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REPLAY, Fueled by Gatorade(R) Returns for Season Two By Tradingmarkets.com
February 26, 2010
Today, The Gatorade Company and FOX Sports Net announce the second season of the successful, original program, REPLAY the Series, Fueled by Gatorade, which re-stages classic games between some of the nation's biggest high school sports rivalries. In its second season, REPLAY will reunite two high school hockey powerhouses from Detroit - the Trenton Trojans and the Detroit Catholic Central Shamrocks - who were unable to finish their second match up of the 1999 season after a life threatening injury forced an early end to the game with the score tied 4-4.
 
"Hockey passion runs deep in Detroit, and is felt throughout the community," said Brendan Shanahan, NHL Vice-President and former Detroit Red Wings forward. "The NHL is thrilled Gatorade is giving the original players of these two teams a second chance to settle their score in front of all their friends and family."
 
To get ready for their once-in-a-lifetime rematch, the Trenton and DCC players will take part in a customized 8-week training and nutrition program developed by the Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI) and implemented with the help of professionals from Velocity Sports Performance. GSSI has worked with elite and professional athletes for more than 25 years and will help the Trenton and DCC squads understand their individual fueling needs as athletes before, during and after their on- and off-ice training sessions.
 
"We are looking forward to working with these athletes to prove once you're an athlete, you're always an athlete," said Sarah Robb O'Hagan, chief marketing officer of Gatorade. "It's an honor to be able to prepare these teams to come together in the spirit of sport, passion and good natured rivalry as they compete for their schools one last time."
 
The REPLAY game is tentatively scheduled to take place in early May and a documentary produced by FOX Sports Net about the REPLAY athletes' journey will air nationwide in June.
 
"This is an exciting opportunity to collaborate with Gatorade on a very creative and home grown project," said Read Jackson, FSN's senior vice president of production and executive producer of REPLAY. "The tone of the REPLAY documentary series provides a trip down memory lane as viewers get to vicariously re-live their high school sports experience, whether they played on a team or not."
 
As the Trenton and DCC players prepare for their game, REPLAY fans can follow their journey by visiting www.replaytheseries.com, the official home of REPLAY. Visitors to the site can also check out the first season of REPLAY that featured one of the nation's biggest high school football rivalries between the Easton Area Red Rovers and the Phillipsburg Stateliners.
 
REPLAY, a series of sports documentaries focusing on rematches between great rivalries, is based on an original concept from the creative teams at Gatorade and TBWAChiatDay Los Angeles.
Strength Training for Children By Velocity Sports Performance
May 12, 2009

Strength Training for Children

Dispelling the Myths

Myth #1: If my child starts strength training too early, it will stunt their growth!
Fact:  This fear stems primarily from early reports of potential damage to growth plates. However, more recent studies have shown that with proper training and techniques, strength training can actually reduce the risk of damage to growth plates, joints and soft tissues. Studies have also shown that strength training in young children will thicken bones though increased bone density.

Myth #2:  Training can cause serious injuries!
Fact: Actually, strength training can help reduce the risk of injuries in adolescents. Studies have shown that the potentially serious injuries reported were a result of power lifting, which focus on maximum lifting abilities, as opposed to strength training, which focuses on resistance methods. The majority of injuries from strength training, when they occur, are muscle strains. A competently supervised training program led by certified coaches will reduce this risk.

Myth #3 : My child is too young to see any real improvements from strength training.
Fact: Studies show that children as young as 6 can see improvements in strength when adhering to specific guidelines. While pre-adolescents will not see increases in actual muscle size, there will be noticeable gains in muscle strength and motor fitness skills, such as jumping and sprinting.

Strength Training at Velocity Sports Performance

 The most significant component of a strength program is certified, knowledgeable and experienced supervision. At Velocity Sports Performance, we require all of our coaches to be degreed and certified, and have experience coaching at different levels. Our coaches have degrees in Exercise Science or a related field, and are certified through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, including many with certifications as a United States Weightlifting Club Coach.
 
 Safety is our top priority, so we begin by teaching proper technique, and teaching athletes how to be safe and aware in a weight room setting. We will begin strength training programs with athletes as young as 8, but keep in mind that strength training does not necessarily imply weights. For our younger athletes, the majority of strength training centers around body weight, meaning that they are using their own body weight as resistance to build strength. This can be accomplished though exercises such as squats, lunges, pull-ups, crunches, push-ups and pre-hab exercises, which are used to help prevent injuries. For our older, adolescent athletes, once competency and proper technique is demonstrated, we will begin to add resistance such as weights, dumbbells and barbells. But because technique diminishes as weight increases, it is crucial for our coaches to continue monitoring proper technique, and removing weights if necessary to help prevent potential injuries related to improper technique.

Continued strength training allows athletes to reach their genetic potential. Studies have shown that after just 6 weeks of discontinuing a strength program, improvements in muscle strength are reduced. At Velocity Sports Performance we have strength programs that allow athletes to continue to improve and maintain strength levels both in and off-season.

 

 

 

Top Five Strength Moves For Basketball Players By Velocity Sports Performance
May 05, 2009

Players need overall lower body strength, single leg strength, upper back and shoulder strength, mobility, and a solid core. The game also subjects players to pounding and stress on the lower body. Strength movements are needed to protect the tendons, ligaments, and joints as well as maintain muscular balance. Along with strength movements, there should be a focus on hip and ankle mobility, tissue quality, and overall recovery.

The population that we generally work with consists of middle school and high school athletes.

 The following are the top five movements that we use to develop strength in our basketball athletes:
 
 
1 Squats: Squats are the cornerstone of all of our athletic development programs. This exercise requires great posterior chain strength as well as core strength. We use variations of this lift depending on the age and experience of the athlete.

We usually begin with a box squat to teach the glutes to fire and the hips to relax. From there, we use front squats because we really like the range of motion that it forces the athletes to achieve. We also cycle in back squats on a heavier day, single leg squats to mimic the single leg explosiveness required on the court, and overhead squats to challenge the shoulders, thoracic spine, and core. 

  2. Deadlifts: Deadlifts are another great movement to train the posterior chain. We love this exercise because it hits the muscles throughout the mid and upper back and the traps. It's also good for grip training.

We use this exercise on alternating squat days and progress from blocks to the floor as the athletes get more mobile in their hips. Our athletes love this exercise because they can usually pull some heavy weights, and they feel great when they finally "engage" their glutes. 

  3. Overhead pressing: Many basketball movements happen over the head so my athletes always perform some variation of an overhead press. We don't do much bench pressing with our basketball athletes because we  want them to be strong and solid from an upright position.

We start with a dumbbell press to develop balance and unilateral strength. Then, we move on to barbell overhead presses to develop a range of motion through the shoulders and stability in the rhomboids and trapezius. Many of the high school athletes that we see are weak in this area so it's a great developer for them. As the kids progress, we throw some stretch bands on the bar to make the movement more dynamic as they go overhead. The focus of this movement is always a solid base and tight core, driving the weight hard over the head. 

  4. Chin ups: Our athletes have a love-hate relationship with the chin-up bar. They hate the movement at first because body weight movements are tough. Then, they learn to love it as they see the progress and development that they get in overall upper body strength and speed development. This is a great functional exercise in terms of posture and injury prevention with the physical aspect of the game.

The first step for our chin-up movement is to have a jump stretch band under one knee until the athlete can comfortably perform several sets of eight. We then progress to a full body weight movement, focusing on driving the elbows down to the ribcage and squeezing the lat muscles hard at the top of the movement.

  5. Weighted abdominal work: Our weighted work generally consists of heavy jump stretch band pull-downs, medicine ball sit-ups, bungie cord sit-ups, and medicine ball rotations and throws (seated or standing). The extra implements force the athletes to really engage the core musculature and add a focus of athletic strength as opposed to lying on your back doing sets and sets of crunches.

We want our athletes in the positions they will be in on the court with the ability to fight off defenders, not get knocked around. We achieve this through a lot of standing abdominal work and medicine ball throws. We keep the repetitions moderately low (10-12) to focus on quality work.

These movements and their variations have been very successful in developing general and sport-specific strength for my athletes. They are able to withstand the rigors of the season and avoid injury. Regardless of the level of athlete, strength development is of paramount importance to a successful athletic development program.

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Articles
Velocity Sports Performance NYC By Velocity Sports Performance
January 20, 2010
Gatorade Replay Athletes are Velocity Trained By Velocity Sports Performance
March 03, 2010
Untitled Document

Velocity Sports Performance is proud to be the Official Performance Training Provider for the athletes of Gatorade® REPLAY™. In 2009, Gatorade arranged a rematch between archrivals Easton Area High School and Phillipsburg High School 15 years after a game that ended in a 7-7 tie. Velocity trained the 34 year old athletes before they replayed the biggest game of their lives. The results were remarkable, and we’re not just talking about the score….

Training May Curb Some Sports Injuries In Women Clipped from NPR.org
September 10, 2008
Women are more prone than their male counterparts to specific injuries — namely knee injuries like tears of the ACL, or anterior cruciate ligament. A prevention program at the University of Cincinnati is aiming to curb these injuries in women.

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