How to be a champion in sport and life

Jeremy Boone provides three key points that will boost your workouts to Olympic training status.

Do you ever get that feeling deep down that you should be able to accomplish much more than you are at present? Are you looking for a bigger challenge to overcome because your daily workouts are just too easy? Or are you training for a specific goal but feel like something is still missing in your workout program?

Future stars

There is a good chance that there are a few Olympic hopefuls close to where you live. These are young men and women loaded with talent that is laced with hard work. You too are loaded with talent and that I am sure has been laced with a lot of hard work. And while these future Olympians are presented with the opportunity of a lifetime, this does not mean that their journey is for the elite only.

The true meaning of the Olympics is about the process or journey of an amateur athlete, an individual who is devoted to the continual improvement of oneself. Through daily struggle, frustration, and hardship, this athlete experiences personal success and public victories. How about your journey? What do you dream of in your effort to win your gold medal? The exciting truth is that with a little hard work, smart training, and the right supportive environment, you can win your gold. It is like John Maxwell said, "Dreams do not work unless you do."

It would have been too easy just to write an article on physical training with a few sample exercises, but for Olympic athletes, training is much more than this. It is about pushing life's limits and having the courage to reach your potential. While it is unlikely that most of us will never compete in the actual Olympic Games, everyone can be an Everyday Champion™ (Boone 2003)^[1]. Apply the following principles of championship athletes and elevate your workouts to Olympic training status.

Turn your ability into achievement

Discipline is what turns your ability into achievement. Without it, your goals will always be daydreams at best. Working out two days last week, five days this week, and three days next week will prevent you from ever reaching your podium. What is missing, or what are you tolerating in your life that is preventing you from establishing discipline?

Gold Medal Tip: Athletes are made daily, not in a day.

Don't let your competition define who you are

Does this scenario sound familiar? You are right in the middle of your workout at the gym and feeling great, only to look over across the room and see your nemesis, the individual who has everything you are trying to attain. You want that perfect-looking body, blazing speed, or the lungs of Lance Armstrong. Too often, we are guilty of comparing ourselves to our teammates, a training partner, or another individual that we do not even know. If you want to win your game, you first have to win your inner game. The competition is not you versus them. It is about you versus you. How much better can you make yourself in your pursuit of athletic excellence?

Gold Medal Tip: Only focus on what you can control…YOU!

Monitor Your Training

Just because you are active does not mean that you are accomplishing anything. This approach could be detrimental to your body. How many people do you know work out four or five days a week but do not have a goal in mind? Better yet, if you were to ask them what they did two weeks ago, they could not tell you. Many athletes keep a journal, but most of the time, they only log the physical qualities of training. Unfortunately, this does not give a complete picture of what is going on in your body. Olympic athletes know their bodies inside and out as well as every facet of their training program. They can tell you their daily training volume, how much weight was lifted today versus last week, and even if they feel signs of overtraining from the previous day.

Gold Medal Tip: Keep a detailed training log and include hours of sleep, desire to train, appetite, morning heart rate, and quality of sleep in your journal.

So, what is the good news?

You too can elevate yourself to Olympic training status. How? Play a bigger game by incorporating these principles into your workout program.

Article Reference

This article first appeared in:

BOONE, J. (2006) How to be a champion in sport and life. Brian Mackenzie's Successful Coaching, (ISSN 1745-7513/ 34/ July-August), p. 8

References

BOONE, J (2003) How to be an Everyday Champion in Sport and Life

Page Reference

If you quote information from this page in your work, then the reference for this page is:

BOONE, J. (2006) How to be a champion in sport and life [WWW] Available from: https://www.brianmac.co.uk/articles/scni34a7.htm [Accessed

About the Author

Jeremy Boone is a speed and conditioning consultant in the USA. His clients have included the NFL Carolina Panthers and the WUSA Atlanta Beat.


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Do you ever get that feeling deep down that you should be able to accomplish much more than you are at present? Are you looking for a bigger challenge to overcome because your daily workouts are just too easy? Or are you training for a specific goal but feel like something is still missing in your workout program? Future stars There is a good chance that there are a few Olympic hopefuls close to where you live. These are young men and women loaded with talent that is laced with hard work. You too are loaded with talent and that I am sure has been laced with a lot of hard work. And while these future Olympians are presented with the opportunity of a lifetime, this does not mean that their journey is for the elite only. The true meaning of the Olympics is about the process or journey of an amateur athlete, an individual who is devoted to the continual improvement of oneself. Through daily struggle, frustration, and hardship, this athlete experiences personal success and public victories. How about your journey? What do you dream of in your effort to win your gold medal? The exciting truth is that with a little hard work, smart training, and the right supportive environment, you can win your gold. It is like John Maxwell said, "Dreams do not work unless you do." It would have been too easy just to write an article on physical training with a few sample exercises, but for Olympic athletes, training is much more than this. It is about pushing life's limits and having the courage to reach your potential. While it is unlikely that most of us will never compete in the actual Olympic Games, everyone can be an Everyday Champion™ (Boone 2003)^[1]. Apply the following principles of championship athletes and elevate your workouts to Olympic training status. Turn your ability into achievement Discipline is what turns your ability into achievement. Without it, your goals will always be daydreams at best. Working out two days last week, five days this week, and three days next week will prevent you from ever reaching your podium. What is missing, or what are you tolerating in your life that is preventing you from establishing discipline? Gold Medal Tip: Athletes are made daily, not in a day. Don't let your competition define who you are Does this scenario sound familiar? You are right in the middle of your workout at the gym and feeling great, only to look over across the room and see your nemesis, the individual who has everything you are trying to attain. You want that perfect-looking body, blazing speed, or the lungs of Lance Armstrong. Too often, we are guilty of comparing ourselves to our teammates, a training partner, or another individual that we do not even know. If you want to win your game, you first have to win your inner game. The competition is not you versus them. It is about you versus you. How much better can you make yourself in your pursuit of athletic excellence? Gold Medal Tip: Only focus on what you can control…YOU! Monitor Your Training Just because you are active does not mean that you are accomplishing anything. This approach could be detrimental to your body. How many people do you know work out four or five days a week but do not have a goal in mind? Better yet, if you were to ask them what they did two weeks ago, they could not tell you. Many athletes keep a journal, but most of the time, they only log the physical qualities of training. Unfortunately, this does not give a complete picture of what is going on in your body. Olympic athletes know their bodies inside and out as well as every facet of their training program. They can tell you their daily training volume, how much weight was lifted today versus last week, and even if they feel signs of overtraining from the previous day. Gold Medal Tip: Keep a detailed training log and include hours of sleep, desire to train, appetite, morning heart rate, and quality of sleep in your journal. So, what is the good news? You too can elevate yourself to Olympic training status. How? Play a bigger game by incorporating these principles into your workout program. Article Reference This article first appeared in: BOONE, J. (2006) How to be a champion in sport and life. Brian Mackenzie's Successful Coaching, (ISSN 1745-7513/ 34/ July-August), p. 8 References BOONE, J (2003) How to be an Everyday Champion in Sport and Life Page Reference If you quote information from this page in your work, then the reference for this page is: BOONE, J. (2006) How to be a champion in sport and life [WWW] Available from: https://www.brianmac.co.uk/articles/scni34a7.htm [Accessed About the Author Jeremy Boone is a speed and conditioning consultant in the USA. His clients have included the NFL Carolina Panthers and the WUSA Atlanta Beat.