As 8/8/08 approaches many of us are getting very exited and aware of our current fitness levels.   My best friend is so excited she ordered cable just to watch the Olympics. (I guess she doesn’t watch TV otherwise).    NBC will have full coverage of all events, a few of my favorites are gymnastics, weightlifting and track and field.  I practice weight lifting when I workout, but it’s not at the level that these guys take it to, in fact it is no where close.  This is truly an amazing time of year when we get to see the greatest of all competitors in sports. It is also so cool to see so many people from different cultures gathering for the same thing.

These people have trained extremely hard to be where they are today. This takes lots of dedication, time and heart, I truly admire these athletes.  I believe heart has a lot to do with it. Everyday is not going to go as planned, and there will be times when you don’t qualify for something you needed and wanted. Also there is life-personal things that go on with these people. I was reading the bios of some of our athletes and many of them have had some serious set backs and detours before they have got to be  where they are today. All of these things have played a part in who they are, and have made them stronger.   It’s their heart and dedication that has helped them make it this far. It takes a supportive family, a great coach and willingness to learn. These athletes not only train hard, but have to watch what they eat, get plenty of sleep and work on keeping their lives balanced. Melanie Roach is one athlete that has had a few set backs, and even took some time off to start a family, now she is back in the game. I can’t wait to see her compete. 

As a trainer I’m always talking to people about workouts and what they are eating. Most people like to ask me what can I do for this, then I have to ask them the questions back-what are you currently doing? As the Olympics are almost here I see some of the most athletic, fit and what appear to be in shape people all over the magazine covers and news stories. It motivates me.

These athletes have done some intense training and they have the bodies to show it. Gymnast to me are truly the strongest people out there. Of course there are the Olympic weight lifters-don’t get me wrong, they are strong.  I think the ability to not only hold up your bodyweight  (how long can you hold plank for?) and move it around and keep it in control is an amazing thing.  I put together a little workout if you want to get a feel for just a little bit of what a gymnast does-this will only involve your body weight, so it cant be that hard right?

Make sure you warm up first-run/jog/jump rope or bike for about 5min then do a little bit of stretching to warm up your body and joints.

Workout:
30s second plank

10 pull ups

30 body weight squats

25 push ups

10 dips

Repeat this workout 3 times-if you are feeling extra fit try 4-5 times.

Do these exercises consectutively and try to move through as quickly as you can. Good luck

If you cannot do pull ups or dips-you can use a pull up or dip assist or they have these great rubberbands out there that will assist you, you can use them with your pulls up and dips.

-Shirley