10 Ways You Can Train Like a Professional Athlete

We all admire how top athletes portray their athletic performance – stability, strength, and coordination. It is amazing to see what our bodies can do. Inspired by their grit, we might also want to explore the limits our bodies can go to. Although the process is not easy, we can always find a way through it. Below, we share 10 tips to help you increase your athletic performance training.

Stay Hydrated

Athletic training exercises or just any exercise, in general, dehydrate your body at a faster rate. This is because you sweat a lot during exercise and lose a lot of water. Thus, it’s always good to stay hydrated, especially during the training process. Water helps you stay hydrated and keeps your muscles lubricated. Adding an electrolyte to your water, either in the form of a pill, powder, or gel, can help a lot. This is because when you sweat, you lose electrolytes, and your body cannot replenish them fast enough. It is advisable to drink not less than one liter of water per day.

Sleep Well

When you sleep, your body repairs itself. If you don’t get enough sleep, your body will take longer to recover than it should. Your ultimate goal should be to have a quality night’s sleep, between seven and eight hours. Additionally, it is advisable to practice good sleep hygiene and routine – go to sleep and wake up at the same time each day, sleep in a dark room, don’t use a screen right before bedtime, and so forth. If you want to train like a professional athlete, then good sleep is a must.

Focus on Compound Movements

Compound movements use multiple groups of muscles at once – the more muscles are used, the more muscle can be gained. Examples of compound movements include power cleans, squats, overhead presses, and deadlifts. Ground-based compound movements are recommended because they keep your feet on the ground for most of the time. This way, your body learns how to absorb and apply force on the ground. The front squat is a very effective compound movement because it puts you in a more appropriate posture, which is a more conducive position for most starting stances in sports.

Do Some Jumping

To train like a professional athlete, you need to incorporate exercises that make your movements more explosive, such as jumping. Jumping can help in sports that have a vertical component. Working on your jumping and landing mechanics gives you a greater advantage in basketball and volleyball. Exercises such as squat jumps, box jumps, and quick vertical jumps spending the least amount of time on the ground, help improve athleticism.

Gear Up

If you want to train like a professional athlete, you have to feel like one. Pro athletes use specific gear to train and help them recover from workouts. The right gear will put you in the right mood to train. The appropriate gear will depend on what training you are doing. However, the basics include sports shoes, a foam roller or lacrosse ball, and possibly gymnastics rings. You can have your packed gym bag in your car so that you don’t forget anything.

Buddy Up

Training with a buddy creates a competitive environment and facilitates a “get it done” attitude. A buddy helps you become accountable to someone else besides yourself. If you train with a friend, you are less likely to miss a workout session, and you are more likely to complete it. If you have a budget for it, you should include a personal trainer. A personal trainer can help you achieve your results faster and more effectively. Professional athletes, buddy up!

Warm Up

Professional athletes don’t train on a cold body, and you shouldn’t, either. Exercising without warming up your muscles will make you more prone to sprains, tears, strains, and other injuries. Thus, before starting your exercise, spend a few minutes doing light aerobics to get your blood flowing, and then stretch your muscles to prepare them for movement. A good warm-up will make your whole workout more effective.

Active Recovery

If you’re experiencing stiff muscles, the worst thing you can do is do nothing at all. One of the best ways to speed up your recovery process is through brief, low-intensity “extra” workouts. That’s why athletes don’t just sit on their couches on off days. You can do simple exercises such as going for a walk, a 15-minute dynamic workout, or upper and lower body sled dragging variations. These additional workouts increase blood flow without the soreness associated with unconventional contractions. Incorporate active recovery into your training schedule to help your body heal faster.

Time to Rest

Your body loves routines. The rest interval between routines is one of the most important variables for maximal outputs. Maximal output is the maximum force you can produce when conditions are optimal. The rest periods must be completed to ensure quality. The speed and quality of your athletic performance should determine how long you should rest between movements.

Work on Your Mindset

Pro athletes don’t just focus on physical training. They also prepare mentally for competitions. They can dig deep and thus push through any mental barriers that hold back performance when training or competing. When you read stories of elite athletes, you will find that they work with a mental coach to them. Hypnosis, Neuro-Linguistic Programming, and Cognitive-behavioral theory all help to increase performance. If you want to train like a pro-athlete, focus on your body and mind.

These are some of the ways in which you can train like a professional athlete. Following these techniques will help you significantly increase your training. Are you ready to train like a professional athlete? Here at Next Level Fitness, we help you reach your fitness goals. We are a team of professionals highly dedicated to walking the fitness journey with you. We have an athletic performance training program to help you. Join us today and become part of our story. We will elevate your fitness journey!