Most athletes, both recreational
and competitive, tend to have tunnel vision when it comes to their training
plans. We look at our physical workouts, our calories in, our macro splits, and
sometimes even precise attention to various supplements we feel will benefit
our performance. And while all of these are factors in reaching our ultimate
athletic goals, we're truly missing some of the foundations that build a
well-rounded and successful athlete.
As female athletes, there are a
number of obstacles that we encounter that block our paths. Often it's injury or
illness, but it could also be different seasons of our lives. Pregnancy,
childbirth, our parenting years, and perimenopause to name a few.
We have been taken out of the
game. When this happens, we immediately grow anxious about how the lack of
access to our scheduled training plan is going to affect our pre-planned path.
How can we ever step into the athlete we want to be if we can't work out?
How long are we going to be in this tie-up space and what adjustments to our
nutrition plan should we make?
We often feel that these
obstacles limit access to our resources for wellness and there is a weight
that’s settling in with our unknowing of when we can return.
Sometimes we're given a
return-to-play date - six weeks, three months, as tolerated - but these are all
estimates at best. We know that life doesn't always adhere to the dates that we
plan out. As athletes, what are we to do to ensure that we continue our
athletic training during this time?
Secondly, we also need to start
anticipating these obstacles and get ahead of the what-ifs before they occur.
How can we bring in prevention measures while still maintaining our focus on
our athletic performance goals?
The first thing that we need to
shift is our mindset.
Regardless of the driving factor,
female athletes need to expand beyond the traditional performance mindset and
training that we're used to, and start bringing in a more holistic approach to
their training plan. We need to focus on developing our athletic wellness as holistic-minded athletes and get out of the tunnel
vision that is only sports-specific training.
What’s that, you ask?
Athletic
wellness is a term that I’ve coined to address all of the aspects of health
that an athlete should consider. It goes beyond our physical preparedness to
include nutritional, mental health, lifestyle, and societal considerations.
When our athletic wellness is balanced, then we can achieve top
performance.
There are a lot of reasons why
having a solid foundation of athletic wellness can benefit us as athletes:
Injury
prevention & rehabilitation
Training
shifts between seasons
Supporting
the hybrid athlete
Fear
of deconditioning
Fear
of missing out on peak performance
Feeling
anxious, depressed, frustrated, and lethargic
Making
poor nutrition choices, partly because of miseducation
That’s a lot, but those stressors
and fears don’t have to mean that we fall completely out of our training plans. Instead, we need to look at
what we do have, what changes we can make, and shift our goals to better fit
this period of our training we're currently in.
Good training plans are based on a periodization schedule, and the foundations of athletic wellness fit
nicely in the maintenance phase of training. What we know in sports medicine is
that all healthy and successful athletes have a maintenance plan - in-season,
out-of-season, and during times of injury and recovery.
Sometimes the maintenance plan is
the only piece of our training that we're focusing on because, like everything
else, many of us are overdue for a down phase of training.
So, what are the different
components of athletic wellness, and how do they factor into our development as
a successful female athlete?
Physical:
First, our physical training is
often step one in our athletic development. All of us, regardless of sport or
level of competition, have a sports-specific focus that we spend most of our
time perfecting. But this is not enough. Only focusing on our sports-specific
training create deficits and imbalances that eventually lead to pain and
injury, so we need to consider some other pieces of physical training that
will enhance what we're doing during our core training times.
Mobility:
Mobility has received a lot of attention in the past few years, but let’s
be honest, most of us don’t give it the attention needed. Mobility goes
way beyond foam rolling and band stretching. It’s about moving your body
through more natural ranges of motion and progressively returning,
increasing the ways a joint can move. There are a lot of programs out
there that focus on this area - Nutritious Movement, GMB
Fitness, The Ready State, and you can find some videos on the She Moves YouTube channel.
Corrective Exercise: There’s a good chance that you have pain, injury, or
functional condition (incontinence, prolapse, diastasis recti) that you’ve
been ignoring a bit to allow for continued training. Why not tackle this
setback before if puts you on the bench? Incorporating corrective
exercises that balance the repetitive movements that you use in your sport
can help make you stronger overall, and prevent those nagging injuries
that many of us experience. You might consider consulting with a physical
therapist, athletic trainer, or other movement specialists to design a
program that best supports your goals. This is a service that I can help you with as well. We can talk about what’s going on and
figure out your best plan of action, including recommendations for
healthcare providers.
Core and Pelvic Floor: This is a big one
for all women - Youth through Masters levels. It's a myth that you have to
have experienced a vaginal birth to have concerns with pelvic floor
function. We've seen girls as young a 7-years-old struggle with
incontinence from engaging in high-impact sports, such as gymnastics,
dance, and cheerleading. Even if you’re not experiencing major issues with
core dysfunction, as female athletes, we can always give our cores and
pelvic floors a little love. I’m not talking about major Ab Blasting, but
rather ensuring that we maintain core function and learn to control the
internal abdominal pressure that can lead to more concerning pain and
functional conditions.
Cardio: If you’re a strength athlete, then
there’s a good chance your cardiovascular training could use a bit of
help. Lately, we’ve been told that cardio training isn’t the best training
for women, especially if you’re in the perimenopause plus years. And while
it’s true that strength training is vital for us, we can’t ignore cardio
training totally. Bringing in some focused cardio workouts - online
option, running, walking, hiking, and home equipment - is a great option right
now if you can’t access weights. Even quick HIIT or Tabata workouts can
increase your VO2Max and that will lead to improved strength performance
as well.
Cycle: One thing that many female athletes
don't realize is how much our menstrual cycles can actually act as an
ergogenic aid for our sports goals. Our training and nutritional needs, as
well as our mental state, change throughout the month depending on what
our hormones are doing. Knowing what your body is doing can be a
game-changer to understanding what do off the field in order to increase
performance on it. The first step is to start tracking your cycle - on
paper or an app. After a few months, you can start looking at the patterns
that are showing up, and really dialing down your training and nutrition
plan, as well as competition schedule, to align with what your body is
asking for on any given day.
Finally, you don't need a
membership to a gym to incorporate these suggestions for physical wellness into
your training plan as there’s a good chance that you have access to most of
what you need to maintain it at home. Many of us have collected at least some
amount of at-home fitness equipment, but even if you haven’t you do have items
that make great substitutions. Stairs can be used for springs, dips, step-ups,
and pushups. Paper plates on carpets or towels on floors add a new level of
challenge to exercises like lunges, mountain climbers, planks, and more. A 2x4
makes a great balance beam and can be laid across a few chairs for agility,
balance, and mobility work. If nothing else, there are many online classes on
sites like YouTube, and many are free.
Take stock of what you have
access to:
Bands
Dumbbells
Cardio
equipment (dust it off)
Your
Body (bodyweight workouts can be extremely effective)
Pillows,
chairs, 2x4s, stairs, string, bottles, cans, etc.
We can’t talk about shifting our
training focus without also touching on shifting our nutritional plan. The fact
is that you don't need any fancy or restrictive diets to adhere to for most of
your training. You simply need to learn how to learn to fuel your body
appropriately to match your daily training needs.
We can set specific ranges for
your calories and macros, but none of this matters if your body isn't primed to
actually benefit from this dialed-in approach. Before we can start working on
the details of our food plans, we have to establish a habit of eating
nutrient-rich foods and an environment in our bodies where those nutrients can
be absorbed. This means good gut health. Before you start diving into protein
and carbohydrate needs, let's review the basics.
First, focus on the rainbow. Eating
colorful produce at each meal is a great way to ensure you're getting the
nutrients you need. The fiber helps keep you feeling full and satiated, as
well as aiding in good GI health. Try to eat these in whole form and limit
juicing and smoothies.
In
addition to vegetables, you have to stay
hydrated. Many of us are drinking more coffee and alcohol than
before, which makes water even more important. The rule of thumb is to get as many ounces of water as
your body weight in kilograms. I like to aim for about 10-16 ounces
between meals. I also have a giant water bottle
that I try to get through twice a day.
Next, try to get lean protein at each meal. This
doesn’t have to be animal protein, but ensuring that you have enough
protein throughout the day will help protect the lean muscles that you’ve
worked so hard to build. Don’t go crazy. Right now about 1.0 to 1.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight
per day is sufficient, or a palm-sized serving at each
meal. When you're engaging in moderate to high-intensity training,
consuming around 30 grams of protein within 30 minutes of the end of your
training will really help maximize muscle recovery.
Make
no mistake - all active women need carbs.
Carbs get a bad rap in mainstream media, but they are essential to fuel
our training and recovery as athletes. The key is knowing how to adjust
your intake and carb choice around the type of training you're doing on
any given day, as well as where you are in your cycle. Our foundational
baseline of carbs is basically about 3-5 grams of carbohydrate per
kilogram of body weight per day for those of us who are training less than
40 minutes, less than 5 days per week. For most of us, if you're focusing on
your daily rainbow of fruits and vegetables, and then are adding in a
fist-sized serving of starch, grains, or legumes at most meals, then
you're getting this in. The key here is to add in more carbohydrates to
refuel after more intense training. The harder and longer you're training
each day, the more carbs you're going to need in order to recover and be
ready for the next day. If your training goes beyond 90 minutes in one
session and is more moderate-intensity, then bringing a quick snack to take
during your training can help you push through and really enjoy the
benefits of the training. Refueling with some carbs within two hours of
finishing your workout will help your body repair muscles and refuel your
stores the most efficiently. Once you have the basics down, then you can
get fancy with aligning your carb intake by selecting the ideal types of
carbs and ingestion timing with your training goal.
On
a final nutrition note, be very
careful of falling into a nightly “wine-down” habit,
or even day drinking. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying your
favorite adult beverage, but having more than about one to two glasses per
day can start affecting your body negatively, and get those hormones a bit
out of whack.
Social:
Part of our athletic drive comes
from the support of our team. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen an
injured athlete fall into a state of depression because of the disconnection from
her coach and teammates. For those of us who are athletic-minded, we are vulnerable to falling
into a similar state of mind during this time. We are not connected with those
who support us during our training -
whether it has been the other members of your Crossfit gym, the women who
attend your CardioPump, spinning, or yoga class, or even the members of your
running club. They are all our teams. I know I greatly miss going to class to
be with the other women in my taekwondo class.
Find ways to
stay connected with your team, even during the off-season or if you're out due
to injury. Here are some ideas that
might work for you:
Create weekly meetups to
connect, chat, and stay accountable with your team. These can be online or
in-person - whatever works best for you.
Create an online challenge.
What can you improve in during this time? Flexibility? Mobility? Pullups?
Pushups? Climbing trees? Endurance?
Use
Strava, MyFitnessPal, or even a Google Form/Spreadsheet to track
improvements.
Start a Bookclub.
Can you find a biography of an athlete for your sport? Inspiration for
something you want to try or return to after the quarantine? Or, maybe
more of a technique textbook. Choose one each month and meet with a group
weekly to talk about the book and keep connected to your sport.
Find a workout buddy.
This can be great during the off-season or when you're injured. Your buddy
can be someone else in your sport, or just another woman who you know has
similar goals as you. Get together in person at someone's home, a gym, a
local park, or even virtually over Zoom. Find some workouts that align with
your training goals and have fun in supporting each other through them.
These buddies can also be wonderful for more restorative workouts, such as
hiking, walking, or yoga.
Create a hashtag
for your group and start some accountability around that. Check in on each
other via Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.
However you choose to connect
with your teammate, use that connection to continue moving forward toward your
performance goals. When we’re able to train together again, you’ll feel like
you haven’t missed a beat.
Mental
Health:
I think the most important aspect
of athletic wellness right now is our mental health. Even three years after the initial
COVID lockdowns, we are living in a period full of unknown and fear. Anxiety
levels are high, and our go-to mechanisms for dealing with them are missing or
still being rebuilt. The importance
of taking care of our mental health is finally getting the attention it
deserves and being normalized, but many of us still struggle to understand what
support options best fit our individual needs. Seeking out the support of a
licensed mental health professional is always recommended, but there are also
coaches who can help, as well as many self-directed activities that truly can
bring you back into yourself and feeling settled.
I’m going to list a few
suggestions, but please make sure you are contacting a professional if you are
spinning down.
Be aware of your emotions and feelings.
It's OK to feel negative emotions and it's healthy to acknowledge them,
but make sure you have a way of expressing them and bringing yourself back
to center. Keeping them inside isn't healthy. Find a way to let them out -
crying, dancing, singing, writing, and talking to others are all great
options.
Meditation. Start with five minutes and build up
as you can. Bringing this practice into your routine can not only help you
during this time but is a great way to prepare for competition in the
future. If you're looking for a way to get started, Insight Timer has a
wonderful selection of guided meditations and timers that can help.
Gratitude Journal. Focus on the good. Spend a few
minutes each evening to reflect on what you’re thankful for and the
positives you experience each day.
Schedule Meetups. Connecting with friends and
family is vital and needs to be done daily. Schedule times to check in
with someone every day, whether it's in-person, online, via phone, or text.
If you need someone to check in with, you can always reach
out to me.
Walks. Get outside. It’s been proven
that spending time in nature is beneficial to our mental health. If you
are able, take off those shoes and connect with the earth.
Sleep. Try not to fall into the late-night habit. Establish a good bedtime routine to get you in bed. Grabbing
a 20 minutes nap during the day is another great way to rebalance and
recharge.
Take a Bath. Light the candles, pour in the
Epson salts and hit play on Spotify. A bath is a great way to relax,
destress, and lower that cortisol. Give your kids the boot and grab this
time just for you.
The
National Suicide Hotline is always available to help you
regain control. You can call or chat, but please reach out to them if
you’re feeling overwhelmed and hopeless. Your life is precious and your
feelings are real.
Remember, you have big dreams
around your sport and life goals, and I know that you want to do everything
that you can to make sure they come to fruition. By shifting your mindset
around training and incorporating these recommendations, you can ensure that
you will continue to improve your athletic performance with few setbacks, and
possibly improve your overall condition in ways you never considered. As a
bonus, you will build a strong foundation of athletic wellness into your
training plan that you can bring with you throughout your life and changes of
focus to ensure balanced training and prevent additional setbacks in the
future.
Need help building a
balanced wellness plan? Download my Cultivating Athletic Wellness workbook to help you get started. Need specific support
to build your balanced plan?Let’s
chat! I specialize
in helping you devise a complete athletic wellness plan focused on your
personal goals.
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