That being said, different Olympic sports require different types of fitness, flexibility, and skill. Swimmers, football players, and sharpshooters have very different training regimens.
Most Olympians started young, playing sports in primary school. [3] X Research source If you are over 30 and do not have competitive sports experience, consider archery, shooting, or curling. [4] X Research source It’s much easier to make it to the Olympics in less popular sports. Fewer than 1 in 30,000 U. S. competitive basketball or tennis players make it to the Olympics, compared to about 1 in 100 judo competitors. That said, you may not get a choice: it’s almost impossible to get to the Olympics in a sport you haven’t fallen in love with.
When first introduced to the sport as preteens: 250 hours of training per year, over 6 months. After making the junior national team as teens: 600 hours per year over 9½ months. After making the Olympics team in late teens or twenties: 1100 hours per year over 11 months.
If you can, get a job that supports your training, such as working at a gym or pool. Doing some coaching yourself is a great way to stay immersed in your sport. Flexible hours are another huge benefit, as you’ll need some serious time off once you’re competing at a national or international level.
You can’t get there without a team. Family, fellow athletes, coaches, and all the supportive people in your life will help you stay motivated and make your dream possible.
Cross training is another valuable part of training. Depending on your sport, you’ll dedicate varying amounts of time to flexibility, strength, and endurance training. The exact training schedule depends on your sport, which is part of why a coach is so valuable.
The more you do something, the easier it becomes. Imagine having the Olympics be your first competition! Getting loads of competitions under your belt, even small ones, will prepare you mentally.
Your diet. Everything you eat affects you. Load up on carbs at the wrong time and your workout could crash and burn. Too much caffeine and you’re not sleeping. Too much or too little of anything that keeps you from performing at 110% is off limits. Sleep. Most Olympic hopefuls get 8 to 10 hours of sleep every night, and often take a 30 to 90 minute nap during the day. [9] X Research source Your body needs downtime to repair and recharge after intense exercise. Your lifestyle habits. If you’re downing a 40 of PBR between bong hits, this isn’t for you. Let’s just leave it at that.
Because of that, look into being a part of your sport’s NGB That’s the National Governing Board for whatever it is you’re doing. The more you make yourself known, the better.
The great thing about this is that you’ll probably be dealing with a lot of numbers. Whether it’s going faster, harder, or doing more, there’s a number associated with it. So keep an eye on yourself and what you’re capable of. If you know where you started, you know where you’ve gone — and where you can go.
It’s important to do this on the regular. It takes the fun out of it, sure, but you’re making a decision that affects years of your life. You have to know where you stand at any given point in time. You must develop the ability to take feedback, evaluate your progress, and understand what sacrifices need to be made if you wish to continue.
It’s not gonna be easy. There will be days when it feels like it’s not worth it, too. Those are the days when you gotta grab your mind by the corpus callosum and wrestle it into submission. You haven’t done all this work for nothing. You can go back to drinking boxed wine and watching bad movies with your non-athlete friends later.
Injury is not a laughing matter here. We’re talking wasting years of your life if you get hurt. And sometimes, sure, it takes a little pain to prevent a lot of pain. If you take one thing away from this, it’s be safe. Never hurt yourself so hard you can’t come back from it. Know what you’re body can handle and what it can’t. And be careful.
Not all sports work the same way, of course. Some sports have Olympic trials and some even have tried-and-true tryouts. But being on a national team, while not a guaranteed way to get into the Olympics, is a pretty darn good step.
There may be teams you haven’t even heard of that don’t require you to get a new citizenship. For example, U. S. citizens can compete in the name of Guam, the Marshall Islands, or American Samoa — and there’s almost no competition for those spots. [12] X Research source
Okay, that’s not necessarily true. Take boxing, for example: even if you dominate the trials, you may still have to participate in a national tournament (new regulations you can imagine competitors aren’t super happy about). [13] X Research source But even in these corner cases, doing well in the trials is a major boost.
Olympic Training Centers in the US are located in Colorado Springs, Lake Placid, and Chula Vista.
Every serious athlete has their own “zoning” ritual. Yours could be meditation, yoga, or even jamming out to your own personal theme song. Whatever gets your brain in the right place is what you should be doing. You’ll know it when you feel it!
Okay, if you’re looking for something a little more scientific, we got it: a British study has come out that says it’s not innate talent that’s the end-all-be-all. “Differences in early experiences, preferences, opportunities, habits, training and practice are the real determinants of excellence. “[15] X Research source So if you don’t believe cheese, argue with science. Even if you’re not born the best, you can become the best.
