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How Does Nutrient Timing Affect Athletic Performance

You may have heard the word “macronutrient” being thrown around on “FitTok”, but what exactly does it mean?

The term macronutrient, often called macros, refers to the nutrients that the human body requires for energy and to maintain the body’s systems and structure. These include carbohydrates, protein, and fat.

It is ESSENTIAL for athletes to consume a ratio of all three macronutrients to ensure they reach their training goals.

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PERFORMANCE, NUTRITION Emily Pappas PERFORMANCE, NUTRITION Emily Pappas

How the female athlete can improve her SPEED & POWER

Many female athletes (and their parents) want their athlete to sprint FASTER, jump HIGHER, or change direction more EXPLOSIVELY

But what is the MOST EFFECTIVE training to help enhance this POWER OUTPUT?

Contrast Training is an effective modality to enhance a female athlete’s muscular qualities to allow for GREATER POWER OUTPUT

This article aims to explain how contrast training elicits an adaptive response….and what your athlete needs FIRST in order for this method to work:

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INJURY, PERFORMANCE, NUTRITION Emily Neff (Pappas) INJURY, PERFORMANCE, NUTRITION Emily Neff (Pappas)

It needs to be said: “playing your sport is NOT ENOUGH to avoid detraining during the sports season”.

When sport seasons start, many female athletes stray away from the weight room as sport practices and games take over their schedules. The result: DETRAINING.

“But how can my athlete detrain when she is PLAYING her sport?”

It is simple, playing sports is NOT ENOUGH to maintain improvements realized outside of the season. In fact, after 3-4 weeks away from the weight room, all of the benefits your athlete realized begin to DECREASE and return to BASELINE.

Avoiding this detraining effect is easy, but it is important to understand why maintenance training is necessary if you want your athlete to maintain her speed, power, and avoid injury during her competitive sportsseason…..

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NUTRITION Emily Pappas NUTRITION Emily Pappas

Pasta Parties and Carb Loading

Just the idea of “carb loading” sounds too good to be true, right?!

Team “pasta parties” are often the norm before games in high school and college.

So, can a big bowl of pasta the night before a big game really increase your performance—or is there a little more to it?

Let’s take a look at what the evidence says!

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NUTRITION Emily Neff (Pappas) NUTRITION Emily Neff (Pappas)

Vegan Athletes: How do you stack up – PROTEIN EDITION.

“Vegans can’t be as good as non-vegans in sports.”

Is this true? And, more importantly, WHY do people make this claim?

To answer these questions, we must figure out what exactly ‘being a vegan’ entails and how protein consumption is very likely your limiting factor.

If you are a vegan athlete, this article is a MUST to understand how to ensure you are eating enough of the RIGHT type of protein you need to excel on the field or court.

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NUTRITION, PERFORMANCE Emily Pappas NUTRITION, PERFORMANCE Emily Pappas

Female Athletes & Their Menstrual Cycles

Female athletes everywhere know their period will affect how they feel, and how they feel will affect how they perform. Although skipping a few periods or missing a period all together could seem attractive for a female who feels like crap on her period, a missing period or dysfunctional cycle is a HUGE warning sign that cannot be ignored.

This article helps explain the science behind the importance of a female athlete’s period in helping her perform and recovery and why a female athlete may be missing her period. Read on!

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NUTRITION Emily Pappas NUTRITION Emily Pappas

Eating Vegan for the Female Athlete

Many athletes choose to follow a vegan diet for various reasons - this article does not intend to help you decide if being a vegan is right for you.

Rather, this article does intend to help you understand what you need to prioritize in order to be a high achieving (and recovering) female athlete.

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NUTRITION Emily Neff (Pappas) NUTRITION Emily Neff (Pappas)

Is All Protein Created Equal?

Protein is a necessary building block that helps your muscles produce force to propel your sprint up and down the field or court. But does your 8g of protein in your peanut butter & banana sandwich work the same as the 10g of protein from turkey lunch meat? What about the protein in your cheese stick versus your protein pasta?

Does protein type matter if you are an athlete vs not? Find out!

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NUTRITION Emily Neff (Pappas) NUTRITION Emily Neff (Pappas)

The science behind DETOX or JUICING DIETS

Summer is here! That means vacations, eating out, and lots of ice cream. When you fall off your normal eating habits, many female athletes may consider a detox diet or a juice cleanse to help eliminate those vacation “toxins” and lose a couple LBs.

But what is the actual science behind this? Are detox diets & juice cleanses a good idea for female athletes?

Read on…..

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NUTRITION Emily Pappas NUTRITION Emily Pappas

SUGAR: are you addicted?

SUGAR FREE and LOW SUGAR are often associated positively with health. In fact, sugar has been demonized as a type of addiction from which some people suffer.

But is sugar really BAD? And if it is, should female athletes limit their consumption of sugar found in foods like Gatorade or cereal?

This article aims to help explain the SCIENCE of sugar and how it should fit within a female athlete’s diet.

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NUTRITION, PERFORMANCE Emily Pappas NUTRITION, PERFORMANCE Emily Pappas

Birth Control to the Rescue? How Oral Contraceptives REALLY Impact An Athlete

By Emily R Pappas, MS

For many female athletes, experiencing an irregular or missing period during the sport season seems “normal”. In an attempt to “bring her period back”, some doctors may still suggest taking an oral contraceptive.

But for many female athletes, an irregular cycle is a signal that a female athlete’s natural hormones are not working properly. Placing a young adolescent female on an oral contraceptive may create an illusion that her period is “regular”, BUT it does NOT mean that her hormones are working optimally.

Unfortunately, current research shows us taking an oral contraceptive is a “band aid” to the problem and does not address the CAUSE.

For female athletes considering taking an oral contraceptive for irregular or missing periods, this article is a MUST.

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NUTRITION Emily Pappas NUTRITION Emily Pappas

How to stay fueled DURING your game

For games or sport training lasting over an hour, lack of proper fueling will UNDOUBTEDLY result in poor performance.

Learn why intra-training shakes are necessary for sustained high performance….and why shying away from your protein shake is going to limit your ability to play

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NUTRITION Emily Pappas NUTRITION Emily Pappas

What is REDs? The Danger of Energy Deficiency in Female Athletes

In the 1990s, the female athlete triad helped identify a relationship between low body fat, irregular periods, & low bone density

In 2018, relative energy deficiency syndrome helped identify the cause of relationship and what we can do about it.

Irregular or missing periods could be a HUGE warming sign and if not addressed, resulting in serious problems to long term health.

If your athlete experiences menstrual issues, this article is a must:

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NUTRITION Emily Neff (Pappas) NUTRITION Emily Neff (Pappas)

What Should YOU Eat Before A Game?

For female athletes who struggle with mid-game fatigue, many parents turn to extra conditioning to help.

However, she may actually need to improve her pre-game fueling.

Optimizing specific macronutrients and minimizing others has been shown to improve endurance and make a significant difference in your in your daughter’s performance.

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