Sports Nutrition For Champions!

Don't take sports nutrition lightly! All champions have the right sports nutrition! Fuel your body with the right foods to help you compete at a high level!

Sue Bird is an elite athlete by anyone's standard. She has been a champion at every level from high school to the UConn Huskies to the U.S. National Team to the WNBA's Seattle Storm! She has been a WNBA All-Star and All-WNBA in each of her four seasons! Sue is known as a fierce competitor. Following is an interview of Sue on the WNBA's website:



Q: What is your motivation when don't feel like working out, running that extra mile, or waking up early?

Sue: "My motivation is actually thinking about the feeling I get once working out is over. Working out can be hard sometimes. Especially if you're tired, your muscles are sore. But whenever you're done working out, there is always that relief that it's over, like ahhhhh, and you feel really good about yourself. And that helps me to get through it."

Q: Was there a time in your career or lifetime of playing basketball when you thought about giving up the game?

Sue: "No, never. I'm too young for that."

Q: How important is a healthy diet and good nutrition for your overall success?

Sue: "When I was in college, and even my first few years in the WNBA, I took nutrition for granted. I didn't pay attention. I ate McDonalds and stuff.

But when I went to Russia this past offseason, I made a concerted effort to eat right. I made my own food, not just relying on fast food. Kamila actually helped me with that a lot. So when I came back, I was in the best shape of my life and I really felt the difference. So now I'm a big believer in watching what you eat."

Q: What are some snacks you like or favorite meals?

Sue: "As for snacks, I don't really snack as much as I used to. When I do, it's mostly things like cheese and crackers, fruit."

As I always tell my clients, YOU NEED TO EAT LIKE AN ATHLETE! Case closed!

Download your Free Report, "What to Never Eat After You Workout!" Fuel your body all day to give you better results during and after workouts.

Mark Dilworth, BA, PES
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Sports Fitness Tips for Girls and Women

Female Athletes Should Train The Same Way As Males

Speed and explosive strength training are the same for both genders. While males do have more physical strength than females, the same biomechanical motions are used by both sexes.

Therefore, females need to train the same way as males while allowing for differences in gender make-up (see discussion below). And women shouldn't worry about getting too bulky. Proper training will allow women to remain flexible (and not muscle-bound) while gaining strength.

Female Muscle Make-Up---Weight Training Guidelines

The source of this information is from the National Strength & Conditioning Association, the American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine, and the American Academy of Pediatrics:

Although males and females should basically train the same way biomechanically, there are some differences in gender bodily make-up that should be considered for female athlete weight training:

#1 Females demonstrate a lower Hamstring to Quadricep ratio. This means females typically have weaker hamstrings compared to males.

#2 Females demonstrate different muscle activation patterns compared to males. Females are typically Quadricep dominant athletes. This means females use their strong Quadriceps muscles and do not use their weak hamstrings enough. How does this affect Anterior Cruciate Knee injuries?

The hamstring muscle group acts to protect the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) and the Quadricep muscle group places STRESS on the Anterior Cruciate Ligament. Therefore, Quadricep dominant muscle work demonstrated by females places excessive stress on the ACL.

#3 Females demonstrate strength weakness comparing one leg to the other. Studies show that 20-30% of female athletes have one leg significantly weaker than the other leg. If a female has a muscle weakness of 15% or greater from one leg to the other, they are 2.6 times more likely to suffer a leg injury.

#4 Females demonstrate a slower speed of muscle contraction. The typical female takes 3 tenths of a second longer to generate MAXIMUM contraction of the hamstrings. This may seem insignificant, however realize that a sprinter spends less than a tenth of a second balancing on one foot before pushing off and landing on the other foot. If the hamstrings do not contract fast enough the Anterior Cruciate Ligament may be in jeopardy.

As a personal trainer, I take these facts into consideration when training female athletes and females in general.

Young Girls

Girls, of primary concern to you is to begin developing peak bone mass. After graduating from high school, girls have all the bone mass they will ever have--Unless they strength train to increase it.

According to a recent issue in Pediatric Physical Therapy (2006; 18 [1], 19-22), soccer is a great activity for adolescent girls. It combines weight-bearing exercise with repetitive impact from running and jumping. This significantly increases bone density which reduces the risk of osteoporosis.

Nutritional Note to Girls

I do not recommend extreme diets that omit one or more of the macronutrients. The macronutrients are fat, protein and carbohydrates. No doubt, bad fad diets have contributed to diseases such as anorexia and bulimia. Female athletes are at risk when diets are inadequate because of concerns about weight gain.

Ladies, get your game on!

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Other things being equal, a muscular, powerful athlete will outperform a fat, slower or skinny, weaker athlete. Sports Fitness Hut's Fat Blaster Athletic Power Training System will give you your "lean and mean" athletic machine!

Mark Dilworth, BA, PES
Your Fitness University
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Female Athletes Should Develop Strong Hamstrings

Females demonstrate a lower hamstring to quadriceps ratio. This means females typically have weaker hamstrings compared to males. Females demonstrate different muscle activation patterns compared to males. Females are typically quadriceps dominant athletes. This means females use their strong quadriceps muscles and do not use their weak hamstrings enough.

How does this affect Anterior Cruciate Knee injuries? The hamstring muscle group acts to protect the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) and the quadriceps muscle group places STRESS on the Anterior Cruciate Ligament.

Therefore, quadriceps dominant muscle work demonstrated by females places excessive stress on the knee's ACL. Research suggests that the hamstring muscle group should be 60%-80% the strength of the quadriceps muscle group.

Download your FREE 10-Minute Strength and Power Workouts now!

Other things being equal, a muscular, powerful athlete will outperform a fat, slower or skinny, weaker athlete. Sports Fitness Hut's Fat Blaster Athletic Power Training System will give you your "lean and mean" athletic machine!

Mark Dilworth, BA, PES
Your Fitness University
My Fitness Hut
Her Fitness Hut
Sports Fitness Hut
Rapid Fat Loss and Six Pack Abs

Differing Leg Strength In Female Athletes

Some females demonstrate different strength levels when comparing one leg to the other. Studies show that 20-30% of female athletes have one leg significantly weaker than the other leg.

If a female has a muscle weakness of 15% or greater from one leg to the other, she is 2.6 times more likely to suffer a leg injury. Training should be customized to strengthen the weaker leg and bring it up to par (or close) with the stronger leg.

Equal or similar strength in legs will improve the athlete's dynamic balance (keeping center of gravity over a constantly changing base of support) and reduce chances of injury.

Download your FREE 10-Minute Strength and Power Workouts now!

Other things being equal, a muscular, powerful athlete will outperform a fat, slower or skinny, weaker athlete. Sports Fitness Hut's Fat Blaster Athletic Power Training System will give you your "lean and mean" athletic machine!

Mark Dilworth, BA, PES
Your Fitness University
My Fitness Hut
Her Fitness Hut
Sports Fitness Hut
Rapid Fat Loss and Six Pack Abs

Female Athletes Should Train The Same Way As Males

Speed and explosive strength training are the same for both female and male. While males do have more physical strength than females, the same biomechanical motions are used by both sexes.

Therefore, females need to train the same way as males. And women shouldn't worry about getting too bulky. Proper training will allow women to remain flexible (and not muscle-bound) while gaining strength.

Download your FREE 10-Minute Strength and Power Workouts now!

Other things being equal, a muscular, powerful athlete will outperform a fat, slower or skinny, weaker athlete. Sports Fitness Hut's Fat Blaster Athletic Power Training System will give you your "lean and mean" athletic machine!

Mark Dilworth, BA, PES
Your Fitness University
My Fitness Hut
Her Fitness Hut
Sports Fitness Hut
Rapid Fat Loss and Six Pack Abs