3 lessons from The Olympics

By Jonas Forsberg August 23, 2008: (0)

If you are just like me then you have probably been in front of the television more than usual because of the Olympics. I don’t know about you, but I have been watching all different types of sports, such as, swimming, track & field, gymnastics, and of course a lot of soccer.

The Olympics is coming to an end and there are a few things we should take notice from! I found especially 3 lessons from the athletes, which could (and should) be implemented into YOUR lifestyle if your goal is either to burn fat, build muscles or just getting an overall healthy and functional body.

1. Gymnasts
A few days ago I was sitting watching the finals for men in parallell bars. I noticed a few stuff I just have to tell you about. First and foremost, their overall physique is insane! Their arms are incredibly powerful and well-defined. So the question is, how do they train to get those arms? What do you think, maybe some bicep curls or some tricep extensions? Of course not, their training consists mainly (and almost exclusively) of bodyweight exercises. They to strap pushups and pullups, they do bar dips, and so on. My advice for you is to go for exercises such as pullups, chinups, dips and pushups if you want to build powerful arms and an overall impressive physique!

2. Track & Field runners (100-400 yard dash) I guess some of you would like a pair of muscular and powerful legs, guns for arms and six pack abs, or am I wrong? Probably not. Even if you don’t want to look like a weightlifter, my guess is that you wouldn’t say no to a flat stomach, visible calf and quad muscles as well as a pair of powerful arms, which you without a problem could show off every now and then.

There’s not a coincident that Usain Bolt got all of these qualities while the marathon runners don’t. The reason behind that is that long distance running break down your muscles and use them for energy after your other energy sources have been depleted. Short, high-intensity training such as sprinting and interval training spare your muscle tissue as well as it increases your metabolism and allows your body to burn more fat throughout the day, in comparison to long distance running, which only burn fat during the actual workout!

3. Michael Phelps
Those of you who read the newspaper every now and then or at least watch the news may have noticed that Michael Phelps now is the best athlete ever to compete in the Olympics with his 8 gold medals. His recipe for success? Food, and lots of food.

During the Olympics he ate 12000 calories on a daily basis (that’s about 5-6 times as much the average requirement for you and me). How come he still has a fat percentage level of 8%?First of all, he works out as hell (about 5 hours a day), but most important, his metabolism is working like crazy due to his huge amount of muscle tissue and those “sprint races” (100 m freestyle, etc) he performs frequently. The more lean muscle tissue you have, the more fat your body burns throughout the day.

So if your goal is fat loss and a more fit and muscular body, the only way to get there is through good exercise habits and nutrition. Sure, you might lose weight and fat by not eating, but fact is you are only messing up your metabolism and putting your body and health into danger. And more of a rule than an exception; you get those pounds back sooner or later if your way to fat loss is through starvation!

To sum it up, I’d like to say: Use your own bodyweight and free weights for a more functional and well-defined body. Go for short and intense workouts, preferably under 45 min (forget the 2 hour workout). Eat right and eat often, however, I would not recommend eating 12000 calories a day unless your name is Michael Phelps. Calculate your recommended caloric intake on the Internet, there are a bunch of sites out there where you can do this!

For more info on how to burn fat and build muscle fast and effectively, get a copy of my ebook “Burn Fat at Home” from BurnFatAtHome.com!

Until next time,
Jonas

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