the ground as fast as his competitors'. The combination has made him unbeatable: At the 2009 world

    championships in Berlin, Bolt covered 100 meters in 41 strides, compared with 45 for his rivalsand

    set a new world record.

    Exhibit B: Hardee. He excelled at sprinting and jumping in college, but struggled in the three throwing

    http://www.mhbigbookofexercises.com/uof/mhbigbookofexercises/nc/?keycode=166869http://www.mhbigbookofexercises.com/uof/mhbigbookofexercises/nc/?keycode=166869http://www.mhbigbookofexercises.com/uof/mhbigbookofexercises/nc/?keycode=166869http://www.mhbigbookofexercises.com/uof/mhbigbookofexercises/nc/?keycode=166869
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    events of the decathlon: javelin, discus, and shot. Working with his coaches, he recalibrated his

    training. "It's a combo of core work and explosive movement-specific drills," Hardee says. "Plus, I was

    sharpening my technique for each throw and watching video." Two world championships later, it's safe

    to say it worked.

    So how will you upgrade your own training? Rooney suggests making a list of your three weakest

    areas. These could be exercises, like deadlifts or pullups for a lifter, or sport-specific skills, like

    climbing for a cyclist. Or they could be overall fitness qualities like flexibility, or specific injury-prone

    muscles or joints. Seek guidance from a trainer to learn how to fix your weak areas, and track your

    progress with tests every 4 weeks.

    If you find that a weak core is on your list of problems to fix, here's a solution, courtesy of Ballantyne:

    It's called 5-Minute Abs.

    Do these exercises as a circuit; when you can complete three, your core is no longer a weakness.

    1 Swiss-ball plank:(with your forearms on the ball) 30 seconds

    2 Swiss-ball jackknife:(hands on the floor, shins on the ball; use your lower legs to roll

    the ball toward your torso while keeping your back flat) 20 reps

    3 Swiss-ball rollout: (with forearms on the ball and feet on the floor, roll the ball forward

    as far as you can while keeping your body in a straight line) 12 reps

    4 Side plank:40 seconds a side

    Pillar 5: Cross Train

    Most Sunday afternoons in the off-season you'll find Lochte flipping tires and dragging a 450-pound

    chain with Matt DeLancey, the strength and conditioning coach for Olympic sports at the University ofFlorida. It might seem like an odd approach, but DeLancey says the strongman-inspired regimen gave

    Lochte the power to set a world record in the 200-meter individual medley in 2011. Our elites also mix

    it up: For instance, Hardee paddleboards, which improves both balance and core endurance.

    Your strategies: Add an activity that mixes exercise with social contact so you're more motivated, says

    David Jack, performance coach and director for Teamworks Fitness in Acton, Massachusetts. He

    recommends hoops or flag football. "You'll boost your cardio, hone coordination, and make friends."

    Sign up for a charity walk, run, or ride; it'll improve your fitness and contribute to a worthy cause.

    Take a week off every 12 weeks and do yoga. You'll tune up your balance, flexibility, and core.

    Pillar 6: Make Your Mojo

    Before his final pole vault attempt in the 2008 Olympics, Hardee felt emotionally empty. He was in

    fourth place, with a chance to medal. He just needed to clear the bar. He didn't, leaving himself with a

    goose egg. He vowed never to be caught emotionally unprepared again. To elevate his mood, he

    listens to the same mix of songs by the Strokes while he's waiting to compete. He also visualizes each

    event. (For a complete rundown of the 2012 games, be sure to check outThe Men's

    HealthOlympics Center.)

    Mental prep can help you, too. "Think of imagery as a skill, and practice every day for several

    minutes," says Robert S. Weinberg, Ph.D., a professor of kinesiology at Miami University in Ohio.

    "Focus on sounds, smell, and feel. The more senses, the better." Researchers believe imagery trains

    http://www.menshealth.com/olympicshttp://www.menshealth.com/olympicshttp://www.menshealth.com/olympicshttp://www.menshealth.com/olympicshttp://www.menshealth.com/olympicshttp://www.menshealth.com/olympicshttp://www.menshealth.com/olympicshttp://www.menshealth.com/olympics
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    your muscle memory. When done before a specific movement, it prepares your body with small but

    beneficial neuromuscular adjustments. So there you have it: A mind-body plan to put yourself on top of

    the podium. Now, isn't that a great image.

    Read more at Men's Health:http://www.menshealth.com/fitness/six-pillars-olympic-

    fitness?fullpage=true#ixzz1zmw9gFde

    http://www.menshealth.com/fitness/six-pillars-olympic-fitness?fullpage=true#ixzz1zmw9gFdehttp://www.menshealth.com/fitness/six-pillars-olympic-fitness?fullpage=true#ixzz1zmw9gFdehttp://www.menshealth.com/fitness/six-pillars-olympic-fitness?fullpage=true#ixzz1zmw9gFdehttp://www.menshealth.com/fitness/six-pillars-olympic-fitness?fullpage=true#ixzz1zmw9gFdehttp://www.menshealth.com/fitness/six-pillars-olympic-fitness?fullpage=true#ixzz1zmw9gFdehttp://www.menshealth.com/fitness/six-pillars-olympic-fitness?fullpage=true#ixzz1zmw9gFde