When it comes to fitness advice, who better to seek insight from than Olympians themselves? How about the people who taught those Olympians? Here are the words of wisdom that five world-class athletes live by.

Eric Shanteau, Team USA Swimming

"Don't get hurt training."

-- His weight coach, Doc Kreis

Sure, you have to push yourself hard to reach Olympic status, but push too hard and "that's when you'll do something stupid and hurt yourself," Shanteau says. Your move: Listen to your training plan unless your body is telling you not to, says Kristen Dieffenbach, Ph.D., a certified sports psychology advisor to the U.S. Olympic Committee. “The smart athlete knows what fatigue level to expect, and trains and adjusts accordingly." Signs of exhaustion? Small mistakes, posture or form faults, moodiness, or an increased/decreased heart rate that you can"t explain.

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David Boudia, Team USA Diving

“See food like gasoline.”

-- His nutritionist, Jennifer Gibson

David Boudia can't afford to gain a pound in the wrong place.

"If your car takes premium and you put in unleaded, it'll destroy it. If I put nastiness in my body, I expect bad results,” Boudia says. Performing in front of millions in simply a Speedo is motivation to stay slim, but a poor diet also throws off Boudia’s game. “A five-pound weight gain affects how fast you spin. If you dive a good, trim line, the judges will score you half a point higher,” he says. Steal his secret: For an energy boost, throw two carrots, one apple, a few slices of pineapples, and a beet in a juicer. "I stick with raw, whole foods," he says. “That way I know what I’m putting in my body.” (Fill your plate with the The 125 Best Foods for Men.)

Jen Kessy, Team USA Beach Volleyball

"Mix up your routine."

Changing it up in the gym might be the secret to lifelong fitness. Maybe that’s why Jen Kessy, a standout on Team USA Volleyball, has been in the game so long. In fact, research shows it to be true: When 52 people were broken up into three groups -- one that varied its workouts, one that did the same thing every time, and one that had no regulations -- most of the people who dropped out of the study were from the group that didn’t switch things up, according to a University of Florida at Gainesville study. The group that varied its routines found exercise 20 percent more enjoyable than the other groups. (Ready for a change? Try the brand new DVD series from Men’s Health, SPEED SHRED. It’s full of never-before-seen exercises that will torch fat and sculpt every muscle in your body!)

Trey Hardee, Team USA Decathlon

“If you really want to be serious, listen to the people who are trying to make you better."

-- A coach from another high school when he was younger.

Hardee describes his former self as a butthead high school kid who just loved to pole vault. He was good at things you can’t coach: He was tall and fast. “I never warmed up, cooled down, or did anything to take care of my body.” That is, until a coach from another high school told him to smarten up. Since then, he’s been focusing on the whole picture, and it’s paid off. Since high school, Hardee has transformed into a two-time consecutive world crown holder, NCAA and U.S. National champion -- and, oh yeah -- two-time Olympian.

Allyson Felix, Team USA Track & Field

”Train with friends.”

This sprinter hates running -- for long distances, that is. What’s her trick for keeping herself honest? Making a promise to a friend that she can’t back out on. But you won’t find her being buddy-buddy on the track on race day: When it comes down to the wire, you need to zone everything out and focus, she says. After all, “You can be prepared, and super, super physically ready, but if you don’t have that mental portion, it can all fall apart.” (Allyson Felix is one of our 12 Hottest Female Olympians. Click to see who else made the list!)

Additional research by Madeline Haller
Photo Credits: David Boudia - PMG Sports, Trey Hardee - Justin Kosman/Red Bull Content Pool

A few years ago, a video emerged showing Tiger Woods driving a golf ball like the pro that he is. The only catch: He was just 2 years old at the time. (Two years old!)

The message to parents: If you want your kids to excel in sports, you need to start them young. Of course, beyond developing specific skills -- such as throwing, kicking, and swinging -- improving strength, power and speed are key components of sports performance training.

Which leads many parents to wonder, Should my kid lift weights?

Well, some experts warn that weight training at a young age can damage a child's growth plates. And that concern has merit. “The dangers to growth plates -- found at the end of long bones -- are real,” says Michael Mejia, C.S.C.S., Men’s Health fitness adviser and owner of B.A.S.E. Sports Conditioning, an organization that specializes in youth athletic training.

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However, Mejia is quick to point out that these injuries are almost always the result of using too much weight with improper technique. Plus, he adds that smart strength training is absolutely acceptable -- as long as the right exercises are chosen and that the youth has an appropriate level of base strength and mobility.

"Exposure to a variety of sports and fitness-based games -- such as tag and tug o' war -- is the best approach for younger kids," says Mejia. "But as they reach that middle and high school age, you can start implementing more of a structured approach to strength training." (Looking for a simple workout for yourself? Discover how to Blast Fat With Just Two Exercises!)

But proceed with caution: "Even when kids are ready for weights, the loading is often times imbalanced and that leads to problems down the road." One common issue: "People put too much focus on popular exercises like the bench press, and start piling on weight even before a kid can do 10 good push-ups," says Mejia. "That's a recipe for injury."


Mejia's advice: Before a kid ever touches a weight, make sure she can perform basic body-weight exercises with perfect form. Fair warning: You may even be surprised at what perfect form is. Watch the videos below and have your child complete the movements while you observe. Even better, use a video camera to record your kid doing the exercises, so you can better compare to the form used in Mejia’s videos.

Then rate his or her form on a scale of 0 to 3, using this scoring guide:


3 = Perfect form

2 = Able to do the exercise with slight deviation from proper form

1 = Significant deviations from proper form

0 = Can't do the exercise at all or the drill causes pain

The Push-up

The Overhead Squat

5 Strength Rules for Kids


1. Master the basics first. Work on the two movements above -- the push-up and overhead squat -- until they can be completed correctly, says Mejia. If your kid doesn't pass the body-weight tests with a score of 3, he or she is not ready for actual weights. That's perfectly fine, by the way. These movements require total-body strength that will help in just about every sport. So by improving at them, you’ll develop a more sound athletic foundation. 


2. Once your child aces the tests, focus on compound, multi-joint movements. Choose exercise that emphasize the upper back, core, and hips, says Mejia. Think: Less benching, more rowing. Smart exercises to include: stability-ball leg curls, inverted rows, and reverse flys with light dumbbells. (For an encyclopedia of more than 500 great strength-training exercises, check out The Men’s Health Big Book of Exercises and The Women’s Health Big Book of Exercises.)

3. Stay away from most machines. Many gym machines -- such as the leg extension, leg press and chest fly (a.k.a pec deck -- force kids to work through unnatural movement patterns that have little carryover to sports and activities of daily living. (Cable machines are the exception.)

4. Watch the weights. Poor form and excessive loading are the reasons kids wind up injured. Once they've mastered their own body weight, start with a resistance that allows for 12 to 15 repetitions with perfect technique, advises Mejia. "Just 1 one 2 sets per exercise is fine initially, working up to a maximum of 3 sets once strength and endurance improve." And be sure not to take any sets to the point of muscular failure.

5. Use a variety of strengthening equipment. Medicine balls, bands, and cable-based machines allow for three-dimensional movement. These are ideal because they offer kids variety, while training balance and stability just like free weights, says Mejia.

What about us adults? If you want a complete fat-loss program, there's no better place to start than with SPEED SHRED, the first-ever DVD fitness series from Men’s Health (that also includes the Speed Shred Diet). With 18 cutting-edge workouts, it's the world's hottest new fat-burning program for both men and women.

By DualFit.com

With all the fancy sneakers on the market, who would ever think that exercising barefoot could benefit you? Well, it can. Advertisements tout sneakers to reduce shin splits, relieve pain from bunions, or are good for specific types of exercise, but exercising without any shoes might be the smarter call. This isn't necessarily a new fitness idea. In fact, Arnold Schwarzenegger and his fellow training friends used to exercise shoeless. But lately, this has become a trend with more recognition from fitness specialists and podiatrists.

Dr. Emily Splichal, a fitness expert and podiatrist, says that exercising barefoot has many benefits. If you are someone who suffers from foot, heel or back pain, losing the shoes during exercising can help. According to Dr. Spinchal, all of the fancy shock-absorbing and ankle-supporting sneakers and braces out in stores today are actually doing more harm than good. Feet are the foundation of your entire body. These special shoes and insoles take away from the foot's natural ability to absorb shock. Back hundreds of years ago, people never wore shoes. They ran around barefoot all the time and these people definitely had a stronger foundation and less body pain than people nowadays.

Your hands and your feet are very similar in anatomy. Imagine if you had shoes that were made for your hands. Your hands would become extremely weak and incapable of doing what they were meant to do. The same concept applies to your feet. Shoes add support and take away from the foot's natural ability to strengthen.

Your foot has 28 bones, 38 muscles, 35 joints and 56 ligaments. Each one of these needs to be strengthened and stretched naturally. Wearing sneakers takes away from the natural strengthening and stabilizing ability of the foot. Just like any other body part or muscle group in the body, your feet need the same attention. So if you ditch the shoes, what are some of the benefits you will experience?

Because your foot is the foundation of every other body part, it is important that they are strong. Strengthening your feet should not be neglected, although it may sound silly. Although there aren't special exercises that you should do, exercising on your foot's natural surface will do enough strengthening. Wearing special shoes, insoles and braces won’t strengthen your foot, despite what the manufacturers may say. All of that special equipment will actually make your feet lazy and weak.

Exercising barefoot also puts you at less risk of injury. Bunions, flat feet, heel pain, weak ankles, and shin splints are all the outcome of wearing shoes for the majority of your life. Your sneakers are doing all of the work that your feet should be doing, weakening and diminishing your foot's natural abilities. If you do suffer from some of these common injuries, get rid of your sneakers and start exercising barefoot.

Exercising barefoot also gives your foot a greater range of motion. Those big, clunky sneakers that weigh two pounds limit your foot's mobility. In a sense, your feet are trapped. It's like putting your hands in snow gloves and trying to lift a pair of dumbbells. You will notice how much of a difference there is. It's the same thing with shoes. You are locking your feet in to this small space, not allowing your toes or ankles to move freely, the way they are intended to.

Barefoot exercise will also help to improve your balance and alignment. Again, your foot is the foundation of your entire body from your knees to your hips, to your back, to your head. Without your feet, you would not be able to walk let alone stand up. Having a weak foundation leads to a weak body. Barefoot exercise can help a lot with poor posture, back problems and neck pain. Just a couple of weeks without shoes will help to put your body back into its natural alignment, allowing you to stand taller and stronger. Aside from lessening your pain, standing up straight can do wonders for your physical appearance. Many Americans have terrible posture because of lack of exercise. This leads to a weak upper body and core. If you want your torso to appear leaner, stand up taller and strengthen those back muscles.

If you are going to start applying this new trend, it is important that you take baby steps. You have been wearing shoes your whole life. Even 2-month-old babies are put into sneakers. Going from wearing shoes your entire life to not wearing them to go on a three-mile run will do some harm. Exercising your feet is just like exercising any muscle. They need time to strengthen and grow. You must give yourself enough time before you do every routine barefoot. You may notice that things are a little more difficult when you aren't wearing shoes.

For example, performing some lower body exercises like lunges or squats may seem a bit harder. Your balance will probably be off for the first couple of times. That’s a good thing though! That will show you just how much your shoes have screwed up your natural balance and how much you are strengthening your body. One good thing you should do before exercising barefoot is to make sure the muscles are stretched. Performing a small massage to the bottom of your feet and your toes can help to stretch out those muscles and ligaments, preventing any injury. Also, your calves and shins will definitely feel a difference so you should pay special attention to stretching those out.

One thing that people may be concerned about when exercising barefoot is germs or getting cuts. It is wise to exercise barefoot in a safe place such as your home, the gym or a trail that is cleaned frequently. Your feet have a very tough barrier so germs will have a hard time reaching you. Plus, the benefits of exercising barefoot for the rest of your body outweigh the chances of getting some dirt on your feet.

Have you ever tried a diet and then stopped because it was too hard, you were too hungry, or something came up? Don't feel bad if you have -- it's something that a lot of us have done.

If you're looking for something new to get your fat-loss journey started, try the "minimum effective dose" approach, a well kept secrets of successful weight-loss coaches. Unlike your typical diet, which starts "on Monday" and sweeps your kitchen like a hurricane, leaving a couple of low-fat, low-carb and low-satisfaction items behind, the minimum effective dose approach introduces small, incremental changes to your diet and lifestyle that have a tremendous effect on your progress.

You don't starve yourself and your metabolism won't slow down to a halt. The "minimum" effort puts less strain on your willpower, because you're making small, manageable, but effective changes. This means the stress on you is low, so you aren't as likely to give up on your plan (and your progress). And when, or if, you hit a plateau in your weight-loss journey, you still have plenty of tools and tricks available to kick things back into motion.

First, you need to know your starting point so you can monitor your progress. Weigh yourself, count your belt holes, and take some "before" pictures. Now, you can move on to Step One. (With this method, you'll add one step a week)

Step One: Start A Food Log
You don't have to count calories, and you don't have to change your diet. Just write down whatever you eat. Everything. Somewhere. Recording your food makes you aware of what you eat, and many people lose weight from this step alone. Check to see if you're making progress after the first week. If you are, keep going for another week before heading to Step Two.