Knowledge Nuggets

SIRC Blog Core strength and stability training is performed by most if not all competitive athletes these days. In fact it is one of the few training forms that is effective for all sport disciplines. The core is central to all athletic movement, whether it is generated from the area or passes through it. It...

Did You Know? Losing weight is more than counting consumed calories or trying to burn calories through exercise. One reason there isn’t a “one-size-fits-all” approach to weight loss is that each individual has a unique microbiome that may affect the way in which we absorb calories.

Did You Know? In addition to having important water safety skills, children who learn to swim early on in their lives reap loads of developmental benefits. Find out more about how and why early swimmers were more developed cognitively and linguistically than their non-swimmer peers. 

Did You Know? The influence parents have on their children includes physical activity levels and sedentary time. When parents increase their time spent active, their children experience a rise in their own physical activity level. The same goes for time sedentary time. Healthy habits involve the whole family!

Nutrition On days you exercise, you generally burn more calories than you would on rest days. Other activities, in addition to muscle recovery, mean that you shouldn’t necessarily be cutting back on calories on rest days, though. 

What do you think? A recent study explored issues surrounding segregated sport for people with impairments and addressed the question of whether or not segregated sport perpetuates inequity. It appears that different sport streams, both integrated and segregated, can meet the individual needs of athletes and be experienced in positive ways that support athlete development...

SIRC Blog For athletes at high levels, the ability to control one’s mind in the moments leading up to performance is a key element of pre-performance preparation. Music has been used by many athletes as a way of addressing pre-performance states in a variety of ways. This recent study looked at the use of music...

Word of the Day Sport specialization means devoting the majority of training and competition to a single sport, sport discipline or position. Sports requiring flexibility and acrobatic skills such as gymnastics, diving or figure skating, where athletes compete at high levels younger than in most other sports, are called “early specialization” sports. Most other sports,...

Teaching Moment Decreased flexibility, joint mobility, and balance are all a result of bad posture. Bad habits add up. Learn more about how your posture can affect the alignment of your entire body and what you can do to maintain healthy movement patterns. 

Teaching Moment What’s new in LTAD 3.0? Athlete development pathways describe the systems, programs and services that support athlete progression from learning sport skills to achieving podium results and/or living a healthy active life. Sport for Life is hosting a webinar on December 5 from 1-2:30pm EST, presented by Dr. Colin Higgs and Dr. Paul Jurbala, to...