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Welcome to Give to Sport's Information Centre; this page will give you access to information that you may require as a coach, athlete or volunteer in sport and physical recreation. There are helpful links to a number of websites including some key organisations who are involved directly in sports performance and coaching. If you have any queries regarding any of the information, please do not hesitate to contact Give to Sport on givetosport@ucpmarjon.ac.uk.

Last modified on Thu, 11 Jun 2009 07:21:01 BST by external

In all areas of health maintenance, prevention is always better than cure, and many sports and exercise injuries can be prevented by preparing properly for your chosen activity. Warming up in sport is something that most people will be familiar with. A warm –up prepares the body for exercise and sport. In particular, it starts to divert blood flow to the muscles which you will be using.

Balancing exercise with rest is also important for injury prevention, and experts say that exercise for both strength and endurance should be balanced with rest. Tiredness may increase the risk of injury.

It is also very important to increase you muscles strength, so that your body can support the amount/type of training that you are participating in. Weight training increases muscle strength; ideally this should be started in a gym under supervision since serious injuries to the spine and knees can come from incorrect lifting of heavy weights. Currently most gyms have fixed equipment, which avoids the risk of using free weight and allows more controlled strength training.

If you do get injured, it important that you allow your body to recover. The body has a marvellous capacity to heal itself provided it is allowed to do so. This means that it is important not to return to full competition or activity until your injury is completely healed. In the very early stages, when there is a great deal of swelling and pain, you would be well advised to rest the affected area. Nevertheless, you must begin with gentle movement exercise of the injured part as soon as possible. This is usually after the first few days and once the swelling is under control.

The aim of exercise after injury is to restore the full range of movement, to help the injured part regain full strength and to recover the endurance of the muscles, which may have been affected by the injury. Balance exercises are also important to restore control of the limb. These can be done using a balance board, which is particularly useful for ankle and knee injuries. Sometimes, exercises performed standing on one leg can also help with balance.

For further details or information on any sports injury prevention, recovery or cure, please follow the links below:

British Chiropractic Association (BCA)
Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP)
International Federation of Sport Physiotherapy (IFSP)
Sports Injury Clinic
Arthritis Research Campaign (The ARC)

Last modified on Thu, 11 Jun 2009 07:20:45 BST by external

 

Sports nutrition can be a very complicated topic for those seeking a balanced way to eat healthy, satisfying meals that also help achieve peak athletic performance. It may also surprise you to learn that in many ways, an athletes nutritional requirements aren't much different from a normal student who has chosen to be less active. You both have the same needs for a variety of nutrients, including vitamins and minerals, about the same requirements for fat, and surprisingly, your need for protein is only slightly higher as an athlete than that of the non-athlete. One important nutritional difference you have as an athlete is that your carbohydrate needs are generally much higher. If your sport or physical activity patterns require a higher energy intake, you can eat more from all the food groups, and may even have extra room for foods usually thought of as empty calorie treats The 5 major food groups that will give you the major nutrients your active body needs:

• Protein
• Carbohydrates
• Fats (also called lipids)
• Vitamins
• Minerals
• Another important "nutrient" for athletes is water, or fluids.

Every athlete has different needs, and will require different amounts and type of food in their diet – this is something to consider for any athlete or coach.

Last modified on Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:56:00 BST by external

 

Strength and Conditioning is the physical and physiological development of athletes for elite sport performance. The role of the S&C coach is to bridge the gap between the theory of training and applied training, helping athletes to become faster, stronger and more flexible and to build their muscular endurance so they perform better and remain injury free.

Strength and Conditioning is about more than lifting weights - it encompasses the entire development of the athlete and what is needed to improve physical performance. This includes plyometrics, speed and agility, endurance and core stability with strength training being just one piece of the jigsaw.

A strength and conditioning coach works alongside a sports coach to assist them in designing specific programmes that will address the particular need of the athlete, team and sport. There are many ways a well constructed programme can add to the rehabilitation, speed, agility, endurance and strength of the athletes - a periodised programme that targets both strengths and weaknesses will produce the best possible performance.

Last modified on Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:56:15 BST by external

Goal setting is an important skill in sport and life that helps to give you purpose and confidence - if done well. But understanding why it is important to set goals is also important. A common view of goals is as a tool to be used in the quest for higher levels of motivation. Goal-Setting Theory and subsequent refinements based on research and practice provide a process to create goals that will motivate us to higher levels of performance.

Goals, in this sense, provide a motivational focus; a purpose if you like. If you set goals appropriately you will find that you gain access to feelings of satisfaction, confidence and calm. The flip side is that inappropriate goals can be a source of anxiety or stress. Your goals also represent a means of evaluating your performance and represent core values and beliefs about sport and success. Therefore, it is important to know how to set goals, and why:

1. Make goals as specific as possible. “To compete in the Olympics”. Well, as admirable as that is, you need to ask when, in what sport, in what event?
2. Divide long-term goals into short-term goals with deadlines and priorities. By creating ‘stepping stones’ to the path to your ultimate goal makes things much more clear. It may become apparent that to achieve one goal you may have to trade off against another.
3. Set measurable goals. “Work hard in training” indicates the right sentiment, but will not provide guidance towards your goal. “Attend every session this month” or “Hold a pulse rate of 170 for this next set” however, might.
4. Make goals challenging but achievable. You have to be able to decide, with all available help, whether your goals are achievable. Your goals must be challenging – but goals set too high can demotivate rather than motivate.
5. Evaluate your progress regularly, and be flexible. With your measurable goals, that provide stepping stones to your ultimate goal, you will be able to see how well you are progressing. If for example you achieve your goals before you are expected to, set new ones.
6. Consider writing down your goals, and share them. We tend to commit to goals that are written down, and shared goals are more effective still. If you keep a training or competition log this might be the ideal place to keep your goals written down. However, this is very much down to individual preference.

For more information, please click on some of the links below:

Istadia: Where Sport and Exercise People Meet
Mind Tools
Goal Setting in Sport
Sports Medicine

Last modified on Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:55:43 BST by external

Deciding your commitment to your sport is possibly the most important sports psychology decision you will make. If all you want out of sport is a bit of relaxed fun, then your approach should be entirely different from someone who wants to reach the top. Once you have decided how committed you are, adjust your training and expectations appropriately.

Elite sports performance depends on the athlete being fully committed to numerous goals made over many years. In competition with these goals the athlete will have many aspects of daily life to manage. The many competing interests and commitments include work, studies, family/partner, friends, social life and other hobbies/sports. Within the athlete's sport, commitment can be undermined by:

• a perceived lack of progress or improvement
• not being sufficiently involved in developing the training program
• not understanding the objectives of the training program
• injury
• lack of enjoyment
• anxiety about performance - competition
• becoming bored
• coach athlete not working as a team
• lack of commitment by other athletes

Many people (coach, medical support team, manager, friends, etc) can contribute to an athlete's levels of commitment with appropriate levels of support and positive feedback, especially during times of injury, illness and poor performance. So bare all of this in mind next time you are feeling a lack of commitment, and get the right people on your side.

Last modified on Tue, 30 Jun 2009 13:31:59 BST by external

 

Alcohol is a drug. Alcohol affects all cells in the body but the most immediate physiological and psychological effects are on the brain. These effects are dependent on the blood alcohol concentration. A number of factors may influence this including body size, body fat content, gender. The actual effects of alcohol on athletic performance:

• Greater risk of muscle cramps : During exercise, your muscles burn sugar thereby producing lactic acid. Too much lactic acid leads to muscle fatigue and cramps. If you drink in the 24 hour period before a match the alcohol contributes to a bigger build up of lactic acid and dramatically increases your risk of cramping.
• Greater risk for injuries and complications: Alcohol increases the bleeding and swelling around soft tissue injuries (sprains, bruises, and cuts- the most common sports injuries) requiring a longer recovery period. Alcohol also masks pain, which may lead you to delay in getting treatment—rapid treatment can make all the difference in a speedy recovery. If you’ve been injured, avoid alcohol, as it will complicate your recovery.
• Greater body heat loss : Alcohol is a vasodilator (it causes the blood vessels near the surface of the skin to expand) and thereby promotes heat loss and a lowered body temperature.
• Reduced endurance: The blood sugar your body needs for energy is produced by the liver when it releases glucose into the blood stream. Drinking alcohol in the 48 hour period before a match reduces your body’s ability to produce this sugar, so you have less energy and less endurance capacity.
• Slower reactions: Alcohol is a sedative and it can affect your performance during a game for up to 72 hours after you have finished drinking. Some players think they have less tension and increased relaxation as a result of alcohol. The actual result, however, is poorer hand-eye coordination and slower responses.
• Dehydration: Alcohol promotes water loss. It reduces the production of the anti-diuretic hormone, causing you to urinate more. This, in turn leads to dehydration.
• Vitamin and Mineral Depletion: Water loss caused by alcohol consumption involves the additional loss of important minerals such as magnesium, potassium, calcium, and zinc. These are vital to the maintenance of fluid balance and nerve and muscle action and coordination.
• Reduced aerobic performance: Alcohol reduces the body’s ability to convert food to energy and also reduces carbohydrate/blood sugar levels. These effects, together with lactic acid build-up and dehydration, combine to reduce aerobic performance.
• Muscle injury: The usual treatment for injury (rest, ice, compression, elevation) can be negated due to the painkilling effect of alcohol. If you can’t feel the pain of your injury you are less likely to take care of it and slow your recovery time or even cause further damage.

So, no matter how much training and conditioning you’ve put in, drinking up to 72 hours before a match will take the edge off your fitness. If you want to be the very best you be at your sport you’ll have more of a chance of achieving that by not drinking alcohol. However if you do want to drink it’s best to drink a little and not too often.

 

Last modified on Fri, 03 Jun 2011 15:46:16 BST by rknott

SAQ looks to maximise performance and participation at all levels, using applied sports science to allow performance developments from grass roots/community level or elite performers. SAQ focuses on: warming up on the move, fast feet, rapid changes of direction, quick acceleration, explosive multi-directional speed, correct turning and moving techniques, power for speeds sake and whole body agility. SAQ is important for any athlete, and is vital for all coaches to be aware of. Please see the quotes below.

"SAQ plays a central role within our partnerships, particularly in encouraging teachers to be innovative and develop pupils' generic movement skills".
Geoff Sheldon - Chief Inspector of Physical Education, County Durham.

“With the SAQ Continuum, training possibilities are limited only by your imagination!”
Terry O’Sullivan – Hockey Coach, University College of Cork

"Having been a professional player for over 20 years I have seen many trainers and many training programmes, years of old school, prosaic programs. My experience with SAQ fundamentally changed the way I looked at my training. The SAQ Programme is without doubt one of the reasons I still maintain my current position in the premier league at nearly 37 years old. With continued use I feel able to continue my career well into my 40's."
David James - Goalkeeper, Portsmouth FC

As a Chartered Physiotherapist and Sports Scientist my job in professional football is to oversee Injury Prevention Strategies, Post Injury Rehabilitation and the Fitness Conditioning of my players. The ‘fundamental skills and movement’ taught through SAQ Training drills underpin all these ‘goals’ and provide a framework upon which players can ‘condition’ to play their chosen sport. Consequently I have actively promoted and utilized the SAQ principles heavily in my work from junior football players to Premier League and International players.
Peter Friar MSc MCSP BSc (Hons) - Head of Sport Medicine, Sunderland AFC.

“I introduced SAQ Training principles to my training and conditioning programme and increased my bowling speed by 10mph”
SAQ: Speed, Agility and Quickness Training

 

 

Last modified on Tue, 30 Jun 2009 13:31:36 BST by external