Nitro in the Community

5/26/2010 Just to keep you all informed of what goes on around the area, and how we do a little extra in addition to minding our own store, a couple of weeks ago Coach Kristyn spoke on water safety to the 2^nd graders at Great Oaks Elementary. Tiffany Troyer, our swim school Manager, spent yesterday afternoon at Cactus Ranch elementary to do the same thing. While Tiffany was at Cactus Ranch, I was out at Double File Trail Elementary talking to all of the 3^rd grade classes keeping them safe for this coming summer. Prior to that, we attended Brushy Creek Elementary’s fitness night, and I recently spoke at the Vista Ridge HS end of season tennis banquet with a message about the importance of raising your own personal standards, and to be the best you can be, you have to avoid meeting the “minimums.” Wanted you all to know that Nitro is out and about, and not just indoors at our swim center during practice times.

Gold Medal Mel visits Nitro

Mike Koleber poses with Gold Medal Mel after a visit to Nitro

5/21/2010 Go ahead and type in “Gold Medal Mel” on a search engine, and you will see who will be at the pool to meet all of the kids. Quite a guy, a great friend, and a true ambassador for the sport of swimming.“Gold Medal” Mel Stewart… Mel Stewart was the National Champion in the 200 butterfly 14 different times !! But Mel surprised us with a few of the stories he told. For those who weren’t there to hear and meet Mel, here are a few of the stories you missed:

When he was 8 years old he dove in for his race and he forgot one thing – a pretty important thing – he forgot to tie his suit. What happened? You got it – his suit went down right around his ankles ! Fast forward to him being 10 years old- his first Long Course 100 butterfly. He didn’t realize the second 50 was going to be as tiring as it is/was. About ¼ of the way back on his second 50 he couldn’t move anymore. His body went “vertical” and he stopped making forward progress in the water. He had to grab the lane line and he eventually climbed out of the water, not even finishing the race! Here is my favorite story that he told: When he was a student/athlete at the University of Tennessee, he had written down his goal time for the 200 meter fly for the upcoming world championship meet in 1991. He knew he had to break the current world record of a 1:56+ so his goal time became 1:55.80. He posted this goal time on the inside of his medicine cabinet where he kept his toothpaste so he would see it every morning and every night. One day he opened the cabinet door, and the goal time was gone, and he assumed that a cleaning crew had taken it and thrown it away. He made another one, same time, 1:55.80 and posted the new sheet back inside his medicine cabinet. He went to practice that afternoon and when he walked into the locker room, there was his original sheet with his goal time on it, posted on the wall of the locker room, as one of his roommates removed it and taped it up on the locker room wall. When Mel walked in that day, his teammates all made fun of him and told him how he would never be that fast, and how posting a goal time that fast was such a dumb thing to do, and they laughed and laughed. Mel went to his coach that day and said I need to do more fly in practice. So Mel took that moment and used it for POSITIVE energy ! He began to work even harder than before. The ’91 World Championships arrived and Mel Stewart beat the former world record holder Michael Gross of Germany – with a time of… are you ready for this?? 1:55.69 !! A new World Record !!  Here’s the best part of the story: When Mel flew back to Knoxville, his teammates were all there and they met him in the airport and they all took turns shaking his hand and apologizing for how they treated him. And guess what they decided to do after that? They all began posting goal times in their rooms to see day and night.

Nitro Swim Teams

This video captures what our coaches and parents think of Nitro’s swim teams.

What to Eat Before a Meet

5/5/2010 What to eat before a Meet? Here is your answer – (from the American Swim Coaches Association)… What Should My Child Be Eating Before And During His Competition?

Answered by: Keith B. Wheeler, Ph.D.

The pre-competition meal is really a “mini nutrition period” that occurs in the 4 or 5 hours before the start of the meet. Unfortunately, many swimmers don’t understand the exact role of the pre-competition meal. It has little effect on increasing muscle glycogen levels. It is foods eaten 3 to 4 days before a meet that help establish glycogen levels in the muscles. By Meet days, glycogen levels are mostly “set” and there is little that one can do to increase them in the hours before competition.

The pre-event meal is important for maintaining the blood glucose and liver glycogen stores, key energy sources used in the early stages of competition. By maintaining blood glucose levels at the start of the meet, the dependency on muscle glycogen will be delayed, and that helps prolong endurance. To avoid stomach upset, nausea or that “stuffed” feeling, consume the meal 3 to 4 hours before the start of the meet. Avoid spicy, fatty, and high fiber foods, too. These are difficult to digest and may cause intestinal distress or nausea later during the meet. You’re child will swim more comfortably when he’s eaten easy-to-digest foods, and his stomach is relatively empty.  Nutrition conscious athletes now avoid traditional food such as the steak dinner, as well as other high fat, high protein foods like hamburgers, French fries, chips and mayonnaise. These foods remain in the stomach too long and slow down the digestion process. Foods that are rich in complex carbohydrates are generally easier to digest and empty from the stomach faster than high-fat, high protein foods. That’s important, because not only do you want to swim on a relatively empty stomach, you also want the foods you eat to be efficiently converted to energy. Cereals, pasta, baked potatoes and muffins are good carbohydrate sources that are easily digested and converted into glucose.

Vegetables and fruit juices are also good pre-vent meal items, as well as some dairy items like low fat yogurt, ice milk and low fat milk.

Swimmers, who prefer a light, non-filling pre-competition meal often, substitute a sport nutrition beverage. EXCEED nutritional beverage is an ideal choice for your pre-competition meal: it’s nutritionally complete and well balanced, so you won’t sacrifice essential nutrients if you use it in place of solid food.

Once your child’s competition is under way, his body still needs fluids and nutrients to sustain physical effort and fight fatigue. Although many coaches and swimmers don’t realize it, dehydration can be a problem in swimming, especially if the air and water temperatures are warm. Remember, sweating is the body’s main mechanism for cooling itself; even though his practice and competition takes place in the water, he can still lose a great deal of body water in the form of sweat.

Additionally, water is also needed to aid digestion and energy production. Dehydration robs his body of the primary means to cool itself and generate energy. Your swimmer should observe good nutritional and hydration habits in the time before he competes. If there are several hours before your child’s event, then he can enjoy a light snack or refreshment if he wishes. But if he’s going to swim right away or his event is an hour or less away, he should be very cautious about what he eats and drinks. In the hour preceding competition, he should drink, fruit juices, and beverages or snacks that contain sugar in any form aren’t appropriate this close to competition. They can trigger a sudden drop in blood glucose (hypoglycemia) with the onset of intense activity. Additionally; drinks that contain high concentrations of sucrose (table sugar) tend to empty from the stomach more slowly than water. You don’t want to start swimming with a stomach full of anything, including liquids.

Once his event is underway, his fluid requirements change. His body loses water in the form of sweat, particularly in the distance events, and it should be replaced. Good nutrition is something that you apply everyday throughout the season…not just the day before the meet.