Look at a reigning champion like Usain Bolt - who runs as though he’s competing against time, and you’re bound to wonder how he runs like he does. You can’t not be amazed by his athletic abilities. He’s the fastest runner on the planet with a whopping speed of 27.79 mph - which means if you blink, you might just miss seeing him cross the finishing line! Not to forget, he has a record-breaking 100m sprint and 8 Olympic medals to his credit. And what’s most astonishing about this is that he makes it look like a walk in a park, by smiling and sporting a calm, care-free form as he sprints.
While he makes it all look easy-breezy from the stands, it has been anything but effortless for Bolt to get where he is in his track and field career. Infact, his body is bulkier than the average sprinter and he had to work doubly hard to maintain the same body composition as his opponents and still run faster than them.
Needless to say, he trains very hard every single day and follows a strict diet to be the world’s best at his game. If you want to know more about how to attain (or at least try to attain) Bolt’s athletic physique, look no further. AskMen India spills the beans on what champs are made of by charting out Bolt’s comprehensive fitness and diet plan:
WORKOUT
To maintain his credibility as the faster sprinter in the world, Bolt’s fitness plan is both methodological and consistent. He hits the gym for a total of 90 minutes everyday. His workouts are strong and super-intense and primarily include exercises that improve speed and agility.
While legs are the most important part of his routine, he doesn’t disregard the rest of his body. There are various categories to his workout strategy, each having their own purpose.
THE ELECTRIC BOLT WORKOUT
This part of his workout is intended to catalyse explosiveness on the track. It revolves around bettering breathing capacity and gaining momentum so as to overtake the opponents in a matter of seconds. There are two phases to the Electric Bolt Workout:
Phase A aims at boosting the body’s energy in the least amount of time. Exercises that fall in this category include high-energy aerobic activities like bunny hops, box jumps and bounding. These increase the springiness in his legs and help him accelerate while sprinting.
Phase B aims at increasing the flexibility of the legs and improving the range of motion of the hip flexor muscles so that he can take longer strides. Exercises that fall in this category include leg raises, which work on the hamstring flexibility and cable knee drives, which strengthen and stabilise the knee joints.
SPRINT TRAINING
It goes without saying that running is an integral part of Usain Bolt’s fitness regimen. He practises sprinting on the track everyday after his gym session. His process can be broken down into the following 4 drills:
Starting blocks are methods used by sprinters to begin their race with a wide stride while at the same time, get a good grip for their feet so as to not slip. Usain Bolt practises block starts for at least half an hour on a daily basis.
Acceleration is the practice of gaining momentum midway through the race and is done to overtake the maximum number of opponents in the least amount of time. It involves lengthening your stride while also increasing your speed. Usain Bolt works on his acceleration using weights in the form of vests and sleds.
Top end speed is the measure of the fastest that you can run at a given time. It is also called maximal velocity. This involves giving your absolute best in terms of speed and stride. Usain Bolt spends 10-15 minutes improving his top end speed every day.
Deceleration is the process of slowing down the speed after crossing the finishing line. Believe it or not, this requires practice too, especially when you run as fast as Usain Bolt does.
ABS WORKOUT
Although his primary focus is speed, Usain Bolt gives just as much importance to his strength if not more. He believes that a ripped physique will only help him be lighter and more agile on the track. His abs workout is super strenuous, but he has 8 pack abs to show for his consistent efforts. It includes leg raises that work his lower abdomen; side sweeps that work his obliques; reverse crunches which work the six-pack muscle and side plank clams, which strengthens the lateral core.
WEIGHT TRAINING
As you can tell from Usain Bolt’s bulky and brawny form, he’s very serious about weight training and bodybuilding. There are two parts to his weight training workout:
Part 1 includes relatively simpler exercises like the good morning (4 sets of 8 reps), barbell lunges (3 sets of 10 reps), sled push (3 sets of 20 reps), barbell landmine exercises (3 sets of 20 reps), box jumps with medicine ball (4 sets of 5 reps).
Part 2, on the other hand, includes variations of weight training exercises that are all the more difficult and demanding. He begins with power clean (5 sets of 3 reps), explosive barbell step-ups (4 sets of 8 reps), romanian deadlift (4 sets of 10 reps), sled drag (3 sets of 20 reps) and barbell ab rollout (3 sets of 10 reps).
DIET
Carbohydrates
Since Usain Bolt spends pretty much all his time exercising or running (with breaks in between of course), his diet comprises a huge amount of carbohydrates that help generate energy in his body. He’s not too steadfast about his caloric intake and treats himself to breakfast sandwiches, corned beef and pasta every once in a while, provided they are made in a healthy manner. He abstains from junk food completely.
Protein
Usain Bolt’s diet includes a good amount of proteins that help him maintain his lean and muscular physique. He likes to have eggs for breakfast and for lunch and dinner, a personalised plate of chicken wings and nuggets keeping in mind his bodily requirements and restraints. His diet also includes local yams, a superfood that boosts energy and fights inflammation.
Fats
Usain Bolt loves to eat fish, which is a good source of lean fat and Jaimacan dumplings made of ingredients like ackee, saltfish, kidney, liver and mackerel.
Fibre
For his fibre intake, Usain Bolt’s coach pushes him to eat broccoli, which he has openly claimed to detest. Moreover, he also has a good amount of fruits and vegetables like potatoes, peas and bananas.
So here’s what goes behind being the fastest man in the world - It’s nowhere close to as easy as Bolt makes it look!
Cover artwork by Dhaval Punatar/AskMen India
