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At Building Better Athletes, we got our start working with primarily baseball athletes, in particular pitchers. About half of our population is baseball athletes, we work as the Sports Performance Specialists for an area University pitching staff, and we regularly consult with baseball teams/clubs on proper development and care of baseball athletes.
For anybody who has worked intensively with baseball athletes knows the unique demands baseball presents and conversely how specific and specialized the training for these athletes needs to be. You can definitely mess up a baseball player by performing wrong things in the weight room. The interplay and intricacy of throwing/pitching and hitting is very detailed and throwing un-needed stresses or quarks into the interplay is a recipe for disaster.
It's always interesting to see athletes comes to us, whether it be HS or college, and they describe their previous or even current training program to us, and literally it could be considered negligence on behalf of the coach/team. Many of the things we see, especially depending on the quality of coaching, are probably doing more harm than good and setting many of their athletes up for failure or injury.
Then we ask if their is any individualization in the program or if the coach has ever seen you with your shirt off and evaluated your glenoid-humeral movements, thoracic spine movement, or rib cage/lumbar spine relationship to overhead movement. To this day, we've never had an athlete tell us yes to either one of those questions and it's funny because this information should be directly used to what the training program should look like.
If an athlete has a depressed scapula, then things like deadlifts, farmer walks, Olympic lifts, and cueing down and back are all wrong. If an athlete has valgus sign at the elbow, then things like Snatch's, Jerk's, barbell Back Squat, and most OH lifting should be avoided. If an athlete presents anterior tilt and protraction of their scapula, then benching is a big no-no. The list goes on and on, yet we never see a HS and even many college programs take any of this into consideration, and it's no wonder their athletes are searching elsewhere because they don't see actual on-field performance enhancement or they got hurt.
Go Get 'Em!
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
Important Questions to Ask on a Recruiting Trip
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We work with a lot of HS athletes preparing for that transition to college and it's always a fun and stressful time for these athletes as they look for a place to spend the next chapter of their life.
I remember going through the recruiting process and thinking what the hell am I going to do? How can I tell the difference between all these schools?
When I look back, it's one of those - I wish I knew then, what I know now.
Athletes and parents often go into these situations not really knowing what to look for and this can make the whole process really sticky.
Two months ago, we were lucky enough to have 3 area coaches come in and talk to our athletes about things they can be doing to help their chance to play college ball. It was great opportunity for our athletes to hear directly from these college coaches on what they look for and what athletes should look for when choosing a school.
Below we've compiled some of the most important questions athletes and parents need to know before making this big decision.
Take a look at these and have a plan during these exciting times. It will save a lot of headache and solve some potential problems choosing a school.
Education
- Do they have the academic programs/degree you want?
- Do they have a solid academic support staff in place? Will you have access to tutors?
- What is the team's graduation rate?
- Are there alumni that studied in your degree field and what are they doing now? Can you talk to them?
- What was the team's average GPA?
- Do the coaches oversee and look over your grades or will you be on your own?
- Is their an independent academic standard (aside from the NCAA's) that you need to reach in order to play?
Athletic
- Will you have an opportunity to play right away? If not, are you ok waiting 1, 2, maybe 3 years before playing?
- How would the coaching staff describe their coaching style? Can you see yourself being coach as such?
- Did you meet the strength and conditioning coach? What is his/her approach to training both in-season and off-season? (You’ll be spending a lot of time with this coach)
- Have you watched this team play a game and practice? (Let me tell you, college is a heck of a lot different than HS in both practice and game tempo, intensity, etc)
- Did you meet the assistant or position coaches? They'll often be the ones coaching you far more than the head coach will be.
- Does the coaching staff get out and attend or speak at different conferences to improve at their craft? I can tell you I'd much rather be part of a program that is continually trying to find better more successful ways to coach and plan for me as an athlete and as a team, rather than just be stuck in their ways.
Miscellaneous
- What is a program's track record in terms of injury rates? This is especially important for sports like baseball, soccer, basketball. Are the same injuries occurring every year like ACL, UCL tears? If so, this may mean something is going on that increases risk of these injuries ie over-use, poor training models, dangerous practice habits, etc. You don't want to become one of these statistics, so know if you're a pitcher and every year they have guys having Tommy John Surgery, a red flag needs to go off.
- How tough of an adjustment, socially will it be for you? This is HUGE! You'll be spending the next 4-5 years of your life in this city/community. Will you fit in? Is it too far or too close to home? Is the social environment enough or too much for you?
- Is it public or private? This may seem weird, but there are usually some vast differences between a public vs private university. Most private institutions have some sort of religious background and this may mean mandatory religious education classes, required weekly mass, living on-campus for 2-3 years, no opposite sex in dorm rooms, required class attendance, dry campus, more expensive tuition, etc. Public institutions tend to be more open and allow more freedom than private institutions, but on the same hand they tend to be larger, provide less "intimate" education (larger classes, less hands on advising), and often don't require attendance to class. Overall each option provides different pros and cons, know them.
- How much is tuition? Can you get grants, scholarships, or help paying this? With today's cost of college education, this question needs to be asked. A school may look great and everything, but is it worth paying off 100K for the next 20-years of your life?
Hope this helps all those aspiring athletes gain clarification as they choose their college. Making a great decision at this junction will determine many things in an athletes future. Be sure to leave no stone un-turned and know the details of your decision.
Go Get 'Em
We work with a lot of HS athletes preparing for that transition to college and it's always a fun and stressful time for these athletes as they look for a place to spend the next chapter of their life.
I remember going through the recruiting process and thinking what the hell am I going to do? How can I tell the difference between all these schools?
When I look back, it's one of those - I wish I knew then, what I know now.
Athletes and parents often go into these situations not really knowing what to look for and this can make the whole process really sticky.
Two months ago, we were lucky enough to have 3 area coaches come in and talk to our athletes about things they can be doing to help their chance to play college ball. It was great opportunity for our athletes to hear directly from these college coaches on what they look for and what athletes should look for when choosing a school.
Below we've compiled some of the most important questions athletes and parents need to know before making this big decision.
Take a look at these and have a plan during these exciting times. It will save a lot of headache and solve some potential problems choosing a school.
Education
- Do they have the academic programs/degree you want?
- Do they have a solid academic support staff in place? Will you have access to tutors?
- What is the team's graduation rate?
- Are there alumni that studied in your degree field and what are they doing now? Can you talk to them?
- What was the team's average GPA?
- Do the coaches oversee and look over your grades or will you be on your own?
- Is their an independent academic standard (aside from the NCAA's) that you need to reach in order to play?
Athletic
- Will you have an opportunity to play right away? If not, are you ok waiting 1, 2, maybe 3 years before playing?
- How would the coaching staff describe their coaching style? Can you see yourself being coach as such?
- Did you meet the strength and conditioning coach? What is his/her approach to training both in-season and off-season? (You’ll be spending a lot of time with this coach)
- Have you watched this team play a game and practice? (Let me tell you, college is a heck of a lot different than HS in both practice and game tempo, intensity, etc)
- Did you meet the assistant or position coaches? They'll often be the ones coaching you far more than the head coach will be.
- Does the coaching staff get out and attend or speak at different conferences to improve at their craft? I can tell you I'd much rather be part of a program that is continually trying to find better more successful ways to coach and plan for me as an athlete and as a team, rather than just be stuck in their ways.
Miscellaneous
- What is a program's track record in terms of injury rates? This is especially important for sports like baseball, soccer, basketball. Are the same injuries occurring every year like ACL, UCL tears? If so, this may mean something is going on that increases risk of these injuries ie over-use, poor training models, dangerous practice habits, etc. You don't want to become one of these statistics, so know if you're a pitcher and every year they have guys having Tommy John Surgery, a red flag needs to go off.
- How tough of an adjustment, socially will it be for you? This is HUGE! You'll be spending the next 4-5 years of your life in this city/community. Will you fit in? Is it too far or too close to home? Is the social environment enough or too much for you?
- Is it public or private? This may seem weird, but there are usually some vast differences between a public vs private university. Most private institutions have some sort of religious background and this may mean mandatory religious education classes, required weekly mass, living on-campus for 2-3 years, no opposite sex in dorm rooms, required class attendance, dry campus, more expensive tuition, etc. Public institutions tend to be more open and allow more freedom than private institutions, but on the same hand they tend to be larger, provide less "intimate" education (larger classes, less hands on advising), and often don't require attendance to class. Overall each option provides different pros and cons, know them.
- How much is tuition? Can you get grants, scholarships, or help paying this? With today's cost of college education, this question needs to be asked. A school may look great and everything, but is it worth paying off 100K for the next 20-years of your life?
Hope this helps all those aspiring athletes gain clarification as they choose their college. Making a great decision at this junction will determine many things in an athletes future. Be sure to leave no stone un-turned and know the details of your decision.
Go Get 'Em
Tuesday, September 30, 2014
3 Things Athletes Can Learn From Derek Jeter
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In case you've been living under a rock this past week, you've heard Derek Jeter retired from the game of baseball. Arguably one of the greatest baseball players of all-time on the best franchise in the history of the MLB.
What's stood out even more than his illustrious career, is him as a person. Jeter has played in the league for 20-years and is considered one of the greatest leaders and class acts in the game. Everybody who has known Jeter has nothing but great things to say about the guy, and in the professional sports world this a feat in itself.
There are things all athletes can learn from the career from Jeter, and below are 3 things athletes should take notice too.
1. Consistency
Jeter is a model of consistency and a guy that plays day in and day out, not to mention he plays what is considered to be the leader of the defense - Shortstop. Overall, Jeter played for 20-years with a career batting average of .310, hit 260 homeruns, drove in 1311 runs, and scored 1923 times.
Check this out, in his first full season he hit .314, had 10 homeruns, 78 RBI's, and scored 104 runs. In his 18th full season he hit .316, 15 homeruns, 58 RBI's, and scored 99 runs. Not only that, in his 19 full years in the bigs, he played in 145 or more games in 16/19 seasons. If that's not a model of consistency, I don't know what is. Jeter has also said that he's within 5lbs of the weight he was during his rookie season, meaning he's a guy that takes care of his body and the does little things that allow him to be great.
Half the battle is showing up, day in and day out, and putting your best effort on the field and Jeter did that. He played through pain, played when he was tired and beat up, and played when he didn't feel his best. He didn't make excuses, he showed up and performed, this is admirable and something all athletes should take note.
2. Let His Game Speak
If there is one thing all competitors say about Jeter is he respected the game and played it the right way. He wasn't cocky, didn't try to show anybody up, played hard, played with respect, and played the game the right way.
He didn't talk about himself or try to subtract from other players/teams; he let his game speak for itself. It's a breath of fresh air to hear this as all you ever hear today is players talking about themselves or trying to tear down another player. It's great to have confidence, but these kind of antics are over the top and don't win you over any admirers.
Jeter let his game do the talking and his game did the most talking when the game is on the line. He has been given the nickname, "Mr. Clutch" for good reason. Just think about his last week - He ended his final game at Yankee Stadium with a walk off RBI to win the game. Then he ended his final career at-bat with a hit. All great players step-up when the game is on the line, and Jeter did this as well as any.
Walk the walk, don't talk the talk.
3. Humble
The guy is going to be a 1st ballot Hall of Famer, was Rookie of the Year, been a All-Star 14-times, won 5 Gold Gloves, won 5 Silver Sluggers, was MVP of both the World Series and All-Star game, and was a World Champion 5 times. If anybody is in a situation to be cocky, it's Jeter, yet you never hear anything.
The guy goes about his business, avoids negative headlines, and play the game the right way. He's humble, down to earth, and respectful of the game and it's history. If you haven't seen this commercial of Jeter, it's a must see. Plus it's got ole Franky Sinatra music leading it, so it's even more awesome!
Take note athletes - Be humble, be consistent, and let your game speak for itself.
Go Get 'Em!
In case you've been living under a rock this past week, you've heard Derek Jeter retired from the game of baseball. Arguably one of the greatest baseball players of all-time on the best franchise in the history of the MLB.
What's stood out even more than his illustrious career, is him as a person. Jeter has played in the league for 20-years and is considered one of the greatest leaders and class acts in the game. Everybody who has known Jeter has nothing but great things to say about the guy, and in the professional sports world this a feat in itself.
There are things all athletes can learn from the career from Jeter, and below are 3 things athletes should take notice too.
 |
| (Photo Credit: Giantbomb.com) |
Jeter is a model of consistency and a guy that plays day in and day out, not to mention he plays what is considered to be the leader of the defense - Shortstop. Overall, Jeter played for 20-years with a career batting average of .310, hit 260 homeruns, drove in 1311 runs, and scored 1923 times.
Check this out, in his first full season he hit .314, had 10 homeruns, 78 RBI's, and scored 104 runs. In his 18th full season he hit .316, 15 homeruns, 58 RBI's, and scored 99 runs. Not only that, in his 19 full years in the bigs, he played in 145 or more games in 16/19 seasons. If that's not a model of consistency, I don't know what is. Jeter has also said that he's within 5lbs of the weight he was during his rookie season, meaning he's a guy that takes care of his body and the does little things that allow him to be great.
Half the battle is showing up, day in and day out, and putting your best effort on the field and Jeter did that. He played through pain, played when he was tired and beat up, and played when he didn't feel his best. He didn't make excuses, he showed up and performed, this is admirable and something all athletes should take note.
2. Let His Game Speak
If there is one thing all competitors say about Jeter is he respected the game and played it the right way. He wasn't cocky, didn't try to show anybody up, played hard, played with respect, and played the game the right way.
He didn't talk about himself or try to subtract from other players/teams; he let his game speak for itself. It's a breath of fresh air to hear this as all you ever hear today is players talking about themselves or trying to tear down another player. It's great to have confidence, but these kind of antics are over the top and don't win you over any admirers.
Jeter let his game do the talking and his game did the most talking when the game is on the line. He has been given the nickname, "Mr. Clutch" for good reason. Just think about his last week - He ended his final game at Yankee Stadium with a walk off RBI to win the game. Then he ended his final career at-bat with a hit. All great players step-up when the game is on the line, and Jeter did this as well as any.
Walk the walk, don't talk the talk.
3. Humble
The guy is going to be a 1st ballot Hall of Famer, was Rookie of the Year, been a All-Star 14-times, won 5 Gold Gloves, won 5 Silver Sluggers, was MVP of both the World Series and All-Star game, and was a World Champion 5 times. If anybody is in a situation to be cocky, it's Jeter, yet you never hear anything.
The guy goes about his business, avoids negative headlines, and play the game the right way. He's humble, down to earth, and respectful of the game and it's history. If you haven't seen this commercial of Jeter, it's a must see. Plus it's got ole Franky Sinatra music leading it, so it's even more awesome!
Take note athletes - Be humble, be consistent, and let your game speak for itself.
Go Get 'Em!
Friday, September 19, 2014
Wanna Throw Cheddar? Then Get Stronger!
Overhead actions dominate many sports; everything from pitchers, quarterbacks, volleyball players, tennis, swimming, to handball players, they all have huge requirements for OH actions. With all of these actions, the major goal is to increase the velocity of the implement used - we want to increase throwing velocity, throwing distance, serving power, stroke power, and spiking power - Overall we want to increase the high stinky cheddar!
Well how do you improve OH power and velocity?
Previous research has reported that high-velocity throwing begins at the lower body (1). OH power is driven through leg/hip movements and this power progresses up through the torso/core, to the shoulder and finally through the arm where it gets put to work on the given implement. A stronger and more stable lumbopelvic-hip complex contributes to higher rotational velocity (3).
Roach and Liebermann indicated that 90% of the work for throwing power is generated at the hips (1).
Yes, 90%!
Look at anybody who thrives in an OH sport and they'll have a solid lower half.
It makes you wonder why we see all these special devices, bands, and weighted balls designed to improve throwing velocity, when the reality is that the best way to improve throwing velocity is to improve your lower half. Trying to increase throwing velocity by focusing on strengthening the shoulder or arm is akin to putting new tires on a car - it will look good and give some performance benefits but if the engine isn't there, it really doesn't matter.
We love to use med balls and some of the devices mentioned above to develop and cement the rotational sequencing, but it's important to understand they are just a small tool and are not as effective for increasing throwing power as strength training.
In fact a study from way back in 1994 showed this; medicine ball training alone had a neutral effect on throwing velocity, while a strength training group produced a significant increase in pitching velocity (4). This is not to say strengthening the shoulder or the use of certain devices isn't warranted, they have a time and place, but they shouldn't be the vocal point in training programs and unfortunately that's exactly what we often see in many OH training programs.
As many can attest, we feel the best approach is a combination of different tools, but first and foremost is a good base of strength. With this base is place, the other tools can be more effective and transfer to sport to greater degree.
What's even more interesting about developing the lower body is that Lehman et al found that power in the frontal plane (lateral movements) correlated most to throwing velocity; more so than vertical jump, sprinting speed, and vertical med ball power (2).
What's this all mean?
It means that throwing velocity is specific and training demands needs to follow suit. Traditional squat, deadlift, clean, snatch, and bench alone don't cut it. Training elements need to be in place to focus on frontal plane movements and developing power in this manner.
When I first read this study a year ago, I decided to study many of my athletes on these same tests. Specifically, I evaluated unilateral lateral jump and throwing velocity. After compiling 25 samples, I found the same result - those athletes with the longest lateral jump, threw the hardest. The graph below shows the obvious trend; you not only need great power and strength in the lower body and hips, but it also has to be specific to lateral movements.
 |
| X-Axis = Lateral Bound; Y-Axis = Throwing Velocity |
First and foremost, get strong and powerful, especially in the frontal and transverse plane. This means applying many of the tools used below. If you haven't seen some of these or performed drills in this manner, then you're short-changing your ability to throw that high stinky cheese. Take a look.
Finally in terms of OH training, we really hammer away at hip and pelvis stability and control. Burkhart et al demonstrated that poor gluteus medius strength and control can effect "up the stream" and place increased stress on the shoulder. These researchers reported that approximately 44% of athletes presented with SLAP (superior labral anterior-posterior) tears also exhibited gluteus medius weakness (5). Another interesting study showed that pitchers showed lower glute and hip strength/control compared to position players (6). This may contribute to explain why pitchers tend to have greater occurrence of arm injury when volume is equated.
Weak glutes and hips will not only effect leg drive and force put through the body, but it also effects position and mechanics through different OH movements. When we look at pitchers, during balance point, if the hip on the grounded leg sinks or sags it will effect the whole delivery. We need a strong and stable base in this hip and this means working on glute medius strength through band walks, clams, or side lying leg raises. We also like to work this stability in the specific manner it is seen in many OH athletes, demonstrated by the drill below. The band forces the abductors to be highly active to stabilize this position.
With all the OH athletes we work with, increasing OH power is key and when athletes go through our program that emphasized frontal plane movements, they can tell the difference. A big squat and deadlift is great, but if that doesn't specifically transfer to lateral and rotational movement, then it's all for not. We get great feedback from our athletes who feel the transfer of strength, power, and speed during OH movements because of our approach.
So if you want to throw cheddar, get strong laterally and see the results!
Go Get 'Em!
References
1. Roach and Liebermann. Upper body contributions to power generation during rapid, overhand throwing in humans. Journal of Experimental Biology, 2014
2. Lehman, G et al. Correlation of Throwing Velocity to the Results of Lower-Body Field Tests in Male College Baseball Players. Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research: April 2013 - Volume 27 - Issue 4 - p 902-908
3. Saeterbakken, A et al. Effect of Core Stability Training on Throwing Velocity in Female Handball Players. Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research:
March 2011 - Volume 25 - Issue 3 - pp 712-718
4. Newton, R; McEvoy, K. Baseball Throwing Velocity: A Comparison of Medicine Ball Training and Weight Training. Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research: August 1994
5. Burkhart SS, Morgan CD, Kibler WB. Shoulder injuries in overhead athletes. The “dead arm” revisited. Clin Sports Med 2000;19(1):125-158.
6. Laudner, Kevin G., et al. "Functional hip characteristics of baseball pitchers and position players." The American journal of sports medicine 38.2 (2010): 383-387.
5. Burkhart SS, Morgan CD, Kibler WB. Shoulder injuries in overhead athletes. The “dead arm” revisited. Clin Sports Med 2000;19(1):125-158.
6. Laudner, Kevin G., et al. "Functional hip characteristics of baseball pitchers and position players." The American journal of sports medicine 38.2 (2010): 383-387.
Tuesday, September 2, 2014
Research Review: Sleep
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Sleep! I absolutely love to sleep, but unfortunately I'm in the wrong field with daily wake-up calls at 5:00am, but Sundays are the 1-day I get to play catch-up on some good sleep. So it's only fitting that I write this on a Sunday morning after a good night of rest.
For athletes, sleep might be the most powerful tool you have for increasing performance. It's also one of the easiest aspects to improve but often very under-managed. It's very UNcommon to hear of an athlete we work with get to bed before 10pm, yet alone 11pm or midnight.
This is discouraging considering the impact quality sleep can have on athletes, especially those in high school or below. The role sleep plays in energy levels, recovering from training, focus, attention, hormonal levels, and combating fatigue is clear. Serious athletes have serious schedules, from training, to practice, to school, to games, to individual instruction, etc and this takes a major toll on the body. The main weapon athletes have to balance this effort and make sure it turns into success on the field and in the classroom, is sleep!
There is growing evidence that sleep duration and lack of sleep affect the onset of metabolic syndrome, obesity and type II diabetes, particularly via their association with increased body weight, glucose intolerance and high blood pressure (1).
Not only that but researchers have shown that sleep extension (adding on average of 110-minutes a night) increased shooting accuracy, decreased reaction times, decreased fatigue scales, and improved ratings of physical and mental ratings during practices and games in basketball players (2).
These
Collegiate Basketball players increased their sleeping patterns to around 10-hours a night and in return saw their free throw percentage increase by 9% and 3-point shooting percentage by 9.2%! That's a lot of points to be had by a player and a team, and can mean the difference in the outcome of many games!
When I talk to athletes athletes the common response is that it's not a big deal to lose sleep and it doesn't effect their playing ability. But research tends to feel otherwise, and just 1.5 hours of sleep loss can decrease insulin sensitivity, decrease leptin concentrations, and can acutely decrease body weight, but chronically increase body weight (1).
In plain terms, decreased insulin sensitivity means insulin levels remain elevated for longer periods of time due to the lack of ability to get glucose in muscle tissues, ie not what we want. Leptin is known to suppress appetite, so a lack of leptin can lead to increased hunger and appetite which may lead to weight gain. This effect can be seen as studies appear to point to a relationship between lack of sleep and higher body mass index and fat percentage (3).
Sleep! I absolutely love to sleep, but unfortunately I'm in the wrong field with daily wake-up calls at 5:00am, but Sundays are the 1-day I get to play catch-up on some good sleep. So it's only fitting that I write this on a Sunday morning after a good night of rest.
This is discouraging considering the impact quality sleep can have on athletes, especially those in high school or below. The role sleep plays in energy levels, recovering from training, focus, attention, hormonal levels, and combating fatigue is clear. Serious athletes have serious schedules, from training, to practice, to school, to games, to individual instruction, etc and this takes a major toll on the body. The main weapon athletes have to balance this effort and make sure it turns into success on the field and in the classroom, is sleep!
There is growing evidence that sleep duration and lack of sleep affect the onset of metabolic syndrome, obesity and type II diabetes, particularly via their association with increased body weight, glucose intolerance and high blood pressure (1).
Not only that but researchers have shown that sleep extension (adding on average of 110-minutes a night) increased shooting accuracy, decreased reaction times, decreased fatigue scales, and improved ratings of physical and mental ratings during practices and games in basketball players (2).
These
Collegiate Basketball players increased their sleeping patterns to around 10-hours a night and in return saw their free throw percentage increase by 9% and 3-point shooting percentage by 9.2%! That's a lot of points to be had by a player and a team, and can mean the difference in the outcome of many games!
When I talk to athletes athletes the common response is that it's not a big deal to lose sleep and it doesn't effect their playing ability. But research tends to feel otherwise, and just 1.5 hours of sleep loss can decrease insulin sensitivity, decrease leptin concentrations, and can acutely decrease body weight, but chronically increase body weight (1).
In plain terms, decreased insulin sensitivity means insulin levels remain elevated for longer periods of time due to the lack of ability to get glucose in muscle tissues, ie not what we want. Leptin is known to suppress appetite, so a lack of leptin can lead to increased hunger and appetite which may lead to weight gain. This effect can be seen as studies appear to point to a relationship between lack of sleep and higher body mass index and fat percentage (3).
Literature is growing to show a clear relationship between lack of sleep and different potential health and performance problems.
Now get those zzz's!
Go Get 'Em!
1. Robertson, Russell-Jones, Umpleby and Dijk. Effects of three weeks of mild sleep restriction implemented in the home environment on multiple metabolic and endocrine markers in healthy young men. Metabolism Clinical And Experimental, 2013
2. Cheri, Mah; Kenneth, Mah; Kezirian, Eric; William, Dement. The effects of sleep extension on the athletic performance of collegiate basketball players. Sleep, July 1, 2011. 34(7), 943-950.
3. Jessica, McNeil; Eric, Doucet; Jean-Phillippe, Chaput. Inadequate sleep as a contributor to obesity and type 2 diabetes. Canadian Journal of Diabetes. Volume 37, Issue 2, Pages 103-108. April 2013
"In summary, inadequate sleep, in both quality
and quantity, should be regarded as a plausible risk factor for the
development of obesity and type 2 diabetes. In addition to other health
promotion measures, a good night's sleep should be seen as a critical
health component by clinicians in the prevention and treatment of
obesity and type 2 diabetes." (3)
Overall sleep deprivation can effect the following
Overall sleep deprivation can effect the following
- Reduce Testosterone levels
- Reduce Ability to Recover
- Increase Stress
- Increase Appetite
- Increase Risk of Obesity
- Increase Risk of Type 2 Diabetes
- Decrease School, Athletic, and Work Performance
Tips For A Better Night of Sleep
- Pitch Black - A huge hormone that helps control the whole sleep-wake cycle is melatonin. Melatonin is greatly influenced by light; darkness increases melatonin production while light reduces melatonin levels. At night we want complete darkness to help stimulate melatonin production which will aid in quality sleep. So try to keep your room at dark as possible.
- Cool - Most sleep better in cool climates. Try to keep your room around 65 degrees, whether this be with a fan or open windows. Too hot or too cold a temperature, as we've all experienced, can effect quality of sleep.
- No Electronics - This goes hand in hand with keeping your room as dark as possible. Electronics stimulate the body and suppress melatonin. They actually keep you awake and it takes longer for the body to reach deep sleep with these in the background. So shut off all electronics 30-minutes before heading to bed! Even better is to eliminate as many electronics as possible from your room. Keep your computer, Ipad, Ipod, cell phone, etc out of your room at night.
- Develop a Routine - Getting into a routine or ritual before bed helps the body wind-down and get used to a pattern of sleep. This can mean anything to anybody; whatever works for you, go for it. Many like reading, writing, stretching, a hot bath, meditation, or listening to music. The body starts to learn this routine, and knows when these activities start that it's their cue to wind-down and get ready for sleep.
- Eat and Drink The Right Things - Avoid eating big meals, caffeine, and alcohol too close to bed time (90-120min). These things can effect your ability to fall asleep and the quality of your sleep.
Now get those zzz's!
Go Get 'Em!
References
1. Robertson, Russell-Jones, Umpleby and Dijk. Effects of three weeks of mild sleep restriction implemented in the home environment on multiple metabolic and endocrine markers in healthy young men. Metabolism Clinical And Experimental, 2013
2. Cheri, Mah; Kenneth, Mah; Kezirian, Eric; William, Dement. The effects of sleep extension on the athletic performance of collegiate basketball players. Sleep, July 1, 2011. 34(7), 943-950.
3. Jessica, McNeil; Eric, Doucet; Jean-Phillippe, Chaput. Inadequate sleep as a contributor to obesity and type 2 diabetes. Canadian Journal of Diabetes. Volume 37, Issue 2, Pages 103-108. April 2013
Monday, August 25, 2014
Research Review: Kettlebell Swings
It's been a while since we've posted an article on here, but it's been a very busy summer here with the opening of our new facility so that's our excuse and we're sticking to it. Now that school is back in action, we'll be putting out content on a more regular basis, so hold on to your butts!
Our goal is to put out 2-articles each week, with one being a research breakdown and one being something a little more fun. We've also gotten a few requests for article topics, which we will write about, so if you have a request, leave a comment or email us and we'll touch upon your request.
Research in Kettlebells
In our training we use kettlebell's quite a bit and it has slowly turned into one our favorite methods to teach the hip hinge and develop power.
In literature, the amount of quality research on kettlebell's is small. There have been a few studies looking at the effect of KB's on strength and power (1-5) and the results of these studies have shown that KB training elicit similar results as traditional training and may have a stronger effect on the development on power over absolute strength.
When breaking down these research studies, it is clear there are some obvious drawbacks on the methods used. In all the studies reviewed, you will only find one with the use of a KB over 16kg (6). For anybody with experience in KB's knows this is a very light weight, and considering this light of a weight could stimulate such positive results, it makes you wonder what effects a heavier KB would have.
Many of our youth athletes have the strength, control, and efficiency to use a 16kg KB, so for these studies to use this light of a weight with fully mature subjects is questionable.
I've seen seen athletes swing KB's of 70-100+lbs with no problem whatsoever. This weight is 2-4 times more than the amount these studies use, and it would be very interesting to see the effects on strength and power with the use of these heavier bells.
Kettlebell Mechanics
We teach the KB swing as a hinge, not a squat. We often explain it as a dynamic RDL rather than a dynamic squat. When the swing is performed in this manner, high levels of posterior chain activation take place to control the rapid eccentric movement and greater emphasis on the stretch-shortening cycle takes place.
The mechanics of the swing also place greater emphasis on the medial hamstring group (semitendinosus) than the lateral group (bicep femoris) (7). This is interesting because sprinting uses similar muscle patterns and places greater emphasis on the medial hamstrings (8). This may give reason to the KB swing being a great exercise to train the medial hamstrings in a similar manner seen in sprinting.
The hip hinge swing also has a much higher proportion of horizontal forces compared to squats and jump squats (6). This is a unique dimension of the KB Swing that can't be matched by traditional squats, deadlifts, or Olympic movements. The swing takes hip extension through a fuller range of motion and the path of the bell differs from traditional barbell movements. This may also be interesting for athletes because recent research is showing the application of horizontal forces increases greater than vertical forces when accelerating to top-end speed (9).
Finally the impulses seen during the KB swing are huge (6). Impulse is force x time, and this means the KB swing elicits of ton of force in a small amount of time. This is important because the ultimate goal of athletic preparation is to produce higher forces is shorter times; this outcome is what leads to faster running speeds, higher jumping, increased power, quicker change of direction, and ultimately better performance.
There have been many who have claimed the benefit of KB swings on back pain and rehabilitation. The exact reasons for these potential mechanisms are not known, but research by McGill et al (10) have shed some light onto some potential reasons.
The KB swing elicited compression forces peaking at 3195N and shear forces peaking at 461N, both seen at the bottom of the swing. The low amount of shear forces is considered to be desirable and less strenuous on the spine. The KB Swing also takes the spine through varying degrees of flexion and extension, and this movement is considered good for the spine. As the saying goes, motion is lotion.
Recommendations
Everybody uses Kettlebell's differently and places different emphasis on them. Like anything, they aren't an end all be all, but they can serve a purpose.
We at BBA do not program Olympic Lifts, for various reasons which we will touch upon in a future article, and KB Swings are part of our power development tool box we use instead of Olympic lifting. I feel strongly as research continues to take place, we'll see the benefits of heavy KB swings being very similar to Olympic cleans and snatches, and in our opinion, with less the risk and learning curve.
We stick to mostly KB Swings at our facility, and we really like them because of how quickly our athletes tend to pick up on the technique and how well they work at teaching hip hinging. It's very rare to have an athlete NOT pick up and learn the technique after just a few sets of practice and specific cueing and coaching assistance. We can get groups of athletes up and running with KB Swings the very same day we implement them, while it may take weeks and tons of time to teach a group of athletes to perform a "simple" hang clean. This is a major reason we like them so much.
With our swings, we program them in a variety of different methods. We use them for power development, which we will program heavier swings or band assisted swings. We also use them help teach and cement the hip hinge pattern. For this we use lighter weights and coach assistance to help push the correct path. Finally we use them as conditioning or specific metabolic work. We love to use them with specific work to rest ratio's and hammer away at them during GPP or hypertrophy phases. The added bonus is the emphasis it places on the posterior chain compared to many other conditioning methods.
Finally like we touched upon, we teach a hip hinge type of swing and have the bell only travel up to chin level. The American Swing popularized by Crossfit, in which the bell travels above the head is something you will never see at our facility. In all honesty, this methods serves no benefit and only brings with it potential consequences.
Take a look at these swings and you'll likely see large amounts of lumbar extension, rib expansion, forward head position, and the fact that many are not suited for this type of loaded shoulder flexion. Not to mention the effect this position has on the downward movement. It's not uncommon to have the bell come down and all herky jerky and put massive strain on the shoulder and spine. All in all, avoid the American Swing and stick to chin level.
Go Get 'Em!
References
6. Lake JP, Lauder MA. Mechanical demands of kettlebell swing exercise. J Strength Cond Res 26: 3209–3216, 2012.
7. Zebis MK, Skotte J, Andersen CH, Mortensen P, Petersen HH, Viskær TC, Jensen TL, Bencke J, Andersen LL. Kettlebell swing targets semitendinosus and supine leg curl targets biceps femoris: An EMG study with rehabilitation implications. Br J Sports Med 2012.
8. Jönhagen S, Ericson MO, Nemeth G, Eriksson E. Amplitude and timing of electromyographic activity during sprinting. Scand J Med Sci Sports 6: 15–21, 2007.
9. Randell AD, Cronin JB, Keogh JW, Gill ND. Transference of strength and power adaptation to sports performance-horizontal and vertical force production. Strength Conditioning J 32: 100–106, 2010.
10. McGill SM, Marshall LW. Kettlebell swing, snatch, and bottoms-up carry: Back and hip muscle activation, motion, and low back loads. J Strength Cond Res 26: 16–27, 2012.
Our goal is to put out 2-articles each week, with one being a research breakdown and one being something a little more fun. We've also gotten a few requests for article topics, which we will write about, so if you have a request, leave a comment or email us and we'll touch upon your request.
Research in Kettlebells
In our training we use kettlebell's quite a bit and it has slowly turned into one our favorite methods to teach the hip hinge and develop power.
In literature, the amount of quality research on kettlebell's is small. There have been a few studies looking at the effect of KB's on strength and power (1-5) and the results of these studies have shown that KB training elicit similar results as traditional training and may have a stronger effect on the development on power over absolute strength.
When breaking down these research studies, it is clear there are some obvious drawbacks on the methods used. In all the studies reviewed, you will only find one with the use of a KB over 16kg (6). For anybody with experience in KB's knows this is a very light weight, and considering this light of a weight could stimulate such positive results, it makes you wonder what effects a heavier KB would have.
Many of our youth athletes have the strength, control, and efficiency to use a 16kg KB, so for these studies to use this light of a weight with fully mature subjects is questionable.
I've seen seen athletes swing KB's of 70-100+lbs with no problem whatsoever. This weight is 2-4 times more than the amount these studies use, and it would be very interesting to see the effects on strength and power with the use of these heavier bells.
Kettlebell Mechanics
We teach the KB swing as a hinge, not a squat. We often explain it as a dynamic RDL rather than a dynamic squat. When the swing is performed in this manner, high levels of posterior chain activation take place to control the rapid eccentric movement and greater emphasis on the stretch-shortening cycle takes place.
 |
| (photo credit: coreybeavinfitnessand.wordpress.com) |
The mechanics of the swing also place greater emphasis on the medial hamstring group (semitendinosus) than the lateral group (bicep femoris) (7). This is interesting because sprinting uses similar muscle patterns and places greater emphasis on the medial hamstrings (8). This may give reason to the KB swing being a great exercise to train the medial hamstrings in a similar manner seen in sprinting.
The hip hinge swing also has a much higher proportion of horizontal forces compared to squats and jump squats (6). This is a unique dimension of the KB Swing that can't be matched by traditional squats, deadlifts, or Olympic movements. The swing takes hip extension through a fuller range of motion and the path of the bell differs from traditional barbell movements. This may also be interesting for athletes because recent research is showing the application of horizontal forces increases greater than vertical forces when accelerating to top-end speed (9).
Finally the impulses seen during the KB swing are huge (6). Impulse is force x time, and this means the KB swing elicits of ton of force in a small amount of time. This is important because the ultimate goal of athletic preparation is to produce higher forces is shorter times; this outcome is what leads to faster running speeds, higher jumping, increased power, quicker change of direction, and ultimately better performance.
There have been many who have claimed the benefit of KB swings on back pain and rehabilitation. The exact reasons for these potential mechanisms are not known, but research by McGill et al (10) have shed some light onto some potential reasons.
The KB swing elicited compression forces peaking at 3195N and shear forces peaking at 461N, both seen at the bottom of the swing. The low amount of shear forces is considered to be desirable and less strenuous on the spine. The KB Swing also takes the spine through varying degrees of flexion and extension, and this movement is considered good for the spine. As the saying goes, motion is lotion.
Recommendations
Everybody uses Kettlebell's differently and places different emphasis on them. Like anything, they aren't an end all be all, but they can serve a purpose.
We at BBA do not program Olympic Lifts, for various reasons which we will touch upon in a future article, and KB Swings are part of our power development tool box we use instead of Olympic lifting. I feel strongly as research continues to take place, we'll see the benefits of heavy KB swings being very similar to Olympic cleans and snatches, and in our opinion, with less the risk and learning curve.
We stick to mostly KB Swings at our facility, and we really like them because of how quickly our athletes tend to pick up on the technique and how well they work at teaching hip hinging. It's very rare to have an athlete NOT pick up and learn the technique after just a few sets of practice and specific cueing and coaching assistance. We can get groups of athletes up and running with KB Swings the very same day we implement them, while it may take weeks and tons of time to teach a group of athletes to perform a "simple" hang clean. This is a major reason we like them so much.
With our swings, we program them in a variety of different methods. We use them for power development, which we will program heavier swings or band assisted swings. We also use them help teach and cement the hip hinge pattern. For this we use lighter weights and coach assistance to help push the correct path. Finally we use them as conditioning or specific metabolic work. We love to use them with specific work to rest ratio's and hammer away at them during GPP or hypertrophy phases. The added bonus is the emphasis it places on the posterior chain compared to many other conditioning methods.
Finally like we touched upon, we teach a hip hinge type of swing and have the bell only travel up to chin level. The American Swing popularized by Crossfit, in which the bell travels above the head is something you will never see at our facility. In all honesty, this methods serves no benefit and only brings with it potential consequences.
Take a look at these swings and you'll likely see large amounts of lumbar extension, rib expansion, forward head position, and the fact that many are not suited for this type of loaded shoulder flexion. Not to mention the effect this position has on the downward movement. It's not uncommon to have the bell come down and all herky jerky and put massive strain on the shoulder and spine. All in all, avoid the American Swing and stick to chin level.
Go Get 'Em!
References
1. Jay K, Frisch D, Hansen K, Zebis MK, Andersen CH,
Mortensen OS, Andersen LL. Kettlebell training for musculoskeletal and
cardiovascular health: A randomized controlled trial. Scand J Work,
Environ Health 37: 196–203, 2011.
2.
Jay K, Jakobsen MD, Sundstrup E, Skotte JH, Jørgensen MB, Andersen CH,
Pedersen MT, Andersen LL. Effects of kettlebell training on postural
coordination and jump performance: A randomized controlled trial. J
Strength Cond Res 27: 1202–1209, 2013.
3.
Lake JP, Lauder MA. Kettlebell swing training improves maximal and
explosive strength. J Strength Cond Res 26: 2228–2233, 2012.
4.
Manocchia P, Spierer DK, Lufkin AK, Minichiello J, Castro J.
Transference of kettlebell training to strength, power and endurance. J
Strength Cond Res 27: 477–484, 2013.
5. Otto WH III, Coburn JW, Brown LE, Spiering BA. Effects of
weightlifting vs. kettlebell training on vertical jump, strength, and
body composition. J Strength Cond Res 26: 1199–1202, 2012.
6. Lake JP, Lauder MA. Mechanical demands of kettlebell swing exercise. J Strength Cond Res 26: 3209–3216, 2012.
7. Zebis MK, Skotte J, Andersen CH, Mortensen P, Petersen HH, Viskær TC, Jensen TL, Bencke J, Andersen LL. Kettlebell swing targets semitendinosus and supine leg curl targets biceps femoris: An EMG study with rehabilitation implications. Br J Sports Med 2012.
8. Jönhagen S, Ericson MO, Nemeth G, Eriksson E. Amplitude and timing of electromyographic activity during sprinting. Scand J Med Sci Sports 6: 15–21, 2007.
9. Randell AD, Cronin JB, Keogh JW, Gill ND. Transference of strength and power adaptation to sports performance-horizontal and vertical force production. Strength Conditioning J 32: 100–106, 2010.
10. McGill SM, Marshall LW. Kettlebell swing, snatch, and bottoms-up carry: Back and hip muscle activation, motion, and low back loads. J Strength Cond Res 26: 16–27, 2012.
Sunday, June 15, 2014
Talking Sports Nutrition With Sean Casey
Sign-Up for BBA Updates Right Over Here ----------------------------------------------------->
1. Tell us yourself and background?
First off, I’m honored to be interviewed by BBA. You have a lot of great content on this site and appreciate the opportunity to share my thoughts on it.
In terms of my background… As it relates to physical performance, my passion for physical performance was born out of countless hours spent watching Rocky IV. Growing up, I used to watch it almost daily on good ol’ VHS tape; I followed the viewing up with push-ups, sit-ups and pull-ups/arm hangs in my basement. I marveled at the physiques of Stallone & Dolph Lundgren. Besides, if training hard allowed Rocky to beat the Soviet machine Ivan Drago, as well as almost single handedly end the Cold War, surely a few pushups, pull-ups, situps, etc would surely help me start on the 5th grade basketball team, right?!
Fast forward a bit, in high school I competed in both track (as a sprinter) as well as football (fullback). Following my high school sports career, in which I earned numerous all city and regional awards (OK, you caught me. I grew up in a city of ~ 2000 people. Being named “all city” simply meant you started vs. catching slivers on the bench ;-)) I attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison and earned degrees in Kinesiology- Exercise Physiology as well as Nutritional Science – Dietetics. Following studies at UW-Madison, I completed my 1200 hr dietetic internship through UW-Green Bay.
During college, I was an intern physical preparation coach with the UW-Badgers S&C department. I also spent time interning at the International Performance Institute (IMG Academies) in Bradenton, FL, where I had the opportunity to assist with the USA U-18 National Men's Soccer team and academy students. I also interned and later worked as a physical preparation specialist at Athletes' Performance (They recently renamed themselves as EXOS). While at these locations I had the opportunity to train football, soccer, baseball, golf and tennis athletes.
As a registered dietitian (RD), I’m also active in the field of sports nutrition and have consulted with the former nutritionist for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Anita Nall-Richesson various amateur athletes as well as individuals merely looking to get into better shape.
2. You’ve worked with a number of high-level athletes that take every measure to reach peak performance. How much of a difference can proper nutrition have on improving performance?
Proper nutrition is huge with respect to maximizing physical performance.
Outside of sleep I can’t think of any other factor that will speed up post workout recovery more so than one’s diet. It’s amazing how much better athletes feel physically, mentally as well as emotionally, when they improve the quality of their diet.
It’s interesting though, before I had the opportunity to work at the aforementioned locations, I always thought that athletes at the elite level ate ‘spot on’ diets. I mean, how could someone reach the elite level if they weren’t crossing all their T’s and dotting all their I’s, right? Couldn’t be further from the truth; a lot of their diets prior to nutrition counseling (and well, probably some still afterwards) were garbage - candy, soda & crap galore. It really highlighted to me how genetically freaky some of these individuals are that they can get away with it to a certain degree.
1. Tell us yourself and background?
First off, I’m honored to be interviewed by BBA. You have a lot of great content on this site and appreciate the opportunity to share my thoughts on it.
In terms of my background… As it relates to physical performance, my passion for physical performance was born out of countless hours spent watching Rocky IV. Growing up, I used to watch it almost daily on good ol’ VHS tape; I followed the viewing up with push-ups, sit-ups and pull-ups/arm hangs in my basement. I marveled at the physiques of Stallone & Dolph Lundgren. Besides, if training hard allowed Rocky to beat the Soviet machine Ivan Drago, as well as almost single handedly end the Cold War, surely a few pushups, pull-ups, situps, etc would surely help me start on the 5th grade basketball team, right?!
Fast forward a bit, in high school I competed in both track (as a sprinter) as well as football (fullback). Following my high school sports career, in which I earned numerous all city and regional awards (OK, you caught me. I grew up in a city of ~ 2000 people. Being named “all city” simply meant you started vs. catching slivers on the bench ;-)) I attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison and earned degrees in Kinesiology- Exercise Physiology as well as Nutritional Science – Dietetics. Following studies at UW-Madison, I completed my 1200 hr dietetic internship through UW-Green Bay.
During college, I was an intern physical preparation coach with the UW-Badgers S&C department. I also spent time interning at the International Performance Institute (IMG Academies) in Bradenton, FL, where I had the opportunity to assist with the USA U-18 National Men's Soccer team and academy students. I also interned and later worked as a physical preparation specialist at Athletes' Performance (They recently renamed themselves as EXOS). While at these locations I had the opportunity to train football, soccer, baseball, golf and tennis athletes.
As a registered dietitian (RD), I’m also active in the field of sports nutrition and have consulted with the former nutritionist for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Anita Nall-Richesson various amateur athletes as well as individuals merely looking to get into better shape.
2. You’ve worked with a number of high-level athletes that take every measure to reach peak performance. How much of a difference can proper nutrition have on improving performance?
Proper nutrition is huge with respect to maximizing physical performance.
Outside of sleep I can’t think of any other factor that will speed up post workout recovery more so than one’s diet. It’s amazing how much better athletes feel physically, mentally as well as emotionally, when they improve the quality of their diet.
It’s interesting though, before I had the opportunity to work at the aforementioned locations, I always thought that athletes at the elite level ate ‘spot on’ diets. I mean, how could someone reach the elite level if they weren’t crossing all their T’s and dotting all their I’s, right? Couldn’t be further from the truth; a lot of their diets prior to nutrition counseling (and well, probably some still afterwards) were garbage - candy, soda & crap galore. It really highlighted to me how genetically freaky some of these individuals are that they can get away with it to a certain degree.
Now, don’t get me wrong; including some “junk” in your diet is fine. In truth, it can be dang near impossible to consume >>3000-3500 kcal of without including some 1-2 star foods, but when your diet looks like it was designed by an Oompa Loompa at Willy Wonka’s Chocolate factory we have issues.
3. Walk us through the steps you take when working with a client.
Nutrition is just like training – it all starts with a thorough assessment. There are three main forms I use to assist me in this process. First is a general background form that covers things like goals, medical conditions (including medications they’re on which may interact with various foods/supplements), previous experience with dietary plans, openness to trying new foods, supplements, etc, etc.
The second form is a 1-3 day dietary record that provides a quick snapshot of one’s diet both in terms of amounts and timing of food intake. I always leave it up the client with respect to how many days they want to fill out. The only thing I ask is if they do 2 or more days, to make sure that they’re non-consecutive days and preferably a training and non-training day. If a 3rd day is included, I like to have it on a weekend.
The third form I use is a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). This form differs from a 1-3 day food record in that it provides a global overview of one’s diet. Rather than looking at timing and amounts, it examines how often a given food is eaten. This is a great tool from a dietary analysis standpoint.
Once I have all three of these forms, I put together a pretty thorough write-up for the client. I consider this write-up to be a ‘rough draft’. With this in hand, I like to sit down and discuss it with them. Based off their input, I re-draft the original write-up to create a plan that best fits them. Some individuals also like to have personalized 3 day sample menu’s written up in order to get a visual of how to incorporate the recommendations into their lives. This is also something I can do as well.
4. Hippocrates said, “Let food be thy medicine”. It often seems many are quick to disregard real food and look for magical supplements to reach their nutritional needs. Is this approach short-sighted and do you think this can be maintained long-term?
Definitely short sighted; as exciting as it is to drink your entire diet via a straw that leads back to a never ending powdered shake and/or having your supplement pill box be more colorful than Crayola’s entire crayon inventory, I think there are much better options out there from both a health and performance standpoint. As Hippocrates alluded to, this means real food.
Think about this for a second – a given fruit or vegetable contains 100’s of phytochemicals in it, many of which science has never studied at an in-depth level. The idea that a single phytochemical or two within it are responsible for a majority of health benefits received from a given whole food compound is crazy; I believe the true magic lies within the synergism, not the isolation, of these of these phytochemicals. Heck sometimes the isolation and magnification of these individual ingredients may backfire on you. For example…
Early research indicated that consuming fruits and vegetables loaded with high concentrations of beta-carotene was protective against lung cancer. Thus, it was hypothesized that beta-carotene supplements would protect smokers from developing lung cancer. However, in a meta-analysis conducted by Druesne-Pecollo et al. researchers the opposite was found to be true; individuals who received any supplement containing beta-carotene actually had a 16% HIGHER risk of developing lung or stomach cancer than individuals receiving a placebo. If one was exposed to asbestos or smoked, this risk increased by 20%. Likewise, consuming supplements containing 20mg/day vs. placebo increased the risk of developing stomach cancer by 34%.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I am a fan of supplements in both the short and long term. However, the idea that we must load up on a bazillion of supplements at the expense of real food is short sighted. As you can tell - I’m a fan of random poly-supplementation about as much as most people are of poly-pharmacy. Funny how one gets criticized while the other gets a free pass (from critical thought) and is assumed to be “healthy” & side effect free.
Bottom line – Develop a healthy relationship with food & let supplements fill in the cracks; which shouldn’t be too wide if you’re picking the right foods.
5. Speaking of supplements, there is so much misinformation out there and very few actually having solid evidence of benefit. What supplements do you find have worth and have been shown to be worthwhile for athletes?
Despite kind of bashing supplements a bit in the last question, there is actually a fair amount that I like. I take a very individualized approach to supplement recommendations depending on the goals and needs of the individual. If I had to give a general rundown, focusing only on ergogenic based supplements…
1) Whey/Egg/Pea based protein powder. I usually go with Whey unless someone has sensitivities to it or is vegan in which case I go with egg or pea protein respectfully. If some people are highly sensitive, rice protein is pretty hypoallergenic and I can’t say I’ve ever heard one having issues with it. BUYERS TIP – If looking at different whey proteins, go with a Whey Concentrate based one… They’re usually much cheaper than Whey Isolate and unless you’re lactose intolerant, there isn’t any significant benefit with taking the latter. ~25 grams will be enough to maximize muscle protein synthesis. The one exception is if you’re 50+ in which case higher doses (40g) may be needed to maximize the process.
2) Creatine – Tried and true through 100’s of studies & real world stories. BUYERS TIP – stick with basic creatine monohydrate (~5g). Don’t buy the more expensive forms that are promoted as being “superior”. I have yet to see any research indicating they’re superior … accept for those looking to profit off them! I use this primarily with anaerobic athletes. (Check out our article on Creatine HERE)
3) Taurine 3-4g/day postworkout. This is a pretty cheap amino acid and although it won’t floor you, it does help with recovery as well as “behind the scenes” health benefits. I don’t believe it’s beneficial as a pre-workout/energy booster though. BUYERS TIP – go with the powder form; not the capsule form. Quite often, buying things in capsules adds expense without providing any extra benefit.
4) Caffeine in amounts of 3-6mg/kg can be effective. I use this on an acute basis.
After this are a lot of supplements (Sodium Bicarbonate/baking soda, beta-alanine, BCAA’s, etc, etc) that have some benefit. If you decide to use them or not comes down to A) How much money do you have to spend & B) What is your desired training goal? C) Are you a vegan/vegetarian where your protein sources need a “boost” w/ BCAA’s as well as a vitamin B12 supplements D) Also, how well do you tolerate it? For instance I’m a HUGE fan of consuming of sodium bicarbonate (up to 200-300mg/kg/d; usually spread over 3 doses; for reference – 1 tsp = 4.8g) but for many people, this causes GI distress. Getting enough Omega 3’s, etc in your diet is helpful as well.
6. Tell us the different ways improving nutritional strategies/diet can improve training, recovery, energy levels, mood, and sport performance. For instance, some of the basic changes and improvements one can expect to see… ie eating more protein will help xxx or increasing fruits and veggies will help with xxx.
Wow - this is like the magnum opus of questions – I’m not for sure if it can be fully answered without a book or two of words! Haha, Let me do my best in providing some general thoughts though…
Looking at things from a global perspective, the area that nutrition impacts the most is energy levels. Now, it’s important to realize that one’s energy level is impacted by all those other things you mentioned (recovery, mood, etc, etc). Thus, the most important thing one can do for an athlete is making sure their energy intake matches the demands of what they’re trying to accomplish.
3. Walk us through the steps you take when working with a client.
Nutrition is just like training – it all starts with a thorough assessment. There are three main forms I use to assist me in this process. First is a general background form that covers things like goals, medical conditions (including medications they’re on which may interact with various foods/supplements), previous experience with dietary plans, openness to trying new foods, supplements, etc, etc.
The second form is a 1-3 day dietary record that provides a quick snapshot of one’s diet both in terms of amounts and timing of food intake. I always leave it up the client with respect to how many days they want to fill out. The only thing I ask is if they do 2 or more days, to make sure that they’re non-consecutive days and preferably a training and non-training day. If a 3rd day is included, I like to have it on a weekend.
The third form I use is a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). This form differs from a 1-3 day food record in that it provides a global overview of one’s diet. Rather than looking at timing and amounts, it examines how often a given food is eaten. This is a great tool from a dietary analysis standpoint.
Once I have all three of these forms, I put together a pretty thorough write-up for the client. I consider this write-up to be a ‘rough draft’. With this in hand, I like to sit down and discuss it with them. Based off their input, I re-draft the original write-up to create a plan that best fits them. Some individuals also like to have personalized 3 day sample menu’s written up in order to get a visual of how to incorporate the recommendations into their lives. This is also something I can do as well.
4. Hippocrates said, “Let food be thy medicine”. It often seems many are quick to disregard real food and look for magical supplements to reach their nutritional needs. Is this approach short-sighted and do you think this can be maintained long-term?
Definitely short sighted; as exciting as it is to drink your entire diet via a straw that leads back to a never ending powdered shake and/or having your supplement pill box be more colorful than Crayola’s entire crayon inventory, I think there are much better options out there from both a health and performance standpoint. As Hippocrates alluded to, this means real food.
Think about this for a second – a given fruit or vegetable contains 100’s of phytochemicals in it, many of which science has never studied at an in-depth level. The idea that a single phytochemical or two within it are responsible for a majority of health benefits received from a given whole food compound is crazy; I believe the true magic lies within the synergism, not the isolation, of these of these phytochemicals. Heck sometimes the isolation and magnification of these individual ingredients may backfire on you. For example…
Early research indicated that consuming fruits and vegetables loaded with high concentrations of beta-carotene was protective against lung cancer. Thus, it was hypothesized that beta-carotene supplements would protect smokers from developing lung cancer. However, in a meta-analysis conducted by Druesne-Pecollo et al. researchers the opposite was found to be true; individuals who received any supplement containing beta-carotene actually had a 16% HIGHER risk of developing lung or stomach cancer than individuals receiving a placebo. If one was exposed to asbestos or smoked, this risk increased by 20%. Likewise, consuming supplements containing 20mg/day vs. placebo increased the risk of developing stomach cancer by 34%. Now, don’t get me wrong, I am a fan of supplements in both the short and long term. However, the idea that we must load up on a bazillion of supplements at the expense of real food is short sighted. As you can tell - I’m a fan of random poly-supplementation about as much as most people are of poly-pharmacy. Funny how one gets criticized while the other gets a free pass (from critical thought) and is assumed to be “healthy” & side effect free.
Bottom line – Develop a healthy relationship with food & let supplements fill in the cracks; which shouldn’t be too wide if you’re picking the right foods.
5. Speaking of supplements, there is so much misinformation out there and very few actually having solid evidence of benefit. What supplements do you find have worth and have been shown to be worthwhile for athletes?
Despite kind of bashing supplements a bit in the last question, there is actually a fair amount that I like. I take a very individualized approach to supplement recommendations depending on the goals and needs of the individual. If I had to give a general rundown, focusing only on ergogenic based supplements…
1) Whey/Egg/Pea based protein powder. I usually go with Whey unless someone has sensitivities to it or is vegan in which case I go with egg or pea protein respectfully. If some people are highly sensitive, rice protein is pretty hypoallergenic and I can’t say I’ve ever heard one having issues with it. BUYERS TIP – If looking at different whey proteins, go with a Whey Concentrate based one… They’re usually much cheaper than Whey Isolate and unless you’re lactose intolerant, there isn’t any significant benefit with taking the latter. ~25 grams will be enough to maximize muscle protein synthesis. The one exception is if you’re 50+ in which case higher doses (40g) may be needed to maximize the process.
2) Creatine – Tried and true through 100’s of studies & real world stories. BUYERS TIP – stick with basic creatine monohydrate (~5g). Don’t buy the more expensive forms that are promoted as being “superior”. I have yet to see any research indicating they’re superior … accept for those looking to profit off them! I use this primarily with anaerobic athletes. (Check out our article on Creatine HERE)
3) Taurine 3-4g/day postworkout. This is a pretty cheap amino acid and although it won’t floor you, it does help with recovery as well as “behind the scenes” health benefits. I don’t believe it’s beneficial as a pre-workout/energy booster though. BUYERS TIP – go with the powder form; not the capsule form. Quite often, buying things in capsules adds expense without providing any extra benefit.
4) Caffeine in amounts of 3-6mg/kg can be effective. I use this on an acute basis.
After this are a lot of supplements (Sodium Bicarbonate/baking soda, beta-alanine, BCAA’s, etc, etc) that have some benefit. If you decide to use them or not comes down to A) How much money do you have to spend & B) What is your desired training goal? C) Are you a vegan/vegetarian where your protein sources need a “boost” w/ BCAA’s as well as a vitamin B12 supplements D) Also, how well do you tolerate it? For instance I’m a HUGE fan of consuming of sodium bicarbonate (up to 200-300mg/kg/d; usually spread over 3 doses; for reference – 1 tsp = 4.8g) but for many people, this causes GI distress. Getting enough Omega 3’s, etc in your diet is helpful as well.
6. Tell us the different ways improving nutritional strategies/diet can improve training, recovery, energy levels, mood, and sport performance. For instance, some of the basic changes and improvements one can expect to see… ie eating more protein will help xxx or increasing fruits and veggies will help with xxx.
Wow - this is like the magnum opus of questions – I’m not for sure if it can be fully answered without a book or two of words! Haha, Let me do my best in providing some general thoughts though…
Looking at things from a global perspective, the area that nutrition impacts the most is energy levels. Now, it’s important to realize that one’s energy level is impacted by all those other things you mentioned (recovery, mood, etc, etc). Thus, the most important thing one can do for an athlete is making sure their energy intake matches the demands of what they’re trying to accomplish.
For many, this means consuming enough kcal. As I once heard Phil Stevens say, “Nothing is more anabolic than a kcal.” If you don’t take in enough kcal, your mood will be shot, your recovery will be garbage and you’re well on your way to developing the Athlete Syndrome (It’s usually referred to as the “female athlete triad”, but men are affected too so I prefer the term … and in all reality it’s more than a triad of issues which is why I prefer the term “Athlete Syndrome”.).
Breaking things down a bit more, of the kcal you’re consuming, I recommend distributing them over a variety of minimally processed foods and following the 85/90 rule (Eating “healthy foods” 85-90% of the time). Make sure you’re getting enough protein (0.7-1g/lb) and fat (0.3-0.5g/lb) and whatever is left over can go to carbs. Some populations can go with a more ketogenic approach (ie – low carb/high fat) depending on intensity and volume of training as well as the obvious factor – how they feel while on it.
7. Who are some people that have influenced your nutritional and training approach?
With regards to training of athletes…. I’ve had a lot of mentors directly influence me with Luke Richesson clearly being at the top of the list. Blaine Bott also deserves a shout out. Although I’ve never worked in a direct mentor-mentee relationship with him, I really like Ian King’s work and training philosophies.
With regards to nutrition, I grew up a big fan of Dr. Lonnie Lowery’s work and to a lesser degree, Dr. John Berardi. However, I can’t say I had anyone that directly mentored me with regards to sports nutrition. My approach was formed via a lot of trial & error as well as just general reading.
8. Give us 3 books that helped your development and believe young coaches should read or go to?
This is a super tough question. Not necessarily books but if I had to limit it to just three resources look into….
1) With respect to physical preparation of athletes - Anything by Ian King. Also like Dan John and Christian T Thibaudeau’s Theory and Application of Modern Strength & Power Methods.
2) With respect to supplements – Examine.com; if you’re comfortable reading research, I always recommend going straight to the research itself via searches on Pubmed. Although not purely a supplement resource, SuppVersity.com has daily updates on sports nutrition, supplements or an occasional exercise article or two worth checking out.
3) With respect to sports nutrition – I grew up reading Dr Lonnie Lowery & Dr. John Berardi’s stuff with respect to aneorobic athletes. Monique Ryan’s Sports Nutrition for Endurance Athletes is decent as well and for ultra-athletes, I recommend checking out some of Dr. Jeff Volek’s Art & Science of Low Carb Performance
OK… I realize I listed more than 1 resource on all of those categories. In all reality I could have listed a few more too! As time allows, I like to read thoughts of others… In doing so however, I keep another quote Phil Stevens passed my way in conversation “Keep your windows and doors open to new ideas; Just make sure they have tight screens.”
Speed Round
Squats or Deadlifts?
Deadlifts
Breaking things down a bit more, of the kcal you’re consuming, I recommend distributing them over a variety of minimally processed foods and following the 85/90 rule (Eating “healthy foods” 85-90% of the time). Make sure you’re getting enough protein (0.7-1g/lb) and fat (0.3-0.5g/lb) and whatever is left over can go to carbs. Some populations can go with a more ketogenic approach (ie – low carb/high fat) depending on intensity and volume of training as well as the obvious factor – how they feel while on it.
7. Who are some people that have influenced your nutritional and training approach?
With regards to training of athletes…. I’ve had a lot of mentors directly influence me with Luke Richesson clearly being at the top of the list. Blaine Bott also deserves a shout out. Although I’ve never worked in a direct mentor-mentee relationship with him, I really like Ian King’s work and training philosophies.
With regards to nutrition, I grew up a big fan of Dr. Lonnie Lowery’s work and to a lesser degree, Dr. John Berardi. However, I can’t say I had anyone that directly mentored me with regards to sports nutrition. My approach was formed via a lot of trial & error as well as just general reading.
8. Give us 3 books that helped your development and believe young coaches should read or go to?
This is a super tough question. Not necessarily books but if I had to limit it to just three resources look into….
1) With respect to physical preparation of athletes - Anything by Ian King. Also like Dan John and Christian T Thibaudeau’s Theory and Application of Modern Strength & Power Methods.
2) With respect to supplements – Examine.com; if you’re comfortable reading research, I always recommend going straight to the research itself via searches on Pubmed. Although not purely a supplement resource, SuppVersity.com has daily updates on sports nutrition, supplements or an occasional exercise article or two worth checking out.
3) With respect to sports nutrition – I grew up reading Dr Lonnie Lowery & Dr. John Berardi’s stuff with respect to aneorobic athletes. Monique Ryan’s Sports Nutrition for Endurance Athletes is decent as well and for ultra-athletes, I recommend checking out some of Dr. Jeff Volek’s Art & Science of Low Carb Performance
OK… I realize I listed more than 1 resource on all of those categories. In all reality I could have listed a few more too! As time allows, I like to read thoughts of others… In doing so however, I keep another quote Phil Stevens passed my way in conversation “Keep your windows and doors open to new ideas; Just make sure they have tight screens.”
Speed Round
Squats or Deadlifts?
Deadlifts
Olympic Lifts or Other Means of Power Development?
Olympic Lifts (if form is solid) … although there is a lot you can gain w/ plyo movements not obtainable by Olympic lifts alone.
Coffee, Energy Drinks, or Soda?
Coffee… unless the alternative is Powerthirst! (I encourage you to youtube that one ;-)!)
Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Lawrence, Jennifer Love-Hewitt, or Jennifer Hudson?
^ With that line-up you obviously know my affinity for brunettes!
Without question, Jennifer Aniston in her prime is pretty dang hard to beat.
Olympic Lifts (if form is solid) … although there is a lot you can gain w/ plyo movements not obtainable by Olympic lifts alone.
Coffee, Energy Drinks, or Soda?
Coffee… unless the alternative is Powerthirst! (I encourage you to youtube that one ;-)!)
Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Lawrence, Jennifer Love-Hewitt, or Jennifer Hudson?
^ With that line-up you obviously know my affinity for brunettes!
Without question, Jennifer Aniston in her prime is pretty dang hard to beat.
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
Bulking on a Budget
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Gaining weight, it's a goal of many young athletes, and it really never gets any love. It's all about weight loss and fat-loss; that's fine and dandy, but it doesn't help athletes. Athletes often need to pack on pounds of muscle and add mass to their frame.
Bigger, stronger athletes are often the ones that are more successful. Obviously speed, change of direction, and other qualities play a role, but often size is a big factor in playing time and success.
Many of the athletes we work with are in high school or college. Both of the cases are usually not the greatest situation.
High school athletes benefit and also suffer from the fact their parents buy the grocery's. They don't have to spend the money, but parents control what's in the cupboards and these youngsters need to communicate what foods to get, and communication among high school athletes is like talking to a brick wall.
College athletes on the other hand control what's on the shelves, but as we all know from college, money is tight and more likely to be spent on booze than quality foods.
So bulking up and adding size and strength on a budget is a must! Luckily, to be honest it's relatively simple. I didn't say it was easy, but the steps are simple. The athletes still need to dedicate the time and effort to eat, even though they may be full. Athletes still need to prep some time for planning and organizing so they have foods when they need them.
Below is an outline of 10 simple strategies and foods that are great for bulking on a budget. Have these in the kitchen and watch your gains grow!
Enjoy!
1. Olive Oil
You want an easy way to add calories?
Add olive oil to anything and everything you can.
Not only does olive oil bring many different health benefits, but it's also a fat, so it adds easy calories. Sprinkle it on pastas, salads, pizza, dip bread in it, and use it for all the cooking you can.
Just 1tbsp of olive oil adds around 120 calories. Adding 100 calories here, 100 calories there can really add up. Plus for many athletes today, this will be their best source of healthy fats.
Estimated Cost: Bottle of Olive Oil = $5.00-6.00
2. Trail Mix
Trail mix is the one of the easiest and cheapest ways to bulk up, especially homemade trail mix.
Throw in some almonds, semi-sweet chocolate chips, craisins, peanuts, sunflower seeds, or whatever your heart desires and voila, you have a recipe for packing on muscle.
I tell all my athletes looking to gain weight, to make a batch on Sundays and put it in their locker on Monday morning. Then between classes, they should grab a handful of the mix and chomp away. This can easily add up to an additional 3,000 calories throughout the week.
Estimated Cost: Weeks worth of trail mix = $8.00-10.00
3. Fruit Dip
A favorite recipe we like to recommend is fruit dip.
At one point or another, everybody has slabbed some peanut butter onto apple slices; well we take that classic and jack it up! Mix Greek yogurt with peanut butter and protein to get this souped up version.
From this bad boy you can expect to add an additional 550+ calories and about 50 grams of protein to this simple snack. Plus you knock out a serving a fruit, tons of quality protein, healthy fats, and some solid calcium and probiotics.
Check out the recipe HERE
Estimated Cost: $1.75
4. Fajitas
Anything smothered in guacamole and salsa, then wrapped in a tortilla is delicious, and that's exactly what fajitas are.
You may think you're cooking impaired, but anybody, I mean anybody, can cook fajitas!
Literally the only skill it takes it to be able to cut meat and veggies. From there just throw everything in a big pan and sauté it up. Load up tortillas with guac, salsa, sour cream, cheese and you've got yourself a damn good muscle builder! Down a couple of fajitas and you're looking at about 1,000 calories and 50-70 grams of protein.
Estimated Cost: $5.00-7.00
5. Snack Scramblers
Snack scramblers are a concoction for the creative souls.
I think we created this sucker while being broke college kids. Hungry, we used to scour the kitchen for anything and everything, and then combine it all in a big bowl of good eatin'.
We've tweaked it over time, and everybody's tastes are different, but here's the jist.
Grab a big bowl
Throw in a big scoop of Greek yogurt
Follow it with a heaping scoop of protein (I prefer chocolate)
Next, a handful of granola
Then, some banana, apple, strawberry, blueberry, or melon slices
Chuck in a big scoop of peanut butter
Finally top with some sweet thangs... chocolate chips, oreos, nuts/seeds, candy bars, or are personal favorite chex mix (or even puppy chow for the mass gainers).
You get a sweet mixture that may not sound all that great, but truly is wonderful. Plus the added bonus is that it's basically a mixture of leftovers that are in almost every kitchen. You don't really need to buy anything, just search the cupboards for things to add.
Pop in Shawshank Redemption, and enjoy a snack scrambler! You'll be looking at 800+ calories, and you can make this snack as "clean" as you like and omit some of the simple sugars.
Estimated Cost: $2.50-5.00
6. Peanut Butter Protein Balls
These little bites are the perfect snack to have waiting around during the day. You have to constantly be putting down calories, and these power balls are an easy and effective way to do just that.
Be warned, they are addicting! It's pretty easy for 30 of these guys to quickly disappear, but that's ok, you're trying to pack on some beef!
Heck, just one of these little guys is around 100 calories and about 8 grams of protein!
Check out the recipe HERE
Estimated Cost: $4.00-5.00
7. Breakfast Scrambler
I always tell our athletes who are trying to gain weight, that the first thing they need to do is starting taking control of breakfast. I find most skimp on this meal and might only grab a granola bar or a small bowl of cereal. This isn't going to cut it. This meal needs to kick of the day with a lot of protein and calories. It's as easy as waking up 10-minutes earlier and actually preparing and planning this meal.
Just like our snack scrambler, the breakfast scrambler is a hodgepodge of anything in your kitchen - onions, hams, peppers, mushrooms, bacon, tomatoes, broccoli, cheese, avocado, salsa, potatoes... all mixed with eggs! It's really quite delicious and the perfect way to start off the day.
Check out the recipe HERE
Estimated Cost: $2.00-4.00
8. Pizza
For some reason pizza gets a bad rap as being a junk food. The truth is, pizza CAN be a very healthy food, and great for gaining weight.
Just think, a pizza with fresh tomato sauce, topped with mozzarella cheese, onions, broccoli, chicken, green peppers, and olives.
Does this sound unhealthy?
Come on!
Sure some store bought pizza's can be a little greasy, have crappy dough, and lack some quality meat and veggies, but in terms of cost per calorie, pizza is dynamite!
Plus, more and more I get young athletes with very sensitive taste buds. By sensitive I mean, THEY DON'T LIKE ANYTHING!
It's a battle to get them to try anything new, but I have yet to find a kid who doesn't like pizza. So I'll recommend downing pizza whenever possible.
The only thing I recommend is to always add a veggie and to try different variations. Also, whenever possible make homemade versions. Plus if you tell parents how easy it is to make homemade pizza, their eyes light up!
All in all, don't fear the pizza!
Estimated Cost: $5.00-10.00
9. Protein Pancakes
Protein Pancakes should be a weekend staple for all trying to pack on muscle.
Without getting to in-depth, making protein pancakes is as easy as adding protein to the batter.
That's it!
Plus pancakes are one of the easiest foods to try different variations... banana, chocolate chip, blueberry, pumpkin, oatmeal, etc.
We recommend using whole wheat flour or even using a batter that it 1/4-1/2 oats. The other recommendation we make is to slather peanut butter on top.
Now we're talking tasty!
Heck, 3-4 pancakes, topped with peanut butter will close in on 1,000 calories pretty fast and add over 50 grams of protein!
Estimated Cost: $2.00-4.00
10. Potatoes
The Idaho spuds should be called Ida-Grow, as in growing muscle!
Potatoes are dense with calories, not to mention one of the least expensive foods out there.
These suckers are great for pre or post workouts or to add to any meal for some extra calories.
Breakfast Scrambler... add some cooked potato wedges
Protein Pancakes... how about potato protein pancakes
Olive Oil... soak some cooked potatoes with olive oil
Having a big Steak?... add a side of sweet potatoes
What version is best?
To be honest, it's not a real big deal.
Sweet taters add some more nutritional benefits in terms of vitamin and mineral content, but white potatoes often get a bad rap.
So have a little of everything... sweet potatoes, russet spuds, red taters, purple taters, etc... they're all good.
Also try cooking them as many different ways as possible... twice baked, fries, hash browns, wedges, mashed, baked and loaded, chips... the possibilities are endless.
Estimated Cost: 1lb = $1.00-2.00
There you have it. Now there is no reason you can't add weight, no matter your budget. Take the time to plan and prepare. Focus needs to be taken to gain muscle and make sure all the odds and ends are met. Follow these 10 simples steps and foods, and you'll quickly be on your way to adding impressive muscle the opposite sex will notice!
Go Get 'Em!
Gaining weight, it's a goal of many young athletes, and it really never gets any love. It's all about weight loss and fat-loss; that's fine and dandy, but it doesn't help athletes. Athletes often need to pack on pounds of muscle and add mass to their frame.
Bigger, stronger athletes are often the ones that are more successful. Obviously speed, change of direction, and other qualities play a role, but often size is a big factor in playing time and success.
Many of the athletes we work with are in high school or college. Both of the cases are usually not the greatest situation.
High school athletes benefit and also suffer from the fact their parents buy the grocery's. They don't have to spend the money, but parents control what's in the cupboards and these youngsters need to communicate what foods to get, and communication among high school athletes is like talking to a brick wall.
College athletes on the other hand control what's on the shelves, but as we all know from college, money is tight and more likely to be spent on booze than quality foods.
So bulking up and adding size and strength on a budget is a must! Luckily, to be honest it's relatively simple. I didn't say it was easy, but the steps are simple. The athletes still need to dedicate the time and effort to eat, even though they may be full. Athletes still need to prep some time for planning and organizing so they have foods when they need them.
Below is an outline of 10 simple strategies and foods that are great for bulking on a budget. Have these in the kitchen and watch your gains grow!
Enjoy!
1. Olive Oil
You want an easy way to add calories?
Add olive oil to anything and everything you can.
Not only does olive oil bring many different health benefits, but it's also a fat, so it adds easy calories. Sprinkle it on pastas, salads, pizza, dip bread in it, and use it for all the cooking you can.
Just 1tbsp of olive oil adds around 120 calories. Adding 100 calories here, 100 calories there can really add up. Plus for many athletes today, this will be their best source of healthy fats.
Estimated Cost: Bottle of Olive Oil = $5.00-6.00
2. Trail Mix
Trail mix is the one of the easiest and cheapest ways to bulk up, especially homemade trail mix.
Throw in some almonds, semi-sweet chocolate chips, craisins, peanuts, sunflower seeds, or whatever your heart desires and voila, you have a recipe for packing on muscle.
I tell all my athletes looking to gain weight, to make a batch on Sundays and put it in their locker on Monday morning. Then between classes, they should grab a handful of the mix and chomp away. This can easily add up to an additional 3,000 calories throughout the week.
Estimated Cost: Weeks worth of trail mix = $8.00-10.00
3. Fruit Dip
A favorite recipe we like to recommend is fruit dip.
At one point or another, everybody has slabbed some peanut butter onto apple slices; well we take that classic and jack it up! Mix Greek yogurt with peanut butter and protein to get this souped up version.
From this bad boy you can expect to add an additional 550+ calories and about 50 grams of protein to this simple snack. Plus you knock out a serving a fruit, tons of quality protein, healthy fats, and some solid calcium and probiotics.
Check out the recipe HERE
Estimated Cost: $1.75
4. Fajitas
Anything smothered in guacamole and salsa, then wrapped in a tortilla is delicious, and that's exactly what fajitas are.
You may think you're cooking impaired, but anybody, I mean anybody, can cook fajitas!
Literally the only skill it takes it to be able to cut meat and veggies. From there just throw everything in a big pan and sauté it up. Load up tortillas with guac, salsa, sour cream, cheese and you've got yourself a damn good muscle builder! Down a couple of fajitas and you're looking at about 1,000 calories and 50-70 grams of protein.
Estimated Cost: $5.00-7.00
5. Snack Scramblers
Snack scramblers are a concoction for the creative souls.
I think we created this sucker while being broke college kids. Hungry, we used to scour the kitchen for anything and everything, and then combine it all in a big bowl of good eatin'.
We've tweaked it over time, and everybody's tastes are different, but here's the jist.
Grab a big bowl
Throw in a big scoop of Greek yogurt
Follow it with a heaping scoop of protein (I prefer chocolate)
Next, a handful of granola
Then, some banana, apple, strawberry, blueberry, or melon slices
Chuck in a big scoop of peanut butter
Finally top with some sweet thangs... chocolate chips, oreos, nuts/seeds, candy bars, or are personal favorite chex mix (or even puppy chow for the mass gainers).
You get a sweet mixture that may not sound all that great, but truly is wonderful. Plus the added bonus is that it's basically a mixture of leftovers that are in almost every kitchen. You don't really need to buy anything, just search the cupboards for things to add.
Pop in Shawshank Redemption, and enjoy a snack scrambler! You'll be looking at 800+ calories, and you can make this snack as "clean" as you like and omit some of the simple sugars.
Estimated Cost: $2.50-5.00
6. Peanut Butter Protein Balls
These little bites are the perfect snack to have waiting around during the day. You have to constantly be putting down calories, and these power balls are an easy and effective way to do just that.
Be warned, they are addicting! It's pretty easy for 30 of these guys to quickly disappear, but that's ok, you're trying to pack on some beef!
Heck, just one of these little guys is around 100 calories and about 8 grams of protein!
Check out the recipe HERE
Estimated Cost: $4.00-5.00
7. Breakfast Scrambler
I always tell our athletes who are trying to gain weight, that the first thing they need to do is starting taking control of breakfast. I find most skimp on this meal and might only grab a granola bar or a small bowl of cereal. This isn't going to cut it. This meal needs to kick of the day with a lot of protein and calories. It's as easy as waking up 10-minutes earlier and actually preparing and planning this meal.
Just like our snack scrambler, the breakfast scrambler is a hodgepodge of anything in your kitchen - onions, hams, peppers, mushrooms, bacon, tomatoes, broccoli, cheese, avocado, salsa, potatoes... all mixed with eggs! It's really quite delicious and the perfect way to start off the day.
Check out the recipe HERE
Estimated Cost: $2.00-4.00
8. Pizza
For some reason pizza gets a bad rap as being a junk food. The truth is, pizza CAN be a very healthy food, and great for gaining weight.
Just think, a pizza with fresh tomato sauce, topped with mozzarella cheese, onions, broccoli, chicken, green peppers, and olives.
Does this sound unhealthy?
Come on!
Sure some store bought pizza's can be a little greasy, have crappy dough, and lack some quality meat and veggies, but in terms of cost per calorie, pizza is dynamite!
Plus, more and more I get young athletes with very sensitive taste buds. By sensitive I mean, THEY DON'T LIKE ANYTHING!
It's a battle to get them to try anything new, but I have yet to find a kid who doesn't like pizza. So I'll recommend downing pizza whenever possible.
The only thing I recommend is to always add a veggie and to try different variations. Also, whenever possible make homemade versions. Plus if you tell parents how easy it is to make homemade pizza, their eyes light up!
All in all, don't fear the pizza!
Estimated Cost: $5.00-10.00
9. Protein Pancakes
Protein Pancakes should be a weekend staple for all trying to pack on muscle.
Without getting to in-depth, making protein pancakes is as easy as adding protein to the batter.
That's it!
Plus pancakes are one of the easiest foods to try different variations... banana, chocolate chip, blueberry, pumpkin, oatmeal, etc.
We recommend using whole wheat flour or even using a batter that it 1/4-1/2 oats. The other recommendation we make is to slather peanut butter on top.
Now we're talking tasty!
Heck, 3-4 pancakes, topped with peanut butter will close in on 1,000 calories pretty fast and add over 50 grams of protein!
Estimated Cost: $2.00-4.00
10. Potatoes
The Idaho spuds should be called Ida-Grow, as in growing muscle!
Potatoes are dense with calories, not to mention one of the least expensive foods out there.
These suckers are great for pre or post workouts or to add to any meal for some extra calories.
Breakfast Scrambler... add some cooked potato wedges
Protein Pancakes... how about potato protein pancakes
Olive Oil... soak some cooked potatoes with olive oil
Having a big Steak?... add a side of sweet potatoes
What version is best?
To be honest, it's not a real big deal.
Sweet taters add some more nutritional benefits in terms of vitamin and mineral content, but white potatoes often get a bad rap.
So have a little of everything... sweet potatoes, russet spuds, red taters, purple taters, etc... they're all good.
Also try cooking them as many different ways as possible... twice baked, fries, hash browns, wedges, mashed, baked and loaded, chips... the possibilities are endless.
Estimated Cost: 1lb = $1.00-2.00
There you have it. Now there is no reason you can't add weight, no matter your budget. Take the time to plan and prepare. Focus needs to be taken to gain muscle and make sure all the odds and ends are met. Follow these 10 simples steps and foods, and you'll quickly be on your way to adding impressive muscle the opposite sex will notice!
Go Get 'Em!
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Creatine: Why The Confusion?
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On just about a weekly basis I get questions about creatine, and it's usually along the lines of asking if it's safe to take or how they heard it's illegal, or if they take it won't they tear their muscles?
It's amazing this exists because creatine is arguably the most studied and well-researched supplement of all-time, and study after study shows how remarkably safe and effective creatine is.
It's dumbfounding, why to this day, it carries negative myths that just refuse to die. NO STUDY has shown any adverse side effects other than weight gain (hey that's why most people take it) and stomach cramping if taken in too large of doses.
It's often made out to be like some kind of steroid-like supplement only found on the black market. But creatine is actually a natural substance in the body and is very important in the creatine-phosphate (CP) energy system, which is our fast/short-term energy system that rapidly produces ATP.
Let's repeat that again, CREATINE IS A NATURAL SUBSTANCE in your body and it is VITAL for creating immediate energy.
Hydration
One of the biggest concerns regarding creatine intake is muscle cramping and having to drink boat loads of water. Every time I recommend creatine, I usually get "Won't I have to drink a ton of water?" First off, drinking a lot of water isn't a bad thing so I don't see it as a negative; most people could stand to drink water. Secondly, no you really don't have to do anything special in terms of hydration, but it's always a good idea to drink plenty of fluids with or without creatine supplementation.
Check out this study by Mike Greenwood et al (2003). (Check out all of Greenwood's work, he's done a lot of great research on creatine)
“During one season of NCAA Division IA football training and competition, it was discovered that creatine users had significantly less cramping; heat illness or dehydration; muscle tightness; muscle strains; and total injuries than nonusers. Thus, even for athletes who are well-trained, it is clear that regular creatine consumption does not cause harm, and in fact may have a protective effect against certain exercise- related maladies.”
Look at the chart below. Creatine users had lower incident of injury, dehydration, illness, muscle strains, and missed practices.
Creatine increases intracellular hydration which is a positive outcome for protein synthesis and cellular integrity. Here's a quote from some people much smarter than me, Dr. Schliess and Dr. Häussinger, “Alterations in cellular hydration not only contribute to metabolic regulation, but also critically determine the cellular response to different kinds of stress. Whereas cell swelling triggers anabolic pathways and protects cells from heat and oxidative challenge, cellular dehydration contributes to insulin resistance and catabolism and increases the cellular susceptibility to stress induced damage.”
Anti-Inflammatory
Creatine may have the ability to reduce inflammation after strenuous exercise. One study looked at inflammation markers and soreness after a 18.75 mile race (Life Science, 2004)
Specifically the researchers looked at the effect of creatine supplementation on inflammatory and muscle soreness markers such as...
The creatine group showed lower markers of cellular damage, soreness, and inflammation. In fact, they showed much lower levels of CK, PGE2, TNF-Alpha, and LDH, all of these are markers of inflammation and damage due to exercise.
Creatine Group Control Group
CK - 19% Increase CK - Over 4-fold Increase
PGE2 - 70% Increase PGE2 - Over 6-fold Increase
TNF-Alpha - 34% Increase TNF-Alpha - 100% Increase
LDH - No difference LDH - 43% Increase
The researchers concluded this, “These results indicate that creatine supplementation reduced cell damage and inflammation after an exhaustive intense race." This is reason for creatine supplementation for athletes under strenuous training conditions or in-season when the physical demands are high.
The other aspect of hydration that many talk about is it's effect on kidney function. Many claim creatine supplementation puts added stress upon the kidneys, but this lacks any foundation. There is no evidence that creatine in the short-term or long-term has detrimental effects on the kidney and this has been shown in studies lasting as long as 5-years.
Cognitive
I heard Brandon Marcello. Director of Sports Performance at Stanford, speak at a conference earlier this year and he spoke about training females. He got into nutrition a little bit, and touched upon the benefits of creatine, not only for performance but for the brain. He noted that one of the first things he started giving his young daughter was creatine, for the brain health benefits it provides. I'd never heard of this, so I looked into it further and lone behold their are some strong benefits to this.
A study done way back in 2003 looked at the supplementation of creatine on brain performance (Rae, et al 2003). What they found was that 6-weeks of 5g per day of creatine supplementation greatly improved brain function. Here's a quote from the study,
"The results found agree with previous observations showing that brain creatine levels correlate with improved recognition memory and reduce mental fatigue.”
As Marcello pointed out in his presentation, research in creatine protecting and enhancing brain function is just as strong as the research on building muscle. A growing number of studies have found that creatine can protect the brain from injury in many different ways but not limited to fighting Parkinson's, Huntington's, improving energy, protecting against and helping recover from strokes, and ALS.
Pretty amazing stuff going on in this research and be ready for more great work on the horizon. Some other interesting studies to check out include...
The influence of creatine supplementation on the cognitive functioning of vegetarians and omnivores. David Benton and Rachel Donohoe. British Journal of Nutrition 2011; 105: 1100-1105
Creatine improves health and survival of mice. Bender A et al. Neurobiol Aging 2008 Sep; 29(9):1404-1411
Youth
As Marcello touched upon, he gives his young daughter (<10 years old) creatine, and this guy has a PhD in Sports Nutrition and leads Stanford's Sport Performance... I think it's safe to say creatine is perfectly fine for children.
In fact some of the first research on creatine was done to look at it's affects on infants and children that were weak or presented muscular dystrophy (Stockler et al, 1996; Tarnopolsky et al, 2004))
Not only are the brain benefits clear like we stated, but it also may enhance performance. Studies have shown improvements in strength and performance in highly trained youth athletes (Juhasz et al, 2009). Again there has been no literature showing any kind of side effects from chronic use and the benefits for the body and brain are very evident.
Final Word
I tell athletes and parents many these things, but many are still skeptical; old myths die hard I guess. Many people smarter than myself have delved into this topic much deeper than I could ever imagine and the outcome is always the same... If you're trying to get stronger, bigger, faster, more powerful, then you should use creatine. It can only help, it won't hurt; plus an added benefit is it's not-expensive! For about $10/month you can get a quality creatine, and you should be looking to take about 5g per day (honestly don't worry about a loading phase, just stick to 5g a day)
You don't have to take my word for it, but I'll leave you with a word from Jose Antonio, PhD and supplement specialist
“Creatine is perhaps the most studied ergogenic aid in history. Plus, the science clearly shows that there are no harmful side effects of creatine supplementation. There is zero scientific evidence that creatine supplementation causes muscle cramps or tears, harms the kidneys, causes dehydration or a myriad of other silly myths promulgated by the mainstream press. If these side effects exist, show me the science!”
Go Get Em!
It's amazing this exists because creatine is arguably the most studied and well-researched supplement of all-time, and study after study shows how remarkably safe and effective creatine is.
It's dumbfounding, why to this day, it carries negative myths that just refuse to die. NO STUDY has shown any adverse side effects other than weight gain (hey that's why most people take it) and stomach cramping if taken in too large of doses.
It's often made out to be like some kind of steroid-like supplement only found on the black market. But creatine is actually a natural substance in the body and is very important in the creatine-phosphate (CP) energy system, which is our fast/short-term energy system that rapidly produces ATP.
Let's repeat that again, CREATINE IS A NATURAL SUBSTANCE in your body and it is VITAL for creating immediate energy.
But for those who still think it's bad, well you better not eat beef, or chicken, or eggs, or salmon because creatine is naturally in all those foods.
It bears repeating that Creatine's main action in the body is storing high-energy phosphate groups to be used to create ATP - (ATP is the energy source used to fuel our body and without ATP we would cease to exist)
 |
| (Photo Credit - telegraph.co.uk) |
It bears repeating that Creatine's main action in the body is storing high-energy phosphate groups to be used to create ATP - (ATP is the energy source used to fuel our body and without ATP we would cease to exist)
When you perform any kind of activity, but especially high intensity exercises like sprinting, lifting, jumping, your body produces ATP by transferring a phosphate, from creatine-phosphate, to ADP to create ATP. So the more creatine you have available, the more potential for creating energy you have in your tissues and the longer you can sustain intense activities.
Let's discuss some interesting tidbits that research has uncovered about creatine
Anaerobic Power and Performance
This is the main reason most people take creatine and for good reason. There is tons of research showing the benefits of creatine combined with strength, power, and speed type of training. Volek et al (1999) stated "Creatine supplementation enhanced fat-free mass, physical performance, and muscle morphology in response with resistance training."
This is just an example of how creatine may benefit anaerobic athletes and here are some other benefits shown by research
Endurance
Creatine isn't often thought of as a supplement for endurance athletes, but it does have some efficacy in improving these types of activities. In fact, Engelhardt et al 1998 conclude, "We conclude that creatine supplementation at doses of 6 g daily has positive effects on short-term exercise included into aerobic endurance exercise." These researchers actually noted that the cardiovascular system, oxygen uptake, and blood lactate concentration were not affected by creatine, but interval power performance was significantly increased.
The mechanisms for improved endurance may be byproducts of the anaerobic improvements. Despite most endurance events requiring very little anaerobic output, there are still benefits to be gained by improving anaerobic power as seen by the importance of intermediate and finishing spurts, which fall under anaerobic conditions.
Creatine can help endurance athletes with their intermittent aerobic power, strength, and economy which will all lead to improved endurance performance. So while it may not directly improve aerobic markers, it affects total endurance through different mechanisms, mechanisms that many endurance athletes don't ever think about enhancing.
Let's discuss some interesting tidbits that research has uncovered about creatine
- 95 percent of creatine in the body is held in muscle. The heart, brain, and testes hold the remaining 5 percent (Terrilion, K. 1997)
- Improved muscular endurance (Willoughby, et al, 2001; Balsom P, et al, 1995; Englehart et ak, 1998; )
- Increased anaerobic power and performance (Countless Studies)
- Increased hydration in hot conditions (Chwalbinska-Moneta J, 2003)
- May Be An Effective Anti-Inflammatory Following Exercise (Vandenberghe K, et al, 1997)
- May Improve Cognitive Function (Rae C, et al, 2003; Bentonand D, Donohoe R (2011)
- Improves Adolescent Athletic Performance (Murphy AJ, Watsford ML, Coutts AJ, Richards DA, 2005)
Anaerobic Power and Performance
This is the main reason most people take creatine and for good reason. There is tons of research showing the benefits of creatine combined with strength, power, and speed type of training. Volek et al (1999) stated "Creatine supplementation enhanced fat-free mass, physical performance, and muscle morphology in response with resistance training."
This is just an example of how creatine may benefit anaerobic athletes and here are some other benefits shown by research
- Improved Maximal Strength (Izquierdo et al, 2002; Pearson et al, 1999)
- Improved Power (Chwalbinska-Moneta et al, 2003; Balsom et al, 1993; Greenhaff et al, 1993; Pearson et al, 1999)
- Increase in Muscle Mass (Willoughby et al, 2001; Balsom et al, 1995; Vandenberghe et al, 1997; Sim et al, 1998; Volek et al, 1999)
- Increase in Repeat Sprint Ability ((Izquierdo et al, 2002; Dawson et al, 1995)
Endurance
Creatine isn't often thought of as a supplement for endurance athletes, but it does have some efficacy in improving these types of activities. In fact, Engelhardt et al 1998 conclude, "We conclude that creatine supplementation at doses of 6 g daily has positive effects on short-term exercise included into aerobic endurance exercise." These researchers actually noted that the cardiovascular system, oxygen uptake, and blood lactate concentration were not affected by creatine, but interval power performance was significantly increased.
The mechanisms for improved endurance may be byproducts of the anaerobic improvements. Despite most endurance events requiring very little anaerobic output, there are still benefits to be gained by improving anaerobic power as seen by the importance of intermediate and finishing spurts, which fall under anaerobic conditions.
Creatine can help endurance athletes with their intermittent aerobic power, strength, and economy which will all lead to improved endurance performance. So while it may not directly improve aerobic markers, it affects total endurance through different mechanisms, mechanisms that many endurance athletes don't ever think about enhancing.
Hydration
One of the biggest concerns regarding creatine intake is muscle cramping and having to drink boat loads of water. Every time I recommend creatine, I usually get "Won't I have to drink a ton of water?" First off, drinking a lot of water isn't a bad thing so I don't see it as a negative; most people could stand to drink water. Secondly, no you really don't have to do anything special in terms of hydration, but it's always a good idea to drink plenty of fluids with or without creatine supplementation.
Check out this study by Mike Greenwood et al (2003). (Check out all of Greenwood's work, he's done a lot of great research on creatine)
“During one season of NCAA Division IA football training and competition, it was discovered that creatine users had significantly less cramping; heat illness or dehydration; muscle tightness; muscle strains; and total injuries than nonusers. Thus, even for athletes who are well-trained, it is clear that regular creatine consumption does not cause harm, and in fact may have a protective effect against certain exercise- related maladies.”
Look at the chart below. Creatine users had lower incident of injury, dehydration, illness, muscle strains, and missed practices.
Creatine increases intracellular hydration which is a positive outcome for protein synthesis and cellular integrity. Here's a quote from some people much smarter than me, Dr. Schliess and Dr. Häussinger, “Alterations in cellular hydration not only contribute to metabolic regulation, but also critically determine the cellular response to different kinds of stress. Whereas cell swelling triggers anabolic pathways and protects cells from heat and oxidative challenge, cellular dehydration contributes to insulin resistance and catabolism and increases the cellular susceptibility to stress induced damage.”
Anti-Inflammatory
Creatine may have the ability to reduce inflammation after strenuous exercise. One study looked at inflammation markers and soreness after a 18.75 mile race (Life Science, 2004)
Specifically the researchers looked at the effect of creatine supplementation on inflammatory and muscle soreness markers such as...
- Creatine Kinase (CK)
- Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH)
- Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2)
- Tumor Necrosis Factor-Alpha (TNF-alpha)
The creatine group showed lower markers of cellular damage, soreness, and inflammation. In fact, they showed much lower levels of CK, PGE2, TNF-Alpha, and LDH, all of these are markers of inflammation and damage due to exercise.
Creatine Group Control Group
CK - 19% Increase CK - Over 4-fold Increase
PGE2 - 70% Increase PGE2 - Over 6-fold Increase
TNF-Alpha - 34% Increase TNF-Alpha - 100% Increase
LDH - No difference LDH - 43% Increase
The researchers concluded this, “These results indicate that creatine supplementation reduced cell damage and inflammation after an exhaustive intense race." This is reason for creatine supplementation for athletes under strenuous training conditions or in-season when the physical demands are high.
The other aspect of hydration that many talk about is it's effect on kidney function. Many claim creatine supplementation puts added stress upon the kidneys, but this lacks any foundation. There is no evidence that creatine in the short-term or long-term has detrimental effects on the kidney and this has been shown in studies lasting as long as 5-years.
Cognitive
I heard Brandon Marcello. Director of Sports Performance at Stanford, speak at a conference earlier this year and he spoke about training females. He got into nutrition a little bit, and touched upon the benefits of creatine, not only for performance but for the brain. He noted that one of the first things he started giving his young daughter was creatine, for the brain health benefits it provides. I'd never heard of this, so I looked into it further and lone behold their are some strong benefits to this.
A study done way back in 2003 looked at the supplementation of creatine on brain performance (Rae, et al 2003). What they found was that 6-weeks of 5g per day of creatine supplementation greatly improved brain function. Here's a quote from the study,
"The results found agree with previous observations showing that brain creatine levels correlate with improved recognition memory and reduce mental fatigue.”
As Marcello pointed out in his presentation, research in creatine protecting and enhancing brain function is just as strong as the research on building muscle. A growing number of studies have found that creatine can protect the brain from injury in many different ways but not limited to fighting Parkinson's, Huntington's, improving energy, protecting against and helping recover from strokes, and ALS.
Pretty amazing stuff going on in this research and be ready for more great work on the horizon. Some other interesting studies to check out include...
The influence of creatine supplementation on the cognitive functioning of vegetarians and omnivores. David Benton and Rachel Donohoe. British Journal of Nutrition 2011; 105: 1100-1105
Creatine improves health and survival of mice. Bender A et al. Neurobiol Aging 2008 Sep; 29(9):1404-1411
Youth
As Marcello touched upon, he gives his young daughter (<10 years old) creatine, and this guy has a PhD in Sports Nutrition and leads Stanford's Sport Performance... I think it's safe to say creatine is perfectly fine for children.
In fact some of the first research on creatine was done to look at it's affects on infants and children that were weak or presented muscular dystrophy (Stockler et al, 1996; Tarnopolsky et al, 2004))
Not only are the brain benefits clear like we stated, but it also may enhance performance. Studies have shown improvements in strength and performance in highly trained youth athletes (Juhasz et al, 2009). Again there has been no literature showing any kind of side effects from chronic use and the benefits for the body and brain are very evident.
 |
| Photo Credit: IYCA.org |
Final Word
I tell athletes and parents many these things, but many are still skeptical; old myths die hard I guess. Many people smarter than myself have delved into this topic much deeper than I could ever imagine and the outcome is always the same... If you're trying to get stronger, bigger, faster, more powerful, then you should use creatine. It can only help, it won't hurt; plus an added benefit is it's not-expensive! For about $10/month you can get a quality creatine, and you should be looking to take about 5g per day (honestly don't worry about a loading phase, just stick to 5g a day)
You don't have to take my word for it, but I'll leave you with a word from Jose Antonio, PhD and supplement specialist
“Creatine is perhaps the most studied ergogenic aid in history. Plus, the science clearly shows that there are no harmful side effects of creatine supplementation. There is zero scientific evidence that creatine supplementation causes muscle cramps or tears, harms the kidneys, causes dehydration or a myriad of other silly myths promulgated by the mainstream press. If these side effects exist, show me the science!”
Go Get Em!
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