NEWS & EVENTS
Blog
  Last week I was talking to a group of high school athletes that were all struggling to add muscle mass. Whether or not weight gain is a goal of yours (or your son, daughter or team’s), you’ll want to read this email. This really applies to every athlete. As is typically the case with athletes at this age, the problem was in their diet. The first question I always ask in this scenario is, “What do you eat for breakfast?”. When the answer invariably comes back as a bowl of cereal (or a pop tart), I point out that this relatively nutrient-less meal also only provides about 175 calories, setting them up for about a 1,500 calorie/day diet (less than half of what most high school aged males should be taking in). When I make other suggestions (e.g. steel cut oatmeal with peanut butter and a scoop of chocolate protein powder and a banana; a 4-egg WITH EGG YOLKS meat, vegetable, and/or cheese omelette), I get the same response EVERY time: “I don’t have time” The Truth About “Time” I love hearing this. The truth is that we all have 24 hours in our day; what we decide to spend them on is a matter of priorities. Time is not to be found; it’s to be made. If you need to improve your skill work, MAKE 30 minutes every day to work on skills. 30 minutes a day for 4 days per week (NOT a huge commitment) means you’d get an extra 26 hours (over 1 day!) in the first 3 months and an extra 104 hours (~4.3 days) in the first year. Do you think that would help you catch up to your competition that isn’t doing that? Of course it would. If you need to put on muscle (or clean up your diet in general), MAKE time to prepare quality food. It takes 30 minutes to prepare enough steel cut oatmeal to last 2 people a week. It takes less than 2 minutes to reheat it in the morning. It takes about 8 minutes to prepare a multi-ingredient omelette (e.g. more than just cheese). It takes about 2 hours on a Sunday to prepare enough food for most meals for the week, package (e.g. Ziploc bags and Tupperware) it up and clean the dishes. Brian Tracy (high school dropout turned self-made millionaire, best-selling author and international expert on goal setting) points out that whatever you’re doing at this very moment is a conscious decision you’ve made that the activity (or lack thereof) is more important than everything else you’re not doing. Relevant to our previous examples, if kids have time to play Playstation for an hour every night, but “don’t have time” to prepare a quality meal or practice their sport-specific skills, they’re DECIDING that Playstation is a bigger priority to them than their athletic development. I’m not suggesting that every second of every day be dedicated to athletic betterment; that would be mentally and socially unhealthy. I am saying that most people are AMAZED at how much time they can free up for things of ACTUAL importance when they view their daily activity as a choice of priorities. If it’s important to you, MAKE time for it. The results will be worth your dedication. Remember, we all have 24 hours in our day. It’s your choice what you do with it. To your continued success, Kevin Neeld P.S. Summer is here. Now is the time where most athletes are putting the energy into their training to completely transform themselves for next season. If you haven't yet, call me today at (856) 269-4148 or send me an email to get signed up for our Summer training programs. Remember, we offer special rates for athletes signing up with their teammates!
Bookmark:
|
|
Search Posts
CategoriesEndeavor in the Media Athletic Development Nutrition Advice Weight Loss Golf Training Endeavor Training Maximum Strength Endeavor Athlete Success Back Pain Supplements Injury Prevention Hockey Training Quote of the Week Training Intangibles Power Development Core Training Sport-Specific Conditioning Endeavor Nutrition Coaching Monthly Archives  |
Translate: 
