Go for gold! Learn to train like an Olympian

Running: Brad Hudson
Champion 2:13 marathoner and current coach of Olympic gold medal marathon hopeful Dathan Ritzenhein

Run faster, expend less energy
"Whether you're trying to log a faster 10K or just keep up with your bean-thin teen, the key to running more efficiently is to reduce the amount of time your feet spend on the ground. One of the best ways to do this is with hill sprints. Find a stretch of road with a 10 percent grade (think: bunny slope) and sprint up it for 10 to 12 seconds. Stay on your toes, lifting your feet rapidly and taking short, quick strides. Walk back down, rest three minutes, and repeat. Steadily work your way up to six to eight sprints. In so doing, you'll condition your fast-twitch muscle fibers — the ones that count in the 40-yard dash — to fire at maximum intensity, and your nervous system to relay signals more efficiently."

Build speed stamina
"Everyone knows that intervals are the key to cardiovascular fitness, but if you want to achieve a new personal best, don't focus on increasing your interval speed, focus on increasing your interval distance. For example, if you regularly run six miles, start running every other mile at your targeted 10K speed. Once that becomes comfortable, steadily increase the distance of each interval until you're running all six miles at your race pace."

Cycling: Allen Lim, Ph.D.
Physiologist for Team Slipstream-Chipotle, which is sending numerous cyclists to Beijing, including 18-year-old phenom Taylor Phinney

Pedal with greater power
"Whether you're commuting to work, cruising through Vermont, or racing around a velodrome, the key to proper cycling technique is to keep tension on the chain at all times. The upstroke is particularly important: Pull back on the pedal with your hamstrings, and when it nears the top of the revolution, kick forward. Working through all 360 degrees will boost power and speed, and accelerate your fitness gains."

Reduce your recovery time
"The most important muscle in cycling is the one you park on the seat — your gluteus maximus — so stretch it before and after every ride. Lie on your back and pull your right knee toward your chest until you feel the stretch in your glutes. Hold for 20 seconds, switch legs, and repeat. Other important muscles to stretch include your hamstrings, quads, and calves."

Basketball: Keith Jones
Senior vice president of basketball operations and athletic trainer for the Houston Rockets, and an athletic trainer for Team USA Basketball

Prevent back injuries
"I don't care if you're a pro baller or a weekend warrior, most injuries on the court — thrown backs, pulled groins, twisted ankles — result from reacting to someone else's movement. Keep yourself nimble and limber with the following stretch: Lie supine on the floor with your legs flat and arms by your sides. Next, pull your left knee toward your chest, and then to the right, so that you feel the twist and stretch in your back and core. Hold for 20 seconds, and then repeat with your right leg. Also, invest in a pair of compression shorts. Ninety percent of NBA guys wear them. McDavid's Dual Density Hexpad Thudd Short ($80, mcdavidusa.com) is a good brand, and it will both keep your muscles warm and help prevent pulls."

Boost your agility
"Warm muscles are agile muscles, which is why I have my players do the following full-court drill before every practice and game. If you don't have access to a basketball court, mark off 100 feet wherever you can find room. Jog to the far baseline and back. Skip to the far baseline and jog back. Jog backward to the far baseline and then jog back. Do walking lunges to half-court, jog the rest of the way to the far baseline, and then repeat the drill back. Do 'ice skaters' (lunge forward 45 degrees to your right, and then 45 degrees to your left, and so on) to the far baseline and repeat back. Do 'defensive slides' (shuffle sideways with your arms held out in front of you) to the far baseline, and then face the other way and repeat back."

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