With the Winter Olympics going on currently in Vancouver, it brings a greater awareness to some of the sports that we do not get to see broadcasted too often and to get to see a few of these athletes that are usually forgotten during non-Olympic years. Some of the best athletes for The American team are a pair of skiers, Lindsay Vonn and Bode Miller and short track speed skater, Apolo Ohno. The thing that sets these 3 athletes apart from others is not only their ability to be on the podium after almost every event they compete in, but is how they do cross training in alternative ways to improve their overall strength and fitness. For example, Apolo Ohno enjoys mountain biking while Bode Miller spends a day of basketball shooting and basketball training as a training tool.
This article will mention a few of the training methods that these three Olympians do to make them better than their competitors that may only do ski or skate training. It has been shown that athletes that are more fit in an all around way, will suffer fewer stress induced injuries in addition to have more strength and flexibility that helps them in whatever sport that they are focusing on.
Lindsay Vonn is the Vancouver Olympics focal point with an huge amount of talent in downhill skiing. Her story became big news when she suffered an injury to her shin only weeks before the Olympics and she wasn’t sure if she could even compete. So far, she is on track to competing and finished 3 of her 5 events winning a gold and bronze in 2 of them. She says she is more fit this season than any other thanks to the hard cross training she has put in. She does a great deal of interval training alternating strength exercises with cardio exercises that challenges her stamina in addition to her strength.
Bode Miller had a lot of pressure to bring home the gold at the last Winter Olympics in Torino and did not succeed saying his nonchalant training methods were the reason. Since, then he has challenged himself to be in top physical shape and more prepared for this Olympics. He likes adding other sports to his training regimen to keep things new and to constantly challenge his muscles in different methods. He will play basketball one day and then does interval sprinting and core work on other days. With 3 medals so far in Vancouver it seems to be benefitting Miller.
This is the 3rd Olympic games for short track skater Apolo Ohno and he has just became the most winning skater at the Olympic Games passing Bonnie Blair’s record of 5 medals. He is more confident than ever after losing 20 pounds in his comeback and to improve his physical state. He likes doing outdoor workouts like sprinting up a steep hill wearing a weighted vest or doing a long cycling ride to challenge his leg muscles the way they have to be for skating.
If you would like to make a comment, please fill out the form below.
