Nutrition Knowledge, Opinions, and Practices of Coaches and Athletic Trainers at a Division I University

2001 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 174-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle Smith Rockwell ◽  
Sharon M. Nickols-Richardson ◽  
Forrest W. Thye

The purpose of this investigation was to assess nutrition knowledge, opinions, and practices of coaches and trainers at a Division I university. Participants (n = 53) completed questionnaires regarding nutrition knowledge, opinions, and practices. Descriptive statistics and analysis of variance were used to analyze data. Overall, participants responded correctly to 67% of nutrition knowledge questions. Participants who coached/trained female athletes tended to score better than respondents who coached/trained male athletes. Strength and conditioning coaches and participants with greater than 15 years of experience scored higher than other participants. Nutrition opinions/practices responses revealed that nutritional supplements were provided for all but 6% of participants’ athletes. Participants rated body weight as more important than body composition to athletes’ performances. Over 30% of participants perceived at least one case of disordered eating within the past year. Some participants (53%) felt that athletes may consume more nutritious meals on team-sponsored trips if given larger food allowances. Thirty percent of participants reported dietitians were available to them; the same percentage reported utilizing dietitians. Coaches and trainers are knowledgeable about some appropriate nutritional recommendations, but registered dietitians or qualified sports nutrition professionals may complement the nutrition-related education and counseling of athletes (23).

2012 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Toni M. Torres-McGehee ◽  
Kelly L. Pritchett ◽  
Deborah Zippel ◽  
Dawn M. Minton ◽  
Adam Cellamare ◽  
...  

Context: Coaches, athletic trainers (ATs), strength and conditioning specialists (SCSs), and registered dietitians are common nutrition resources for athletes, but coaches, ATs, and SCSs might offer only limited nutrition information. Little research exists about sports nutrition knowledge and current available resources for nutrition information for athletes, coaches, ATs, and SCSs. Objective: To identify resources of nutrition information that athletes, coaches, ATs, and SCSs use; to examine nutrition knowledge among athletes, coaches, ATs, and SCSs; and to determine confidence levels in the correctness of nutrition knowledge questions within all groups. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I, II, and III institutions across the United States. Patients and Other Participants: The 579 participants consisted of athletes (n = 185), coaches (n = 131), ATs (n = 192), and SCSs (n = 71). Main Outcome Measure(s): Participants answered questions about nutrition resources and domains regarding basic nutrition, supplements and performance, weight management, and hydration. Adequate sports nutrition knowledge was defined as an overall score of 75% in all domains (highest achievable score was 100%). Results: Participants averaged 68.5% in all domains. The ATs (77.8%) and SCSs (81.6%) had the highest average scores. Adequate knowledge was found in 35.9% of coaches, 71.4% of ATs, 83.1% of SCSs, and only 9% of athletes. The most used nutrition resources for coaches, ATs, and SCSs were registered dietitians. Conclusions: Overall, we demonstrated that ATs and SCSs have adequate sports nutrition knowledge, whereas most coaches and athletes have inadequate knowledge. Athletes have frequent contact with ATs and SCSs; therefore, proper nutrition education among these staff members is critical. We suggest that proper nutrition programming should be provided for athletes, coaches, ATs, and SCSs. However, a separate nutrition program should be integrated for ATs and SCSs. This integrative approach is beneficial for the continuity of care, as both categories of professionals might be developing and integrating preventive or rehabilitative programs for athletes.


2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 1711
Author(s):  
Bilal Demirhan ◽  
Dciparkul Abdırahmanova ◽  
Kanat Canuzakov ◽  
Serdar Geri

In this study, some respiratory functions of athletes from four different sport branches who constitute Kyrgyzstan National Team have been examined. To research, 9 Greco-Roman style wrestlers (24±4,5years), 10 freestyle wrestlers (22,10±3,21 years), 8 judoists (23,6±1,89 years), 8 male athletes (22,29±2.87 years) and 3 female athletes (21.67±2.08 years) totally 35 male and 3 female national athletes have been included. Forced vital capacities (FVC), forced ventilation volumes (FEV1) and peak expiratory flow (PEF) which connected the respiratory levels of the athletes have been measured in preparation stage before 2016 Summer Olympic Games. By being performed istatistical evaluation by SPSS 21.0, it was usedthe computer package program. “One Way ANOVA” test an identifying the differences between the groups and the differences at (P<0,05) level have been accepted as significant. FVC values taken from Judoists were similar to those of male athletes (p>0,05) and significantly higher than other branches (p<0,05). FVC levels of wrestling and athletic athletes reflected similar results (p>0,05). When PEF levels examined, the results of judo and male athletes have been found statistically similar (p>0,05). PEF scores of Greco-Roman wrestling, freestyle wrestling and female athletes have not been found statistically different (p>0,05). FEV1 results of the judoists have been found similar to those of the Greco-Roman style wrestlers (p>0,05) while these results have been found significantly higher than the results of freestyle wrestling and athletic athletes (p<0,05). As a result, Judo athletes' FVC, PEF and FEV1 levels have been found better than other branches involved in the study.


2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 460-468 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel E. Brinkman-Majewski ◽  
Windee M. Weiss

Context: The motivational climate created by the athletic trainer in rehabilitation may be critical in influencing athletes’ intrinsic motivation and other psychosocial outcomes in the rehabilitation and the recovery processes. Objective: To examine intercollege athletes’ perceptions of the motivational climate in the rehabilitation setting. Specifically, examining if perceptions of the motivational climate can predict athletes’ levels of intrinsic motivation with rehabilitation as well as the relationship between perceptions of the motivational climate and athlete demographics (gender, starter status, athletic trainer gender, etc). Design: Cross-sectional, descriptive research. Setting: College sport team and athletic training center. Participants: National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II intercollege athletes from one institution (n = 187; 125 males and 62 females). Main Outcome Measures: Paper-based survey measuring mastery and performance perceptions of the motivational climate in rehabilitation, athletes’ goal orientation in sport, and athletes’ levels of motivation in rehabilitation. Results: Perceptions of a performance climate were positively related to intrinsic motivation effort–improvement (effect size = 25.34%). Perceptions of a mastery climate were positively related to interest–enjoyment and perceived competence and negatively related to tension–pressure (effect size = 39.03%). In general, female athletes, as well as athletes with a female athletic trainer, had significantly higher perceptions of mastery motivational climate effort–improvement than male athletes and athletes with male athletic trainers. While male athletes and athletes with male athletic trainers had higher perceptions of intrateam member rivalry in rehabilitation. Conclusions: The athlete’s gender and goal orientation, as well as the gender of the athletic trainer creating the motivational climate, can influence whether the environment is perceived as more mastery or performance. The recovering athletes’ perceptions of the climate in rehabilitation can, in turn, affect their intrinsic motivation toward the therapeutic interventions.


Author(s):  
Lindsay B. Baker ◽  
Lisa E. Heaton ◽  
Ryan P. Nuccio ◽  
Kimberly W. Stein

Context:Sports nutrition experts recommend that team-sport athletes participating in intermittent high-intensity exercise for ≥1 hr consume 1–4 g carbohydrate/kg 1–4 hr before, 30–60 g carbohydrate/hr during, and 1–1.2 g carbohydrate/kg/hr and 20–25 g protein as soon as possible after exercise. The study objective was to compare observed vs. recommended macronutrient intake of competitive athletes under free-living conditions.Methods:The dietary intake of 29 skill/team-sport athletes (14–19 y; 22 male, 7 female) was observed at a sports training facility by trained registered dietitians for one 24-hr period. Dietitians accompanied subjects to the cafeteria and field/court to record their food and fluid intake during meals and practices/competitions. Other dietary intake within the 24-hr period (e.g., snacks during class) was accounted for by having the subject take a picture of the food/fluid and completing a log.Results:For male and female athletes, respectively, the mean ± SD (and percent of athletes meeting recommended) macronutrient intake around exercise was 1.4 ± 0.6 (73%) and 1.4 ± 1.0 (57%) g carbohydrate/kg in the 4 hr before exercise, 21.1 ± 17.2 (18%) and 18.6 ± 13.2 (29%) g carbohydrate/hrr during exercise, 1.4 ± 1.1 (68%) and 0.9 ± 1.0 (43%) g carbohydrate/kg and 45.2 ± 36.9 (73%) and 18.0 ± 21.2 (43%) g protein in the 1 hr after exercise.Conclusion:The male athletes’ carbohydrate and protein intake more closely approximated recommendations overall than that of the female athletes. The most common shortfall was carbohydrate intake during exercise, as only 18% of male and 29% of female athletes consumed 30–60 g carbohydrate/hr during practice/competition.


2000 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony J. Amorose ◽  
Thelma S. Horn

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among athletes’ intrinsic motivation (IM), gender, scholarship status, perceptions of the number of their teammates receiving scholarships, and perceptions of their coaches’ behavior. Male and female college athletes (N = 386) from a variety of Division I sports completed a series of paper-and-pencil questionnaires. Multivariate analyses revealed that (a) scholarship athletes reported higher levels of IM than did nonscholarship athletes, (b) male athletes reported higher IM than did female athletes, and (c) perceived coaching behaviors were related to athletes’ IM. Specifically, athletes with higher IM perceived their coaches to exhibit a leadership style that emphasized training and instruction and was high in democratic behavior and low in autocratic behavior. In addition, athletes with higher levels of IM perceived that their coaches provided high frequencies of positive and informationally based feedback and low frequencies of punishment-oriented and ignoring behaviors. Results are discussed in terms of cognitive evaluation theory.


1991 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
pp. 779-786 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evelyn G. Hall ◽  
Simon Davies

The present investigation was conducted to test empirically possible gender differences between athletes and nonathletes on measures of perceived intensity and affect of pain. Athletes were 7 male and 7 female NCAA Division I track athletes. The nonathletes, 7 men and 7 women, were randomly selected from undergraduate classes in physical activities. Responses on visual analogue scales for perceived pain intensity and pain affect were recorded for a cold-water pressor test. Significant group differences examined by Bonferroni contrasts indicated differences between non-athletic women and the other 3 groups on intensity of pain and for male and female athletes on pain affect, as well as for male athletes and nonathletes on pain affect. Univariate analyses of variance indicated significant differences on intensity and affect associated with pain. Research must explore whether differences are related to socialization or personality.


Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 1081
Author(s):  
Luke O’Brien ◽  
Kieran Collins ◽  
Farzad Amirabdollhian

Nutrition intake plays a crucial role in improving athletic performance, enhancing adaptations to training, and augmenting recovery from exercise. However, research has reported that Gaelic footballers consistently fail to meet energy and carbohydrate recommendations. Sports nutrition knowledge (SNK) can influence the dietary intake of athletes, and therefore has the potential to have a significant impact on athletic performance. The aim of this study was to investigate the current level of SNK in elite Gaelic footballers (n = 100). An online version of the Nutrition for Sport Knowledge Questionnaire (NSKQ) was used to assess sports SNK. The overall mean SNK scores for Gaelic footballers and practitioners were 47.6 ± 12.3% and 78.1 ± 8.3%, respectively. There were no differences in knowledge between age groups, education level or divisional status. The top three sources of nutrition information identified by participants were team dietitian/nutritionists (84.0%), athletic trainers/strength and conditioning coaches (73%), and social media (37%). The results show that there is a major gap in the SNK of Gaelic footballers, while practitioners demonstrated a promising SNK, that could support Gaelic footballers. There is a need for development of interventions and knowledge transfer partnerships, including more effective methods of educating Gaelic footballers and translating sports nutrition principles to players. Developing appropriate nutritional education strategies using online resources and mobile applications could help to improve nutritional knowledge and practice of Gaelic footballers.


PeerJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. e12066
Author(s):  
Benjamin Hindle ◽  
Anna Lorimer ◽  
Paul Winwood ◽  
Daniel Brimm ◽  
Justin W.L. Keogh

Background The atlas stone lift is a popular strongman exercise where athletes are required to pick up a large, spherical, concrete stone and pass it over a bar or place it on to a ledge. The aim of this study was to use ecologically realistic training loads and set formats to (1) establish the preliminary biomechanical characteristics of athletes performing the atlas stone lift; (2) identify any biomechanical differences between male and female athletes performing the atlas stone lift; and (3) determine temporal and kinematic differences between repetitions of a set of atlas stones of incremental mass. Methods Kinematic measures of hip, knee and ankle joint angle, and temporal measures of phase and repetition duration were collected whilst 20 experienced strongman athletes (female: n = 8, male: n = 12) performed three sets of four stone lifts of incremental mass (up to 85% one repetition maximum) over a fixed-height bar. Results The atlas stone lift was categorised in to five phases: the recovery, initial grip, first pull, lap and second pull phase. The atlas stone lift could be biomechanically characterised by maximal hip and moderate knee flexion and ankle dorsiflexion at the beginning of the first pull; moderate hip and knee flexion and moderate ankle plantarflexion at the beginning of the lap phase; moderate hip and maximal knee flexion and ankle dorsiflexion at the beginning of the second pull phase; and maximal hip, knee extension and ankle plantarflexion at lift completion. When compared with male athletes, female athletes most notably exhibited: greater hip flexion at the beginning of the first pull, lap and second pull phase and at lift completion; and a shorter second pull phase duration. Independent of sex, first pull and lap phase hip and ankle range of motion (ROM) were generally smaller in repetition one than the final three repetitions, while phase and total repetition duration increased throughout the set. Two-way interactions between sex and repetition were identified. Male athletes displayed smaller hip ROM during the second pull phase of the first three repetitions when compared with the final repetition and smaller hip extension at lift completion during the first two repetitions when compared with the final two repetitions. Female athletes did not display these between-repetition differences. Conclusions Some of the between-sex biomechanical differences observed were suggested to be the result of between-sex anthropometric differences. Between-repetition differences observed may be attributed to the increase in stone mass and acute fatigue. The biomechanical characteristics of the atlas stone lift shared similarities with the previously researched Romanian deadlift and front squat. Strongman athletes, coaches and strength and conditioning coaches are recommended to take advantage of these similarities to achieve greater training adaptations and thus performance in the atlas stone lift and its similar movements.


2020 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 36-48
Author(s):  
Sarah Stokowski ◽  
Amanda Paule-Koba ◽  
Andrew Rudd ◽  
Alex Auerbach

The success of an athletic program is often defined by wins and losses. According to the sporting success framework (De Bosscher et al., 2006) as well as the athlete development literacy (ADL) model (Livengood et al., 2015), athlete development contributes to athletic achievement. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between athlete development personnel resources and winning success at NCAA Division I institutions. A total of 150 universities were included in this study. Utilizing the ADL model (Livengood et al. 2015) of personal and player development literacies, athletic department personnel selected for this study included: academic advisors, athletic trainers, doctors, learning specialists, nutritionists, mental health professionals, physical therapists, sport psychologists, as well as strength and conditioning coaches. Winning success was measured using the final 2017-18 Learfield IMG Directors’ Cup standings (Directors’ Cup, 2019). The results suggest that athletic trainers, learning specialists, and sport psychologists significantly contribute to winning success. As such, athletic departments should appropriately invest in athlete development specialists.


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