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Keeping Athletes Fueled: Five Strategies Coaches and Parents Should Encourage in Young Athletes

Keeping Athletes Fueled: Five Strategies Coaches and Parents Should Encourage in Young Athletes

by | Jun 15, 2020 | Sports Medicine

Team training looks different in the summer, especially in the current environment. Want to give young athletes some good advice while they are working out on their own? Here are five winning strategies to help the team show up for the season strong, sharp and ready to play. Together, these will prevent dehydration, boost energy levels and maintain the athlete’s lean muscle, all promoting good habits and a decreased risk of injury. You have our permission to copy and paste these tips into communications with your team!

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Five Fueling Strategies for Improved Practices & Performance

  1. Eat consistently throughout the day. Even though your schedule may be different right now, make sure to include a balanced breakfast, lunch and dinner no matter when what time you train. Don’t forget snacks!
  2. Eat a quality recovery meal or snack 30 to 45 minutes after an intense workout. Protein + carbohydrate = “quality recovery meal or snack.” Examples include:
    • Chocolate milk
    • Cheese & crackers
    • Turkey sandwich
    • Fruit yogurt
    • Fruit smoothie made with cow’s milk, soy milk or yogurt
  3. Drink water throughout the day AND throughout your practice. Dehydration is a serious risk with hot Texas temps and even being 2% dehydrated can decrease performance. If you’re a heavy sweater or practicing outside for over an hour, you may need a sports drink instead of water.
  4. Bring snacks or sports drinks with you to long practices. These will be important if energy levels dip, or you start to feel dizzy, shaky or extremely tired. These should be sources of quickly digested carbohydrates such as: pretzels, dried fruit, sports drinks, crackers, oranges, low fat, low fiber granola bars, etc..
  5. Rely on food and drinks (think milk, water, 100% fruit juice, sports drinks) for energy and nutrition instead of supplements. Supplements seem easy, but they may contain harmful substances not listed on the label and they may prevent you from getting adequate calories, carbohydrate and other required nutrients you need for strength, speed, agility and focus.
Supporting Your Teen Athlete When Stress is High

Supporting Your Teen Athlete When Stress is High

by | Apr 13, 2020 | Sports Medicine

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Council on Sports Medicine and Fitness and the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine have both recently highlighted the importance of mental health and providing a safe environment for student athletes. Here are some tips to help you recognize possible signs of stress in your athlete and ways to offer support.

Stress in Teenage Athletes
In addition to academic and social stressors that most teenagers face, teenage athletes can also experience stress from:

  • Too much pressure from parents or coaches to perform
  • Overscheduling
  • Not wanting to play the sport
  • Balancing school, athletics, and social demands amidst sport demands

Learn to Recognize Signs and Symptoms of Negative Stress in Teenagers
Signs are things you may see. Symptoms are things an athlete reports feeling or experiencing. Here are a few signs and symptoms to watch out for:

Physical

  • Persistent stomach and headaches
  • Muscle tension
  • Prolonged pain and/or pain out of proportion of what is expected after an injury

Emotional

  • Irritability
  • Mood swings
  • Emotional outbursts
  • Withdrawing from activities or social interactions

Behavioral

  • Fatigue
  • Difficulty concentrating, easily distracted
  • Changes in eating habits
  • Poor sleep
  • Biting fingernails
  • Aggression
  • Procrastination
  • Use of drugs/alcohol

How Can You Support Your Athlete?
Try these ideas to help your young athlete develop healthy coping skills even before you see changes in behavior.

  • Talk to them. Ask your young athlete about their stressors and how you can support them. Help them problem-solve by breaking down big problems into smaller parts. This allows them to take one step at a time, rather than trying to tackle everything at once.
  • Reframe how your athlete defines achievement. Young athletes often experience a sense of failure or disappointment when they don’t reach an expected outcome in competition. Encourage your athlete to:
  • Giving his or her best effort.
  • Measuring personal progress, rather than end results or winning.
  • Encourage breaks and down time. For example, suggest that they check in with friends, watch a movie, read a book or listen to music.
  • Take a time out. Institute a “no [primary sport] talk” rule for two hours after a game or practice, no matter the outcome. Emotions tend to run high right after the activity, and parents can often unknowingly increase stress. By taking a time out from discussing performance or outcomes, you can avoid unintentional stress and/or arguments.
  • Encourage diverse interests, hobbies and friend groups. Introduce your young athlete to new ideas for activities and hobbies unrelated to their sport. This helps with meeting new people and exploring interests they may not be aware of yet.
  • Discuss healthy coping skills that can help manage stress. Deep breathing techniques, progressive muscle relaxation, yoga going for a walk or engaging in a physical activity other than their primary sport. Learn to relax with apps like Headspace, Calm, Smiling Mind (free) and Stop, Breathe, & Think Kids (appropriate for kids 10 and under).
  • Encourage the use of positive self-talk. Teach them to use phrases like, “I’ve got this,” “I can do better next time,” or “I choose to learn from my mistakes, not be held back by them.” Negative self-talk (“I can’t do this” or “I let the team down”) increases stress. With practice, an athlete can learn to shift negative to positive thoughts and reduce stress.
  • Support healthy sleep hygiene. Teenagers should be sleeping a minimum of eight hours per night. Teach good habits including limiting screen time and caffeine before bed, consistent waking and bedtime and a creating a quiet environment.
  • Encourage a healthy diet. Encourage them to choose water over sugary beverages, fuel for school and activity and eat a variety of fruits and vegetables.

All of these ideas can help, but if the problems are ongoing or the suggestions above are not helpful, it may be time to seek professional mental health services for your young athlete. Talking through stressors with a licensed psychologist or mental health counselor can be a healthy outlet for chronic stress and help your athlete learn positive coping strategies to use in the future when experiencing negative stress.

In case you are concerned, and you are not sure where to turn, here are two resources in addition to your school counselor and behavioral health resources provided by your health insurance plan:

  • Crisis Text Line (Text HOME to 741741) – connect with a crisis counselor via text
  • National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255)

Check out a message from sports medicine physician Jane S. Chung, M.D.

At Scottish Rite for Children, our team of trained pediatric psychologists are here to help our patients throughout treatment and recovery. Learn more about our Psychology department.

Fatherly: 5 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Kids’ ACL Injuries

Fatherly: 5 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Kids’ ACL Injuries

by | Mar 25, 2020 | Press Coverage, Sports Medicine

“Even after an ACL reconstruction, teen athletes are prone to re-injury simply because they are active, participate in aggressive contact sports, and have less neuromuscular control than adults,” says Dr. Wilson — assistant chief of staff. Our sports medicine team was recently interviewed about their latest research regarding a new technique for ACL reconstruction surgery for young athletes.

Read more about the misconceptions surrounding kids’ ACL injuries. 

Share Your Story: Anthony’s Goal

Share Your Story: Anthony’s Goal

by | Feb 27, 2020 | Sports Medicine

Meet Anthony, a patient seen by our Sports Medicine experts. Learn more about his journey below.

Blog written by Anthony’s mom, Daisy, of Dallas, Texas. 

When Anthony was 12 years old, he tore his ACL while playing soccer. At the time, he saw an orthopedic doctor who simply referred him to do physical therapy. He believed that due to Anthony’s age, surgery would not be an option. He suggested we wait a couple of years to give Anthony’s growth plates time to close before undergoing surgery.

I did some research and found Scottish Rite for Children where Anthony was able to be seen by Dr. Wilson. He immediately thought Anthony would be a candidate for a special ACL reconstruction procedure that would not harm the growth plates.

Following his surgery, Anthony had to do a good amount of physical therapy. That entire team was amazing. Getting a teenager to do uncomfortable exercises can be a challenge, but they pushed and encouraged Anthony throughout the process. The physical therapists didn’t simply give him exercises on a sheet on paper – they motivated him and helped make the rehab easier. Nine months after his surgery, he was able to play soccer again and came back stronger and better than ever – scoring three goals in that game!
 
Now at 16, Anthony is going strong and still loves to play soccer. I would encourage other families, that are in similar situations, to research and seek second opinions. Had we not seen Dr. Wilson, Anthony would have stopped playing soccer because that is what the first doctor thought was best.  

Anthony is forever grateful to Dr. Wilson and his team for helping get him back to what he loves – soccer.

Our family is thankful for continued education and research that Scottish Rite does on a daily basis.

DO YOU HAVE A STORY? WE WANT TO HEAR IT! SHARE YOUR STORY WITH US.

Sports Medicine Team Makes an Impact at Annual Meeting

Sports Medicine Team Makes an Impact at Annual Meeting

by | Jan 30, 2020 | Sports Medicine

Last week, staff from our sports medicine team were in Glendale, AZ for the 7th annual Pediatric Research in Sports Medicine Society (PRiSM) meeting. PRiSM is a unique group of multidisciplinary medical professionals who are devoted to advancing the care for young athletes. The three-day collaborative conference is designed to cultivate relationships among the members and feature advancements in numerous areas of pediatric sports medicine.

With more than ten staff members in attendance, including advanced practice providers, orthopedic surgeons, physicians, physical therapists, biomechanists and research coordinators, Scottish Rite for Children was well-represented throughout the meeting. Selected to present various research projects and serve as moderators, staff had the opportunity to showcase their work and engage in meaningful discussions with other experts in the field. A few of the topics presented included:

Assistant Chief of Staff Philip L. Wilson, M.D., is proud of the team’s involvement. “We have a strong showing at PRiSM each year,” says Wilson. “However, this year, we were represented in almost every session by staff from different departments, which shows our dedication to excellence in every aspect of care for young athletes. PRiSM gives us a great platform to share our knowledge while also giving staff the opportunity to learn from other specialists.”

The team contributed to more than half of the multicenter interest groups who work throughout the year but come together during the annual meeting to brainstorm and discuss the latest findings and progress of projects.

  • Our movement science lab team has made profound progress in establishing protocols to document baseline measurements to aide in projects of interest to the injury prevention group.
  • Sports medicine physician Jane S. Chung, M.D., is a member of the female athlete interest group and the sport specialization group who are both employing surveys to address specific questions.
  • Pediatric orthopedic surgeon Henry B. Ellis, M.D., is the steering committee chair of SCORE – Sports Cohort Outcomes Registry. This effort has already shown very high potential to have major implications in the safety and quality of arthroscopic procedures in youth across the country.
  • Shane M. Miller, M.D., sports medicine physician and concussion expert, is actively involved in a new concussion project that will expand our current understanding and efforts by teaming up with six other pediatric sports medicine programs.

Learn more about the Center for Excellence in Sports Medicine.