Recovery is a vital aspect of athletic performance, especially for youth athletes. Proper recovery not only enhances performance but also helps prevent injuries and promotes long-term health. Below are ten steps to optimize recovery from sports for youth athletes.
Step 1: Prioritize Your Nutrition
Recovery starts well before the day of the game or training session. Youth athletes need to establish a solid nutritional foundation days before competition. This includes consuming a balanced diet rich in carbohydrates, proteins, healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals. Nutrient-dense carbohydrates are especially important for replenishing glycogen stores in the liver and muscles, which are crucial for optimal performance and recovery. Continue Reading →
You don’t have to stop cycling, but you may need to seriously reduce the amount of time you’re spending on your bike…unless you want to be osteoporotic and sarcopenic. This affects everyone.
When we hear about bone (osteopenia/porosis) and muscle loss (sarcopenia), we tend to think about elderly frail people, not active and fit cyclists. The problem is that avid cyclists are EXTREMELY prone to both muscle and bone loss. It’s highly likely you need to do something about it before it becomes a serious health concern. The good thing is that a lot can be done before the damage is significant but the time to act is now. If you think this doesn’t apply to you, perhaps you are right if you cycle a couple days a week. However, if you cycling many days a week, your risk is greatly elevated. In other words, if you’re on your bike for around 20 hours a week, it’s time to get off and do something else.
Loss of bone quality is significant with cyclists. We can do a lot to prevent this.
How is it possible that such ‘fit’ and active people can get loss of muscle and quality of bone, regardless of age? After all, isn’t exercise good for us? Don’t we build stronger bones and more muscle with lots of activity? Isn’t cycling considered a good activity?
As a parent of a child involved in youth sports, you want your child to be healthy, happy, and performing at an optimal level. Nothing is worse than uncertainty as there is no game plan to approach it. You have questions and they need to be answered.
Your child plays a sport and gets knee or leg pain. What do you do? You want your child to work on strength and conditioning. Is it safe? Where do you go? How much is too much? What do you look for when selecting a personal trainer/strength coach? Should your child play one or two sports? Which offers a lower risk of injury? Your child has a question about hip tightness and you don’t know who to ask. Continue Reading →
