6 Loaded Questions You SHOULD Be Asking Your Athletes
It’s almost that time of the year again! After the 4th of July holiday, the buzz really gets going and anticipation begins to build for the upcoming school sports season. While the brain may have been (and still is) on vacation for the past several weeks, if your athletes bodies and nutritional habits have as well…you could be in big trouble this upcoming season, no matter your sport (especially if you’re hoping to compete for championships!).
You see, there really is no offseason anymore in the field of competitive sports. Yes, even at the high school level, there needs to be an initiation of good healthy habits that start to become ingrained in your athletes NOW so that they can carry over into their lives for years and years to come (long after competition has ended for some of them).
The Summer represents a time of opportunity. Opportunity for your players to make themselves better, and opportunity for you to make yourself a better coach. If both of these things happen…when you reconvene at the start of the Fall Sports season, you’ve got a much improved team. Better performance from the players and better leadership at the top.
That said…if in your preparation to become a better coach, you’ve eluded the topic of your athlete’s nutrition then we want to help you overcome that so that you could be armed with the right questions to ask and the key information that you’ll need to get a head start on a successful season and a unified team awareness of how important nutrition will be to the success of the team this year!
So without further delay, here are 6 fully-loaded questions you should be asking your athletes on a regular basis…
1. Did you eat breakfast this morning?
If every hand doesn’t go up for this one (trust me, you’ll be lucky if half of them do!) then you need to do something about this before ANYTHING else! Breakfast not only sets the stage for all energy levels throughout the rest of the day, but it also delivers much needed nutrients to the brain to allow for better mental focus, attention, reaction time, and muscle contraction. Most of your athletes have gone over 8-10 hours without eating and the need to “Break” the “Fast” has never been greater than in the morning. For those who claim to “hate” breakfast, make them aware of what this is doing to their body and brain and find some way to convince them that even a little is enough to turn the tables on the energy roller coaster they’re about to embark on if they eat nothing at all!
2. What is the color of your pee?
Don’t laugh…and don’t be ashamed to ask? Whether we admit it or not, it’s normal to check out the color of your pee! After all, how else are we going to know when we’re entering into a severe state of dehydration. Sure, the headaches, dizziness, and nausea that comes with dehydration may give it away, but wouldn’t you like to know BEFORE that happens? After all….by the time it fully sets in it could be too late. So, rely on the old reliable and get your athletes into the habit of checking out the color of their urine throughout the day. The more clear it is, in general, the more hydrated that athlete is. The more dark or yellow…the more likely that they’re entering into dehydration (some vitamins may interfere with this rule, but for the most part it stands the test of time!). ”Keep it Clear” is the phrase you might want to use…especially with the extremely hot days! To do this, suggest that your players take in half their weight in ounces of water a day! In other words….your 200lb athlete would need to take in100 ouncesof water each day. On days where there is a lot of sweating going on….recommend an additional16 ozof water for every pound of weight lost during the hot practice just to replenish and get back to even again!
3. Are you taking creatine?
Most coaches intentionally shy away from supplement questions for lack of a good understanding of them….or worse, turn a blind eye to them as part of a “don’t ask don’t tell” policy! Either one is wrong and actually doing a disservice to your players and their health. If you’re a coach you NEED to know what your players are doing as it may change the recommendations you make to them. Case in point….creatine. Creatine monohydrate is one of the most used supplements in the world (particularly in young teens). Why? Because for the most part, long term studies have shown it to be safe AND effective at assisting a gain in weight (through increased intramuscular water and eventual new muscle growth) and increasing short term power output. That said, if your athletes are using this supplement and NOT getting adequate water replacement in to overcome the shuttling of the water INTO the muscles and OUT of the tissues surrounding the muscles…then you could be looking at a team decimated by faster dehydration and ultimately a rash of pulled muscles and injuries. Take the time to find out who is using creatine and recommend that that athlete take in an additional 20% more water than what we figured out in the last question.
4. Are you taking Nitrous Oxide Products?
If so…tell them to stop! These incredibly popular fad supplements are on their way out, but still hold fascination for many young athletes. These “vasodilaters” are unsafe and definitely not the right mix for an athlete who may already be a bit stressed (from the competition of trying to gain a spot on the varsity) and who might have a tendency to dehydrate (particularly if they are NOT watching the color of their pee and ARE taking creatine already!). Nitrous Oxide (NO) products are usually laced with high amounts of caffeine to give an intense stimulatory effect. The caffeine not only interferes with motor control (yes that means that your athletes can become jittery and prone to false steps/injuries/etc) and disrupt sleep patterns, but it can drastically change your body’s ability to absorb other important nutrients like iron. The dilation effect that this causes on the vessels in the body will not only shuttle more blood to your muscles (which is supposed to be one of it’s benefits…giving more energy) but also to your brain! This rush of blood flow to the brain has led to more than just a few documented migraines and is not the sort of chemistry you want your athletes to be fooling around with.
5. Did you eat a snack before practice?
One of the most overlooked times of the day to be fueling up is right before practice. If you think about it, the last time the majority of your athletes will have eaten is at lunch time (usually 3 hours before). Attempting to go an entire practice with no more incoming calories is like trying to drive your car cross country when you’ve only got enough gas to make it across the state lines! In order to produce a sustained effort and energy levels your body needs to be “fueled” every 3 hours AT THE LEAST! Failing to do this is not only going to take it’s toll on the performance output for that particular day or practice…but in the long haul, the ability of the body to recover and grow stronger will be compromised as well. A prepractice snack of a protein bar, a piece of fruit with skim milk, a half of a peanut butter sandwich, or even some trail mix is enough to help them to sustain some blood sugar stability heading into the next two hours of intense practice. Knowing that your athlete has “fueled” their tank can now give you confidence in knowing that they can give you all they’ve got without attempting to “run on empty!”
6. How many hours are you sleeping at night?
WHAT?!? That’s not a nutrition question! Actually, indirectly it very much is (see #4 above)! In fact, it may be the most important of all of them. Why? Because even the greatest nutrition game plan can come absolutely unglued when the body isn’t allowed to recover properly. When you are sleep deprived your body fights all day just to provide you with enough energy and focus to “zombie” your way through the day. None of the nutrients are used to build you up stronger. That would be a waste of good useable energy in a time when perceived survival is the more immediate concern. Dating all the way back to the cavemen…being alert and having enough energy to run in case you found yourself face to face with a T-REX (see above) was the prime focus of your body. Any incoming energy was directed at allowing you to survive in situations like this. Where do you think muscle growth and performance enhancement fell on that priority list?? Umm…nowhere close to survival! Same thing applies here. If you’re burning the candle at both ends and barely squeaking by on your recovery and sleep…I don’t care how good you’re eating, or how hard you’re training…none of that will be reflected in your results since your body will just be trying to keep you from sinking even further into the overtraining abyss. The phrase “playing for the tie” applies perfectly here. No continued decline, but certainly NO improvement at all (in your skills, focus, muscularity, or athleticism) if you’re not completing the “nutrition” picture with proper rest and recovery. 7.5 hours of CONSISTENT solid sleep a night will get the job done. Find out how much your athletes are getting…before their lack of zzzz’s puts them on energy empty!
So there you have it. The 6 simple but information loaded questions that you need to be asking your athletes when they hit camp weeks or in a couple months from now. Just 6 informative questions that will help you get a huge head start on not only knowing your team and what you’re bringing to the field or court this Fall…but also a giant edge on your competition who aren’t asking these questions!
And for all you basketball coaches out there, we know that open gym is well under way. Next month there’s no contact with athletes, so this month, help them get the tools they need to carry them through August without you. Our Summer Basketball Camp is coming up July 20th – 22nd. Get your kids registered today and get a team discount. But hurry, registration ends July 13th and the last remaining spots are filling up FAST.
For more information, check out the blog post here, or contact us and register today! info@power-flex.net or 614-735-9890.
In the meantime, stay healthy & active! Greg and the rest of the Power Flex team.
The Balanced Athlete
Being an athlete at any level – from just starting out in pee wee to the pros – is all about balance. And while this picture is pretty impressive, this isn’t the kind of balance we’re talking about. We’re talking about balancing your conditioning, your skill and your lifestyle. It is so important to not only be the best competitor you can be, but also to be the happiest person you can be.
Which is why we’ve comprised the Top Ten Tips for Athletic Success (at any age, gender or sport):
- Train to the Nth Power – This one covers a lot of ground in terms of conditioning, so we’re going to cheat a little and give you several tips under #1. Essential to any athlete is an off-season program and year-round conditioning program. Athlete should progress gradually in their conditioning so that they are not doing anything “too hard”, “too fast”, too far”, “too quickly”, predisposing themselves to injury. Off-season conditioning programs should address conditioning, strength training and flexibility. During the off-season, the exercise program is at a lower level, thus allowing tissue healing; and the program should peak right before the competitive season. A structured program should be followed for the greatest benefit. The training program should follow an interval fashion and should be formulated so that the athlete reaches peak fitness during the competitive season, or periodization.
- Train Body Weight Before External Resistance – If you cannot perform 20 perfect push ups while stabilizing your shoulders, core, spine and hip flexors you do not need to get under a weighted bar…Period. Younger athletes shouldn’t be training with external resistance anyway. Athletes and coaches often underestimate the power a good body weight program can bring.
- Train Your Muscles Through Range of Motion – Going along with the above tip, stationary machines should seldom be used. You do not play the game (any game) in a seated or fixed spot, so you shouldn’t train that way. Body weight exercises, resistance tubes & bands, medicine balls, stability balls and other functional training methods help to increase your muscle mass AND range of motion.
- Work Out Your Joints – Going along with the above tip, leg extension machines and bicep curls develop useless strength. You cannot possess coordination in your skill unless you train your muscles to work in groups.
- Train With Movement & Explosiveness – Again, isolation training of muscles does an athlete no good. Focus on specific movements and focus on perfecting those movements with explosiveness and power…all body controlled.
- Vary Your Conditioning - Use all primary methods to train: Strength, Dynamic, Speed, Agility, Endurance, Static, Skill. Your training program must be progressive AND varied. If you spend too much time on one aspect (particularly skill set), your positive attributes will suffer and the negative ones will come out.
- Truly Training With Balance - Every action has an opposite and equal reaction. Although each of us have slight ‘flaws’ to our bodies, they are basically made to be in perfect balance. Train your left side as much as your right. Address pushing and pulling on horizontal and vertical planes. If you can’t handle the load or skill on one side or plane as much as the other, adjust to increase the volume and repetition of the weaker. This will make you better than your competition on the court, field, whatever, but it will make you a healthier athlete, less prone to injuries.
- Core Training - Think outside of the box and the weight room. Core training should begin at the very beginning of Phase I, or when an athlete comes off the off-season (8-12 wks before pre-season). If an athlete’s body isn’t strong and stable enough to take what’s going to be thrown at them during conditioning, pre-season and competition, it WILL break down.
- Flexibility Training - See above. It’s the same thing. Many athletes overlook the importance of a structured flexibility program. Both dynamic and static stretching is all-too-important when approaching Phase I of conditioning and all the way through. A longer muscle is a stronger muscle. Again, a flexible athlete will have an edge over their competition and come away the healthier athlete, being less prone to injuries.
- Avoid Mimicking Skills - This is BIG and might be hard for athletes to resist. But throwing weighted balls or the like will do very little to improve your strength and range of motion and very MUCH to mess up your technique and balance. Loading a technique will do a lot to mess up that technique’s mechanics. Just don’t do it.
- Avoid Burn Out - I know. I know. You love the court, or the field or the pool, or whatever. You join leagues and other teams, enter tournaments and play every second you can get. Take a time out. At least from the competitive mindset. There’s nothing wrong with keeping your skill set sharp, but the point is to become a better ATHLETE. From that you will become the best at your sport. So focus on the other 8 factors necessary here for you to do that.
- Nutrition - If I had a penny for every time I told a client “You Are What You Eat” I could buy out Mark Zuckerberg and put him out of his misery! But it is soooo true. I know that it’s hard. You have school. You have practice. You have friends and a social life. You have a family and parents that unfairly make you do things around the house. And it’s so easy to grab something at the gas station or cruise through the drive through, picking up whatever’s on the value menu. You’re only messing up everything that you’re training so hard to do on the court or field. Plan ahead for the week, or even the day. Make smart choices. If you need some help, ask parents, coaches, trainers and us some things you should be eating, particularly during pre-season and competition season.
- Hydration - Ok, so this one goes along with #8, but many athletes don’t properly hydrate. Best case scenario, you’re not performing at max capacity. Worst case scenario, you have a heat stroke on the field and don’t make it. Not pretty, but it happens EVERY year. And chugging a glass of water or bottle of Gatorade when you feel thirsty is not gong to work. You need to hydrate throughout the day. Good rule of thumb: Take your body weight, divide by 2. This is the number of ounces you should be drinking every day. Add in a glass for every serving of caffeine you drink. Add in a glass for every hour that you’re doing profuse sweating.
- Off The Court - Be a good athlete, but just be a good person. While there are plenty of athletes to look up to these days, there are many who are less than stellar role models. Trust your instincts. Do what you feel is right. Do, say and act towards others the way that you would want to be treated. And please, please, please…think before you post or tweet. Once you do that, it DOES NOT go away. Your friends, family, coaches and scouts WILL see your social media activity. Get involved in community events. Somewhere there is a younger athlete that wants someone to look up to…be that someone.
So we hope these tips help you…both on the court or field and off. Our goal is to not develop athletes in a particular sport, but to help all kids be the best athlete they can be. Our camps and clinics focus on this ideology, which is why we believe they’re met with so much success.
Check out our blog page and website for camps and clinics near you; and check out our first annual Summer Basketball Camp details. In the meantime, stay healthy & active!
Erin Morrow & Greg Holmes
Co-Directors, Power Flex | 614-735-9890 | info@power-flex.net | www.power-flex.net | BLOG www.power-flex-oh-net | Facebook | Twitter | Linked In
Fitness & Wellness With an EDGE!
A Hotter Body – No Sweat!
Let’s be realistic here. You don’t drop 2 jean sizes in 1 day. You won’t lose 50 pounds in 1 month. You’re going to binge every now and then. You will go a day or two without working out. Your weight is going to fluctuate here and there. You’re going to try new techniques and they’re not going to work. You’re human. You’re going to fail. But nothing great is ever accomplished without a few obstacles.
CHILL. You got this. You’re AWESOME!
Now that we’ve established that, want to know 5 little tricks that you can use to help get that body you want for summer that isn’t about dieting or working out? Sure you do.
With that being said, we’re NOT saying you can have the body you want by eating crap and being stationary or downright lazy. Like I said, nothing great is ever accomplished without a few obstacles. But there are awesome little tricks that you can use to melt away the fat on the days after you’ve eaten and worked out like a champ. After all, our body really starts to change form during the recovery after the workouts. So on your post-hardcore workout days or down days, do this…
- Massage It Out — Massages boost strength recovery by 60%. It reduces inflammation in the tissue and increases blood flow to the area, which is what actually speeds up recovery. If you’re having a massage immediately post-workout, let your muscles cool down for a few hours first. You don’t even need to see a therapist…DIY rubdowns provide the same benefits. Set aside 10 minutes on off-days to use long, smooth strokes over muscles worked. You can also use a foam roller and/or massage balls. For acute soreness, apply a cold compress or ice for about 20 minutes to further decrease inflammation.
- Boost Your Water Intake — Dehydration substantially slows your metabolic rate, so even if you’re doing everything right in the gym, you could be negating the calorie-burning advantages if you’re not drinking enough water. An the old rule you’ve heard time & time again about 8 – 8-oz glasses a day is so last century. You should consume 1/2 your body weight in ounces. That is, if you weigh 150 pounds, you should have 75 ounces per day. PLUS, you should have an additional 16-20 ounces for every hour you train. Need some other reasons to get your daily ounces? Check this out: http://wellness-edge.net/blog/?p=133
- Log More Zzzz’s — I know you’re crazy busy and pressed for time. But if 7-9 hours of shut-eye still isn’t a priority, here’s some incentive…deep sleep kicks up the production of tissue-repairing growth hormone, but lack of is a weight gain double whammy! Not enough sleep prompts your body to consume more calories and shuts down its ability to recognize a full stomach. When you’re tired, your gut produces a chemical that triggers sugar cravings. It causes your body to seek quick energy from food to try to keep you awake. Meanwhile, fatigue suppresses leptin, a fat-cell hormone that tells your brain “OK, stop eating now”. Need some additional tips on getting more Zzzz’s? Check this out: http://wellness-edge.net/blog/?p=85
- Get Going…A Little — You may feel like rewarding yourself with some downtime, but doing a low-key activity the day after a big workout will prolong the muscle-sculpting perks of increased circulation. Fresh blood flow brings fresh nutrients to your muscles and helps flush waste products like lactic acid. Staying active has also been proven to reduce post-exercise muscle soreness and suppress nervous-system activity that can result in poor sleep. Take an easy yoga class or go on a walk at a conversational pace. If you’re sitting behind a desk all day, stroll around the office for 10 minutes every couple of hours to promote fresh blood circulation. Then you can prepare for a different kind of reward…a less painful gym session tomorrow.
- Upgrade Your Post-Workout Snack — We know that having a bite after exercising helps promote muscle repair. An even more compelling reason…less belly fat. Exercise activates cortisol, a stress hormone that gives you extra surge to push until the end of a hard workout. But lingering in that state for too long can backfire; cortisol not only inhibits the muscle-repair process, but also alters your metabolism so that your body stores more calories as fat (typically in the abdominal region) instead of burning them off. Chowing down on protein within 20 minutes after workout will prevent these effects. Some suggestions…hard boiled egg, protein smoothie, protein bar, 1 cup of almond or coconut milk. Starbucks fan? You’re in luck…a non-fat mocha latte will give you protein plus caffeine. One study found that when ingested with carbs, caffeine increased muscles’ energy production by 66% more than carbs alone.
So there you have 5 awesome tips to help burn that fat, get lean and get sexy…all on your off days.
By the way, are you a Mom in the Columbus area looking to burn more fat all week long? Then you have to come check out our Power Mommy classes. Fitness, nutrition, assessments, wellness topics, fun, fun, fun. We’re only taking registrations for summer session from now until June 1st, so make sure you reserve your spot today…spaces are limited. For more information, check out our Power Mommy blog post, or contact us directly.
Until next time, stay healthy & active!
Greg
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