The 2020 Tokyo Olympics have seen some record breaking and scintillating performances by numerous athletes, among them were Elaine Thompson-Herah on the track, Katie Ledecky in the pool and Simone Biles on the balance beam.
While these athletes compete in totally different disciplines, they all have several things in common, including discipline, patience, and focus, which have aided them to become elite.
We can take a page from their books to achieve similar feats. I am not saying we will become the best runners, swimmers or gymnasts. However, adopting similar positive lifestyle traits can help to achieve whatever fitness goal we may want to achieve.
Some of the traits we can adopt from elite include:
Have a solid foundation
One thing professionals have dialed in that others tend to overlook is the foundation. Things like conditioning, overall strength building exercises, and mobility among others which help to prevent injuries.
Yes, this low intensity ‘easy’ work doesn’t sound fun, which is why it might be tempting to jump straight to intense intervals. However, that’s what sets athletes up for success. It makes them fatigue slower, tolerate more training load later in the season (where it actually matters) and, therefore, improve more.
Work with a trainer
All elite athletes have coaches and trainers. So why not hire the services (once it is affordable) of a coach or trainer?
Having someone look at your training from the side and tell you what you’re doing wrong is by far the best way to become a better athlete.
A trainer will be able to provide a different perspective to your training, find areas of improvement and help set achievable goals that motivate you to work hard. A trainer will also provide a structured training plan that will take any guesswork out of the picture.
Be open-minded
Successful athletes are open to critique, feedback and most importantly, change. Consistent research, trying out different training approaches and incorporating best practices into the training process are all great ways to become a better athlete.
Be patient
It’s part of human nature to be competitive and sometimes impatient. We want results fast, and often overestimate what can be achieved in a year, both in sport and in life. However, there are no quick fixes or shortcuts. Real and sustainable progress comes with time.
Have a goal and focus on it
Focusing on the long-term goal and result really prevents you from getting caught up in the moment. When you set a bigger goal and focus on it, all decisions get easier. All of a sudden, going out and staying up late are no longer fun, because those activities compromise recovery. Taking intervals harder than needed or testing yourself during recovery days breaks up the whole training programme.
Visualize success
Visualization is a powerful tool many athletes use. They spend time imagining their success before it happens, which creates a mental and emotional connection with the result and moves athletes closer to it.
It’s also a good strategy to plan what can happen during a workout and be mentally prepared for it. Make that image in your head as vivid as possible and try to bring it to life.
