ISSUE 16.05 July/August 2006

Changing Direction

When Bradley University men's basketball revamped its in-season strength and conditioning program last year, the end result was a trip to the Sweet Sixteen.

Whether you dream about taking on new challenges or playing golf all day in your retirement, neither happens without some preparation. In this article, six athletic trainers talk about how they are making (or have made) the transition.

Hot But Not Bothered

August in South Carolina is hot and humid. NATA Hall of Famer Rod Walters explains how he helps the Gamecocks beat the preseason heat.

Hydro Power

You know the pool is great for rehab, but how about making it a part of strength training program? With a little creativity, pool workouts can build your athletes' fitness while safeguarding them from overuse injuries.

The Strongest Survive

It doesn't substitute for proper training or diet, but creatine can have a place in a strength program. The key is knowing how to use it.

Ali Mims, Florida State University

Around the Florida State University campus, goalkeeper Ali Mims is known as "the soccer player who broke her leg." Mims earned the nickname after sustaining a closed left tibia fracture on Aug. 23, 2002, and spending the better part of two years on crutches. Though medically accurate, the label barely begins to describe the trials and tribulations Mims experienced on her way back to defending the net. After having intramedullary rod placement surgery, Mims began a multi-year journey down a road fraught with complications, 21 separate surgeries, and countless hours of rehab.

Editorial Board Members Honored

During the National Athletic Trainers' Association's 57th Annual Meeting and Clinical Symposia in Atlanta in June, several members of the Training & Conditioning Editorial Board were recognized for their contributions to the profession.

Triad Risk Starts Early

Those hoping to prevent female athletes from developing the symptoms of female athlete triad syndrome—disordered eating, menstrual irregularities, and low bone mass—would do well to focus education efforts on high school girls, according to a study published in the February 2006 issue of the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine. San Diego State University researchers examined 170 female high school athletes in eight sports for the study, and discovered that 20 percent of them exhibited at least one aspect of the triad.

Gulp, Don't Sip

Consuming sports drinks may put athletes more at risk for tooth decay than drinking soda, especially if they sip the drinks over a long period of time. That finding was reported in a recent issue of General Dentistry, a journal published by the American Academy of General Dentistry.

NCAA Releases Drug Use Study

Twenty-four percent of college athletes who use steroids are certain that their coaches know they use them, and 21 percent say their coach, athletic trainer, or team physician supplies the drugs. Those findings are part of the most recent NCAA Study of Substance Use Habits of College Student-Athletes, released in its entirety in April. Conducted every four years, the study polls students across all NCAA divisions. Twenty thousand athletes responded to the most recent survey.