PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas) PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas)

Enhancing Agility with Dynamic Response Drills

Developing swift response times in agility drills is crucial for female athletes aiming to excel on the field or court.

In fact, without incorporating reaction, the drill is not developing agility but rather change of direction skills.

Efficiently reacting to rapidly changing game situations can make all the difference in competition.

By developing response times during training, female athletes can improve their ability to make quick decisions, change direction, and outmaneuver opponents effectively that directly transfer to the field or court, especially when fatigued!

Check out this lateral shuffle-to-sprint drill we use with our athletes to incorporate both visual and auditory reaction skills!

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INJURY Emily Neff (Pappas) INJURY Emily Neff (Pappas)

Building Bulletproof Ankles in the Female Athlete

The ankle is a complex joint, comprising ligaments, tendons, and muscles, provides both stability and mobility, but it's also susceptible to common sports-related injuries like ankle sprains. To reduce injury isks, it's crucial to introduce exercises that build ankle stiffness into their training routines. These exercises aim to fortify the ankle's supportive framework, ultimately enhancing stability and reducing the likelihood of injuries, ensuring our athletes can perform at their best and enjoy a safe and successful sports experience.

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PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas) PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas)

Key Signals of Inadequate Protein Intake for Female Athletes

Protein is the foundation of strength and recovery

Yet, many female athletes find it challenging to meet their protein requirements, particularly during breakfast—the crucial time for muscle replenishment after a night of repair.

Discover the Top Three Indicators of Insufficient Protein Intake

And explore our three favorite quick breakfast ideas to boost protein consumption effortlessly!"

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PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas) PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas)

Unlocking Multi-Plane Power: A Must for Female Athletes

Explosive lower body power is key for female athletes to improve their performance.

Developing this power in multiple planes is essential for improved change of direction abilities, balance, and single-leg stability that mimics real-game scenarios

Plyometric exercises like these Single Leg Skater to Hurdle Hop is an excellent movement combination we program for female athletes with a baseline level of strength and stability.

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PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas) PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas)

Elevate Your Game with Reactive Strength

Reactive strength, the ability to swiftly generate force in response to unexpected movements or stimuli, is a game-changer for female athletes.

It's the key to explosive speed, agility, and enhanced jumping ability.

Reactive strength gives you the edge whether you're sprinting, changing direction rapidly, or aiming to jump higher.

Plyometric exercises like these Band-Assisted Depth Drop to Box Jump are an excellent movement to program for female athletes who have a baseline level of strength to benefit from this type of training!

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PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas) PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas)

ACL Injuries: Why FEMALES more than Males?

As a parent of a female athlete, there is a chance tearing her ACL has crossed your mind more than once.

Over the years we have heard things from Q-angles, to hormones, to the menstrual cycle phases that can all contribute.

Unfortunately, with technology there is a large stream of misinformation that is impacting your daughter’s health and performance.

Our recent intern created a great video that succinctly explains the current science behind female athletes, ACL tears, and what YOU can do to support her from experiencing this injury!

Check it out!

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PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas) PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas)

Protecting Your Daughter from ACL Injuries: Understanding the Factors and Importance of Training

As a parent, you want the best for your daughter, especially regarding her sports performance and well-being. One area of concern for female athletes is the risk of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries. Research has shown an increasing incidence of ACL injuries among female athletes, particularly during adolescence. To protect your daughter from these injuries, it is crucial to understand the complex factors involved and the importance of training.

This article aims to provide parents with valuable insights into ACL injuries and highlight the significance of injury prevention strategies.

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PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas) PERFORMANCE Emily Neff (Pappas)

Key Psychological Factors in ACL Recovery for the Female Athlete

Female athletes are more likely to suffer an ACL injury than male athletes. When it comes to rehabilitation, most focus is played on physical factors. Yet fear of reinjury is the greatest reason for the failure to return to play.

This article discusses the psychological factors that have proven to play a role in the female athlete’s recovery.

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NUTRITION, PERFORMANCE Guest User NUTRITION, PERFORMANCE Guest User

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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INJURY, PERFORMANCE Guest User INJURY, PERFORMANCE Guest User

How SLEEP affects sports PERFORMANCE and INCREASES the risk for sports INJURIES

Sleep is crucial especially for athletes due to the high demands of their sport.

It is often overlooked due to the lack of knowledge athletes have on the importance of sleep for recovery needed in order to play their best out on the field. 

Fatigue and lack of sleep is prevalent in many female athletes because of daily stressors. It is the easiest thing that can be put on the back burner until it takes a toll on their body. 

Sleeping 4-6 hours a night is NOT enough!

Read down below as we dive into the importance of sleep and how sleep deprivation affects sports performance which increases the risk of sports injuries.

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

A Balancing Act: Managing Training Loads for Improved Sport Performance & Decreased Injury Risks

For a female athlete trying to improve her lacrosse game, adding another 2 nights of practice to her schedule may not actually get her the results she wants...

For a female athlete who just rolled her ankle at softball practice... taking 3 entire days off may not get her back on the field as fast as intended.

LESS IS NOT ALWAYS MORE…. and MORE IS NOT ALWAYS BETTER.

The relationship between training load, injury, and performance is much too complex to simplify in a ‘DO MORE’ or ‘DO LESS’ statement. Rather, we have to consider the bigger picture when working towards a certain sport goal.

This is where managing an athlete’s TRAINING LOAD is key to help drive performance and decrease injury risks!

So what does this mean for the female athlete’s who play HIGH volume sports?

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Emily Neff (Pappas) Emily Neff (Pappas)

The Science Behind Sport Specificity

“Sport Specific Training” seems to be all the rage in the sports world.

From weighted bats to banded ladder drills, the sports world has seen its fair share of “sport specific movements”.

But just because these movements LOOK like the sport, does it mean they are the most effective modalities?

What is SPORT SPECIFIC TRAINING and how SPECIFIC should female athletes get?

This article aims to BUST some myths and put some “trends” to bed for good….

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Emily Neff (Pappas) Emily Neff (Pappas)

The Most Effective Recovery Modalities for Female Athletes

Fatigue is a necessary response to training that helps stimulate the body to adapt and improve its fitness. Fatigue accumulated over time also is detrimental to performance and results in a degradation of sport outcomes.

The balance between recovery and fatigue is necessary to help enhance adaptive processes, improve performance, and reduce injury risks

However, not all recovery modalities have the same long term outcomes in regards to adaptation and fatigue management.

This article aims to help coaches, parents, and athletes understand the role fatigue plays in athletic performance, the role of recovery modalities, and how their implementation should DIFFER during periods of TRAINING and COMPETITION.

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