From Olympians to ballerinos, ultra runners to strongmen, champions come in all shapes and sizes. Here eight of the best tell us how they’ve

honed their bodies to triumph in their fields

Body Issue

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Photography by DAVID CLERIHEW / Words by TOM WARD

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FAST FIRES THE ENGLAND WINGER RELIES ON A CARB-HEAVY DIET FOR EXPLOSIVE SPEED IN TOP-LEVEL SEVENS

Dan Norton28 – 182CM/84KG

With a 40m PB of 4.78 seconds and 205 tries for England under his belt, Gloucester native Dan Norton is gearing up for Olympic gold. Locked down at Twickenham for last-minute training, Norton sat down with MH to discuss his preparations for victory.

You don’t have the traditional barrel chest or tree-trunk legs of the average rugby player. What have you had to work on?Sevens players have to be confident in all areas of the sport. Recently, I’ve had to improve my contact and breakdown skills. In terms of tackling, it’s horses for courses. Low-level stuff we do on pads, then we go onto live stuff once we have our technique down, which can take 18 months.

How do you maintain your speed?I need strong, powerful legs. I enjoy training them because you see the immediate effect of being able to push heavy weights and jump high. Most training is mixed-body sessions. We tend to do hang cleans with two or three reps of 120kg, followed by power cleans. We’ll do a series of two- footed hurdle bounds or a walking

box jump to develop height. We then do heavy squats of a couple of reps lifting from 150-180kg.

What does your diet look like as you gear up for the Olympics?Normally breakfast is half and half muesli and porridge, about 70g in total, with almond milk and berries, a protein shake with carbs and creatine capsules, plus a matcha tea. That’s at 7.30am. We eat again at 11.30-12pm and 5pm. Our meals are all catered to our own dietary needs but sweet potatoes invariably feature highly. I’ll also have a second protein shake after training and I take omega-3, multivitamins and beta-alanine, which helps stop lactic acid build-up. For dinner I have 40g of protein – about two chicken breasts – plus carbs and vegetables before ending with a late snack. In answer to your question, it looks like a lot.

How long do you think you have left in the game? Overall, players aren’t just getting bigger and stronger, but fitter and faster, too. What matters is how long you’re able to do the job and do it well. At the moment I’m still there, or thereabouts. Hopefully, I’ve still got a bit of time left in my legs.

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MAN MOUNTAINOVER 10,000 CALORIES A DAY ARE REQUIRED TO POWER THE UK’S STRONGEST MAN

He is, to put it politely, a hulk of a man. By the time Eddie Hall turns up for MH’s photo shoot, he has endured hours wedged between two seats on the train from his hometown of Stoke-on-Trent. It’s the same story on aeroplanes, he gripes. Wary of needlessly vexing the colossus further, the studio is scoured for a chair large and sturdy enough to temporarily withstand his bulk, while powdered chalk is applied for the photographs. Eventually, Hall settles on one vaguely resembling a throne and lowers himself in without complaint.

Eddie Hall28 – 192CM/183KG

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Joe Clarke 23 – 183CM/78KG

Having bagged gold medals at the 2010 British Open and 2014 Canoe World Cup, Joe Clarke qualified for team GB in November. He joined MH over the phone from Rio to discuss his plan of attack.

What’s a typical day’s training for you?I go to the gym at 7.30 every morning to stretch. You inevitably carry DOMS [delayed-onset muscle soreness] over from the day before, so you need to make sure you’re flexible enough not to cause injuries. Training mainly focuses on chest, lats and triceps.

Most of your power comes from your arms. How do you develop this?I do a kettlebell warm-up each afternoon with cleans and squats. Pre-Olympics we’re coming into the power side of things, so we do three sets of five reps at 150kg on the bench press, followed by two sets of three lots at 122kg, then one rep of 132kg. There isn’t time to let things get monotonous.

Are you tired of chicken breasts yet?It’s not too bad – we have free rein as long as we’re hitting our macros. I’ll have a double espresso when I wake up, porridge, two boiled eggs and a small glass of orange juice. For lunch I’ll have 200g of chicken (equivalent to a large breast) or beef with rice and green veg. I’ll have a Red Bull to set me up for my next session with a tin of tuna mid-afternoon. For dinner, I’ll have something like a seafood risotto. It’s not a chore.

What motivates you most with regard to the Olympics?I just think about how amazing it would be to be standing on that podium, listening to the national anthem playing. That’s what it’s all about. Watch Joe Clarke’s latest film Into the Wild at redbull.com

HEAD & SHOULDERS IMMENSE UPPER-BODY STRENGTH PROPELLED CLARKE TO A SHOT AT OLYMPIC GLORY

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champion. But the swimming career was prematurely curtailed owing to a mixture of boredom with the regimen and an expulsion from school for fighting. It was only then that Hall hit the gym fulltime, hungry to lift.

“According to YouTube, the weights I was lifting aged 19 made me one of the strongest men in the world,” he says, matter-of-factly. “So I decided to see if I could pursue strongman.” Less than three years later, he was crowned England’s Strongest Man, aged 22.

But Hall almost didn’t live to achieve his most recent successes. In 2012, following a burnout while working 55-hour weeks, he was admitted to hospital with swelling on the brain. “I ran my immune system to rock bottom and caught meningitis, pneumonia, the lot,” he says. “I was close to dying. It taught me to listen to my body and take a step back. It’s more important to get a few more hours rest then have an extra hour in the gym.”

Now back to full health, Hall is free to dedicate his days to his sport, starting with a morning of “caveman training”, incorporating everything from sledge pushes to battle ropes and shadow boxing. Weight training comes after lunch, broken down into three hours focusing on complimentary muscle groups – like quads and calves – before an hour of strongman training with Atlas stone lifts, farmer’s walks and tyre flips.

We can’t help but wonder whether his rivalry with fellow strongman, Game of Thrones star and former MH cover model, Hafthor Björnsson, comes to mind during training. Hall laughs off the suggestion. “Me and Thor get on great. But when the whistle blows, that guy’s my enemy. I’d stab him in the throat.”

Would he follow Björnsson into acting? He shrugs. “If the chance came along, maybe. But I wouldn’t let it compromise my mission to become the world’s strongest man. It’s about building an empire. If I win that title I’d be able to set my family up for life. That’s all I’ve ever wanted to do, to make them proud.”

It is fitting that the five-times UK’s Strongest Man – the fourth Strongest Man in the World – should choose such a chair. Hall is also the world deadlift record holder, having beaten his own record in March by hefting a back-breaking 465kg – 2.5 times his own bodyweight, and equal to a small cow – at the Arnold Classic games in Ohio. Schwarzenegger himself rushed over to congratulate Hall as he roared at the crowd. Arms aloft, his biceps bear a tattoo that reads ‘The Beast’.

Should you ever find yourself in Hall’s presence, the first thing that will strike you is his stomach. When he removes his

T-shirt it’s like opening a child’s pop-up book. But this is no beer gut. Despite a 10,000 plus daily calorie intake, there’s a solid shape to it, like a bag of wet cement. “I wouldn’t class myself as a fat bastard, but I’m not a model,” is Hall’s own take. “The saying goes that weight moves weight. And it’s true, the bigger I get, the easier I find it to lift things.”

Hall prides himself on having always been the same weight (in stones) as his age. Now at the age of 28, his weight rests just under the 29st mark. It’s been this way since he was 10st, aged 10. Until he was 15, Hall says, he didn’t have an ounce of fat on his frame, thanks to his 20-plus-hours-a-week training schedule as a national swimming

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TRIBAL ALLEGIANCE HALL’S TATTOOS DOUBLE AS BOTH WARPAINT AND BRANDING, HELPING HIM BECOME ‘THE BEAST’

Eric Underwood31 – 189CM/82KG

Eric Underwood started out as a chancer. Long before joining London’s Royal Ballet from the American Ballet Theatre in 2006 and before he was promoted to soloist in 2008, Underwood was standing side-stage, waiting to audition for a school talent show in his native Washington DC. Aged 14 and preparing for an acting part, Underwood realised he’d forgotten his monologue. Seeing a girl stretching in the wings, he had a sudden flash of inspiration. “I thought, ‘OK, I’ll become a dancer!’ I had no training,” he tells MH, “but I believed I could do it, and that was important.”

Until then, Underwood had been a running back on the school’s American football team and, by his own admission, not a very good one. “I liked being physical and athletic but I didn’t really have a sense of direction,” he says.

Ballet, with its clear sense of progression and strict hierarchy, gave him the structure he needed to turn this interest in physicality into a career. Now one of the most famous names in his field, when he isn’t dancing, Underwood is dedicated to keeping his body in performance shape.

“I do Gyrotonics first thing in the morning to maintain mobility,” he says. “I usually plank for two minutes, on each side, with 20 press-ups in-between.” After that, it’s on to the Royal Opera House. “I start rehearsing at 12noon and will go until 1pm, then I’ll have a 15-minute break and then go again until 6.30pm. That’s six days a week.”

Unsurprisingly, for such a kinetic occupation, mobility takes precedence over raw power. “Any lifts we do on stage are more about being in sync with the ballerinas than utilising brute strength.

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CORE DEDICATION UNDERWOOD FOCUSES ON FLEXIBILITY AND A STRONG MIDLINE OVER SHOWY MUSCLES

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Moe Sbihi28 – 202CM/108KG

One of the bronze-medal heroes of London 2012, British rowing’s tallest athlete is pulling his weight toward a Rio 2016 victory.

Your teammates all look up to you – quite literally. Does height make for a natural rower?No, it didn’t work that way. I used to be into tennis, but a talent ID scheme called World Class Start came to my school and tested everyone’s strength. It turned out I was one of four kids in 10,000 who they thought could be Olympic rowers. I gave it a go and hated it for the first seven months. I was getting beaten by girls, which isn’t a bad thing per se. But I was just really slow to learn and didn’t take to the sport like a natural at all.

CALM WATERS MASTERING BODY AND MIND CHANNELS SBIHI’S DRIVE TO OLYMPIC GOLD

What’s the toughest part of your current fitness routine?Bench presses correlate quite strongly with rowing movements. We’ll do four sets of five reps. My PB is 125kg, but I rep quite low – around 100kg – and just bring it out when we do the testing. I find single-leg squats difficult and don’t use a weight – but I weigh 108kg, so I’m sure that’s fine. Really we row with our legs, but the transfer through the core is also very important.

You’re Muslim. Does this have any effect on your nutrition?I’m sponsored by Fresh Fitness Food, so they make sure everything meets my requirements. But I did have to make a few personal decisions leading up to the Olympics – for instance, not fasting during Ramadan. I know my body is capable of performing without food, but I want my teammates to be as confident in my abilities as possible come race day.

What changes have you made going into your second Olympics?I’m mentally fitter than I was four to six

years ago. I know how to conduct myself with my teammates, rather than being a dick and not speaking to them for three weeks, even though we’re sat in the same boat. I make more of an effort now.

Do you have any tricks for mental preparation?Ninety-five per cent of our time is taken up with boring, monotonous training but this is as essential for our mindsets as it is for our physical condition. You and your teammates go in on the day knowing full well that your bodies are going to put it on the line straight away because you’ve gone through so much grit and shit just to get there.

What’s next after Rio?I think in terms of Olympic cycles. I don’t want the slightest doubt in my mind that I might have another chance after Rio to get it right. The last four years have been my own personal quest for glory. And glory for me is a gold medal.

It’s important to understand that I’ve created a holistic lifestyle to develop a healthy body, rather than going to a gym and going ‘ugh, ugh, ugh,’” he says, mimicking furious biceps curls.

And, despite the occasional social media post to the contrary, for a professional ballet dancer, diet is far from flexible. “I usually wake up and have porridge and a piece of fruit. For lunch I’ll have chicken breast with a salad, and maybe some rice. For dinner, I’ll probably have a steak with some vegetables. I’m allowed a glass of wine.”

As with any athlete, the ballerino is a work in progress, quietly developing strength, technique and posture to ensure a near-perfect performance. Likewise, such are the physical demands, a career in dance won’t last forever. “If it ends tomorrow, I’d love to keep working as a model [Underwood has choreographed campaigns for Vivienne Westwood] and I’d like to do film,” he says. “The shelf-life for ballet dancers varies depending on your genetic pre-disposition. The more you’re born with, the longer you last physically, because you’re not fighting against your body. All I can say is: ‘so far, so good.’”

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RUNNING MAN KIPCHOGE LET SIX MARATHON GOLD MEDALS DO THE TALKING

Eliud Kipchoge31 – 167CM/52KG

Not only did Eliud Kopchoge win his second London Marathon the day before our photo shoot, but at a time of 2:03:04 hours, he set a new course record. He was also eight seconds away from recording the fastest marathon of all time. Somehow, he is not hobbling.

Seated face-to-face with the softly spoken Kenyan, MH asks how it feels to be a hair’s breadth away from a world record, while simultaneously cementing his position as champion of London’s illustrious road race. Does he have conflicting emotions? Would he have dug deeper had he known that the ultimate accolade was so close?

“I feel happy,” grins Kipchoge. It’s fair to say that we’ve underestimated the language barrier. Fitting our photo shoot in between a morning press conference and a trans-continental flight, Kipchoge would be forgiven for not operating at full power. But his energy never wavers as he bounds about, imitating the previous day’s victory for our photographer.

“I run about 40km when I’m training. Always outside, up and down hills. It

keeps me stress-free,” he says. If this sounds idyllic, a loose diet of proteins, fruit and lots of honey (on bread or spooned straight into his mouth) rounds out the picture. Combine this with an aerobic-focused weights routine to boost endurance and it’s clear Kipchoge is onto a winning formula. “A marathon runner doesn’t need to be a weightlifter, but the chest, arms, stomach and legs need to be strong. The stomach especially, to prevent back injury,” he says.

But Kipchoge’s thoughts are far from injury: “My career is just starting. I feel like I can run for many more years. I want to win gold in the Olympics if I’m picked this year. I don’t look to my competition. I look to myself. I push myself because of the love of the sport. That’s what makes me run.”

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FUTURE TRIALS NEW TECHNOLOGY AND SMART ADAPTATIONS TO HIS FITNESS REGIME KEEP ASHTON IN THE SADDLE

Martyn Ashton41 – 182CM/73KG

The first time Martyn Ashton has been really scared since becoming paralysed didn’t happen on a bike, but in a pub. “There was a drunk woman at the bar and I must have given her the wrong look. She got aggressive and threatened to punch me,” he says. “But what could I do? Even if she knocked me out, she would have already lost by hitting someone in a wheelchair.”

In the end, Ashton’s friends stepped in to avert any paraplegic pugilism and the evening ended in good spirit – a feeling that becomes infectious around Ashton.

Ashton is a professional mountain bike trials rider with more than 20 years experience and both British and World Champion titles under his belt. But performing at a demonstration in 2013, he overbalanced and fell 3m, landing on his shoulders. His legs whipped up, effectively folding him in half, dislocating his T9 and T10 vertebrae and paralysing him from the waist down. “I immediately knew in the back of my mind that I was paralysed, but mainly I was just stoked that I wasn’t dead,” he says with the voice of a man who has long since come to terms with his lot in life.

Incredibly, he was back on two wheels within two years, this time in a specially modified downhill set-up which only requires a push to get going. The results of this glorious return were

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filmed for the video Back On Track, which has received almost 1.3 million views on YouTube since it was uploaded last summer. “Once I’m on the bike I’m just one of the guys,” Ashton says. “The thing I like best is us taking the piss out of each other after the ride, and that hasn’t changed.”

He even claims there are some benefits to his condition. “I do a lot of stretching,” he grins. “With my legs straight out on the floor I can lay my face on the ground between them because I can’t feel anything now. It’s great.”

Sitting down, however, is a different story. “My injury level is just below my pectorals. I’ve got a bit of stomach muscle at the top, but because my trunk can’t support me, it feels like sitting on a Swiss ball all of the time. I’ve also had to lower the weights I use from 22kg to 10kg for things like biceps curls and shoulder presses, because the pressure on my spine is just too much.”

Even so, it’s hard not to be affected by Ashton’s enthusiasm. Newly vegan, he’s healthy and happy, with plans for a new trials biking video. “The first one was getting back on track,” he explains. “Now it’s time to do something.”Martyn Ashton is an ambassador for Wings For Life. Register for the 2017 run at wingsforlifeworldrun.com

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PEAK FITNESS BOULDERING AND CYCLING KEEP HOULDING IN SHAPE TO MASTER MOUNTAINS

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At just 18 years old, Leo Houlding became the first British mountaineer to free-climb Yosemite’s infamous El Capitan. Throughout his career, he has striven to best this 900m feat, including leading a six-man team to conquer the north-east ridge of Antarctica’s punishing Ulvetanna Peak in 2013.

What’s the most serious injury you’ve ever sustained?In 2002 I fell while climbing Cerro Torre in Patagonia with a friend. I was roped in, but I was a long way above the last bit of protection and smashed the talus bone in my right ankle. I was pushing hard, attempting some technically difficult climbing when I should have been more conservative. We had to climb down 700 vertical metres, then

spent three days crawling through crevasses, snow and rocky terrain before we were picked up. They took a bone graft from my hip to repair the damage, and I’ve still got metal work.

How do you stay in shape?I climb at a bouldering gym in my local village to work on upper-body strength. For legs and lungs I mountain bike, because running is too high-impact for my ankle. At the moment I’m trying to pack on weight for a 1000-mile snowkite expedition across Greenland, so I haven’t climbed properly in a while.

How does gym-built fitness translate to the mountain?Out on expeditions, it’s more about grunt work. In the wilderness – when you’re dehydrated and haven’t eaten

for a day or two – you often find gym bunnies are the worst. They’re fit and strong, but they like to have a structured system. If you haven’t slept for 30 hours, it’s a different kind of fitness to being able to do 25 pull-ups.

How do you keep going when you’re stuck halfway up a mountain?It’s a funny old game. In a way, climbing is pointless. You put yourself through severe hardships and when you get to the top there’s no dancing girls or pot of gold; you just have to go down again. You haven’t reached your limit if you get to the top. It’s when you’ve had to turn back and come down that you know you have pushed yourself to your absolute limit. It’s a wise man that knows when to say “No”. The mountain will always be there – but whether you’ll be around for another attempt is a different question.

Leo Houlding35 – 180CM/75KG

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