Agence Zoom/Getty ImagesWe doubt anyone thinks getting into Olympic shape is easy. And you're probably aware that U.S athletes spend 24/7 training for Sochi. But did you also know that even when they aren't prepping for the games they're enjoying other fitness activities. Take a sneak a peek into what their workout routines are really like:
Bronze medalist Julia Mancuso is the most decorated female alpine skier with four Olympic medals, and loves to workout in the warm weathers of Maui. When she's not training on the snowy mountains, she's in the water building up her strength and toning her muscles. She told Shape: "I come to Maui and go surfing, standup paddling, slacklining, swimming and free diving. I just took a performance free-diving course, where I learned to plunge down 60 feet and back. Next, I want to learn how to spearfish."
Gold medalist Jamie Anderson and bronze medalist Erin Hamlin, who love to practice yoga for strength training. A fan of the balancing bow, handstand and tree pose, Anderson shares with Shape: "I love all the poses, but for me I love the balancing poses that really help strengthen my core and overall stability and mental clarity."
For Noelle Pikus-Pace working out is a family affair. The Olympic silver medalist and mother of two reveals that she only as "a two-hour window" to get in her daily workout, "when I lift, when I run, my kids are right by my side. I take them to the track."
Alpine skier, Bode Miller who is the oldest alpine skier to medal in Olympic history, took home bronze after an emotional finish in the Super G. He trains in a barn in his native New Hampshire town where he designed all of his workout machines. No state-of-the-art gym machines needed here! Bode's uncle constructed a special weight lifting machine that the Olympian uses to squat over 300 pounds regularly.
Miller isn't the only heavylifter in Sochi. Katie Uhlaender may not have scored a medal in skeleton racing but she has another shot at an Olympic title in 2016. She is currently training for the Summer Games where she is campaigning to be on the U.S Weightlifting team. Her daily training routines include morning sprints, post-lunch medicine ball work and squats in the evenings, and shares "you'll get better results and ward off injuries by doing fewer reps correctly than by doing a bunch with poor form."
Whether you train for a living or train when you find the time, three-time Olympian hockey star Julie Chu advises to be aware of your body when exercising. "If you feel discomfort during an exercise, our strength coach Mike Boyle suggests asking yourself one question: Is it pain or soreness? Work through soreness, but if it's pain, stop and pinpoint the cause." For someone who trains six times a week, we'll take her word on it!