Fitness Training
Lolo Jones Hurdles Challenges on Quest for Success
"Nobody's happy to work out," the all-around athlete says. "You're happy when you finish."
Lolo Jones displays her hurdling technique
© Chris Garrison/Red Bull
NEW ORLEANS — One of the first things you notice about Lolo Jones is her protruding biceps. Good luck finding an ounce of fat on her toned, 5-foot-9 frame. You can tell she basically lives in the gym.
Aside from her physical traits, Jones has plenty of redeeming personality traits. She takes her non-track commitments seriously. On this day, the hurdler shows up an hour early for a shoot, and stays past the estimated wrap time. It doesn’t take long before she establishes a good rapport with the photographer and dozens of crewmembers. Whatever is the exact opposite of shy, Jones is that. Spend some time around Jones, and her sense of humor becomes apparent through a jokester personality.
Social media is prominent in her life. Throughout the shoot, her iPhone is never too far away, and she’s a frequent texter and Snapchat (her favorite social media platform) user during breaks in the shoot. Jones even has someone on set take behind-the-scenes videos and photos for social media posting purposes. “I just gotta post a Snap story real quick,” she says between takes.
1 min
Lolo Jones Doesn't Let Failure Defeat Her
Lolo Jones Doesn't Let Failure Defeat Her
(Music credit: "Talk Too Much" by Red Bull Sound Select artist Natasha Kmeto)
The track and field star is sporting a sleeveless black hoodie, black exercise pants and fluorescent pink shoes. Drops of sweat begin emanating from her golden-brown skin as she works out. “Look happy to be here, Lolo,” the director says. “Nobody’s happy to work out,” she retorts, laughing. “You’re happy when you finish.”
Jones pumps out 15 reps on the bench (a pair of 45-pound weights, plus the barbell) like it’s nothing. That’s followed by deadlifting, power-cleans and squats with weights larger than she is. Later, she’ll don a sports bra, workout shorts and neon green track shoes at a nearby track on a rainy day. If you tried, you could probably count her entire eight-pack abs on her washboard stomach.
I always use my failures to get through and push past.
She has a lean body while also displaying her strength and power. Everyone wants to know what Lolo Jones does to stay fit.
“I’m just like everybody else,” says Jones, a two-time world champion in the 60-meter hurdles. “There are days when I don’t wanna get out of bed and other times when I wanna work out.”
Lolo Jones sets up on the starting blocks
© Chris Garrison/Red Bull
Jones is meticulous about how she integrates Red Bull Energy Drink into her pre-race routine. It helps her get through races and improves her reaction time after the starting gun.
“I drink it as soon as it’s go time,” Jones says. “For me, drinking the Red Bull is like, let’s get this amped up. It’s past the warm-up; we’re not jogging anymore, we’re not stretching. It’s time to start getting some sprints in, it’s time to spike up, it’s time to go over some hurdles. And so I need all the energy I can have and I need to be amped out of my mind.”
She’s always struggled as an athlete with her reaction time. So in 2012, she did some testing that proved beneficial to starting a race strong.
“I’m one of the slowest to react to the gun,” she admits. “It was proven that with Red Bull, it decreased my reaction time. Ever since then, I’ve made sure to time my Red Bull out before the race so I can be on fire.”
Lolo Jones sits on locker room bench
© Chris Garrison/Red Bull
Jones’s most effective workout routine? Combining a lot of different methods; mixing and matching helps her adapt. She says she needs “cat-like balance” to be a great hurdler. She admits that competing in two sports, track and field and bobsled, took a toll on her physically in recent years.
“I always use my failures to get through and push past,” she says.
Ever the perfectionist, Jones might have a Hollywood career when she’s done in sports. She certainly has some directorial skills, suggesting different camera angles and shot selections during the shoot. Whether behind a camera or in front of it, Jones knows that it’s not how you start — but how you finish — that matters most.
Lolo Jones does push-ups in the gym
© Chris Garrison/Red Bull
Lolo Jones lifts weights in a gym
© Chris Garrison/Red Bull
Lolo Jones flies over a hurdle
© Chris Garrison/Red Bull
Lolo Jones hurdles down a track
© Chris Garrison/Red Bull