acsm fit society page (spring 2010)

A M E R I C A N C O L L E G E O F S P O R T S M E D I C I N E

ACSM FIT SOCIETY® PAGE

Letter from the Editorby Dixie Thompson, Ph.D., FACSM

Welcome to the Spring 2010 edition of theACSM Fit Society® Page Newsletter! As theyear moves forward, I’d like to take amoment to thank those who make thisnewsletter possible: our editorial board andthe wonderful writers who join us eachquarter. You are very appreciated!

This issue is useful for exercisers new andold. Those beginning a physical activityprogram will find the fitness assessmentssection useful. Injury prevention is key foreveryone, so you can stay healthy andmaintain your physical activity routine. Thisissue includes general information on injuryprevention as well as specific information onavoiding injuries to the shoulders and knees.

Enjoy – and don’t forget to pass thenewsletter on to family and friends!

Dixie L. Thompson, Ph.D., FACSM

Editor, ACSM Fit Society® Page

E-mail: [email protected]

To subscribe to the ACSM Fit Society® Page,please send an e-mail to [email protected].

THEME: FITNESS ASSESSMENTAND INJURY PREVENTION

Getting aProfessionalPhysicalFitnessAssessment

by Matthew Percia; Shala Davis, Ph.D., FACSM; and

Gregory Dwyer, Ph.D., FACSM

The importance of a fitness assessment is notonly to help develop an appropriate,individualized exercise training program, butsometimes also includes screening for risk ofheart disease and other chronic diseases. Everyfitness assessment should include tests that canmeasure the five different components ofhealth-related physical fitness including: bodycomposition, cardiorespiratory fitness,flexibility, muscular strength and muscularendurance.

Components of a FitnessAssessment

Body composition is the relative proportion offat and fat-free tissue in the body. The mostcommon reason to test body composition is toassist in tracking the amount of weight, or

percent fat an individual loses over the courseof the exercise program to achieve a desirablegoal or target weight. Most researchdemonstrates that higher percentages of bodyfat increase the risk of chronic diseases such ascoronary artery disease, diabetes and certaintypes of cancer. Body composition can beassessed in many ways including by takingskin fold or circumference measurements atdifferent sites of the body.

Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) reflects thefunctional capabilities of the heart, lungs andmuscles relative to the demands of the specificexercise such as in running or cycling. Truemeasures of CRF require maximal exertionalong with collection of expired gases. Sincethis may not be available at many fitnesscenters, simple step tests or sub-maximaltreadmill or cycling tests can be used topredict aerobic capacity by taking exercise andrecovery heart rates. In addition, resting valuesof heart rate and blood pressure are also taken.The results from CRF tests are used todetermine specific intensities for cardiovascularexercises in a fitness or weight loss program.

Flexibility, referring to the degree to which ajoint moves through a normal, pain-free rangeof motion, can be a determining factor in theperformance of Activities of Daily Living(ADLs) as we age. A reduction in tissueelasticity and deterioration of joint anatomywith age has been shown to decrease flexibilityand may lower the performance in ADLs,which can decrease quality of life. Becauseflexibility can vary joint to joint, there is nosingle test for overall flexibility. The sit-and-reach test is a commonly used test forassessment of flexibility of the hamstrings, hipsand lower back.

Muscular strength and muscular endurancetraining can elicit benefits in increasedstrength, lean tissue mass, and bone density.Muscular strength can be assessed by usingsome sort of Repetition Maximum (1-RM, 5-RM or 10-RM) test on a variety of differentexercises that involve major muscles groups.The bench press and squat are commonlyused tests in assessing strength. The choice oftest is based on the exerciser’s experience and

I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E :1 | Letter from the Editor1 | Getting a Professional Physical Fitness Assessment2 | Q&A with ACSM3 | Basic Injury Prevention Concepts

3 | Keeping Shoulders Strong and Healthy5 | Basic Knee Injury Prevention6 | The Athlete’s Kitchen

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Spring 2010

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ACSM Fit Society® Page Editorial Board:Dixie L. Thompson, Ph.D., FACSM, Editor

University of TennesseeThomas Altena, Ed.D.

Southwest Missouri State UniversityKatherine A. Beals, Ph.D., R.D., FACSM

University of UtahDawn Coe, Ph.D.

University of TennesseeKate A. Heelan, Ph.D.

University of Nebraska-KearneyCherilyn Hultquist, Ph.D.

Kennesaw State UniversityGerald Jerome, Ph.D.

Towson UniversityAnthony Luke, M.D., M.P.H.

University of California, San FranciscoLynn Millar, Ph.D., FACSM

Andrews UniversityJan M. Schroeder, Ph.D.

California State University, Long Beach

ACSM is the world’s largest association devoted tosports medicine and exercise science. ACSM advances andintegrates scientific research to provide educational andpractical applications of exercise science and sportsmedicine.

Permission to reprint material from this publication isgranted by ACSM contingent upon manuscripts beingreprinted in total without alteration and on proper creditgiven to ACSM by citing ACSM Fit Society® Page, issue andpage number; e.g., “Reprinted with permission of theAmerican College of Sports Medicine, ACSM Fit Society®

Page, Spring 2010, p. 3.”

ability. Muscular endurance testing mightinclude timed tests, where the exerciser has toperform as many repetitions of a givenmovement as possible in a specific time period(i.e., 1 minute of curl-ups or push-ups).Results from both muscular strength andendurance tests can assist in recommendingproper intensities and loads for strengthtraining exercises.

Finding a TrainerIf you are a member at a fitness center, thefacility likely has personal trainers qualified toconduct physical fitness assessments. Somefitness centers require their trainers to have afour-year degree from an accredited academicinstitution in a health-related field, such asexercise science or exercise physiology. Inaddition to this degree, a certification from anationally accredited certifying body, such asthe American College of Sports Medicine(ACSM), should be attained by the trainer,

which then qualifies that individual to assessphysical fitness. Many certifying organizationshave features on their Web sites – such as theACSM Profinder service – that can be used tohelp locate certified fitness professionals.

In order for an individual to determinerealistic short- and long-term fitness goals, it isimportant to establish a baseline levels ofdifferent aspects of health and fitness. Thisprocess can be intimidating, especially forthose who are self-conscious about theirappearance and/or unfamiliar with exercising.Find a fitness professional who is not onlyqualified to assess your fitness levels, but withwhom you are comfortable sharing your goalsand allowing to take your personalmeasurements (such as body composition) tohelp you achieve your desired outcome. Oncebaseline values have been determined, yourcertified fitness professional can use thisinformation to develop a specific exercise

program to attain desired results. Your fitnessprofessional will monitor your progress andperiodically repeat these tests to track progresstoward fitness goals.

Q&Aby Anthony Luke, M.D., FACSM

Q: My child plays video games and doesn’t exercise much. I?m worried he’s putting onweight. Can newer video game systems help with fitness?

A: There are advantages to video games that use wireless controls, cycles or exercise mats duringthe game. Active video games can present an opportunity for additional energy expenditure,especially if the individual is not interested in traditional exercise. A randomized, controlled studyassessing the effect of video game use in children and adults showed significant increase in the levelof physical activity in the intervention group versus the control group who didn’t play the interactivegames. Studies demonstrate that interactive video games using wireless controls, special mats or evenexercise-type equipment, such as a stationary bicycle, provide more energy expenditure than typicalsedentary games. Games that use lower-extremity movement expended more energy than thoseusing the upper extremities, but not to the same levels as real sports. There are also differences inenergy expenditure depending on the video game’s activities, such as boxing versus golf. It’simportant to remember, however, that these types of games seek generally to simulate – but notreplace – conventional physical activity. It may be a great opportunity to motivate someone who isphysically inactive, who may not be ready to participate in group sports, or to add further energyexpenditure if video games will be played anyway.

Q: I’d like to exercise more, but I don’t want to go to the gym. My favorite activity is to gooutside for a walk. What’s the best way to maximize my walking for fitness?

A: Walking is a great way for many people to exercise. It’s easy, convenient, and economical. Oneway to help monitor your walking and assist in measuring fitness is using a pedometer or stepcounter. A pedometer can help an individual “keep score” of the amount of exercise, counting stepsinstead of calories. A baseline level of activity can be initially measured by averaging your dailynumber of steps over the course of four days. A rough estimate of activity suggests that 1,000 stepsequals about 10 minutes of brisk walking. You can challenge yourself to increase your average scoreweekly or stay on a steady, consistent program. A highly active adult should walk at least 10,000steps per day; children should walk at least 12,000 steps. Pedometers are typically inexpensive ($40or less) but look into their accuracy, as you want to make sure the step counts are good estimates.Another activity measurement option is an accelerometer, which is becoming more available astechnology improves. Accelerometers are starting to be included in other devices, such as musicplayers and cell phones. Some accelerometers can measure movement in three dimensions, whichcan give more information about non-linear activities, such as sports. If you want to keep thingssimple, use a pedometer – unless you’re into gadgets, in which case you can take a look at the newaccelerometers that are available.

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The Basics (continued from page 1)

ACSM Fit Society® Page • A Quarterly Publication of the American College of Sports Medicine • www.acsm.org • Spring 2010

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Basic InjuryPreventionConcepts

by Mary D. Nadelen, MA, ATC

For any individual who is physically active,there is a possibility of sustaining an injury.While some injuries, such as an ankle sprainor fracture, are difficult to prevent, many otherinjuries are preventable. By following a fewsimple guidelines, injuries such as musclestrains, tendonitis and overuse injuries can bereduced.

Every workout must begin with a warm-upand end with a cool-down. A warm-up isnecessary to prepare the body for exercise byincreasing heart rate and blood flow toworking muscles. The warm-up should startslow and easy and consist of a generalcardiovascular exercise such as walking,jogging or biking. The goal is to break a sweat.After five to 10 minutes, the warm-up shouldfocus on muscles and movements morespecific to the exercise activity planned.Creating a smooth transition from the warm-up to a specific activity is a great way toprevent injuries. For example, a soccer playercould pass, dribble and shoot a ball; aweightlifter could lift light weights beforemoving onto greater resistance.

Flexibility is absolutely a part of every goodwarm-up. Once the muscles are warm, theybecome more elastic and are ready to bestretched. Whether you choose to performstatic stretches (by holding each position for10-30 seconds) or perform dynamic stretches(by moving the body through a functionalrange of motion) flexibility prepares themuscles, tendons and joints for work by

allowing them to move freely through a fullactive range of motion. The more prepared thebody is, the less likely it is to get injured.

An area that often gets ignored is the cool-down after activity. Just as the warm-upprepares the body for work, the cool downbrings it back to its normal state. Time spentperforming five to 10 minutes of low-intensity cardiovascular activity followed bystretching immediately after the workout willdecrease muscle soreness and aid in recovery,both helping to prepare the body for the nextworkout.

Once an exercise program is developed, thereare a few things to remember. Start slow:people often jump right into a workout anddo too much too fast, creating excessivemuscle soreness and tightness. Properprogression is the key to preventing injuries.Slowly increase the amount of time of eachworkout, the intensity of the workout and theresistance of the weights. A 5-percent increaseas the exercise becomes too easy is a safeprogression. Exercise at a level that isappropriate for your age and your fitness level.A young athlete competing with olderchildren may not be as physically strong,predisposing them to injury. The same can betrue for a weekend warrior athlete who jumpsinto a game with athletes who have trainedthroughout the week. If equipment is involvedin your exercise program, take the time toensure you have the proper equipment, that itfits correctly and that it meets safety standards.Too often, old, faulty or improperly fittedequipment, such as footwear, mouth guards,helmets, goggles or shin pads, can causeinjuries.

One of the best ways to prevent injury is tolisten to the warning signs your body givesyou. By ignoring little aches and pains injoints and muscles, a more serious injurycould develop. Pain is the body’s way of tellingyou something is not right! The commonexpression “no pain, no gain” creates a largemisconception. It is very possible to makecardiovascular and strength gains in yourworkout routine without causing pain. If yourbody is tired or too sore from the previousworkout, take a day off, cross-train or workout at a much lower intensity. It is importantto add variety to every exercise routine toprevent repetitive, overuse injuries. Byswitching from running to biking, aerobics toweight lifting, or swimming to spinning,muscles and joints that are worked repetitivelyduring your normal routine will get a breakwhile challenging other parts of the body.

Rest is a critical component to any goodworkout routine and time spent allowing thebody to recover is a great way to prevent

injuries. A rest day must occur at least one totwo times per week. Even small breaks duringa workout are sometimes required to get themost out of the workout and prevent injuries.

A healthy, well-balanced diet can aid in injuryprevention as well. A poor diet can lead tomuscle weakness, decreased muscle strengthand endurance. Equally important ismaintaining hydration throughout the day,during and after your workout. A body withadequate fuel (food and water) will stay sharpand keep moving at the intensity you desire.

Following the simple guidelines listed abovewill help keep you injury-free and focused onyour workout goals.


KeepingShouldersStrong andHealthy

by Jenny Moshak, MS, ATC, LAT, CSCS

The rotator cuff is made up of four muscles(supraspinatus, infraspinatus, subscapularis,teres minor) that cross the shoulder joint(glenolhumeral). These four muscles originateon the shoulder blade (scapula) and insert as atendon on the upper arm (humerus). As agroup, the rotator cuff muscles perform theprimary motions of internal and externalrotation and assist the shoulder throughoutthe rest of its range of motion. The shoulder isa ball-and-socket joint. The ball (head ofhumerus) is twice the size of the shallowsocket (glenoid fossa), creating a mobile-but-unstable joint. The rotator cuff plays anintricate roll in the stabilization of theshoulder by working with the labrum (acartilaginous rim attached to the glenoid fossathat deepens the socket). The rotator cuffhelps to hold down the ball portion of thejoint in the deepest, widest area of the socket.

Supraspinatus

Humerus

Subscapularis

Acromion

Suprascapularnotch

Coracoid process

Tendon of long headof biceps brachii (cut)

Supraspinatus

Spine ofscapula

Infraspinatus

Teres minor

Teres major(cut)

A

B


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Increased stress is placed on the rotator cuff inoverhead-throwing, action-type sports suchbaseball, football, tennis and volleyball, and inoverhead-overuse professions such asconstruction, hair styling, and painting.Strengthening the rotator cuff muscles canhelp reduce injury as well as improveperformance.

Strengthening exercises forthe rotator cuff

1. Swimmer’s Exercises: Lie face down on atable or corner of a bed. Arms are hangingoff the edge of the table. This exercise isbroken down into four movements:a. Draw your shoulder blades in to the

center of your body (scapular retraction).This will bring your arms slightly off thetable.

b. Externally rotate your arms—“stick-up”position.

c. Extend your arms overhead—officialsindicating scored field goal position.

d. Hands behind head—“chillin’ position” e. Reverse the four movements back to

starting position.

Perform three sets of 10 repetitions.

The only place the arm is actually attached(bones and ligaments) to the body is wherethe collar bone (clavicle) meets the breastbone (sternum) at the strenoclavicular (SC)joint. The design of the upper extremityallows for its main function, to bring food tothe mouth. This main function requires arelationship and coordination between the SCjoint, the rotator cuff, and the radialhead/thumb.

2. Tubing with thumb involvement: Standwith a rolled towel, foam roller or even afootball between your elbow and side ofyour body. Rest your elbow against theobject so that it is in 60 degrees of flexion(in front of your body) and 60 degrees ofabduction (away from the side of yourbody). Attach the tubing to a stationaryobject so that is it waist height.a. Internal Rotation: Wrap the tubing

around your hand and your thumb;make the tubing taut enough so thatresistance is present throughout the rangeof motion. Start with your arm at theend range of external rotation (away fromthe body) and your hand/thumb insupination (palm up/”hitch hiking”). Pullthe tubing in towards your body(internally rotate) and turn your palmdownward (pronate) so that your thumbends up pointing at your stomach.Perform three sets of 10-15 repetitions.

b. External Rotation: Wrap the tubingaround your hand and your thumb;make the tubing taut enough so thatresistance is present throughout therange of motion. Start with your arm atthe end range of internal rotation(against your stomach) with your palmfacing down (pronation). Pull the tubingaway from your body (externally rotate)and turn your palm upward (supination)so that your thumb ends up in the “hitchhiking” position. Perform three sets of10-15 repetitions.


Shoulders (continued from page 3)

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3. Pizza Pie: Stand holding light-weight plates(2.5-5 lbs.) in the palms of your hands.a. Start with the weights under your chin

(as if “smelling” the pizza)b. Keeping the weights at shoulder height,

extend your arms in front of your body.c. Maintaining the weights at shoulder

height, move your arms out to the side ofyour body.

d. Bring your arms back in front of you.Bring the weights back under your chin(again as if “smelling” the pizza)

You are tracing a “T” in this exercise. Performthree sets of 10-12 repetitions.

Isolating the supraspinatus muscle can bebeneficial in rotator cuff strengthening.

4. Empty Can: Stand holding light dumbbells(3-5 lbs.) at your side.a. Internally rotate your arms so that your

thumbs are pointing to the floor. b. Raise your arms at a 45-degree angle (the

line between in front of your body andthe side of your body) up to shoulderheight.

c. Lower the weight to the starting position.

Perform three sets of 10 repetitions.

A healthy rotator cuff impacts the function ofshoulder movement and stability.Understanding the physical design of therotator cuff as it relates to body movement isimportant for maintaining strength, extendingperformance and preventing injury.


Basic KneeInjuryPrevention

by Laurie Tis, Ph.D., FACSM

Prevention of knee injuries, whether acute(knee ligament sprains) or chronic (kneetendonitis, bursitis, or the management ofarthritis) is a frequent question to any fitnessand health practitioner.

Regardless of the exercise program or the ageor gender of the participant, there are keypoints that should be addressed. First, aflexibility program incorporated into anexercise program is usually a good start.Second, a strength program (regardless of yourcurrent muscle strength) will typically work toprevent injury. Third, it is important, based onyour level of fitness, any other surroundinghealth issues, or other previous injuries orcurrent injuries or health issues that thecorrect exercises are chosen, and when theyare, that overtraining is avoided. Lastly, as allof these are considered, make sure to considerproper equipment and technique. When indoubt, consult health and fitness experts or asports medicine physician.

The following recommendations are designedfor knee injury prevention, not performanceenhancement.


Shoulders (continued from page 4)

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Flexibility of the Hip andThigh Musculature

In any injury prevention program, flexibilityor a stretching program of the surroundingmuscles is crucial. The muscles mostimportant for prevention of knee injuries arethe hip and thigh muscles: the gluteals, hipadductors or groin muscles, and the kneeflexors and extensors. There are countlessstretching programs, but the basic guidelinesof warming up prior to exercise still ring true:warm up until you “break a sweat,” stretcheach muscle group two to three times, andstretch after activity for your cool down.Stretching does not improve performance butwill work to prevent injury and, as a generalrule, is an absolute must if you have sustainedan injury. Flexibility declines with age, so it isbest to incorporate and maintain early on,since flexibility can be difficulty to regain.

Strengthening of the Hip,Thigh

As with any injury prevention program,strengthening of the muscles surrounding theknee is important. The muscles that should bethe focus of a knee injury prevention programare the hip muscles: gluteus maximus or hipextensors; rectus femoris and iliopsoas or hipflexors; and the hip adductors. Also importantare the knee joint, knee extensors (quadricepsgroup) and the knee flexors (hamstringgroup). Although these are the key muscles tofocus on, many sources also recommendstrength exercises for the lower-leg musclessuch as the ankle plantarflexors anddorsiflexors.

To strengthen these areas, utilize weightmachines or some other form of resistanceexercise, such as sport cords or resistancetubing. Each exercise should focus onindividual muscle groups and be performed ineight to 10 repetitions. Complete at least oneset, increasing up to three sets, with at least 20to 40 seconds of rest between each set. Focuson performing each exercise properly, not ondoing a lot of exercise or lifting a great amountof weight.

Another second strength-training option is touse body-weight exercises such as squats, wallsquats or lunges. These exercises can be doneanywhere, require little space or equipment,and utilize multiple muscle groups. However,often maintaining proper form can bechallenging, so use caution.

Avoid overtraining,regardless of activity choice

Overtraining is a concern with any activity, beit walking, running, swimming, or theplethora of other choices available toexercisers. The first step in avoiding kneeovertraining is to choose your activity wisely

to ensure it’s a good fit. For example, if youhave many lower-leg problems, knee pain, ora history of back pain, a non-weight-bearingactivity such as swimming may be a betterchoice than running. Then start slowly, with aday of rest between each exercise bout, andprogress either by increasing the time of eachexercise session or by adding a day of activityper week. For people who like variety,choosing different activities, often called cross-training, is a good option. Choose a weight-bearing and a non-weight-bearing activity andalternate workouts. Regardless of the activity,be sure to use proper technique, particularlyin technique-intense sports such as speedwalking or swimming, and always getinstruction if needed.

Sport-specific tipsMany activities have equipment guidelines andrecommendations, and theserecommendations can change frequently. Forexample, running shoes should be replacedapproximately every 300 miles. The shoes’shock absorption will typically not beadequate in the average runner after thatmileage. Conversely, the use of walking orhiking poles has been shown to reduce impactand may be beneficial to walking or hiking,regardless of the terrain.

When in doubt, always check with aphysician, fitness expert, or professional suchas a physical therapist or certified athletictrainer to prevent an injury and ensure youare ready to begin your exercise program andprevent knee injury.

THE ATHLETE’S KITCHEN

Rapid WeightLoss

by Nancy Clark, R.D., FACSM

When you want to lose weight quickly…

Some athletes, such as wrestlers or rowerstrying to make weight for an event, need tolose weight quickly. Others, like my clientwho insisted that slow weight loss would notwork for her, just want to lose weight quickly.“I know everyone says to lose weight slowly,but I want to get rid of this excess flab NOW,”she declared with disgust.

So what is the best way to lose weightquickly? Do you simply “starve yourself” byeating as little as possible? The answerdepends on your long-term goals:• If you want to lose weight quickly for an

event and don’t mind regaining the weightquickly, you can indeed “starve yourself” fora few days to drop to the desired number onthe scale. Obviously, the better plan is tolose the weight pre-season, to minimize theagony and optimize performance.

• If you want to lose weight and keep it off forthe rest of your life, don’t even think aboutquick weight loss. It backfires.

Why “quick weight loss” isa fantasy

While the promise of quick weight loss isenticing, dieters who lose weight quickly on asevere diet inevitably regain the weight, if notmore. That’s because the bodyovercompensates for extreme dieting withovereating. You will never win the war againsthunger!

Hunger is physiological. Just as your bodyneeds to breathe, urinate and sleep, your bodyalso needs to eat. Urges to overeat (that is,blow your diet) often have less to do with willpower and more to do with the physiology ofhunger. Just as you will gasp for air after

Knee Injury Prevention (continued from page 5)


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having been trapped under-water withoutoxygen, you will devour food after havingbeen denied calories during a crash diet. Yes,you can white-knuckle yourself to stick toyour crash diet, but your well-meaning plan toquickly shed some pounds has a highlikelihood of exploding into a demoralizingpattern of binge eating followed by yet anotherattempt to crash diet. Don’t go there… it’sdepressing.

Tips for successful weightloss

To lose weight and keep it off, you must keepin perspective you did not gain the weightquickly and, therefore, and you should notplan to lose the weight quickly. The betterplan is to chip away at slow but steady weightloss, targeting 1/2 to two pounds a week. Justby knocking off 100 calories at the end of theday (one cookie, one heaping spoonful of icecream), you can theoretically lose 10 pounds ayear. Knock off 200 calories at the end of theday (16 ounces of cola, four small cookies),and you’ve lost 20 pounds a year. Byeliminating just a few hundred eveningcalories, you will lose weight when you aresleeping, not when you are training or tryingto deal with the stresses of your busy day. Planto eat your calories during the day, when theycan help you the most. Then, diet (by eatingjust a little bit less) by night.

Tips for athletes who needto lose weight for an event

Wrestlers, rowers and figure skaters who needto shed pounds for an event generally try toeat as little as possible. They fail to understandthey could reach their goals by eating morethan air. If you eat less than 1,000 to 1,500calories, your metabolism slows to compensatefor the “famine.” The less you eat, the moreyour body conserves:• You will feel cold all the time, especially

your hands and feet. Your body won’t “wastecalories” by keeping your extremities warm.

• You will feel lethargic and have little energyto (enjoy) exercise, to say nothing ofperforming well. Observe how you conserveprecious calories by fidgeting less, movingminimally and doing less spontaneousactivity than usual in the non-exercise partsof your day.

• Your resting metabolic rate can drop by asmuch as 20 percent. This conserves caloriesand slows weight loss.

• Weight loss might be half muscle, half fat.Losing muscle is counter-productive toathletic performance. (Be sure to lift weightsand eat some protein with each meal to helpreduce loss of muscle.)

Should you add on extra aerobic activity toburn calories and hasten fat loss, in additionto drastically reducing your diet? No. Research

suggests exercising while crash dieting doesnot result in additional weight loss ascompared to crash dieting without exercise.Plus, you might end up injured andovertrained, to say nothing of fighting deeperhunger. That is, after grinding through anextra spin class to burn off 600 additionalcalories, you could quickly wipe out thatcalorie deficit in less than three minutes bysuccumbing to 12 small cookies the instantyou get home. White-knuckling yourself awayfrom food is not fun—and is not sustainable.

Instead of doing extra-hard training, plan toincrease your non-training activity by walkingmore, doing projects, cleaning the house,playing with the kids and staying off thecouch. Daily activity counts; keep movingduring your waking hours so you do notbecome a “sedentary athlete.”

You certainly should not eat less than yourweight x10 calories per pound (yourapproximate resting metabolic rate—whatyour body requires to breathe, pump blood,and function). Targeting 13-15 calories perpound is still very restrictive for an athlete.That’s about 2,000 to 2,200 calories if youweigh ~150 lbs. Alternative to countingcalories, reduce your food portions by about20-30 percent, depending on how much timeyou have to lose the weight. (A sportsnutritionist can design a successful reducingplan for you. To find a local R.D., use thereferral network at SCANdpg.org.)

Divide your limited calories, eating evenlysized meals on a timeline, at least every fourhours throughout the day. That could be 500calories at 7 a.m., 11 a.m., 3 p.m. (either asecond lunch, or divide the calories into pre-and post-workout fuel) and 7 p.m. Spendyour calories on wholesome foods that includeprotein (to help keep you from feelinghungry) and “bulky” foods like vegetables andbrothy soups that help fill your tummy withless calories than compact foods (burgers,fries).

Athletes who need to lose weight quickly oftenrestrict fluids. One pound of water can beeasier to lose than one pound of fat—but thisoption should be a last resort. Ideally, youshould have planned ahead and lost theweight in the off-season! Do not sweat awaymore than 2 percent of your body weight.(That’s three pounds of sweat for a 150-poundperson.) More than that can hurt yourperformance and endanger your health.Hence, if you currently weigh 150 lbs. butneed to be 140 in two weeks, you canreasonably lose about three pounds of sweat.You will then need to lose “only” sevenpounds of fat, of which half will likely bemuscle, if you crash diet.

The bottom lineLosing weight quickly is hard work. Thesmarter plan is to lose weight slowly and beable to keep it off for the wrestling, crew orother sport season—and the rest of your life.Although slow weight loss sounds less enticing,it is easier and sustainable! Do you really wantto do suffer through a restrictive weightreduction diet, regain the weight, and thenhave to lose it again?

Q&A (continued from page 2)

Q: I saw use of shoulder taping in beachvolleyball during the Beijing Olympics.Does it really work?

A: Kinesiology taping has been available formore than 30 years. It’s been more popularlately due to use by elite athletes and theirphysical therapists. An interesting session bythe International Olympic Committee to themedical teams was presented by RaymondeFortin, P.T., at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.Taping ankles and other joints is commonpractice. There is good evidence that ankletaping and bracing reduce the incidence ofankle sprains. Kinesiology taping may haveseveral benefits, including joint support andlimiting range of motion, compression andimprovement in lymphatic flow, andstimulation of the neuromuscular system(leading to better function and less pain).Some kinesiology tape simulates the skin’sthickness, moisture permeability, elasticity andweight. The tape stretches mainly in onedirection and there is a wave-pattern adhesiveon the back, which allows moisture to escapeand also gives different stimulation to the skin.However, this popular trend still lackssupportive evidence; the techniques and truebenefits are presently being studied. Don’t besurprised to see it, though, in more and morein sports settings while its effectiveness isdetermined, as it looks and feels “cool.”

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