New Year's Message of Fitness from a Washed-up Olympian

I’ll never forget the first time I went to the gym after retiring from athletics. It was a familiar place, but a very different feeling. I wandered around for a bit and I remember feeling unusually fatigued. I was there because I understood the value of fitness, but I no longer had the same motivation for killing myself. I didn't realize until then just how important impossibly high goals had been to my training. Being in great shape and looking good had always been byproducts of chasing those goals. Was I really ready to be a normal person and change those byproducts to actual goals? Nope. After about twenty minutes of wandering around, I left.

As a competitive decathlete, my weight was typically between 215-220 and as an Olympic bobsledder it was between 230-240. Since retiring in 2002, my weight steadily climbed to a high of 268 in 2004 (and not in a good way), then dropped to a low of 212 in 2006 when I got serious about running for a while. Most days I’ve hovered between 235-245 and today I’m in OK shape at 232. Two facts remain; working out still sucks and I love food.

I’ve spoken with a number retired athletes and my journey isn’t that unique. I’ll never be a gym rat and there’s a really good chance no one will use the word “shredded” to describe me. But, I have learned a few things along the way that work for me and I want to share them.

1. Any fitness-related change should be sustainable. Fad diets will work while you’re on them, but unless you can stay on it for the rest of your life it will be short lived. We all want results right now, but if you want it to last, it needs to be a lifestyle change that you can continue indefinitely. Incremental changes to your diet are much more likely to stick.
2. Weigh yourself regularly. It’s a great incentive when you’re trending the right direction and it keeps you from being in denial when you are not.
3. Disguise your workout as a sport. Sports are fun and getting in shape becomes a byproduct once again. If you can find a sport you enjoy, get out of the gym and play it.
4. Define success for every workout. This was what I was missing that first day I entered the gym as a retired athlete. I need goals, even if they are no longer impossibly high. Based on the looks I get at the gym, I’m pretty sure my goals are different than the other members. My current warm-up goal on the stationary bike (yes, I even have goals for my warm-up) is to beat my personal best time for three miles on level 12. My warm-up goal for the rowing machine is all about watts. The goals mean something to me and that’s what matters. If I didn’t set goals or track my personal bests, I would just be going through the motions.
5. Do something regularly. It’s much easier to keep a routine going than starting again after an extended break. Even when traveling I use the hotel fitness room or my portable TRX system in my room. Even a short workout is better than missing it completely.
6. Do it for someone else. The older I get, the more important and effective this one becomes. Fitness is contagious and research shows that when parents are out of shape, their children are more likely to become obese. We need to be good role models for the younger generation and lead by example. I also happen to have a son with autism and the thought of dying scares the hell out of me. I owe it to him to be here as long as possible.

I have one final word of advice. The annual pilgrimage to gyms has already begun. New Year’s resolutions inevitably involve gym memberships and visions of a healthier 2015. If you’re serious, then make it more than a resolution. Resolutions let you off the hook because so few people actually keep them. Commit to it and stick to it. If you’re not that serious, then let’s speed up the inevitable so I can get my parking spot back at the gym. Happy New Year!

Darrin Steele is CEO for USA Bobsled & Skeleton, VP of Sport for the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation and PhD Candidate in Educational Leadership, Research and Policy at University of Colorado - Colorado Springs.

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