2013 Athlete Advance

This year’s athlete advance featured my coach Christine Girard as a speaker. I was really looking forward to go but I needed to coach my brother in his first powerlifting competition. It sounds like I missed some good information by the summary email of the key points I received: http://www.csipacific.ca/content/Athletes/AthleteAdvance02.aspKey Points from the Athlete Advance: John Underwood Talk: Life of An athlete. -You don’t gain benefits when you train, you grow when you rest! -He also emphasized that one night of heavy drinking wipes out 2 weeks of training and that as little as 2 drinks in an evening can cut your REM Sleep in Half. (REM sleep is when the body is most active in repairing itself). -Protein: John went over the value of protein and re-stated that protein dissolved in a liquid post works wonders and that athletes should consume protein before bed (whey protein was recommended as the best type). -He suggested that athletes must make sure they are getting adequate sleep (a minimum of 6 hours and an average of 8) and that if you are getting up early for morning practice on not enough sleep, you are not gaining the benefits from the training that you should. -A negative central nervous system effect takes time to build up (3 days) so make sure you are sleeping well 3 nights before the competition. -The negative effects of blue light on sleep (Blue light is from computer screens etc.) Athletes should have a minimum of 30minutes free from screen time before going to bed. Ideally Athletes would only have 13 hours of screen time per week. -To check your brain recovery he suggests that athletes measure reaction time (using an app or website) and keep a log. When reaction time raises significantly it shows your brain is tired.(much the same as using HR to determine when your body is tired) So basically eat & sleep well, and lay off the booze! It is important to all of us who train hard!