From the Slopes to the Sauna: I Spent Four Days Living Like an Athlete Ahead of the Winter Olympics

23-year old Zoe Atkin is already a world champion. A multiple World Cup medalist, too. And this month, the halfpipe skier will become a double Olympian when she takes to the slopes for Great Britain at the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics.

She’ll be joined at the games by 35-year-old Dorothea Wierer, one of Italy’s most decorated biathletes. Now in her final season before retirement, the four-time world champion is looking to add a home Olympic gold to her already glittering medal cabinet.

But while we’ll watch the final moments of these two Olympic journeys play out on screen, what we won’t see is the days, weeks, months - let's be honest, years of dedication which take place before an athlete even steps out for their Olympic run.

If you’re a skier or snowboarder, you’ll already have some sense of the strength, coordination and skill required simply to make it down a mountain in one piece, let alone to cover the 15km of cross-country terrain Wierer will face, or to throw the 360º somersaults Atkin performs seemingly effortlessly.

Which is why I, a Health Writer who has never donned a pair of skis, set myself the challenge of living like these two sporting titans for a week in the build-up to the Milano-Cortina Games. The 25th annual iteration of the games kicks off tomorrow, and will see 3,500 athletes flock to Italy to participate in a record-breaking 116 events over sixteen different disciplines - including all-new ski mountaineering.

From the slopes of South Tyrol, I trained, ate, slept and recovered according to the rhythms and routines they use to prepare their bodies and minds for competition. While my skill level couldn’t be more amateur, the experience revealed just how physically, mentally and technically demanding skiing really is, and how much the rest of us can learn from the routines and mindset Olympians use to make it to the biggest stage of all.

Read on for my reflections. And for more insight into the world of elite sport, our recent Women in Sport issue features in-depth conversations on what it’s really like to be a female athlete in 2026.

I Spent Four Days Living Like an Athlete Ahead of the Winter Olympics - from slope to sauna

What are the Winter Olympics?

First things first: let me set the scene. Held every four years, the Winter Olympics are the world’s most prestigious international sporting event for disciplines practised on snow and ice.

Now in its 25th edition, the Games first took place in 1924 in Chamonix, France. Back then, just five sports were contested; today, there are 16 disciplines and more than 300 medals up for grabs.

And as the programme has expanded, so too has female participation. At the inaugural Games, only 11 women competed, compared to more than 250 men. This year, over 1,300 female athletes will take part, competing in 53.4% of medal events.

Where are the Winter Olympics being held?

For the first time in Winter Olympic history, the Games will be hosted across two cities, with both Milan and Cortina named as official Olympic hubs. In reality, though, events will span much of Northern Italy, including Lombardy, Trentino and South Tyrol, where I spent my time training ahead of the Games.

It’s easy to see why the region has become synonymous with winter sports. Thanks to its reliable snow, high-altitude alpine terrain and unmistakable Dolomite backdrop, it’s as much a playground for elite athletes as it is a dream destination for recreational skiers and snowboarders.

What does preparing for an Olympics actually involve?

Training

As a recreational athlete, it’s easy to think that you need to do more in the weeks before a big event, especially if your performance has dipped in training. I know from experience that a slower session or missed target time can easily prompt you to push harder in the hope it’ll pay off on the day.

Elite athletes and their coaches do the opposite. They know that a slight drop in performance is a normal response to heavy training and that the solution is something known as a 'taper': a deliberate reduction in training load during the final weeks before competition.

“By this point, I’ve learned all of the tricks I’m going to do in my Olympic run,” explains Atkin. “The focus is just on making it look as clean as possible.”

That mindset extends into the gym, where recovery becomes her priority. “I’ll do twenty minutes of spinning on the bike with a little mobility session to make sure my joints feel good, along with a stretch and a foam roll,” she says.

Recovery

But where training intensity dials down, recovery ramps up.

Sleep, in particular, is non-negotiable for both Atkin and Wierer. Long linked to faster reaction times, better decision-making and improved focus, it’s also crucial for muscle repair and injury prevention.

“Sleep is one of the most important elements for arriving at competitions in good physical condition,” confirms Wierer, who admits it’s one of her biggest challenges during competition periods. To wind down, she relies on “relaxation and breathing techniques, which help me fall asleep gradually without resorting to other products.”

Atkin, meanwhile, swears by a consistent evening routine. “I need at least nine hours of sleep a night,” she tells me, “which means spending time away from my phone before bed to relax and feel refreshed the next day.”

She also takes magnesium each night. Early research suggests it may support sleep duration and quality, although larger studies are still needed to confirm its effects.

Both athletes also have regular physiotherapy, while Wierer occasionally uses saunas or steam baths to aid relaxation and muscle recovery - a tradition rooted in her hometown of Bruneck, in Italy’s region of South Tyrol.

Nutrition

When it comes to food, both athletes take a refreshingly straightforward approach.

“I’m a big foodie,” says Atkin, who shows no sign of restriction, but a clear understanding of what her body needs to cope with the demands of competition. “I need plenty of protein for my recovery and to maintain my muscle mass,” she explains, “while carbs give me the energy to go tens of feet in the air.”

On competition day, that might mean a breakfast of “French toast with berries and yoghurt, or porridge with chia seeds and fruit.”

Mental preparation

Ask any elite athlete, and they’ll tell you that mental readiness is just as important as physical conditioning.

For Atkin, turning her mind into a strength has been a long-term commitment. “I work on my mindset every single day,” she says. “I’m very conscious of my thought patterns and emotions, and I try to reframe things positively whenever I can.”

Her daily practice, which includes meditation, mindfulness and visualisation, has helped her to manage fear, something she says is an unavoidable part of being an action sports athlete. “It helps me to feel really present, mentally strong and prepared,” she explains.

Wierer, by contrast, doesn’t follow a fixed mental routine. “Every race is a story of its own,” she tells me, “so I’ve learned to manage my mental condition based on my physical preparation.” While experience gives her that flexibility (this will be her fourth Winter Olympics), she often turns to reading or watching films when she needs to take her mind off the pressure.

I lived like an athlete in the build up to the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics - and was equal parts humbled and inspired

Day one

Arriving at Gatwick, my suitcase brimming with borrowed ski gear, I’m equal parts nervous and excited. Having never skied before, I’m on the polar opposite end of the spectrum to either Atkin or Wierer, but the pre-trip anticipation makes me wonder what it must feel like when they finally pack their bags for the Olympic village - full of hope, but also, particularly in Wierer’s case, the pressure to perform for a home crowd.

I’m not staying in the Olympic village - that’s reserved for athletes and is three hours away in Cortina - but I am based in two of South Tyrol’s best ski hotels. While it's not the same, being away from my own bed does offer a small taste of the dislocation athletes experience when they arrive in Northern Italy; their day-to-day tasks left behind and attention turned solely to the competition ahead.

There’s no ski session scheduled on day one, but from my room at the Tratterhof Mountain Sky Hotel, I use the downtime to loosen off my muscles and joints after travelling. With the Dolomites silhouetted against my window, it quickly turns into the perfect setting for a few minutes of mindfulness, à la Atkin.

Then, with not one but eight saunas to choose from, I try one of Wierer’s preferred recovery tools. I opt for the infrared sauna, which works differently from a traditional Finnish sauna. Instead of heating the air around you, infrared light penetrates the skin, meaning that the temperature of the room itself isn’t as stifling, but that you still reap the benefits of improved circulation, muscle recovery and relaxation.

Before dinner, I turn my phone to do not disturb. Like Atkin, I want to give my body time to fully wind down before sleep, to make sure I’m as rested as possible ahead of my first day on the slopes.

You probably don’t need me to tell you this, but without the bedtime scroll (and helped by one of the comfiest mattresses I’ve slept on in years), I sleep much better than usual, waking up only when my alarm sounds at 7 am.

Day two

The next morning, with my first ski day ahead, I know I need to fuel properly; not just because skiing is physically demanding, but because learning a new skill is mentally taxing too. In fact, despite making up just 2% of our body weight, studies suggest the brain uses around 20% of our total energy.

Taking Atkin and Wierer’s lead, I opt for a breakfast full of protein, carbohydrate and fibre: Bircher muesli with dried fruit, nuts, seeds, carrot and honey.

Not long later, clipped into my skis and layered up at Gitschberg Jochtal, one of South Tyrol’s largest ski resorts, my first challenge comes before I’ve even pointed downhill. While everyone else seems to shuffle uphill effortlessly, I’m slipping, sliding and making very little progress. I think about Wierer, who can cover 15km of cross-country snow in under 45 minutes, whilst I’ve moved less than ten metres in as many minutes. It’s humbling, but thankfully everyone around me is lovely; a fellow skier actually offering me a hand to make it up the slope.

We begin on the nursery runs (where the average age is four) to get to grips with the basics. And it’s here that I gain my first real appreciation for Olympic skill.

Skiing looks elegant and effortless on screen, but the strength, balance and proprioception required to control your speed and direction is nothing short of immense. For two hours, I work on a very gentle decline, learning how to speed up, slow down and slalom - all essential foundations before I’m allowed anywhere near the real slopes.

By the afternoon, I’m feeling brave enough to attempt my first blue green - the easiest category of piste. It’s nothing compared to the gradients faced by elite athletes, but cruising down a snow covered mountain flanked by fir trees, I finally understand why Wierer and Atkin have dedicated their lives to snow sports. With crisp air on my face and my skis parallel for the first time, I feel completely free and totally relaxed. It’s intoxicating and by the time I reach the bottom I’m buzzing and desperate to go again.

Day three

On day three, I wake up in Seiser Alm, a region known for its beginner-friendly slopes and home to Europe’s highest alpine meadow - spectacular in winter, and, I’m told, even more so for hiking in summer.

Before leaving my room, I borrow another tool from Atkin’s playbook and run through some visualisations. With so much technical information to absorb, it’s easy to become overly robotic, but my instructors stress that staying relaxed is key. Instead of fixating on individual movements, I try to visualise the overall feeling of skiing smoothly and confidently.

This helps a lot, and after an hour back on the nursery slopes with instructor Nicholas Dondero, I’m ready to tackle the blue runs again. I’ve lost some of yesterday’s fear, testament to the power of good coaching. Not only is Dondero brilliant at communicating technical cues, he also instils so much confidence in me. Whether you’re a beginner or Olympic level, believing that you can make it down the mountain has a huge bearing on the outcome. Whenever I think about falling, I usually do. But when I consciously reframe those thoughts, just as Atkin does, I manage to stay upright, even on slopes I never thought I’d conquer.

By the end of the day, less than 48 hours after first stepping into skis, I’m covering over a kilometre of mountain without falling, and have completely fallen in love with the sport.

Day four

Back at Hotel Schgaguler on our final morning, I find myself reflecting on a conversation with three-time Olympic bronze medallist Dominik Windisch. Having competed at the Games in Sochi, PyeongChang and Beijing, he described how each Olympics feels entirely different, shaped as much by the people and culture as by the competition itself.

It’s something I now recognise. From fellow skiers I met on the slopes to the instructors and hoteliers who guided me through my initiation to winter sport, the sense of community in South Tyrol has defined my first experience of skiing. It’s those interactions I’ll remember as vividly as the runs themselves.

I may be worlds away from Olympic level, but four days living like an athlete has reshaped how I think about my own training back home. And if I didn’t already have it before, I now have a deeper appreciation for the performances we’ll see over the coming weeks, and for the skill, resilience and discipline that made them become a reality.

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