7 Insane Ways In Which Top Athletes Maintain Their Bodies And Build
Niharika has a passion for all things art, music, and travel and has over 4 years of experience in writing for social media. During her spare time, she likes experimenting in the kitchen, playing vide... read full bio
What we get to see on the field is mostly an athlete’s performance. However, only a handful of folks know what it’s like to win or participate like the legends. If you’ve ever wondered what it takes to pursue the sport you love, we’ve got some news for you. It takes a lot more than just a few months of practice and following a healthy diet. In fact, some of these Olympians and athletes follow such rigorous routines that even the common man would be unable to do the same. Read on to find out how these seven athletes manage to maintain their bodies and achieve miraculous feats to pursue the sport that they love:
1. Mary Kom Lost 2kgs In 4 Hours To Qualify For And Open Boxing Tournament
In the year 2018, Mark Kom competed in the Silesian Open Boxing Tournament. Unfortunately, she was two kgs above the qualifying weight. So what did she do? Well, she had four hours to reduce and maintain her weight for the tournament. So she skipped rope for about an hour continuously to qualify. Talk about insane!
2. Michael Phelps Practiced At An Insanely High Altitude By Swimming In The Colorado Springs
Michael Phelps is one of the most decorated and well-known swimmers in the world. To train for the Olympics, his trainer, Bob Bowman, made him practice in Colorado Springs. This is in an extremely high altitude area, and this makes it challenging to breathe while walking regularly. So we can’t imagine how difficult it would be to swim in that area! Michael’s diet at the time used to consist of french toast, eggs, and coffee for all three meals of the day. For days before he attended the competition, he just “ate, slept and trained”.
3. Usain Bolt Ate 100 Chicken Nuggets, Apple Pies, And French Fries Daily To Train For The 2008 Olympics
Speaking of athletic diets, we have details on Usain Bolt’s diet for the 2008 Olympics. His diet involved eating one hundred chicken nuggets (yes, you read that right), french fries, and apple pies (sign me up for this diet right now!). Once this news was out, nutritionists across the world were left puzzled and scratching their heads.
4. Rather Than Sleeping For 8 Hours Like A Ordinary Person, Ronaldo Chooses To Take Five 90-Minute Naps Daily
Many reports related to Ronaldo focus on his unusual sleep schedule. Rather than sleeping for seven to eight hours at a go, Ronaldo chooses to sleep for 90 minute long naps. This helps the football star with maintaining his energy, concentrating, and time management.
5. Lewis Hamilton Switched To Following A Plant-Based (Vegan) Diet To Better His Fitness
Lewis Hamilton decided to make the switch to a vegan (plant-based) diet a few years ago as it seemed to work wonders for his fitness levels. Those who follow plant-based diets know that it is challenging to find good vegan alternatives for the things that he enjoys eating. During one instance, Lewis found a vegan burger that he liked in the city of Hong Kong. Since he was participating in Japan, he requested the restaurant to deliver to him there. Well, who can say no to Lewis Hamilton (amirite, ladies)?
6. Mirabai Chanu Ate “Nothing” For Two Days Before Participating And Followed A Very Strict Diet (She Didn’t Even Eat Home Cooked Food)
Olympic champion Mirabai Chanu claimed that she ate nothing (we hope she’s exaggerating) for two days before she attended the games. She also spoke about how she was on a strict diet for almost two years and recently shared a photo of her finally eating homemade food after 24 months (we cannot imagine the amount of self-control that takes!). Luckily, she returned to India after winning the medal and got to dig into some delicious home-cooked food.
7. Virat Kohli Drinks (Or Used To) Imported Water From The Country Of France
Cricket champion, Virat Kohli claims to only drink water that is imported from France. These water bottles cost a whopping 600 rupees per bottle. His reasoning behind drinking this is that he wants to only put “completely natural” products in his body. This is to ensure that his fitness does not suffer. He is also a vegetarian (or eggetarian) and sticks to eating plenty of vegetables, boiled eggs, quinoa, spinach, and plenty of coffee.
It’s no secret that athletes have to follow a rigorous routine to keep themselves in the best shape. So the next time someone body shames you, tell them that you eat like an athlete but don’t have the time to work out like one (we’re just kidding). Do tell us which of these routines was the most insane in your eyes!
