The Sports Recovery Toolkit has A TON of great information! I've played around with a Recovery Score Card for the athletes that I work with - especially during championship and tournament times. Has anyone else used a tool like this to educate and motivate athletes? If so, how did you go about selecting and assigning points to recovery strategies and modalities?

When access is limited, hydration needs to last longer. Explore fueling and hydration approaches designed to support sustained performance across longer efforts. Foods Fluids For Endurance Sports.pdf Nutrition for Football Players.pdf

When every minute counts, hydration matters more. Find tools and guidance to help athletes rehydrate efficiently and get back out there. Optimizing Performance and Safety Through Proper Hydration.pdf Understanding Electrolytes and Hydration.pdf

Gatorade can help address your hydration needs. Understand what’s lost in sweat and how proper fluid intake helps athletes perform at their best. Science of Hydration.pdf Whats Lost in Sweat.pdf

On 4/6/2026 at 7:52 PM, Hunter.Glas said: This really resonates. When I was a high school strength coach the football season is where I learned this the hard way. Coaches came out of camp wanting to keep the momentum going, early season lifting was heavy. Mid way through the season guys were too beat up after practice to do anything meaningful. The program got worse as the season went on. What helped change this was simplifying the program and setting up the weight room before they arrived so athletes could move through it fast with no decisions to make. Less standing around and training was more efficient. Honestly, simplifying and pulling back volume made me feel like I wasn’t doing my job. But the athletes were actually giving more intent and started showing up consistently. It all kind of clicked after that. Commitment to a lighter session beats a skipped heavy one every time. Reducing volume isn’t the failure. Ignoring your athletes’ capacity is That's smart. Make the program easier to execute.

Join us in Salt Lake City to network with Gatorade Sports Science Institute experts and learn about the latest advancements in the field. MAY 26 The Physiology of Hydration: More Than Water Alone 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM MDT Location: Hyatt Regency Salt Lake City |  Salt Lake Ballroom ABC Session 1: Sweating the detail: New insights on hydration considerations for athlete performance Speaker: Lewis James, PhD, Associate Professor in Human Nutrition in the School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences at Loughborough University Session 2: Functional ingredients in fluid replacement beverages for athletes Speaker: Lindsay Baker, PhD, FACSM, Director of GSSI at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute Session 3: The hydration toolkit: Practical approaches to athlete support Speaker: Floris Wardenaar, PhD, Associate Professor at the College of Health Solutions at Arizona State University Earn up to 3 CECs RSVP Here MAY 27 12:00 - 7:00 PM MDT Location: Salt Palace Convention Center MAY 28 9:30 AM- 5:00 PM MDT Location: Salt Palace Convention Center MAY 29 9:30 AM- 1:00 PM MDT Location: Salt Palace Convention Center

Join us in Las Vegas for the opportunity to gain insights and speak with leading experts in the collegiate athletic training industry. MAY 14 Expo Hours 10:00 AM–6:30 PM PDT Location: The Orleans Hotel & Casino The Invisible Edge: The Sleep-Nutrition-Hormone Triad Driving Collegiate Athletic Performance and Recovery 3:30–4:30 PM PDT Location: The Orleans Hotel & Casino | Mardi Gras Ballroom A Sleep is a critical neurobiological performance driver—not just recovery. This session equips athletic trainers with the neurobiology and practical frameworks to optimize sleep and address performance gaps in collegiate athletes, while navigating the unique challenges they face. Featuring guest speaker Joanna Fong-Isariyawongse, MD, FAES, FAAN, Associate Professor of Neurology RSVP Here Poolside Social 6:45–8:00 PM PDT Location: The Orleans Hotel & Casino Poolside MAY 15 Expo Hours 7:00 AM–3:15 PM PDT Location: The Orleans Hotel & Casino

Hello Everyone! After almost a year of posting and connecting with people on Gatorade Field House, I'm excited to finally introduce myself! My name is Katie Knappenberger and I'm a Program Director of Performance Nutrition with 15+ years of experience as a sports dietitian in the collegiate setting. I'm a board certified specialist in sports dietetics and a certified athletic trainer. My sweet spot is at the intersection of sports dietetics and sports medicine. I love learning about, researching, and speaking on nutrition for injury risk reduction and rehabilitation. This includes nutrition strategies for tissue repair, energy availability, fueling a return to sport, anti-inflammatory eating patters, and fostering a diverse gut microbiome. I also really love working with athletes on behavior change and setting up systems to foster the behaviors that support their goals on and off the field. A few themes/conversations that keep popping up for me over the last few months: With athletes, the biggest one I hear is "I mostly know what to do — but how do I actually get myself to do it consistently?" Within elite athletics knowledge gaps aren't always the problem. The real challenge is building sustainable habits and systems that hold up through a busy season, a tough training block, or life just getting in the way. I love working through that puzzle. I've also had conversations with athletics support staff members recently who are struggling to set up sustainable self-care systems for themselves. It's honestly hard to consistently work with athletes on recovery and performance when you're running on empty yourself. It's a conversation our field doesn't have nearly enough. I would love to connect with your all! Whether you're an AT navigating a tough rehab case and you want to chat about nutrition interventions, a clinician trying to change athletes behavior so that it better aligns with their goals, or ready to start a support group where we (practitioners) share our biggest hacks for taking care of ourselves during a crazy season - I'm here for it! Drop a question, share something you've been wondering about, or push back on something that I've said. Looking forward to continuing to be part of this community!

As strength and conditioning coaches, we all have our own philosophies, programs, and preferences when it comes to training on the road. Obviously, resources play a big role when deciding what to buy, pack, and travel with. Our travel cases have evolved over the years as we’ve added and removed equipment—our gear changes as our programs and ideas do. That said, we still rely on a few staples: PowerBlocks, various bands, a range of pads and mats, equipment to target balance and foot/lower limb strength, soft tissue tools, etc. I’m curious to hear what other coaches rely on in their travel cases. I’m also interested in people’s experiences traveling with larger pieces of equipment like the 1080, different flywheel setups, OHM, or anything in that realm.

Hey Russell - Our football program also practices in the early mornings throughout the year. Two things I'd focus on first: Educate — Make sure athletes understand what to consume before practice (easily digestible carbs + fluids) and why it matters (The GSSI resources above do a great job explaining this). Training hard in a fasted state can tank both performance and health, so helping your athletes connect those dots goes a long way. Quick verbal reminders and simple signage have worked for us. Provide options when you can — Things like Gatorade, applesauce, bananas, granola bars (low fiber, low protein, high carb), or even fruit snacks and sport chews are perfect for this window. They could start eating/drinking these items on their way to the workout. And if you're able to set food and drink out at your facility, place them somewhere athletes have to walk past on the way in or out of the locker room — that visual cue makes a big difference. That's where I'd start, but there's a lot more to dig into — what to do if an athlete says they aren't hungry, managing GI concerns, budget-friendly options when providing fuel isn't realistic, and more. Happy to keep the conversation going!