GREAT WAYS TO USE A DAY, YOU NORMALLY DONT HAVE "OFF"

Just a quick write up on what you can be doing today and things you can do to be productive as school days are suspended.

1. OBVIOUSLY, Workout! Lots to do here. Do something different in your routine. Maybe do more than you have each day. Go for walks, runs, extended dynamic warm up, go to the track, go find a trail. Work to do lots of push ups, pull ups, body weight squats, lunges, sit ups. Every hour do a set! Train different muscle groups each day, why not! Watch a yoga video on youtube! Get traning in and feel great!

2. Play sports! Dribble in the basement, play catch, run routes, shoot in the yard/park/school yard, go kick a soccer ball around. Play something you never have or something you have not done in a while!

3. Catch up on sleep! Get a nap and unplug for while! Re-energize! However, dont sleep all day!

4. Read! Some suggestions: How Bad Do You Want It, Cant Hurt Me, The Talent Code, The Coddling of the American Mind, Trust Me Im Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator, Weight Room Wisdom (I have a story in that one!). OR listen to one of these while you walk, run or bike!

5. Re watch great movies! Bull Durham, Major League, Youngblood, The Program, All The Rocky’s, All the Beverly Hills Cops and All the Fast and Furious!

6. Organize! Get your email organized, your desktop or the house.

   These are just a fews things that many people already do but you have time to maybe do a little bit more! Make sure if your routine is thrown off a little, create a new one quick and keep crushing the day!!!!

Alignment and Accountability in Your Program

Football is the ultimate team sport and success is reached only when a team successfully bridges the challenge of ultimate dependency on each other. It is significant in every single unit and each must recognize that it must meet the challenge to operate at its maximum capacity for a team to reach its maximum potential. Each unit must be coached and taught to excel in all phases: Athletically, Academically, Socially and Spiritually.

Each Coach is responsible and accountable for the growth and development of his unit in all phases. The ultimate responsibility and measurement of all coaches is the performance of their groups. When each group is at its maximum potential then the team will have the confidence and trust to perform at a level of Competitive Excellence. At this level there is nothing left to chance.

Every Coach must be totally involved and immersed in the lives of all of their players at all times. There are no vacations from this responsibility whether players are on campus or at home. There must be honesty and trust in your relationship with your players, on and off the field. Your meeting room is your sanctuary and is open to honest and truthful conversation and instruction. Pay attention to details and the big picture will clear up.

The player and coach relationship is unique in college football and can be very rewarding if done correctly. Each coach is responsible to maximize each player’s potential: Athletically, including the Weight Room, Academically, Socially and Spiritually. Then the Power of the Unit is met and there is confidence and trust to perform at a level of Competitive Excellence.

MAKE YOUR SURE YOU HAVE THE RIGHT PEOPLE IN YOUR BOAT! YOU DON’T WANT PEOPLE DRILLING HOLES!

ATTACK THE DAY!!

Bowl Game Preperation

As the fall semester and regular season comes to an end teams are getting ready for a bowl game. This is one of the best times of the year. Although the weekly schedule is not quite as hectic there are still many important things on the table. In most cases you have about 4-5 weeks that you need to finish strong academically, stay sharp on the field, develop and refresh. I’ll take you through a typical few weeks leading up to departing for a bowl game.

Week 1

1.       Go to class! Get in the academic center! Staff is out checking class!

2.       In the week you typically strength train 2-3X. Total Body and Conditioning.

3.       Weight room is open for extra development, usually there is an additional lift based on how many plays you played in the season and/or your development level. Keep things fun and fresh. Introduce new things you may utilize in the winter program. In some years I have had Senior lifts where they made the workout.

4.       Players have self-scout film cut-ups to watch.

5.       Weekend is either off or you typically have short meetings and practice Friday and Saturday.

6.       Breakfast/lunch/dinner are mandatory… Red Card App is a great tool for lunch so the players can eat outside the building.

Week 2

1.       Class, finals, academic center! Finish strong.

2.       Weight Room has open hours (typically 6am-5pm) around academic schedule. Players get in 2-3 lifts/conditioning based on season participation/development. Players have access to the weight room if they want more training.

3.       Coaches are in and out from recruiting meeting with players.

4.       Breakfast mandatory and Red Card lunch. Dinner provided (usually not mandatory)

5.       Players have self-scout film cut-ups.

6.       Weekend practice usually Friday-Sunday with meetings

Week 3

1.       Finals/Schools is usually complete!

2.       Regular meeting and practice week.

3.       Usually a day schedule looks like this:

a.       Breakfast/treatment

b.       Team Meeting

c.       Position Meetings or OFFENSE Lift/DEFENSE Lift (Flip)

d.       Practice

e.       Meal

4.       This would typically be done in the late morning to early afternoon.

These are some typical examples of bowl week preparation. The main goals are to finish strong in academics, stay sharp on the field, develop in the weight room and field, and refresh!

Attack your day!

ACTUAL WORKOUT WEEK

I thought it would be fun to share an actual workout week. You can notice the colors represent rotation for staff, what is recorded in the computer, modifications for players and challenge exercises for competition.

I had to cut this in two pics so the bottom and top of the pics are the same. This is week 5 of the winter program. You can also see the week was approx 7:15 (hours: minutes) of weight room work.

Email or DM if you have any questions!!!! Attack your day!!!

Staff Evaluation to Grow Your Program and Staff

Honest evaluation is the key to growth. Every year I would have an evaluation with my staff after the winter and summer. There were specific questions that I wanted detailed answers to. It was an evaluation to make sure the program was at the standard I wanted, that it was continuing to evolve, that my message and vision was being portrayed the right way and that I was doing everything I could to develop my assistants to get them to where they wanted to go. Most importantly that they knew they had ownership in the program! After each staff member completed the evaluation we went over it together. I always felt those meetings made me a better coach! After I met with all the staff, we would get together and go over the evaluations as they pertained to the advancement of the program. The meeting always made our program better and we as coaches got better!

Below is an exact evaluation that I would give to my staff after the summer (NOTE: some questions would change annually based on staff tenure and evolution of the program)

It is important to note that we had meetings or talks daily about everything in the program! The one thing I always challenged my staff’s is that they always take time to THINK everyday and if they ever see or have a problem to address it and have a few solutions to the problem.

STAFF SELF EVALUATION (PLEASE LIST AT LEAST THREE… IT CAN BE MORE… BE SPECIFIC AND HOW YOU WILL GET IT BETTER)

BEST 2 ATTRIBUTES ABOUT THE SUMMER PROGRAM

WITHIN OUR CONTROL WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE ABOUT THE SUMMER PROGRAM

WHAT ARE THE BEST ASPECTS OF OUR PROGRAM

 WHAT ARE THE NEEDS OF OUR PROGRAM TO MAKE SURE WE ARE THE BEST

 WHAT ARE YOU BEST AT IN HELPING THE PROGRAM

 WHAT ARE YOU BEST AT HELPING THE STAFF

 WHAT DO YOU FEEL YOU NEED TO WORK ON

 WHAT RESPONSIBILITIES DO YOU NOT HAVE THAT YOU NEED TO GET BETTER AT

WHAT ATTRIBUTES DO YOU HAVE TO BE A SUCCESSFUL HEAD STRENGTH COACH

WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP

THINGS TO REMEMBER

·       BE PROACTIVE

·       SOLUTIONS

·       BEGIN WITH THE END IN MIND

·       ALWAYS THINK / ACT THE BEST – CHAMPIONSHIPS

ATTACK YOUR DAY!!!!!

The Why "Dynamic Warm up" and How it Relates to Performance

The dynamic warm-up is one of the staples of everyday preparations in a PHYSICAL and MENTAL sense. Regardless of the mental preparation taken to get ready to play, if your body is not ready to perform at its HIGHEST level then the split seconds you may be able to shave off reaction are useless if your body cannot perform the task in the speed necessary. This is the way I have combined knowledge of research backed with the way to prepare the body for football without fatiguing the body. The goal is to increase performance and decrease injury potential!!

THE WHY WE DO A PRE WORKOUT / GAME DYNAMIC WARM UP

·  REDUCE INJURY

·  INCREASE BLOOD FLOW TO THE SKELETAL MUSCLE, CORE TEMPERATURE & HEART RATE

·  AWAKEN THE MOTOR UNITS THAT INNERVATE THE SKELETAL MUSCLE

·  SET THE TONE BOTH LITERALLY AND FIGURATIVELY

THIS IN TURN:

·  Improves efficiency of movement

·  Improves nerve transmission (SPEED OF CONTRACTION)

OUR FOCUS IS ON PREPPING:

·  Hamstrings-Hips-Quads-Groin-Glutes-Back-Shoulders-Ankles

·  MIND

THE RESEARCH BEHIND THE DYNAMIC WARM UP

·  Teams that performed a dynamic warm-up in a study conducted on soccer players in England shower 37% fewer training injuries, 29% fewer game injuries, and severe injuries were reduced by almost 50% (British Medical Journal, 2008)

·  Brian Mackenzie, sports coach with the United Kingdom’s national governing body for track and field athletics, cities reduced muscle stiffness, increased muscle contraction speed, acceleration from resting heart rate to working heart rate, better utilization of oxygen, and greater economy of movement due to decreased muscle resistance as some of the important warm-up benefits that impact performance in a sport.

·  A study conducted at La Trobe University and published in the “Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research” concluded that body-weight exercise using the glutes provides an optimum warm-up for football…and other sports that rely heavily on the lower body.

·  Behm and Chaouachi (Behm, OG and Chaouachi, A review of the acute effects of static and dynamic stretching on performance. Eur J Appl Physiol 111:1-19, 2001) found that dynamic stretching is more helpful than static to improve explosive performance.

·  Dynamic stretching has been shown to improve performance through enhancing motor unit recruitment and synchronization, and decreased presynaptic inhibition. 

WHY ARE ATHLETES RELUCTANT TO PERFORM A PRE GAME DYNAMIC WARM-UP

·  Athletes are relating dynamic warm-up of pre-training and pre-practice to the dynamic warm-up they’ll be put through on game day.

·  Turki et. Al 28 investigated the effects of different durations of a dynamic warm-up on sprint performance. They compared one (15-17 min), two (20-22 min) and three (25-27 min) sets of five dynamic stretches. Performing one or two sets of dynamic movements significantly improved 20m sprint performance, but performance decreased following three sets of the warm-up, with the authors suggesting this was due to fatigue. As such, it appears that the duration of the dynamic warm –up is an important variable to consider when designing an optimal warm-up

·  It can be proposed that a pre-exercise dynamic warm-up for maximal muscle performance should have 0-10 minutes of cardiovascular activity followed by a dynamic stretching protocol of between 5-15 minutes.

GAME DAY WARM-UP

·  My game day warm-up will be a much shortened version of my pre-practice/ training warm-up. Our goal is simply to awaken/ activate the muscles, literally warm the athlete up, and move joints through a full range of motion.

CHAMPIONSHIP GAMEDAY SOFT TISSUE PREPARATION

· Phase I (Hotel or Locker Room): Foam Roll-Band Stretch- Partner Stretch

· Phase II (Pre-Game Dynamic Warm-up): Mobilize Joints

· Phase III (Pre-Game Dynamic Warm-up+ individual): Activation

The Why "Alcohol" and How it relates to Performance

This week I have shared “The Why “ series with you. These educational topics were available for all athletes, coaches and staff to see! They were gone over with every student athlete. These affect what product you as an individual put on the field! So often these topics all intertwine. As coaches we can’t be afraid to coach and teach these topics.

Tomorrow will be the last “why” topic! STAY TUNED…

WHY Should Athletes NOT Use Alcohol?

     • Alcohol consumption is illegal for student-athletes under the age of twenty-one.

     • Could lead to use of other substances

     • Serious Health Concerns

     •  It is a mood-altering substance and constitutes the greatest drug problem in society and among college students.

What Are The Facts About Alcohol ?

     • Research shows that more than 80% of college students drink alcohol, and almost half report binge drinking.

     • Estimated 1,825 college students between the ages of 18-24 die from alcohol related unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle crashes.

     • Each year 599,000 students are unintentionally injured.

     • Each year 696,000 students are assaulted by another student who has been drinking.

     • Each year 97,000 students are victims of alcohol-related assault or date rape.

     • Each year 400,000 students have unprotected sex and more than 100,000 report having been too intoxicated to know if they consented to having sex.

     • 19% of students met the criteria for alcohol abuse and dependence.

     • Each year and estimated 3,360,000 drive under the influence of alcohol.

     • Impairs short term memory.

WHY Does Alcohol Affect Athletic Performance?

Dehydration

     • Alcohol is a powerful diuretic that can cause severe dehydration and staggering electrolyte imbalances.

     • Alcohol can cause the body to lose 3% more fluid in a 4 hour period, leading to dehydration quicker than normal which can cause a decrease in performance up to 10-20%.

     • Alcohol can disrupt the water balance in your body which hinders the body’s ability to produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which provides the fuel necessary for muscle contraction.

     • Athletes are at a greater risk of cramps, muscle pulls and muscle strains.

What are the Negative Effects of Alcohol?

     • Heavy drinking can cause long-term or even permanent damage to the Brain. Cause wasting away of brain tissue and development of scar tissue on the brain.  

     • Impairs the functioning of the hippocampus, which is a part of the brain that is vital to the foundation of memories.  If you can’t form new memories, you can’t learn and store information.

     • Damage to the Liver: most important function is to break down food and convert into energy and also helps the body to get rid of waste products and plays a vital role in fighting infections. 10% of people that die in their 40s are from liver disease, most caused by alcohol liver disease.

     • Damage to the Kidneys: alter the ability to filter blood.

     • The lining the Digestive System can be damaged inflammation and bleeding can occur.

     • Two consecutive nights of drinking five or more alcoholic beverages can affect brain and body activities for up to five days.

     • Consuming five or more alcoholic drinks in one night can affect brain and body activities for up to three days.

     • Can lead to Alcohol Abuse: pattern of drinking that result in harm to one’s health, relationships, or ability to work. 

     • Can lead to Alcohol Dependency, also known as alcohol addiction and alcoholism, is a chronic disease.

WHY Does Alcohol Affect Athletic Performance?

Physical Capacity

     • Alcohol is proven to decrease aerobic performance capacity by as much as 11%.

     • Alcohol is known to slow down one’s reaction time up to 72 hours following alcohol intake

     • Precision, equilibrium, hand-eye coordination, judgment, ability to process information, focus, stamina, strength, power, and speed are all negatively affected for many hours after blood alcohol levels return to 0%.

     • When alcohol is oxidized it produces an elevation of NADH, which reduces the amount of a coenzyme that is essential in the production of ATP. This loss of ATP results in a lack of energy and loss of endurance.

WHY Does Alcohol Affect Athletic Performance?

Nutrition

     • Alcohol inhibits the absorption and usage of vital nutrients such as:

          ◦ Thiamin (vitamin B1) involve in the metabolism of proteins and fat and the formation of hemoglobin.  It is essential to optimal performance for its role in metabolizing carbohydrates.

          ◦ Vitamin B12 is essential to good health. It helps maintain healthy red blood and nerve cells.

          ◦ Lack of Folic Acid, due to alcohol can cause “Megaloblastic anemia” which causes a lowering of oxygen carrying capacity (VO2 Max decreases) which affects endurance.

          ◦ Zinc is depleted because of alcohol which also affects endurance.

     • Can stimulate the appetite and encourage extra intake of calories the body doesn’t need.

     • Alcohol is stored as fat in body. Destroys amino acids and stores them as fat. Increases fat storage resulting in decreased energy, decreased muscle recovery and increased muscle soreness.

WHY Does Alcohol Affect Athletic Performance?

Recovery

     • Alcohol can cause increased swelling after a game if an injury is sustained due to the fact that alcohol causes blood vessels to dilate.

     • Decrease in muscle growth by diminishing protein synthesis.

     • Alcohol negatively affects your SLEEP patterns, which will influence recovery.

     • Your body is robbed of HGH when you drink which is vital to building and repairing muscles.

     • Alcohol can decrease the secretion of HGH by as much as 70%.

     • Can reduce serum testosterone levels which causes a decrease in lean muscle mass and muscle recovery.

     • If an athlete is taking anti-inflammatory medications or pain relievers (including Tylenol and ibuprofen) drinking alcohol can increase the risks of stomach irritation and internal bleeding.

     • Hangovers are cause by alcohol toxicity, dehydration and the toxic effects.

     • Takes 3-4 days to fully recover from one night of drinking.

     • Alcohol has a negative affect on training responses.

The Why "Drugs" and How they relate to Performance

What Is Marijuana?

• A greenish-gray mixture of the dried, shredded leaves, stems, seeds, and flowers of Cannabis sativa, hemp plant.

• Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the main active ingredient in marijuana, responsible for many effects.

• Can be over 300 additional chemicals in marijuana.

• Considered a “mind-altering psycho-active drug."

WHY SHOULD ATHLETES NOT USE MARIJUANA

• Illegal drug in some states.

• Strict drug policies as a student athlete, and NCAA student athlete.

• Loss of competition as result of positive drug test/selfish.

• Serious health concerns.

What are the Acute Effects of Marijuana?

• Impairs short-term memory.

• Impairs attention, judgment, and other cognitive functions.

• Impairs coordination, balance, distorted perception.

• Increases heart rate and drop in blood pressure.

• Inhaling smoke can cause dehydration.

• Psychotic episodes, feelings of anxiety and paranoia.

What are the Long Term Effects of Marijuana?

• Impairs memory and learning skills.

• Sleep impairment.

• Can lead to addiction.

• May damage the lungs, which may lead to cancer.

• Increases risk of chronic cough/bronchitis.

• Increases risk of schizophrenia in vulnerable individuals

• May increase risk of anxiety, depression, and amotivational syndrome.

Why does Marijuana Have an Effect on Athletic Performance?

• Impairs skills requiring hand-eye coordination and fast reaction time.

• Reduces motor coordination, tracking ability and perceptual accuracy.

• Impairs concentration, and time appears to move more slowly.

• Reduces maximal exercise capacity resulting in increased fatiguability.

• Increases heart rate while decreasing cardiac stroke volume, resulting in diminished peak performance.

• Because marijuana is stored in the body fat, its effect may be long-lasting.  It has been shown that an athlete’s skill could be impaired for as long as 24 to 36 hours after usage.

Why does Marijuana have an effect on Athletic Performance? - Continued

• Reduces blood oxygen concentration, “I can’t catch my breath.”

• It inhibits sweating and temperature control.

• Decreases motivation to perform and/or give maximum effort (hydration, proper nutrition, taking care of yourself, hygiene, training, studying, etc…)

• Negates prior training responses. Takes 4-7 days to recover from usage.

What is Molly/Ecstasy?

• MDMA (3, 4-METHYLENEDIOXYMETHAMPHETAMINE).  Pure crystalline powder form of the club drug MDMA, which in pill form is called ecstasy.

• Produces energy and euphoria but also may dangerously affect body temperature and cause confusion, depression, and sleep problems.

• Can contain other dangerous chemicals.

• Drug Abuse Warning Network’s study found that from 2004-2009 there was a 123% increase in number of emergency room visits involving MDMA taken alone or in combination with alcohol or other drugs.

Why should athletes NOT use Molly?

• Illegal drug

• Strict drug policies as a student athlete, and NCAA student athlete.

• Loss of competition as results of positive drug test/selfish.

• Serious health concerns.

What are the side effects of Molly usage?

• Paranoia, anxiety.

• Restlessness, sleep problems, sweating or chills may occur.

• Irritability, agitation.

• Depression.

• Fatigue.

• Jaw soreness from teeth grinding.

• Poor appetite.

• Muscle cramping.

• Thirst/Dehydration.

• Memory loss (Coach, what’s the play again?)

• Seizures.

• Electrolyte abnormalities, Hyperthermia (body temperature dangerously above normal)

• Cardiac episodes.

• Comas/Death.

Why does Molly have an effect on Athletic Performance?

• MDMA can enhance impulsiveness and make it difficult for a person to maintain attention during complex tasks (selective attention, divided and sustained attention, and complex attention tasks).

• Laboratory studies have demonstrated changes in cognitive, perception and mental associations, instability, uncoordinated gait, and poor memory recall.

• Distortion of perception, thinking, and memory, impaired tracking ability, disorientation to time and place, and slow reactions are also known performance effects.

• Single oral doses of MDMA causes subjective excitability, anxiety, perceptual changes, and thought disorders 1-3 hours post dose.

• Negatively effects training responses.

NO CONFUSION ON DRUGS

• WATCH OUT FOR YOUR FRIENDS.

• TRUST YOUR COACHES AND TRAINERS.

• DON’T BE SELFISH… BE EDUCATED.

• DON’T LOSE OUT ON WHAT YOU CAN BE.

The Why "Hydration" and How it Relates to Performance

WHAT IS HYDRATION?

•The condition of having adequate fluid in the body tissues.

What is water and why is it important

•Chemical compound H2O

•Vital compound for ALL LIVING MATTER, needed for survival

•Water covers 71% of Earth’s Surface

•Only 2.5% of Earth’s Water is freshwater

•Water composes 70% of BODY WEIGHT

•Water accounts for 75 % of MUSCLE MASS

•Water accounts for 80% of Brain Mass

Why is hydration important?

•Necessary for cardiovascular performance

•Crucial for thermoregulatoy functions

•Body cannot function properly without it

What is dehydration?

•An abnormal depletion of body fluids/sweat loss not compensated by fluid intake

•80% of the normal population is in a dehydrated state

•Dehydration causes muscle cramps and muscle pulls

•Dehydration increases ones risk for heat illness; heat exhaustion and life threatening heat stroke

•Heat illnesses risks are greater in hot, humid weather

•Dehydration at greater than 2% of BW can impair athletic performance

•As you sweat, your blood and organs will pull fluid from your muscle

•Severe dehydration can also lead to Rhabdomyolysis

What are the signs of dehydration?

•Thirst / Dry Sticky Mouth

•Dark Urine Color

•Weakness

•Sunken Eyes

•Mental Changes(trouble focusing, light headaches, dizziness)

•Racing Heartbeat

•Stop Sweating

What are the consequences of dehydration?

•Increase in Core Temp during physical activity - .15 to .20 degrees C  for every 1% of BW lost

•Core temp strain that influences a greater cardiovascular strain, rise in heart rate by 3-5 BPM for every 1% BW lost

•Further Injury to musculoskeletal system includes glycogen dehydration, elevation muscle temp, increased lactate levels.

•Research shows dehydrated athlete has 2% strength decrease / 3% power decrease / 10% high intensity decrease

•Dehydration can lead to decrease in brain volume and you may be more susceptible to concussions

•During intense exercise with dehydration of active muscle. Water decline of 1.2% for each 1% decrease in BW

•Explosive athletes with more muscle glycogen/ mass need more H2O to metabolize the glycogen (rocket fuel)

•Dehydration leads to a 1.2% decrease in active muscle volume(size) for every 1% decrease in BW, increasing injury potential

What are championship hydration practices?

•Pre Event

•75% of BW in Fluid oz.’s, non-carbonated, non -alcoholic, non -caffeinated

•Goal: begin exercise fully hydrated with normal electrolyte levels

•Eat fruits/veg with high H2O content

•Salty foods to retain fluid and stimulate thirst

•“Hydrate” steadily throughout day

What are championship hydration practices?

•During Event

•Goal: prevent hydration (> than 2% of BW from H2O loss) excessive changes in electrolyte balance

•Fluid replacement 3-8 oz range 0-8% carbohydrate-electrolyte beverage(G2/Gatorade) every 10-20 minutes

What are championship hydration practices?

•Goal: fully replenish any fluid and electrolyte deficit from practice / workout

•Consume 20 ozs for every LB lost from practice/workout

•Athlete must consume these fluids within 6 hours of practice/workout

•H2O is effective… sports drinks AND food consumption help replace electrolytes because of NA and Cl lost

•Avoid caffeine and alcoholic beverages… cause rapid dehydration

•For Example: if you lose 3 lbs from a practice. Drink 3 Gatorade bottles before you leave facility 

Hydration Summary/Dehydration Prevention?

•Practicing or training in an under hydrated state will negatively affect performance

•If you’re thirsty, it is too late

•Rise in Core Temp, early fatigue, and decreased performance are some factors in a dehydrated state

•H2O is primary method of re-hydration, sports drinks can be utilized to maintain electrolyte balance

•Hydration is beneficial for performance as well as physiological functions

•Hydrate before bed, hydrate after urination at night, hydrate 1st thing in morning

•Fruits and vegetables help hold fluids in body

•Carbohydrates (pastas, rice, grains, bread) also help to hold fluids

•Check URINE COLOR CHART or HYDRATION BOARD to insure proper hydration levels

The Why "Sleep" and How it Relates to Performance

Its always important to explain “the why” . I never wanted anything on the walls that the players could not see regularly, know and understand. This post goes with the sleep blog I wrote a few weeks ago. In the locker room I had huge signs that read “THE WHY”. Each sign was a different topic that was very important to your athletic develop and things I believe are huge for creating great habits as the players moved through life.

The signs were always by the showers and bathrooms because that is the place in a locker room everybody goes to regularly. The signs were a can’t miss. I always went over the signs when the new players came into the program. Then they were referred to often, so the players could never say I did not know! Today’s “why” is Sleep! I will post a different one everyday this week!!!! Attack your day!!

Why Do ATHLETES Need Sleep?

1. Restore Muscle Growth

2. Protein Synthesis

3. Soft Tissue Repair/Stimulates Healing

4. Growth Hormone is Released

5. Chance to clear Adenosine (by products of brain cellular activity)

6. Boosts cognitive function (reaction time/hand eye coordination)

How Much Sleep Do ATHLETES Need?

1. 8-10 uninterrupted hours of sleep per day, dark quiet, cool temperature

2. 20 hours of sleep deprivation negative impact on academic and athletic performance

3. Sleep Debt: Negative Effect on cognitive function, mood, reaction time

What are the Effects of Lack of Sleep?

1. Results in decrease of metabolism of

glucose, slower storage of glycogen (ENERGY)

2. Level of Cortisol Increases stress

hormones that can slow down

healing, increase the risk of injuries, and

worsen memory. It also lowers levels of

growth hormone that helps repair the body.

3. Effects decision making and reflexes.

Studies have shown that athletes who

don't get enough sleep are worse

at making split-second decisions.

4. Weakening of Immune Systems

5. Memory Issues

6.Depression

7. Could Prevent an athlete from

responding to heavy training and

lead to over-training and/or injury.

What Can Affect Sleep Patterns?

1. Stress/Anxiety

2.Alcohol/Drugs (THC) "Partying"

·Disturbs the deeper stages - REM Sleep

·Takes 2-3 days to fully recover

from 1 night of partying

·Suppression of Normal hormone Levels

·Limits ability to think, remember and

respond quickly.

·Limits Athletic and Academic Performance

·Reduces Testosterone Levels

·Decreases sleep quality

3. Over-training

Tips for Quality Sleep (REM)

1. No caffeine

2. Turn off TV or bright lights.

3. Go to bathroom before bed.

Can't sleep after 45 minutes. Read for 15

minutes and return.

4. Power Naps 20-30 minutes in afternoon.

Any longer, than 30 minutes and you

become sluggish