Diet of  Athletic Children

Good diet is very important for the kid who practices regular sports ie, more 1hour of regular practice. 

Good nutrient food help athlete to
- recover fast from injury
- fast recovery (while playing or during tournament)
- keep energetic

Energy requirement table (Calories)

Age(in Years)                                    Male                          Female

4-6                                                   1800                             1800
7-10                                                 2000                             2000
11-14                                               2500                             2200
15-18                                               3000                             2200

Macro nutrients

Carbohydrates - 45% to 65% (bread,pasta, rice etc)
Protein - 10% to 30% (milk, cheese, tofu, fish etc)
Fat - 25% to 35%(seeds, nuts, olives , dairy products, poultry etc)

How to plan a meal for playing /athletic child

Before practice: before the practice the kid should have proper meal which should have Carbohydrates, proteins, fats. Fibres should be avoided or limited. High fat meal should be avoided, as it makes athlete feel sluggish, tired, can effect performance.

Early morning practice: Have a snack or liquid meal followed by full breakfast.

Snack may include - fresh fruits, dried fruit, cereal with milk, juice, shake or fruit smoothie.

Recovery Foods: Include proteins, carbs, peanut butter sandwich, fresh fruit juice, yoghurt with fruits, egg sandwich, dal chilla, sports drink with fruit and cheese.

During Event: Sports drink, banana, granula. Sports drink keep energy high .

Fluids : If a child is practicing more than 60mins in hot and humid weather, they should be properly hydrated by drinking water and electrolytes or sports drink, coconut water, lemon water.

Sports drink should contain carbs and necessary minerals to keep body hydrated.

During an event they should be provided with the drinks which contains sodium.

NOTE: Non athletic kids drinking sodium rich drink will result in consumption of excessive calories.

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The four lower-body injuries runners experience most often are plantar fasciitis, Achilles tendinitis, patellofemoral syndrome (“runner’s knee”) and iliotibial (IT) band syndrome (Hespanhol et al. 2011). These common injuries result from musculoskeletal and movement imbalances compounded by overuse.
While it is not within your scope of practice as a fitness professional to confirm or diagnose medical conditions, it is important to have a basic understanding of common running injuries, because it helps you communicate effectively with clients about their diagnoses. Master your role in addressing the musculoskeletal and movement imbalances underlying clients’ problems by educating yourself about the most common injuries and how to use corrective-exercise techniques to address them.

Basic Biomechanics

When we run, the body moves in all three planes of motion (i.e., from side to side, in rotation, and forward and backward). Side-to-side movements enable us to take alternating steps from left to right, which helps propel us forward or backward. As we move our legs forward or backward, we also swing our arms forward and backward, which creates rotation in the torso, thus enabling the spine, hips and legs to move. This movement combination helps us temporarily overcome gravity in order to complete an activity. However, these movements also help us absorb shock, or ground reaction forces, by allowing the body to move in the direction of impact, which is opposite to the direction of the pull of gravity.
In addition to movement, the body has other strategies for dealing with gravity and ground reaction forces. Soft-tissue structures (especially our muscles) dissipate energy as impact travels back up the body (Ayyappa 1997). When a person is running, for example, certain muscles contract to swing the leg forward. As the foot strikes the ground and the body has to deal with impact, the muscles of the foot, ankle and leg lengthen under tension. The muscle tension helps the body absorb shock and creates energy for subsequent movements.
If muscles are not healthy, flexible and strong, they are less effective at transferring weight and absorbing shock. As a result, other soft tissues in the body—such as fascia, tendons and ligaments—must work harder. Over time, these structures become overworked, stressed and strained, leading to injury, pain and further dysfunction.
Similarly, if muscles aren’t working correctly the joints can become inflamed or can lack range of motion. Movements then become restricted and the body becomes less effective at dissipating gravity, absorbing shock and creating energy for movement.

The Four Most Common Running Injuries

IDEA Fit Tips, Volume 15, Issue 3

Back Pain for cyclist


Lot of people have taken cycling just not as hobby or way of keeping active but it has sport which people are taking it to professional level. Although cycling is a sport which has relatively low injury rate compare to other sports. It's easy to understand why: crashes and collisions apart, cycling is almost impact free and the pedalling action of spinning the cranks takes place in a very controlled environment, requiring minimal coordination and reducing the risk of injury due to poor technique.



Although with so much support but still cyclists spending long hours in the saddle can and regularly do suffer cycling overuse injuries. Now, you might think that it's your knees that would be most vulnerable to high volumes of cycling. However, research on the incidence and type of overuse injuries sustained by pro cyclists found that lower back injuries were most prevalent (45% of recorded injuries) - almost twice as likely to occur than knee injuries.


Why is low back pain so prevalent among cyclists?


One possible explanation concerns bike set up. Getting the correct rider/geometry on the bike is crucial to minimise unwanted loading on the lumber region (as well as the knees, shoulders, neck etc...). However, in the study above, the cyclists were supervised by national coaches with access to advanced facilities, so incorrect bike geometry would almost certainly not have been a plausible explanation.

Another possible explanation is that research shows a direct link between the degree of muscle fatigue and subsequent changes in a cyclist's movement patterns during cycling - specifically changes in the degree of "trunk lean" and hip angles². These altered muscle movement patterns could lead to lower back pain in cyclists undertaking hard training or competition. Also, constant static lumbar flexion (i.e. leaning forward in a fixed position) has a negative effect on core stabiliser muscles and other spinal tissue during prolonged pedalling. Just five minutes of static lumbar flexion weakens the power of important stabiliser muscles of the lower back (multifidus) and induces "tissue creep" (unwanted stretching of tissues) - all of which makes it harder to generate the forces needed to maintain spinal stability and correct posture³. This in turn greatly increases the risk of low back pain. We also know that prolonged and excessive forward flexion of the spine on the bike is quite literally a pain in the back; cyclists who suffer back pain are much more likely to have excessive lower spine flexion with less active lower lumbar stabilising muscles (multifidus)⁴.

Recommendations

The bottom line then is that while correct bike geometry and set up is vital for triathletes seeking to reduce the risk of low back pain, it may still not be enough. In particular, prolonged periods of low lumbar flexion, fatigue of the back extensor muscles (especially multifidus) and impaired motor activation patterns all seem to increase the risk and severity of low-back pain. So at the time of year when many are beginning to build up their cycling mileage, how can cyclists with a history of back injury stay pain free? Here are some tips:

• Firstly, ensure your bike is correctly set up. In particular, it's important to ensure that you're not "overreaching" (i.e. the top tube and stem length is not excessive) and that your handlebar position is not too low - both of these will increase the degree of static lumbar flexion and fatigue in your back extensor muscles.
• When you increase your training load (volume or intensity), or if back pain becomes a problem, consider using stem spacers to raise handlebar height, which will help alleviate static flexion and loading of the low lumbar extensors.
• If you get back pain and your bike set up is 100% correct, you may want to consult a physiotherapist. He/she can examine your functional core stability, paying particular attention to your muscle activation patterns, multifidus function, gluteal (buttock) strength and hamstring strength/flexibility, and prescribe some appropriate remedial exercises if necessary.

 

 

References
1. Am J Sports Med. 2010 Dec;38(12):2494-501
2. IEEE Trans Biomed Eng. 2008 November; 55(11): 2666-2674
3. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2009 Aug 1;34(17):1873-8
4. Man Ther. 2004 Nov;9(4):211-9

 

  

5mistake during weight loss

1. Skipping meal

In the spree of losing weight usually people start skipping meal, and it gives an feel of  weight loss. Instead of skipping the meal cut the calories.However, this backfires. Research shows that people who skip meals, particularly breakfast, are more likely to be overweight. In fact, they typically end up so overly hungry at their next meal that they can’t make a rationale decision to choose a healthy option—and what’s more, they give themselves the license to eat more than they should, justifying the extra because they ate less earlier in the day.

Its alwys okay if a high fiber food with protein rich food could be a great meal.

2. Drinking your calories

You love your  smoothie for a snack, Gatorade® while you work out, an afternoon latte/ tea, a few cocktails. Your brain doesn’t compensate for liquid calories by making you feel any less hungry, so you wind up overconsuming calories.

-Add calorie-free pizzazz to your water or seltzer by tossing in slices of limes, lemons, oranges, cucumbers and/or strawberries; the great flavor of these foods will seep into the water and add a refreshing twist.
-Stick to water during exercise if you aren’t working out intensely for more than 90 minutes.
-Tally up your liquid calories and swap them for food instead and drink water. Goodbye large glass of orange juice (and the 240 calories in it); hello glass of water and an orange (60 calories).

3. You eat too much sodium and think it doesn’t matter

You don’t have high blood pressure and you sweat out salt when you exercise. But most of us consume two to three times more salt than we should. Salt increases hunger, thirst and cravings—and it makes your fat cells denser. Plus it makes you retain water and bloat—which means that, despite working hard to lose weight, you may weigh more after a salty meal due to water retention. This can make you feel discouraged and throw in the towel on your weight loss efforts. Instead, try this:
-Prepare foods yourself so that you can control the salt.
-Eat more fresh foods like fruits and vegetables, which are naturally low in sodium. Cut back on packaged foods, such as canned soup, lunch meat, frozen meals, flavored rice, dressings, sauces and snacks. The majority of the sodium we consume comes from processed and prepared foods
-Check labels for sodium content. Often simply switching between brands can save you hundreds of milligrams sodium.
-When dining out, ask that your food be prepared without salt and order sauces on the side. Chefs are experts with herbs and spices so your food will still taste great.

For more tips and easy tricks to reduce salt in your diet, check out our book The Secret to Skinny: How Salt Makes You Fat.(from ACE guide)

4. You skimp on veggies.

Roughly 60-70 percent of people do this. If you don’t get your servings of veggies (about 2.5 to 3.5 cups for most people), you’re likely falling short on fiber. Fiber slows the digestion of food and helps to keep you feeling full. Fiber prevents blood sugar spikes and crashes and the subsequent overeating by providing a gradual release of energy from food.
-Mix veggies into whatever you’re already eating. Toss them in pasta and soups, add them to pizza and omelets.
-Stack sandwiches with lettuce, tomato, peppers, mushrooms and sprouts.
-Wrap sandwich fillings with lettuce rather than bread. Or slice cucumbers and zucchinis length-wise and use in place of crackers and breads.
-Dip veggies in hummus for a snack.

For more suggestions and more than 100 recipes that include vegetables, please check out The Nutrition Twins Veggie Cure.

5. You don’t sweat the small stuff.

Why I am not losing weight even following a strict diet plan. The reason might be eating extra bites of your kids food, tasting food/ desertes, extra pats of button your bread etc it gets accumulate. It would surprise you that research shows that these extra calories often fall around severl hundred calories and can prevent a healthy weight loss of a 1 pound per week.


-Record what you eat and use an online program like  to see how quickly those little bites are accumulating.
-Try taking several fewer bites than usual at each meal. This will save roughly 200 to 300 calories a day, helping you to lose half a pound a week—that same half pound that can easily creep on with those same bites!

note :info from ACE BLOG OF Nutrition Twins

Meeting Energy needs for Optimal Weight & Body Composition

Energy Nutrient(Macronutrients)
Carbohydrates , Proteins and Fats

Ideal Distribution 
 - Protein -15%
-  Fat       -20%

- Cho      - 65%

 What do CHO, Proteins and Fats DO


Reference from ACSM Guidelines




 

Reason of Death of a runner

The four major circumstances that lead to marathon runner deaths appear to be: heart disease in runners over 35 years; genetic heart defects in runners under 35; hyponatremia or low blood sodium levels; and heat related illnesses, such as heat stroke.
Heart Disease or Coronary Artery Death
One of the most common causes of death in runners during marathons is heart attack caused by underlying coronary artery diseases. These heart attacks are brought on by the combination of the intense physical stress of running for an extended duration and the pre-existing disease in the runner’s heart or a lack of cardiac fitness to handle the race.
This type of death typically occurs in runners that are over the age of 35 and can occur even in races as short as half-marathons. Coronary Artery Deaths are most common if the race is conducted under hot and humid conditions, which places additional stress on the heart as it struggles cool the body.

During a long running event, the heart comes under more and more stress as the body begins to fall into exhaustion. If dehydration starts to set in, the heart will work even harder to push a diminishing volume of blood through the body. This combination is extraordinarily hard on the heart and if the heart already suffers from heart disease, the combination can be fatal. The US Registry of Sudden Death in Athletes found that about 14% of all sudden athlete deaths could be attributed to coronary artery deaths.
Medical experts, such as Dr. Lewis Maraham, point out that it is especially important for people that have been sedentary (out of shape) and decide to undertake a tough endurance event should “undergo a treadmill stress test with an echocardiogram to record the heart’s performance.”
Heart Defects or Sudden Cardiac Death
Another factor that can cause deaths in younger runners is the presence of a genetic defect in the heart itself that hasn’t previously been detected or treated. A number of heart conditions can lead to a sudden failure of the heart, including hypertrophic cardiomyopathy or HCM. According to an article in MedicExchange, this condition is characterized as:
“a relatively uncommon disorder in which the heart muscle becomes enlarged, interfering with normal cardiac function. Thickening in muscle fibers is usually greatest in the walls of the left ventricle, the heart’s main pumping chamber. This thickening reduces the size of the pumping chamber itself, which in turn hinders blood flow. HCM has been implicated in the sudden deaths of some young, fit individuals.”

A study detailed in the article notes that the condition is exceedingly rare in elite athletes, occurring at a rate of no more than 0.06%. The rate in the general population is about 0.2%. As a cause of sudden deaths in athletes, according to the US Registry again, the rate was about 26% of athlete deaths – but keep in mind that this includes deaths in all sports, not just running.
There has been speculation that elite marathon runner Ryan Shay may have died of an enlarged heart that caused a sudden heart attack in the US Olympic Trials last November. As of this writing, the autopsy report had not yet been released to give us the exact cause of death – a delay that has caused some frustration in the running community.
Hyponatremia and hyponatremic encephalopathy
Hydration issues have long been a concern for marathon runners. But in the last few years there has been an increase in the number of deaths from a condition called hyponatramia or “water intoxication” as it is more commonly known. The condition is a health-threatening sodium deficiency that can in a rare cases be fatal.
The body sweats to cool itself while running and sodium is lost in this fluid. Runners that have been trained to drink plenty on the race course at times drink large enough amounts of plain water, which contains no sodium., leading to a dilution of the sodium level in their blood. As blood sodium levels drop, this can lead to a condition called hyponatremic encephalopathy.
The process involved is actually quite complex. As explained in an article on the death of a runner at the Boston Marathon in 2003,
“[athletes] in extreme sporting competitions often deplete the fuel that powers the body’s cells. When this happens, a hormone called arginine vasopressin gets released. Part of its function is to tell the kidneys to hold on to fluids. That, in turn, precipitates an imbalance in sodium levels in the blood. But as salt drops in the blood, it does not do so in cells. The body, in its constant pursuit of equilibrium, attempts to force salt out of cells by flooding them. That causes swelling. Muscles can endure such swelling because they can bulge outward. The brain, though, cannot.”
The swelling in the brain is what is fatal in these cases.
Avoiding hyponatremia is a matter of replenishing both fluids and electrolytes, including sodium, while running. Runners need to ensure that they learn to drink the proper amount of fluid for their sweat level and then how to adjust this for extreme temperatures.
Heat related illnesses
Another group of potentially life-threatening conditions come in the form of heat related illnesses, mostly caused by extreme dehydration. As the body becomes dehydrated, it loses the ability to regulate its temperature and as its temperature rises, the result can be heat exhaustion, heat stroke, heat induced coma and then death. For an excellent discussion of the process through which the body goes through in a marathon in heat, see this 2005 article written after four runners died in the Great North Run in England.
All runners should learn how to keep themselves cool when running in hot weather. Running in extreme heat is essentially always life-threatening, but so long as you hydrate, slow your pace, and take actions to keep yourself cool, it can be managed. You can read additional articles on this site about racing and training in hot weather and hydration basics to learn more about this important subject.
While there are dangers in marathon running, as I said at the outset, marathon running itself is not inherently more dangerous than other activities. Before undertaking a marathon training program, get a thorough physical exam from your doctor. From there, make sure that once race day comes that you are fit enough for the challenge and always remember to take actions to avoid dehydration, sodium loss and the impact of heat on your body.

Coach Joe English
Running Advice and News
www.running-advice.com

sport science

Do parents think that sport science is a need for our aspiring athletes??

Usually when a kid have an ailment they go through a process of medication to recover and develop immunity.  But if you are a parent of an aspiring athlete did  you ever wonder/ thought what is the need of an athletic kid----- just going to an academy or developing skill is important or there are some other needs. 

I think an aspiring athlete need an infrastructure which includes a coach for skill and technique, infrastructure, support of sport science(includes sport nutritionist, psychologist, physio etc). 

The main purpose of sport science is to assist an athlete in maximising his/her potential with least risk of injury.  The importance of sport science is the predication of an individuals ability relating to sporting world, the individualisation of training programs according to specific need and to identify possible strengths, weakness and prevent future injuries, sport science focuses on the scientific testing of an athlete during off seasons, pre-season and competitive season. According to the test results, an individualise programme is designed specifically for the athletes, which includes : volume, intensity, duration and progression of the training.

As a parent when you want your kid to reach an academic goal eg engineer, doc, scientist etc., all facilities are provided ie extra tution, best IT support, best book etc., at the same time when your kid wants to reach his dream of being a sport person, provide him/her the infrastructure which an athlete need ie coaches, physical trainer, physio etc.