Great question! Sleep is one of the most powerful and most underused tools in an athlete’s training ****nal. I often tell athletes that sleep isn’t a break from training; it is part of it. It is the time when the brain and body rebuild, recharge, and adapt to all the stress they put in during the day. As someone who studies cognitive performance and neural recovery, I have seen how sleep shapes everything from reaction time to emotional control. The science is clear. When athletes do not get enough sleep, everything suffers. Reaction time slows, accuracy drops, decision-making falters, and injury risk goes up. One night of poor sleep can impair performance about as much as mild alcohol intoxication. I have seen this play out firsthand with professional athletes. When I talk to teams and high-performance professionals, I frame sleep as a trainable skill, something you can improve just like strength, speed, or nutrition. I frame sleep as a trainable skill, just like strength or reaction time, and I focus on performance-driven strategies rather than the usual “sleep hygiene” checklist. We talk about how to use light, temperature, and recovery cycles strategically. Studies show that when athletes focus on these basics, their sleep quality, reaction time, and recovery metrics all improve. I also encourage coaches and sports medicine staff to bring in a sleep specialist for a short workshop, because once athletes understand the science, they get it. They start to see sleep as an edge, not a chore. And when that shift happens, everything changes. They begin to protect their sleep the way they protect their training schedule. In the end, I remind them that it is not just how hard you train but how well you recover that separates good from great. Sleep is the hidden performance enhancer, completely legal, completely free, and completely essential.

24 hours before the event: Encourage them to start hydrating well the day before. Urine should be pale yellow — that’s an easy self-check. A good target is about half their body weight in ounces of water over the day (for example, a 150-lb athlete would aim for around 75 oz). They should sip throughout the day rather than chugging large amounts at once. 2–3 hours before competition: Have them drink 16–24 oz (about 500–700 mL) of water or a sports drink. This tops off hydration levels and gives the body time to process and eliminate excess fluid. 20- 30 minutes before start: A small top-up of 5–10 oz (150–300 mL) helps maintain hydration

On 3/10/2025 at 9:38 AM, JordanAllen said: I find it hard to get my athletes to hydrate following games/competitions. Does anyone have helpful strategies that may help me influence my high school athletes to hydrate well after activity? Thank you in advance for the help. Hydration after games and competitions is one of the most overlooked aspects of recovery, especially among high school athletes. I’ve found success using a combination of education, habit-building, and environment-based strategies rather than just reminders. 1. Make It Practical, Not Just Informational: Most athletes know hydration is important but don’t feel the effects immediately. Try showing them the why — for example, tracking body weight before and after games to demonstrate fluid loss, or having them note how their energy or soreness levels change when they hydrate properly versus when they don’t. 2. Build a Routine Around It: Create a “post-game checklist” that includes refueling and rehydrating as standard, not optional. You can link hydration to something they already do, like stretching or team debrief. Example: “water + protein snack before we talk.” Consistency helps turn it into habit.

The idea of being “strong enough” really depends on context — the athlete, their sport, their goals, and their history. I don’t think there’s a single universal threshold where strength stops mattering, but there is a point where building more strength provides less return for performance compared to other qualities like speed, skill, or durability. For example: Sport demands matter most. A powerlifter can never be “too strong” in their lifts because that’s the sport. But for a soccer or basketball player, once their strength supports efficient movement, injury prevention, and power output, additional maximal strength might not improve performance as much as focusing on agility, conditioning, or coordination. Training age plays a role too. For a young or novice athlete, increasing general strength almost always pays off. But for an experienced athlete, gains come slower and require more recovery — so the focus might shift toward maintaining strength while emphasizing speed and movement quality. Injury history also shapes the “enough.” Sometimes, continuing to chase heavier loads increases risk more than it adds benefit. In those cases, strength maintenance and balanced mobility or stability become more valuable. On 9/22/2025 at 5:49 PM, JordanForget said: Many coaches have heard the expression "how strong is strong enough?". Coaches may of course have differing opinions whether there is even such a thing as "strong enough" and what variables lead one to even begin considering such scenario. However, I'm curious how coaches view strength through some possible variables that come into play: previous injury, training age, sport demands, etc. So, when looking at your athletes, when do you begin to consider if an athlete is "strong enough"? Is is in a particular exercise, in which case you may choose to just change exercises? Or is there a threshold in which once an athlete passes, you deem there to be diminishing returns? I'm sure many of you can provide a wide variety of perspectives, based on experience, context, research, and general opinions. I look forward to hearing your thoughts. On 10/5/2025 at 10:40 PM, Hunter.Glas said: Great question Jordan! This is where context matters. I look at strength as a continuum. Its value changes based on an athlete’s training age, injury history, position, and current performance needs. A younger athlete or someone new to the weight room probably needs to build more raw strength. An athlete that squats double bodyweight doesn’t need to keep chasing heavier numbers. For them, it’s about how fast and efficiently they can use the strength they already have. We should ask ourselves “what’s actually limiting their performance”? If someone produces high levels of force and moves well in their sport but lacks explosiveness, then strength likely isn’t the issue. It might be how quickly they can express that force or how coordinated they are at speed. On the other hand, if they struggle to hold position, absorb contact, or control deceleration, they probably still need to build a stronger foundation. As coaches we should try to connect weight room progress to on-court performance. Track how strength improvements show up in jump tests, acceleration, change of direction, and overall durability. When those areas stop improving along with strength, that athlete is probably strong enough for now. From there, the focus should shift toward power, elasticity, and movement efficiency.

We are excited to present next week! I hope to see many familiar faces attend this important topic. Let us know if you have any preliminary questions. We would be happy to answer them in advance or feel free to bring them to the webinar. There will be a question and answer portion. Dr. Kim Schwabenbauer

On 10/6/2025 at 8:50 AM, tristenmartinez said: How necessary do you think it is to be dual credentialed. I am finishing up my DPT program right now, and plan on going to a Sports Residency next year to start the track towards my SCS. I have noticed that most professionals in professional leagues are dual credentialed PT/ATC. When I was taking my emergency response course one of my instructors told me that this might phase out as residencies have gotten much more robust with venue coverage. Would love to get your thoughts on this! @tristenmartinez Anything you can do to enhance and diversify your skillset is absolutely a good growth decision. This can set you up for future opportunities and employment down the line. I wouldn't say that it is 100% necessary as there are individuals that are not dual credentialed working in professional sports. However, I was younger and looking at various staffs within the NFL, I observed a high percentage of physical therapists were also dual credentialed and this helped prepare me for determining future career paths. The way the curriculums and natural landscape of athletic training and DPT programs are currently constituted makes it difficult to complete 4 years of undergrad, 2 years of a MAT, and a 3 year DPT program. Residencies are becoming more robust as you mentioned and there are a plethora of programs out there to assist with sideline coverage exposure and promote physical therapists in athletic venue environments; yet, does not replace the skill set of an athletic trainer. It also depends on what role/duty you would be interested in as you may have differing responsibilities based on the credentials that you have. All in all I would recommend doing your own research and self reflection of what position/role you want, and reverse engineering your career plan on how best to get there!

Hi @hwoma332 ! We’re currently hosting an Ask Me Anything with Ali, an athletic trainer for the Green Bay Packers. If you’d like to ask him this question directly, you can drop it here .

Hi @Ed Lee - Great question—this one might be best suited for Ali. I’d recommend posting it directly in the AMA topic here so he can see it there. Let me know if you run into any issues or have any other questions!

Stiptik, non adherent pad, cover roll, band aid maybe.

I would recommend courses in the Functional Range Systems such as Functional Range Conditioning and the FRS Internal Strength Model. I use those in my rehabilitation programs.