Competitive soccer is a physically and mentally demanding sport. Unfortunately, injuries are all too common. While rules are designed to minimize physical contact, injuries still occur. Some are due to contact with another player, others are considered non-contact and some are due to overuse. Physical and mental fatigue associated with competition and training are thought to increase injury risk. Fatigue can occur within a match and occur over the course of several matches played with minimal recovery. Can this also increase the risk of injury? A new European study suggests that this is indeed the case. Playing matches with only 3-4 days of recovery greatly increases the rate of injuries. In some cases by as much five-fold compared to the first match.

This study originated at universities in France and Norway in conjunction with the Celtic Lab (Celtic FC). It focused on 32 players from a European professional team playing in the UEFA Champions League. Because the international soccer calendar is so congested, competing in the Champions League required the team to play their league matches on a Saturday or Sunday, and then play Champions League matches on Tuesday or Wednesday. This pattern results in a post match recovery period of 72-96 hours (3-4 days).

Players were assigned to two groups, those who had not played a match for six days (single-match) and those who played two matches within four days (multiple-match). During each match, movement analyses were performed using a computerized tracking system. Also, all injuries occurring in these matches were recorded.

Movement patterns did not differ between the groups. Players who played single or multiple matches covered 10-11 km (6-7 miles), sprinted about 250m and performed just over 11 sprints per match.

The major finding was a large difference in the rate of injuries between the two groups of players. The overall injury rate in the multiple-match group was approximately five times that of the single-match group. This was due to greater numbers of moderate and severe injuries while minor injuries were similar. Also, most of the injuries that occurred in the multiple-match group were linked to overuse.

As for specific injuries, the incidence of knee and ankle injuries was about three times greater in the multiple-match group compared to the single-match group. Ligament and meniscus damage was also markedly greater in the players who played multiple matches.

The main conclusion drawn from this study is that when professional teams play multiple matches within a week, the risk of injury is substantially increased. While 72-96 hours may be enough time to maintain physical performance, it is not long enough to maintain a low injury risk. The authors speculate that both mental and physical fatigue may have played an important role in the multiple-match group’s injury rate. Earlier studies show that such a short recovery period is not sufficient to restore muscle force, sprint speed and agility. It is possible that players competing with minimal recovery suffered from some form of fatigue even though movement patterns were not affected. Muscle strength and proprioception are key factors in stabilizing both the ankle and knee. If these are not fully recovered by the second match, both joints could be at risk of injury.

Based on their results, the researchers emphasized the need for adequate post-match recovery. Both physical and mental recovery is essential to being prepared for the next match. Nutritional recovery is also critically important. Without proper recovery, repeated matches can lead to physical fatigue, mental burnout, lack of concentration and reduced motivation, all risk factors for injury.

The investigators also emphasize the need to player rotation during competitions with a short recovery period. By limiting individual playing time, fatigue can be minimized, mental stress reduced and injury risk lowered.

U.S. college and high school teams often play multiple matches within a week. Sometimes matches may be separated by as little as 48 hours. Also, youth teams often play multiple matches with less than 24 hours recovery. Are these players also at risk of injury? A key point to remember is that this study focused on a European professional team playing at the highest level not youth players. The effects of multiple matches on youth players may be different. However, the recommendations made by the authors to reduce injury risk should be taken to heart. First, player rotation should be used. Given that most U.S. matches allow free substitution and allow players to re-enter the match, liberal substitution could limit fatigue and reduce injury risk. This is especially true in the second match played. Second, a proper recovery strategy should be followed. A suitable cool down and appropriate post-match nutrition are both essential in preparing for the next match. Use high a carbohydrate diet to replenish muscle glycogen after the initial match. This can improve both mental and physical performance during the second match and reduce injury risk.

Unfortunately, post-match recovery is often overlooked by many players and coaches. The first few hours after a match is a critically important time. Preparing for a second match begins immediately after the first match ends. Neglecting recovery can lead to poor performance and may (according to this study) raise the risk of injury.

Reference:

Dupont G, Nedelec M, McCall A, McCormack D, Berthoin S, Wisloff U (2010) Effect of 2 soccer matches in a week on physical performance and injury rate. American Journal of Sports Medicine, doi: 10.1177/0363546510361236.

Hydration should be a concern in every athletic and fitness endeavor, but with spring sport season underway and summer right around the corner, hydrating our athletes becomes increasingly important

After reviewing several research articles and seeking the help of a colleague, Alex Rosenzweig a former trainer to the Chicago Bears, I have compiled guidelines concerning female teenage athletes and their hydration requirements.

Dehydration, including acute levels, will affect the athlete physiologically, mechanically, and mentally. (D.A. Judelson, 2007)  The symptoms of dehydration are not as obvious or dramatic as we may believe.

Therefore, communication is the key for preventing dehydration.

A quick practical way to test the athlete’s dehydration level after exercise is to ask her to lick her upper lip after a game/practice.  If it taste like she licked a plate of salt, it is safe to say she has hydration issues that need to be addressed.

The athlete taking responsibility for hydration falls into a category of “silent training”.  This type of training involves addressing issues that concern athletic endeavors but do not involve movement or playing the actual sport.  This needs to be addressed before, during, and after games/practices.  The actions necessary to fully recover from intense bouts of exercise are covered in this article.

Hydration- The Basics (R.J. Maughan, 2004)

• Thirst is not an indicator of fluid needs. By the time an athlete feels thirsty dehydration is already occurring. As a result, many athletes come to practice already dehydrated.
• Dehydration of greater than 3% of body weight increases an athlete’s risk of heat illness (heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heat stroke)
• Dehydration of just 1%-2% of body weight (only 1.5-3 lbs. For a 150 lb. athlete) can negatively affect performance.
• The need for replacing sodium, chloride, and potassium (electrolytes) is important. The need to replace sodium is greater. This is because both muscle tissue and neurons are considered electric tissues of the body. Muscles and neurons are activated by electrolyte activity.
• When an athlete is menstruating, the need for electrolyte intake is higher.(S.T. Sims, 2007)
• And of course..the reliable humidity of the mid-Atlantic is a dangerous mix for athletic competitions and dehydration.

Pedialyte- The new Gatorade?

It was safe enough for them during infancy.  Pedialyte is an oral electrolyte solution.  Gatorade is a “sports drink”.  Take a look at the ingredients on a Gatorade bottle.  You will find the second ingredient is high fructose corn syrup.  High fructose corn syrup is controversial among health professionals and the corn industry.  I do know for certain that HFCS is very inexpensive.  According to leading natural health industry leaders; tests that were done in 2005 confirmed that 1/3 of HFCS products contain some amount of mercury (Sanda, 2010).  When an excess of fructose is metabolized, HFCS, the liver cannot accommodate, causing higher insulin levels.  What does this mean for athletic activity?  Insulin is the anti-exercise hormone.  Insulin has an immense impact on metabolism by controlling the tissues to uptake glucose from the blood. Insulin levels decrease during exercise because the muscles are metabolizing glucose, so insulin has no role during exercise.  If insulin levels increase during and before exercise, the endurance and performance of the athlete is compromised.  The risk of dehydration increases as well.

Besides HFCS being the work of the devil, Pedialyte has more sodium and potassium than Gatorade.  Pedialyte also has the better balance of electrolytes.

The criticism for Pedialyte is that the product may not have enough carbohydrates to serve the working muscles.  Alex Rosenzweig, formerly on the training staff for professional baseball and football teams, responds, “The only activity that requires the replenishment of carbohydrate is endurance activity lasting 1.5 -2 plus hours.  Carbohydrate intake during high intensity has shown little evidence of being effective at improving performance in the literature.  It is hydration aspect that effects the neural transmission (also cramping) during intense activity.  But then again many people still see soccer as an endurance event.  Those would be the same people that say you should take in carbohydrates.”  I would like to add that since Gatorade has more carbohydrates than Pedialyte, insulin secretion will increase with the ingestion of Gatorade.  That is in addition to the reaction of the high fructose corn syrup.    As we established earlier, insulin is the anti-exercise hormone.  There are more in depth reasons an athlete does not want to secrete insulin during intense activity.

I’m not implying that athletes do not use carbohydrates for fuel during exercise.  The muscles do indeed use stored carbohydrates for exercise, but the need to replenish them during exercise is unnecessary.  Carbohydrates should be replenished within 2 hours of intense exercise not during. For more information:  Physiology Spark Notes

Drinking electrolyte guidelines (for more exact amounts for each athlete according to their body weight and position, see me)

1.  Drink electrolyte balanced liquid during, after, and before exercise.

2.  During activity: every 20 minutes played, drink 5- 7 ounces of liquid.

Gatorade is the least effective sports drink.  A study examining 4 different sports drinks from 2007, concluded that a mix of water and apple juice is more effective than Gatorade at re-hydrating and replenishing lost electrolytes. (Shirrifs, 2007)  Plain water is also less desirable.  Water with added electrolytes is a great choice.  G2, Vitamin Water, and Powerade are better choices.  Pedialyte or even diluted Pedialyte (I like grape and pineapple flavors, please stay away from plain yuck) is the best choice.

Works Cited

D.A. Judelson, C. M. (2007). Hydration and Muscular Performance, Does Fluid Balance Affect Strength, Power and High-Intensity Endurance? Sports Medicine , 907-921.

R.J. Maughan, S. M. (2004). Fluid and Electrolyte Intake and Loss. International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism , 327-340.

S.T. Sims, N. R. (2007). Preexercise sodium loading aids fluid balance and endurance for women exercising in the heat. Journal of Applied Physiology , 534-541.

Sanda, B. (2010, April 12). The Double Danger of High Fructose Corn Syrup. Retrieved from Weston A Price Foundation: http://www.westonaprice.org/The-Double-Danger-of-High-Fructose-Corn-Syrup.html

Shirrifs, M. V. (2007). Rehydration After Exercise in the Heat: A Comparision of 4 Commonly Used Drinks. International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism , 244-258.

This document was created to be a guide for the athletes, coaches, and parents about improving their speed, and endurance while decreasing the girls’ risk of injury.

Speed by the Numbers

4.5
Number of steps per second (stride rate of world class female sprinters)

5.0
Number of steps per second (stride rate of world class male sprinters)

4.2 - 4.3
Number of seconds it takes for the average MLB player to get from home to first

6.7 - 6.8
Number of seconds it takes for the average MLB baseball player to run a 60-yard dash

4.5
Number of seconds it takes for the average college wide receiver to run 40 yards

4.3
Number of seconds it took for the fastest wide receiver to run 40 yards at the 2009 NFL combine

“Regardless of the sport, there are only five ways to improve playing speed over short distances,” says George Dintiman and Bob Ward in Sports Speed (Human Kinetics):

1. Improving starting ability and acceleration
2. Increasing stride length
3. Increasing the number of steps taken per second (stride rate)
4. Improving speed endurance
5. Improving sprinting form and technique.

Your speed potential lies in your genes.  All of us have a range of speed that is built in genetically.

Improvement in these areas should focus on improving technique and the underlying variables.

Variables to increase speed:

1. Strength- the amount of force your muscles can produce.

2. Power is the ability to exert maximum force in the shortest period of time. It is the coordinated combination of both strength and speed of movement.  You can’t be weak and fast.

3.  Braking ability- eccentric muscle control.  Eccentric loading (or eccentric exercises) are proven to increase fast twitch muscle fibers.  Your body will only accelerate as fast as it can control deceleration.

SPORT SPECIFIC NEEDS: SOCCER

1. Starting, accelerating, stopping, and cutting
2. Stride rate
3. Stride length
4. Speed endurance
5. Sprinting form

Soccer requires lots of starting and accelerating for distances of 15-25 yards. High-speed stopping is needed as a player approaches the ball or an opponent. Speed endurance prevents players from slowing down after multiple short sprints.

Alexandria Freedom’s plan for speed improvement:

1. Baseline testing!  According to the goal sheets of the team members, improving speed is important to most of the players on the team.

2.  Strength building! We will focus on building strength with concentric, eccentric, and isometric joint movements. Strength gains will transfer to more efficient deceleration, more power for acceleration, and strength for the repetitive movements of running.

This will be accomplished by circuit training with the team and on your own.

3.  Mechanics of speed improvement: agility training, arm mechanics, and landing technique.

These drills are fun!  I might be handing over my stop watch to participate.

4. Interval training for recovery.  Soccer is all about recovery!  Recovery has two meanings pertaining to soccer.  Recovery refers to your body resting and recovering after bouts of exercise or games.  It is a time period that the athlete is resting from training and sports so that their mind and body can restore from the stress that exercise puts onto the body.  In this sense, recovery is a process.  Check out the article about resting and recovery HERE

The second meaning refers to the body’s physiological adaptation after a period of intense work.  This type of recovery can be measured by how well a player adapts or doesn’t adapt after the intense work.   This adaptation occurs over seconds.

An example of this would be a defender playing one on one with her opponent, the opponent passes the ball, the opponent sprints to make herself open, the defender follows, and the result of this bout of intense work is the player’s recovery phase and preparation for the next intense bout of work.  The Freedom can train to improve their fitness with strength and conditioning with the goal in mind to recover better than their opponent.  If the girl that is being defended doesn’t recover as well as one of our teammates, then it doesn’t matter how much skill the opponent has, the next ball opportunity becomes a 60/40 in favor of us instead of a 50/50.

5.  Plyometric training for power development.  This type of training is intense and will be focused on comprehensively.

The connective tissues of the joints, ligaments and tendons will benefit greatly from plyometric training.  The benefits will only occur if the fitness program is designed with these specific adaptations in mind.  A great fallacy of fitness and sports conditioning is incorporating this type of training early in a program.  The athlete must be ready to endure a high amount of physical stress, which includes the type of training in their fitness programs and the sport itself.

NON PRACTICE RUNNING ASSIGNMENT

Interval training combines short burst of high intensity running (sprint speed) with recovery intervals that are longer in duration.  The ratio we will start with is 1 to 3 (minutes).

With a treadmill

Step by Step

• Choose a sprint speed. Remember your 40 second speed test? Imagine 80% of that intensity. The range on the treadmill equates to a range of 7.0 mph to 10.0 mph. This decision may require a trial and error process.
• Choose a recovery speed. This speed will be 50% of your speed test intensity. The range on the treadmill equates to a range of 5.0mph to 6.8mph
• Take time to get to know the treadmill before you begin and take the necessary safety precautions before you begin.
• Fill in your speed intervals and follow the table below for your 22 minute interval treadmill session

Since you are already at the gym, or in workout mode at home: continue with some strength training or an endurance run on the treadmill.

Without a treadmill

This workout can certainly be completed without a treadmill.  You will need a watch and a planned route for this workout.

Follow the directions above and be extra aware of your speed.

This workout should be done once a week until WAGS games begin in a few weeks.  This workout should be done twice a week if you miss any practices.

Proper rest and recovery must occur when we put stress on our body, such as when we exercise.  This is not much different from the need to sleep and eat well during a hard week at work.  The human body’s ability to adapt and change its composition is amazing.  To achieve your New Year’s goals, you have to be diligent about training efficiently, eating well, and recovering properly.  The first two are well known, but the third isn’t - that is why injuries occur very often in the beginning of a sport season or when someone exercises too much, too soon.

This article was originally written as a training/education tool for 14 year old female soccer players.  Their zealous attitudes about training for soccer are so wonderful to witness.  My goal for the original article was to teach the athletes about taking care of their bodies after our training sessions were over.  With proper rest and recovery practices, the athletes should maintain positive feelings around strength training and not be discouraged by muscle soreness or overtraining.  A novice exercise participant can also feel positive about working out, if they take rest and recovery into account in their training plan.  This will also ensure they ward off anxiety about a huge change in their lifestyle.

Why are rest and recovery needed?  To change the composition of our muscles and body, we must put the body through stress by exercising.  The result of the proper amount of exercise is micro-injury to the muscle tissue.  The micro-injury causes the muscles to rebuild and repair, i.e. increasing muscle mass.  This process also causes an influx of feel-good hormones which improve mood, metabolism, and energy levels.  To maximize this process, you must be vigilant about rest and recovery.

Factors that Effect recovery and training

Training, nutrition, supplements, sleep, travel, school, work, psychological factors, physiological factors, genetics, environmental factors, social life, recovery interventions

Time! This is a discussion about rest and recovery on a macro level.  A micro level analysis would be concerned with rest and recovery in between sets, intervals, heart rate monitoring, lactate threshold, and short distance sprints.  The objectives of rest and recovery (below) refer to the variables that are important after a complete workout or following a match/race.  Assigning a rest time period in between certain exercise/competition bouts is YOUR job (or your trainer’s).  This is because every individual has a different threshold to reach before rest and recovery is necessary.  Choosing the appropriate amount of rest for optimal recovery depends on their fitness levels, stress levels, and sleeping habits.  This article will not give you the exact time you need for optimal recovery, but   will define the variables that will help you make better decisions about planning your training program.

THE OBJECTIVES OF RECOVERY

• Restore glycogen levels. This is the primary nutrition goal of the restoration process. Failure to do so has negative implications for the next workout or the next day. Glycogen is a source of energy for our muscles. Our body breaks down carbohydrates from our diet to form glucose and glycogen. If the glycogen is not used for energy, it is then stored in the muscles and liver for later use. Glycogen is the source of energy most often used for exercise. It is needed for any short, intense bouts of exercise from sprinting to weight lifting because it is immediately accessible. Glycogen also supplies energy during the first few minutes of any sport. During long, slow-duration exercise, fat can help fuel activity, but glycogen is still needed to help breakdown the fat into something the muscles can use. Ideally, you would like to restore glycogen levels to pre-exercise state.
• o How to achieve restored glycogen levels: Carbohydrates should be taken within 2 hours after exercise. Research has shown that eating 100-200 grams of carbohydrate within two hours of endurance exercise is essential to building adequate glycogen stores for continued training. Waiting longer than two hours to eat results in 50 percent less glycogen stored in the muscle (Jentjens R, 2003).
• Restore depleted electrolytes. This issue should be addressed during and after exercise. Electrolyte replacement is crucial. Electrolytes are salts in the body.  They are found in blood, tissue, and fluids.  Proper balance is essential for muscle coordination, heart function, fluid absorption and excretion, nerve function, and concentration.  When a person sweats, essential electrolytes are lost.  Salts act like a sponge, holding the fluid in the body. If you drink a large volume of plain water, the body thinks it’s over hydrated because the water dilutes the concentrations of sodium and other dissolved substances in the blood. This switches off thirst and switches on the kidneys to increase urine output. Sodium, magnesium, potassium, chloride, and calcium are all important minerals lost in sweat. Avoid caffeine and colas because they delay the re-hydration process.
• Hydrate and rehydrate
• Minimize the breakdown of muscle by consuming protein after training. This encourages the focus on anabolic adaptations to training. Catabolic adaptations include the breakdown of muscle.
• o Anabolic- metabolic pathway that constructs larger molecules from smaller molecules. For exercise this is the hormone response related to muscle growth and protein synthesis.
• o Catabolic- metabolic pathway that destructs larger molecules into smaller molecules. In exercise science, this refers to the hormone response that breaks down muscle and causes overtraining (chronic syndrome). In some instances, catabolism is necessary for the muscles to use molecules for energy (breakdown of ATP and respiratory gases).
• oFor meal planning: using a protein to carbohydrate ratio of 4 to 1 can prevent muscular breakdown.
• Offset the effects of free radicals. This is an environmental concern. Free radicals in the blood stream are caused by pollution and food additives. They can break down healthy cells, which can lead to a variety of health problems and predisposition to cancer. The use of antioxidants and vitamin C can help offset free radicals and their effects.
• Reduce inflammation. The stress of training produces a healthy amount of inflammation and unhealthy amounts of inflammation. Inflammation is a natural protective mechanism of the body to heal and stimulate blood flow to the damaged tissue. There must be a balance between allowing the body’s natural inflammatory response to take place and minimize swelling that inhibits muscular contractions. The best way to reduce inflammation is using isometrics and ice application.
• Boost the immune system. Systematic high level training will severely stress the body’s immune system. This must be addressed by moderating lifestyle and proper nutrition.  Shortly after exercise your immune system will be suppressed. Since exercise does stress the body, it takes real energy and physical resources for the body to adapt.
• o Cortisol levels increase after exercise. The increased level is only temporary. The cortisol levels are increased because of its relationship to insulin. They have an inverse relationship. Insulin has an immense impact on metabolism by controlling the tissues to uptake glucose from the blood. Insulin levels decrease because the muscles are metabolizing glucose so insulin has no role during exercise, this in turn increases the counter hormone cortisol (L. Plat, 1996).
• o Cortisol is associated with chronic stress and overtraining. Chronic stress and overtraining provide unhealthy levels of cortisol in the body. An acute increase in cortisol levels after exercise is necessary for the body to adapt and therefore healthy.
• o This is the reason why you should not participate in exercise if you have a cold or virus. You will become more vulnerable to worsening your symptoms.
• Acquire adequate sleep. Get at least 8 hours of sleep every night. If sleep debts occur, your body’s ability to build muscle, maintain/lose weight, and the overall health of the participant/athlete will be compromised.
• o If someone is not losing weight, but is eating healthy and exercising efficiently; I always ask about their sleep patterns. Not getting enough sleep is one of the big hurdles people encounter with unsuccessful weight loss.

I’m writing this article for a few very important reasons.  The first one is to educate my athletes on the importance of this subject in becoming a high level athlete, and I hope they begin to understand that the human body is quite the task master.  For the novice exerciser or the New Year’s resolution enthusiast, this article is to remind you that motivation and a strong will are not the only things that will help you achieve your goal.  Your success will be determined by the information you choose to accept and act upon.  Exercise is a process, hopefully a life-long one.  Proper rest and recovery is a big part of the process.  Without the proper amount, you are doing unintended harm to your body.

After reading this article, I hope that your exercise judgment has improved.  Applying this information will consist of trial and error along with a high level of self awareness.  Some examples of this would be:

• Knowing the difference between the verge of injury and an acceptable amount of muscle soreness due to your previous workout/competition.
• Understanding the difference between what you want to do and what you can do, physically.
• Knowing how to take care of your body after and before a match/competition.

Works Cited

Eric Shamus, J. S. (2001). Sports Injury Prevention and Rehabilihition. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Jentjens R, J. A. (2003). Determinants of post-exercise glycogen synthesis during short-term recovery. Journal of Sports Medicine , 117-144.

L. Plat, M. M. (1996). Effects of morning cortisol elevation on insulin secretion and glucose regulation in humans. American Journal of Physiology; Endocrinology and Metabolism , 36-42.

Zatsiorsky, V. M. (2000). Biomechanics in Sport: Performance Enhancement and Injury Prevention Volume 9. Malden, MA: Blackwell Science.

Calling female Athletes (ages 13-16) and Parents! Are you serious about your sport and want to excel at the high school or the club level? If so, then you need to be on a good strength and conditioning program.

We’ve been in your shoes… Let us help you transform your sports experience through education, sound strength training programs and unparalleled services in the IMPACT Program.

No matter what sport your daughter plays, IMPACT will improve their performance and reduce their risk of injury.

 She will work to:

• Build more muscular strength
• Develop speed, agility, and coordination
• Listen to her body
• Lead a healthy lifestyle
• Lower her risk for injury.

We take progress personally. Every athlete is unique—our instructor to student ratio of 1:7 allows us to interact one-on-one and establish personalized goals and benchmarks for each participant. Training takes place in a safe and fun environment and we provide the education every athlete should know to decrease the potential for injury and increase athletic skills (so you’ll get the most out of your game this year…next year…and for many healthy years to come).

 Cost for 6 sessions is 90$

 Contact Jenn for registration and ask about our generous referral bonuses!

Jenn@impactfitnessdc.com

have long been a supporter of sports for kids of all ages, but there is a new study that reinforces one of the most positive benefits of sports. Researchers at BYU have just released a study that reports that women who participated in high school sports are 41% more likely to be college grads as well.

In my opinion, sports help teach girls (and boys) some of the same life skills that are essential to success in college, including:

• Time management
• How to deal with success
• How to deal with disappointment
• Persistence
• Self esteem
• Team work
• The benefits of a good work ethic

Getting girls involved in sports as children is a great investment in their future!

 It’s easy to go into a text book and read the various reasons why exercise is good for your health, like keeping your heart healthy and reducing the risk of injury, but there are dozens more reasons why you should work out.  

Impact Fitness DC is a huge fan of the female athlete.  We are female athletes, who all have become fitness and health professionals to encourage healthy lifestyles.  We specialize in the female athlete because of her special needs and qualities.  In our combined years of experience, we have all experienced the highs and lows of competition .  Today, 38 years after a federal mandate was enacted to provide gender equality in sports, generations of female athletes have experienced the wonderful benefits of playing a sport.  Young women are becoming athletes in record numbers, advancing the image of the female athlete as well as the level of competition.  With those factors, the troubles and pressures are also increasing. 

• A 16 year old swimmer feels pressure from her mother who is counting on her talent to pay for college.
• A mother of a 14 year old soccer player is anguished over her daughter’s decision to train away from home.
• A 13 year old tennis player gets so angry with herself for making mistakes.

Some of these problems can be much more serious

• A 15 year old soccer player tears a knee ligament and accelerates her chance of arthritis by 40%.
• A 16 year old ballerina feels too much pressure from her instructors and stops eating.
• A 13 year old basketball player moves to a new school only to learn she cannot make the team and decides to “bulk up” by taking steroids.

The NCAA’s Women Foundation conducted research which concluded that girls who play sports are less likely to do drugs, join gangs, or even become sexually active.  The same study also concluded that girls who play sports also have higher self esteem and do better in school than girls who do not play sports.  I played soccer, softball, and ran track.  I could not be more thankful for my mother’s dedication to me and my decision to be an athlete.  This is true for so many reasons.  I played soccer in college on a scholarship that covered most of my tuition to a private school.  I played all over Europe. I have confidence that cannot be overshadowed and I have amazing leadership skills that have driven me to own a company before the age of 30.  The gratitude I have is the driving force behind my business.  However, the dilemmas facing female athletes are the reason why I am passionate about my business.  My decision to cater only to the female athlete is because of the epidemic injury rates. 

Most of these injuries are unnecessary.  Impact Fitness DC has the expertise and management tools to not only provide prevention for unnecessary injuries, but we promise to improve the athlete’s ability to perform. 

During my journey, I have encountered numerous female athletes from my generation who all congratulate my efforts and then ask me, “why didn’t I have someone like you when I was younger?”  The answer is simple.  We did not have the statistics, technology, and knowledge about the female athlete 15 years ago.  Impact Fitness DC has the expertise and the passion to motivate, manage, and improve your daughter or player’s athletic endeavor.

This website is designed to be a resource of science based information pertaining to the female athlete.  We want you to know how she is different from the male athlete and why her training must be catered to her distinctions.  If you are in the DC metro area, and you decide to use Impact Fitness DC for your daughter/player’s needs I am more than happy to discuss this with you.  Also please feel free to contact me with any questions.  My “door” is open.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Schwartz

Creator of Impact Fitness DC

Jenn @impactfitnessdc.com

What is MAT? 

MAT assesses and corrects muscular imbalances that are often related to pain and injury. MAT views muscle tightness as a form of protection in the body, caused by weak or inhibited muscles. Muscles must be able to perform their required function as needed when forces are placed on a joint. When a muscle is inhibited, or lost what’s called proprioceptive input, it is unable to perform its job efficiently. This creates instability and tightness in surrounding joints as the body attempts to protect itself.

How can MAT help my daughters’ performance and keep her healthy?

MAT not only helps athletes recover from injuries quickly, but it also helps them from happening in the first place. Preparing the body to be more efficient in training and athletic performance, the potential for injury is reduced. In order to reach optimal performance capabilities, an athlete is forced to train at a high level of intensity. Because of this, there is always potential for injury.  Some athletes may be predisposed to injuries due to muscular imbalances and the stresses that are placed on the joints and soft tissue because of the imbalances. When they train, the imbalances are magnified which leaves the body vulnerable to injury. Eventually, unable to tolerate the stress, they break down and become injured. The goal of MAT® is to correct the problem before an injury occurs.

My daughter isn’t injured, why would MAT be important for her?

An injury is a ’symptom’ of a deeper issue. The symptom is not the problem. When the body is asked to manage high levels of stress placed into the joints, it is imperative that it be able to tolerate those stresses. MAT is unique because it can identify areas of the body that are vulnerable. It can find the weak links before those links are broken. MAT can get to the root of the problem before it becomes an issue, as well as correct imbalances that are present during and after an injury.

My daughter has so much going on now, how important is MAT to her training schedule?

It is like driving a car with bad alignment. The faster you drive it, the faster the tires are going to wear out. The body functions the same way. If an athlete has muscular imbalances, the abnormal alignment results in increased stress on the joints and muscles. Taking the car in for regular maintenance checks and tune-ups, you are protecting your investment. The human body should be treated in just the same way; if not better!

How will MAT be applied to the fitness program?

After assessments and corrections have been made, a better understanding of the girls’ body will be available. Specific ‘homework’ may be sent home with her to reinforce the corrections.

During the training classes adjustments will be made for each girl and their own imbalances. This is done so that muscle strength will slowly increase and imbalances will start to diminish.