Friday, July 26, 2019. The fourth and final clinic in our series of USATF San Diego Clinics at Del Norte High School was an awesome learning experience and lots of fun for all who attended!
This clinic covered three big topics: (1) Preparation, (2) Recovery, and (3) Nutrition. It was meant for athletes who want to really dedicate themselves to their sports and see major improvements for the upcoming 2019-2020 sports seasons. 9 athletes attended overall, including 8 high school athletes and one outstanding young adult who is looking to get in shape for joining the military!
All athletes received assessments in several dimensions and were given scores and feedback which helped to identify their strengths and improvement areas.
EVENT SCHEDULE:
Part 1: Breakfast and Mental Preparation (9:30-10am)
First, Mickey Ferri (IG @runningeconomist) greeted the guests with a nutritious and yummy breakfast, provided by Track Snacks. The breakfast included home-cooked muffins from Run Fast Cook Fast Eat Slow, all sorts of fruits, eggs, avocado, yogurt and granola, and the usual Track Snacks menu.
Thank you to USATF San Diego, the Del Norte Athletic Foundation, Economics Athletes, the coaches, parents, and athletes, and all who contributed to this great series of events!
As a group, we covered these important topics related to mental preparation:
Why I _______ - link to Dr. Ferri's "Why I Run" blog post
Guide to Prepare for Track Practice - link to blog post - Prepare for Track Practice
"The Athlete's Journey," which included excerpts from Dr. Ferri's presentation about "What Makes a Great Athlete."
Each athlete filled in their own "Why I ____" template, and we discussed motivation as a group. It's always fascinating to hear the different factors that motivate each athlete!
We discussed the long journey toward athletic greatness, the importance of advancing one step at a time, and the time necessary to leave for your body to recover between hard workouts.
Part 2: Posture, Physical Preparation, and The Egoscue Method (10-11:00am)
Second, Brian Bradley and Michael Bellofatto from The Egoscue Method joined us from 10-11am in the school's dance room, where we were surrounded by mirrors!
The Egoscue Method improves posture and reduces pain. Egoscue has 25 locations, including two clinics in San Diego. San Diego residents, you can visit the website for the clinic in Del Mar and the clinic in Mission Valley. They are also in many major U.S. cities, and I highly recommend The Egoscue Method who anyone serious about their athletic performance or who deals with chronic pain.
Michael Bellofatto is a Senior Exercise Therapist at Egoscue Del Mar, and Brian Bradley (IG @themovementnerd50) is one of the most knowledge experts in the world in the Egoscue Method, posture, biomechanics, and human movement. Brian is a speaker & coach for the NFL, YPO, and the Tony Robbins Companies, and he regularly speaks in front of audiences of thousands. It was such an exciting opportunity for the high school athletes to meet Brian and Michale in person and learn from them!
During the hour, Brian and Michael:
Taught us proper posture
Briefly introduced The Egoscue Method
Gave each athlete a personal posture assessment, including photos showing misalignments, and
Taught some of the key exercises in The Egoscue Method
Part 3: Inside Your Body - Recovery & Energy Systems (11am-12pm)
From 11am-12pm, Sean Pangelinan from The Fit Lab joined us to discuss several important topics for athletes, including:
Body composition overview
Energy balance & total energy expenditure
What happens to you body during exercise
How to build muscle
Your heart and oxygen
Sean competed in the 2008 Olympics for Guam as a sprint canoer, and he is one of San Diego's most knowledgeable trainers, coaches, and athletes in the subjects of body composition and energy balance. Sean is founder of The Fit Lab, one of San Diego's premier fitness facilities which specializes in body composition testing, heart rate testing, VO2 max testing, Resting Metabolic Rate testing, and body transformations.
Sean explained the concepts of body composition, and we gave each athlete a quick body composition assessment using the Fit Index scale, which calculated each athlete's 1) Weight, 2) BMI, 3) Body Fat %, 4) Fat-Free Body Weight, 5) Muscle Mass, and 6) BMR.
Part 4: Nutrition for Peak Performance (12-1:00pm)
Lunch was provided by Robeks - yummy acai bowls with fruits! (sorry I didn't get a pic, these bowls were delicious!)
Mary Schneider (IG @greenbodymary) joined us for lunch to discuss Nutrition for Peak Performance. Mary is a professional nutritionist (Certified Plant Based Nutritionist and Holistic Nutritionist), and she is the founder of Green Body Runner. Mary specializes in nutrition coaching for runners.
Mary is an elite marathon runner herself, and it was a huge honor to learn from her. Her current PR is 2 hours 48 mins (approx. 6:26 mile pace), which is on the verge of qualifying for the US Olympic Trials. For more info on Mary, visit www.greenbodyrunner.com.
Mary gave a wonderful and very relevant presentation for the high school athletes, many of whom have heard about the importance of eating healthy but don't fully know what that means, why it's important, or how to do it. In Mary's words, nutrition is not simple "a piece of the puzzle, it is everything!"
Mary emphasized the importance of eating plants, as well as making sure there is enough protein, iron, antioxidants, and calcium in your diet. She gave examples of good and bad foods, and emphasized the importance of eating and drinking before and after workouts. Generally, the more plants you eat, the better you will feel. Plants include natural fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, and anything else that doesn't originate from an animal or lab.
Mary cited several examples of elite plant-based athletes, including Track & Field legend Carl Lewis! While Mary eats a plant-based diet herself, she encouraged all athletes to find what works for them.
The takeaway messages throughout Friday's clinic revolved around the importance of staying disciplined, happy, healthy, and productive over a long period time. The athletes who attended have lofty and ambitious goals, and they have bright and promising futures ahead of them if they stay on track!
👨👩👦👦 Thank you parents for your help and involvement!🙏
It is my hope from Friday’s clinic that everyone:
Learned something new
Made a new friend, &
Had a lot of fun!
I’m honored to have served as your event organizer (and unofficial event photographer)😂
~Mickey Ferri (IG @runningeconomist)
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