A few years after retiring, Olympic racer Nick Symmonds felt the need to get back in shape and decided to document his challenge in video form.
He set a deadline of 30 days. At the beginning of the challenge, he weighed 178 pounds, had 15.9 percent body fat, and 42.5 percent muscle mass. The task he set himself was to lose a pound of fat and gain six pounds of muscle.
As the gyms were still closed in early May due to a Covid-19 pandemic, he improvised exercises at home.
“I know how to run in a circle and lose weight, but I don’t know anything about muscles and how to strengthen them,” Symmonds said.
He addressed to Ryan Hall, a marathoner who gained 44 lbs of muscle after retirement. His daily workout consisted of running a mile with wearing a vest with weights and exercises such as hip thrust, squats, and push-ups. His mantra was “what is strong today will be weak tomorrow” and increased the number of repetitions of the exercises he performed each day. Two days a week were reserved for rest.
“My joints and muscles are injured, I can’t rest, I drink three protein shakes and I don’t gain weight at all,” he said after 14 days. In addition to not seeing any physical change, he also complained that the regime was taking revenge on his mental health. “I am a team player, I want to work with people. Quarantine makes me mentally tired. “Honestly, it’s hard for me to get up in the morning, go to the gym and exercise.”
Because of this, he spoke with sports psychologist Jeff Troesch, who motivated him to continue with the regime he had started. After 30 days, he achieved his goal and lost 3 pounds of fat.
“I am really proud of my transformation. In just 30 days, we will be able to do something like this. This is just the beginning, ”he concluded.
Video Source: Nick Symmonds