#teamspi

The fall sports season is underway and week 2 is already in the books for our high-school athletes here at SPI. Our College kids have a few games under their belts but todays post is going to be about the high school athlete and some considerations to make all that hard work they did during the summer pay off. At this stage in the season there are no growth spurts or magic 25 minute workouts that will make you stronger or faster. Here are three things to consider to make the most of your upcoming season.

Make sure you get your lifts in:

Just because the season has started doesn’t mean that you have to abandon your strength and conditioning program all together. The demands of athletic competition are very specific and your routine should change during this time to reflect that. An easy example to use is football with games once a week and usually on Friday or Saturday. The early portion of the week should focus on total body strengthening and to address any injuries from the previous week. Towards the end of the week the transition should be towards mobility training and the benefits from an injury prevention standpoint. It has been well documented that strength gains are lost throughout the season so maintaining strength throughout the season will make your playoff dreams more of a reality and better prepare yourself for the long season ahead.

Get some sleep:

The student athletes schedule does a complete 180 from summer vacation to the start of school. Summer time means staying up late and sleeping in as a way of life for 2+ months. Once the school year starts a typical day consists of classes at 7:30AM, practice/games after school and homework followed by a social life make 12 hour days the norm. Research shows that you need at least 7-9hrs of sleep at night for healing and growth. Don’t skip on sleep.  

Nutrition, nutrition, nutrition:

This is an often overlooked and intricate part of athletic development. Many high school athletes both girls and boys are extremely under-weight and do not take in enough calories to keep up with the output of their busy schedule and the energy demands of their sport. Unfortunately cafeteria food is not enough and usually does not have the necessary nutrients to add weight and increase energy. This is where a little planning can go a long way as well as with coaches deterring their athletes from making a fast food run after school.

These are a few pointers to make the most of your season, in part 2 of this series we will touch on mental preparation and how that can benefit your performance.