Physically Fit Meets Academically Fit

With Dr. Gillespie and the FITNESSGRAM

For the past 15 years, Dr. Joe Gillespie’s Tests and Measurements class has been conducting the FITNESSGRAM to over 1,000 students in Stephenville. As a result of the Senate Bill 530, fitness testing is now mandatory for all Texas public schools. The test measures four key health-related fitness components: aerobic capacity, muscular strength, muscular endurance, and flexibility. Students who pass at least five of the six steps are given Certificates of Acheivement. All public school students receive a Fitness Report Card which helps to evaluate physical areas of strength as well as areas that need improvement.

According to Dr. Gillespie, his students utilize this opportunity to gain real-world fitness testing experience which helps them prepare for their future careers involving health and wellness.

“This is a great opportunity for students to work in the real world of public schools,” Gillespie says. “This also provides the school with needed assistance in the testing program.”

Studies show that children who are physically fit learn and retain information more effectively than those children who are out of shape. According to the National Association for Sport and Physical Education, students who met minimum fitness levels in three or more physical fitness areas showed the greatest gains in academic achievement at all three grade levels.

Physical fitness correlates with academic success and mental health in a number of ways. Exercise increases oxygen flow to the brain, increases neurotransmitters, and is effective in increasing brain neurotrophins which promote sustained learning and higher thinking.       

Elementary Fitness Test Protocol
Component of Fitness	Test(s)	Measured by:
Aerobic Capacity	P.A.C.E.R.   Mile Run or Half Mile Run	Laps (PACER) Time in minutes (Mile)
Muscular Strength	Push-Ups            Chin-Ups	Repetitions Number performed
Muscular Endurance	Curl-Ups	Repetitions
Flexibility	Sit and Reach Stretch	Centimeters

Amy McKay Speaks...

About the Multiple Sclerosis Association of America

Did you know that more than 400,000 people in the United States have Multiple Sclerosis (MS)?  MS is a chronic and often disabling disease which involves an immune system attack against the central nervous system. It affects the individual’s brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves. Some symptoms for multiple sclerosis include numbness, impairment of speech or coordination, blurred vision, and severe fatigue.

The Multiple Sclerosis Association of America is a group of passionate individuals who aim to better the lives of those suffering from Multiple Sclerosis. Amy McKay, Kinesiology Professor at Tarleton State University who has been an active member of the association for the past five years says, “The importance of this society is to enhance the quality of life in addition to providing technology and funding for individuals with MS.” A friend of McKay’s granted her the opportunity to join the organization in 2008 and since then she has served as an avid speaker to MS groups about the role of nutrition and wellness in “treating” the disease. McKay believes that until a cure is found for MS, it is important for these individuals to aim to live healthy lifestyles.

While the origin of MS has not been definitively identified, scientists currently theorize that the disease may stem from a number of different factors. According to the Multiple Sclerosis Association of America, some believe that the environment and temperature climates may have an effect on a person’s risk to the disease. Statistics show that different populations and ethnic groups have a considerably different prevalence of MS. Others believe that MS may be associated with genetics. These individuals believe that MS may be inherited and that siblings of a person with MS may be at greater risk. While genetics or the environment may or may not be the reason for one’s MS, there are other potential factors such as viruses or hormone levels.

McKay also works to treat MS through the use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). This form of treatment is used in conjunction with the medical treatments and includes everything from diet and exercise, lifestyle changes, and acupuncture. Since there is no cure, medications are used to help modify the disease activity and progression, and rehabilitation sources help MS patients to maintain their ability to perform effectively at home or work. These sources may include cognitive rehabilitation, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech, or vocational therapy. Until a cure is found, the work of the Multiple Sclerosis Association of America and individuals like Amy McKay is vital to the quality of life of persons with MS.

Electrocardiograms (ECGs) & the Physical Exam for Athletes

Electrocardiograms (ECG) have become a routine part of pre-participation physical exams at the collegiate level. The thought behind the use of ECGs is to screen for cardiac adaptations that may lead to sudden cardiac death. Is this practice something that should be implemented for high-school aged athletes as well? Specific considerations should be addressed in the discussion of this topic. For example, who will pay for the follow-up tests, will physicians be given guidelines on abnormal ECG findings, what type of physician should be reading the ECGs, how can false-positive tests be minimized, and will everyone be given an ECG or just those considered to be at high risk?

Budgets at the high-school level are rarely comparable to those at the NCAA Division 1 level, so most likely, the student-athletes would be responsible for the costs associated with the ECG. According to the 2009 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule, the average cost of an ECG is $371. According to research, data predicts that 16% of ECG readings would be read as positive for a cardiac abnormality; however, only 1.3% of that 16% would actually have the abnormality. This leaves a large majority of student-athletes spending money on follow-up costs.

Cardiac abnormalities are often classified as training-induced or pathological which points to the need for physicians to be up-to-date on reading ECGs. Specifically, physicians and exercise physiologist should work together to create ECG guidelines on what is training-induced versus abnormal readings. Also, it could be beneficial to require physicians that are specifically trained in cardiac abnormalities to read the athletes’ ECGs. For example, a cardiologist would be much better practiced at reading ECGs than an orthopedic doctor.

Since research has shown that black males are at the highest risk for cardiac abnormalities, perhaps the ECG screening could be limited to this population. In addition to black males, anyone who has a history indicative of a cardiac abnormality, as defined by the American Heart Association, should also be required to have an ECG prior to participation in athletics.

Athletic trainers need to be educated about the importance of a thorough PPE in order to protect our athletes and do everything in our power to prevent sudden cardiac death. Athletic trainers are in the unique position where we can implement screening tools at the school and also encourage our team physicians to be current on abnormal ECG guidelines. 

Post Athletic Career Fitness

I have found it difficult to keep a consistent personal fitness routine since my athletic career has passed. I am continually searching for that one workout/exercise to match the passion and intensity of my past athletic experiences. In order to combat this issue, I have found it necessary to constantly try new forms of fitness activities. The process of learning, along with my desire to master several new activities, has come close to matching that passion and intensity that I described earlier.  Overall, I feel like keeping one’s routine freshly innovative serves as an adequate way for any former athlete to conquer fitness complacency.

Hiking to Healthy

When I first began hiking it was more for the scenery, fresh air, and the possibility to snap some cool pictures. Then I climbed Guadalupe Peak, the highest natural point in Texas with an elevation of 8,751 feet, with a group of competitive friends; we practically raced up the mountain! I wore a heart rate monitor on that hike and was stunned to see that my heart rate got up to 190 bpm and I burned over 4,000 kcalories. I then realized the incredible physical and cardiovascular benefits of hiking.

Hiking has a unique balance amongst muscular strength, endurance, flexibility, rest, and emotional and spiritual wellness; all that is needed to maintain physical well-being.

Personal Fitness Routine

My personal fitness routine is really not too complicated because I have a high metabolism so it is more challenging to gain weight than it is to lose weight. To sum up my routine, it is a one hour session that consists of first stretching and then an upper body workout followed by some kind of lower body workout. At the end of those two segments the workout ends with a 20 minute jog on the treadmill.

This is a video of what my personal fitness help me do.

Giving 100% at all times

Having a fitness routine clears my mind and simply makes me feel better with myself. I try to get in the weight room at least 4 days a week. I go as hard as my body lets me for 40 to 60 minutes, focusing on heavy weight multiple-joint type of exercises such as squat, power lift, dead lift, and kettlebells. I truly believe that these types of exercises help me carry out my daily life activities more efficiently because my entire body is functionally stressed. I also enjoy my fitness routine because it does not only make me stronger and keeps me healthy but also is a challenge to push myself a little further every day. 

Stairway to a Healthy Life

My fitness routine is quite simple, because of my busy schedule my workouts normally do not last more than an hour and a half. Twice a week I power lift to gain muscle mass and work on getting leaner. These exercises include power cleans, core exercises, squats, hang cleans, and etc. On top of lifting I run 2-3 miles, three times a week to get a good cardiovascular workout in. Since beginning this workout regime, I have noticed that I am more energetic throughout the day and tend to be in a better mood.

The Bulgarian Model

In the early 70’s the Soviet’s were the big dogs when it came to Olympic weightlifting, they took medal after medal at every meet they attended.   It was like this until the small eastern European country of Bulgaria came and took over.   It was their unique training style that helped them to reach the top.   The program consisted of working to a training maximum for each exercise on every day of training.   This is the inspiration behind the current training program I follow.   I do not work to a 1 RM but I do find a rep max that I am able to handle for the day and then repeat following sets with around 85% of the rep max acquired that day.   This allows me to use auto regulation with the training intensities used to keep form over training my body.

Weights and Cardio, That’s all I Need!

Working at a Recreation facility gives me ample amount of time and opportunity to work out regularly. Every week I like to workout at least four times. Mainly I like to lift weights Monday through Thursday, while doing cardio twice a week. I try not to have the same routine every week so my body doesn't get bored or used to the same thing over and over again. When it comes to cardio I find it hard to motivate myself to just run around a track, so what I like to do is play basketball, ride a stationary bike, or play intramural sports. Each and every week I like to change up my routine, it helps me stay motivated and keeps me from getting bored with the same routine.

 An example of a work out week for me would be broken down like this,

Monday	Back and Chest
Tuesday	Biceps and Triceps Cardio: Basketball
Wednesday	Legs Cardio: Stationary Bike
Thursday	Calves and Shoulders

A personal trainer’s choice for exercising.

Being a personal trainer, I am in a fitness environment 5 days a week and usually for a minimum of 50+ hours, which sometimes makes it hard for me to want to workout. What? Really? Yes, believe it or not a personal trainer can sometimes find it difficult to use the equipment in the gym on one's self. But like any good personal trainer that wants to hold themselves to a higher standard then the norm, I stop wasting time, redefine my mind, and bust my behind to be the best separate from the rest. What mode do I prefer to use? Resistant training filled with compound sets, super sets and just the right amount of stability training for fun and to change it up. Without that approach I would find it challenging to shock my body so I can continually get stronger in order to live longer.

Rolling Through the Trees

Being a little to far south to snow ski daily my favorite fitness routine that allows me to have the adrenaline rush that I receive from skiing is mountain biking.  I have just recently developed the love for riding.  It gives me the grueling workout by peddling up and down hills and banking around sharp turns.  The jumps deliver a moment of silence that seems to be rarely felt in the fast pace life we all seem to live.  The time I spend riding allows me to forget about all the stress and craziness that may be going on outside of the trees.  Give it a shot, it might be the first time you felt like a kid in a long time.

Below is a video of a friend and I riding.

Mountain biking in Garland, TX

Going the Distance

These days, my training regime has changed drastically. Around four months ago, I underwent hip surgery; within 3 months I was cleared to workout but I lost motivation to get back into the gym like I was pre-surgery. I used to be about power, speed, and agility; however, these days I find myself training for a half marathon. Running gives me the motivation I need every day to get into great shape and keep a clear mind. Running distance gives me the freedom I need; just give me a pair of running shoes and music and I’ll see you later on..



First place, TSU Female division, at Tarleton Rec Sport's
Memorial Homecoming 5k 2013, Color Me Purple

The 2-3 Zone Defense

The 2-3 zone is one of the most fundamental defensive sets to run in basketball because it is something most basketball players learn to play when they are first starting out. First the point guard is referred to as the 1, the shooting guard is the 2, the small forward is the 3, the power forward is the 4, and last but not least the center is the 5. The 2-3 defense is basically a defensive set where the two quickest guards, which are usually the 1 and 2, are placed on the elbows of the free-throw line because they are the ones who have to do the most moving. The 3 guard often referred to as a small forward, will be on the bottom of the zone with the 4 and five. The middle of the paint should be occupied by the ‘5’ man, which is typically the biggest post player, and the other low man would be the 4 man, often referred to as the power-forward. There are different ways to defend in the 2-3 zones but most of the time the coaches teach the same technique. The video link below shows the most common way of how coaches use the 2-3 zone. The video demonstrates how each player in the zone is suppose to move when the ball is in different positions on the court. Also the video shows what the offense tries to do against a 2-3 zone and what the weaknesses are of this particular zone defense.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yd14RuUbe8

This diagram below shows the set of the 2-3  zone and where each defender is when the ball is at the top of the key.

Fitness Routine - Clean Eating and Lifting

I have always been an active individual; however, it wasn’t until this semester when I got serious about lifting and eating right that I have noticed benefits. I’m learning power lifting lifts, such as power cleans, snatch, and clean and jerk and also learning how to use kettle bells. I lift for an hour and a half, three times a week. In addition I rarely eat out, avoid fried foods, have limited red meat and cheese, and make an effort to eat “clean.” The clean eating makes a huge difference. Without eating healthier, I would not be seeing the benefits from lifting

.

Will Academics be the NCAA’s Salvation?

Recently, there have been many inconsistencies exposed in the NCAA’s enforcement and legitimacy of policies. At broad sight, the NCAA has fumbled key matters which have led many league members, and the always critical outsiders, to question its jurisdiction. The self-inflicting damage was conveyed through inconsistent and erratic enforcement of sanctions on universities such as Miami, Penn State, and the University of Southern California. The NCAA’s iron fist dealing with student-athletes being paid beyond scholarships has also raised many the eyebrow. However, the academic production from student-athletes improves significantly as the NCAA is simultaneously questioned on its morality.  

The NCAA recently announced that 82 percent of Division I student-athletes who entered college in 2006 earned their degrees, the highest ever, 8 percent higher than in 1995 when the initial tracking began.

The day will come when the NCAA will have to answer the questions about their many inconsistencies and fallacies regarding the sanctions levied on these universities. A judgment of dividing up profits with student-athletes may also be soon approaching.  On the other hand, while it is an athletic association with endless flaws, it has truly made a significant impact upon the lives of thousands of student-athletes by seeing them through graduation by the implementation of tracking academic and graduation success rates. Through this tracking, administrators, coaches, and even student-athletes are working together to ensure that education is at the core of every athletic department.  The NCAA has a more than admirable handle on academics within collegiate athletics. If ever questioned on its effectiveness, this is certainly something for the NCAA to hang its hat on.

“Over the Back” - The Call All Fans and Coaches Beg For

In almost every single basketball game, an official will hear the fans, or even the coaches, say “Over the back, over the back!” But did you know that the screams for an “over the back” whistle isn’t even a rule? “Over the back” is a legal play in the game of basketball.  Specifically the play is when a player jumps over the defensive player to grab a rebound or attempt to rebound the basketball.  But even officials tend to call this a foul, and smart coaches will be fuming by the call.

As an official, we must know what is legal and what is illegal when it comes to these certain situations. If a player is just taller or even more athletic and has a higher vertical jump, the player may reach over another player to get the ball. That being said, that player may not go through the back or on the back.

If a person goes through or on someone’s back, it is the official’s responsibility to call a foul.  Once a foul has been made by an official for a play like this, it’s still not called “over the back.” When reporting this type of foul, it’s either a push or illegal use of hands.

As an official, we must be patient with these types of plays – not all contact is illegal. For beginning officials, it is important to understand the ‘advantage/disadvantage’ concept. If a player doesn’t gain an advantage on the play, then that should be a no call and the play should move on. Illegal contact hinders an opponent from preforming normal defensive and offensive movement, this provides a disadvantage for a player and a foul should be called.

Officials, fans, and coaches should realize that there is no such thing as “over the back” in the game of basketball. Officials adhere to the rules as outlined in the rule book. The fans and coaches should, and probably will, find something else to yell about during a game.

Why fad diets are bad diets!

A personal trainer’s main responsibilities are to help people get healthy or maintain their healthy lifestyle. Making someone ‘skinny’ should never be the objective; although, what people often want is not what they need.  Fad diets have become extremely popular, particularly with women, but these shortcuts to weight loss and ‘skinny jeans’ are often unhealthy and detrimental to the body systems.

A fad diet is a weight loss plan, or aid, that promises dramatic results but do not result in long-term weight loss.  Professionals in the health and fitness industry realize that these diets (fad diets) can actually be dangerous to a person’s health. Most fad diets are focused on extremely concepts such as high carbohydrate/low fat, unrealistic portion sizes, liquid diets, or even diet pills/herbal remedies.

Young adults often turn to fad diets as a quick fix to solve their weight issues. The ages at which many of these diets take places are between 18-28 years old. “Despite the warnings from physicians about short cuts to weight loss, many young adults choose fad diets, because they want to obtain the glamorized image of thinness and beauty.”(Wax, 2012) ²  Many young people have a warped self-image and see themselves as overweight - even if they are not - simply because they don’t ‘fit’ into the paper-thin world of the fashion industry.  Skinny jeans are a prime example of a fashion trend that causes many young people to embrace fad diets.

Fad diets are one of the most popular regimens that women use to lose weight. More so than men, some will go from one fad diet to the next despite the fact that the one before did not work. These fad diets have cleaver, catchy names that entice and encourage young women, for example the Skinny Girl Diet! Yet, regardless of promises and the hype, the fad diet will always end in heartache and failure.

Personal trainers must be educated in nutrition education so that they can educate their clients about the dangers of fad diets. Personal trainers should provide their clients nutritional sound and safe ways to lose weight. The http://www.foodpyramid.com/mypyramid/ is a reputable site for providing basic information.

Reminder --- the only safe, long-term solution to weight loss is EXERCISE & PROPER NUTRITION and any fad diet that stands alone will turn some into a bag of bones.