Sprinting and vertical jump performance are important skills in the game of soccer. In terms of sprinting, a soccer player will sprint every 90 s during a match. These sprints average about 2-4 seconds and can account for up to 11% of the distance covered during a match. And with vertical jump performance think of all the times a player will go up for a header, off a corner or as a keeper exploding up to deflect a ball over the cross bar. So while intuitively it makes sense that sprinting and jumping are important in soccer it would be beneficial to know how important they are. And from a strength and conditioning perspective, how important is a strength exercise like the back squat, to improving these qualities? A group of researchers looked to answer these questions and called upon a Norwegian pro soccer club to participate in the study. 17 male soccer players from Rosenborg FC, average age 25 years, were put through a number of performance tests to see how what the relationship was between the 1 RM half squat with sprinting and jumping. Rosenborg FC is a top flight team in Norway having won their league a number of times and participating in the Champions League. For the 1 RM back half squat players did barbell back squats to 90 degrees of knee flexion, adding load until a 1 RM was determined. Once they were warmed up, most players took three to six sets to determine their 1 RM. For the sprint test, players ran from 0-30 m with photocell timing gates. Splits were recorded at each 10 m and the players rested 5 minutes between the two attempts. The best sprint time was included in the data presented. And for the vertical jump a force platform was...

Abs are made in the kitchen. You just to need to move more. Weight loss is 90% nutrition. Consistency is key, don't skip a workout. You can't out-train a poor diet. Maybe you've heard some of these sayings before. And maybe you know a few others. We hear them all the time, don't we? And the truth is that in order to get lean, exercise and nutrition matter. But sometimes we're making consistent, intense efforts and yet the pounds don't melt off. This is when we tend to hear a number of the other comments including: I have a slow metabolism. I have a thyroid condition. It's my genetics. And for some, these may apply. But before we throw our hands up and wave the white towel we should know that while exercise and nutrition are important for weight loss they aren't the only players in this game. Visit healthyw8 and use the body fat calculator then check below five more things to try if achieving a lean physique is your goal. Reverse Your Eating Schedule Do you eat breakfast? A number of people will say no to eating in the morning and cite no appetite, no time or that they use intermittent fasting. The truth is that those who lose the most weight eat breakfast. And they eat more protein at breakfast. More interesting still is that we're starting to understand our chronotypes and circadian rhythms. Our bodies use and store nutrients and calories differently depending on the time of day. In the morning, our bodies convert calories from food to glycogen for use right away. And we are more likely to burn these short term energy stores during the work to come. At night however we are more likely to store these calories as fat rather then burn them....

Even athletes will sometimes find themselves in situations when they don't feel like training. This can be after a long playoff run. It could be during the rehab of an injury. Or it could near the end of a career when the drive just isn't the the same as it once was. So what do you do to overcome a rut? How do you get going when you have no momentum? What helps you develop inertia to fuel future efforts? Sometimes it's as simple as taking the first step. And trail running offers a great analogy to help us get going. Here's how.   1 - The Arms Are the Drivers If you're a runner you'll know how important the arms swing is for success. The arms help propel us and help us maintain balance. And because the arms don't have to overcome the same resistance to gravity and are shorter levers than the legs, they can dictate the cadence of our stride. What this means is that our legs will follow the speed of our arm swing. Want to move your legs more quickly? Swing your arms faster. This is a great technique when climbing hills and near the end of races when fatigue may limit how quickly we can turn over the legs. There will be something health-wise that comes easier to you than most. Maybe you are really good at meal planning. Maybe you are good at getting yourself to sleep on time. Maybe you are always punctual. Maybe you are good at keeping notes and journalling. All of these things lead to success. The key is to do what you're good at to start. Other positive habits will spin off from the good effort you are making in another area of your life. 2 - Lean Into...

There's a story I heard about a special family pot roast recipe. And the recipe would include the type of meat required, the ingredients needed, how long to cook the meat and at what temperature. And one of the steps involved cutting six inches off the end of the roast before placing it in the roaster. Every family that had a copy of the recipe for this special meal would follow the instructions to a tee. It was such a delicious and memorable meal to enjoy that no one dared making any changes or substitutions. One year when the family had gathered for a holiday meal the question was posed to grandma, ' why do we cut six inches off the end of the roast?'. And grandma's answer was that otherwise the meat wouldn't fit into the roasting pan. There can be other things in life where what we've been told or always believed isn't actually the case. Or sometimes not even necessary. For example, think about what you've been told about low back pain. It used to be we were supposed to spend the day in bed and not move. And once we were able, we were then encouraged to do some stretches to prevent a future occurrence. Neither of these are the best plan to help with low back pain. More specifically, a number of people may have back pain in the morning. This can happen because we've been in bed for up to 8 hours and the vertebral discs are unloaded and not subjected to the same vertical force of gravity. Without the vertical loading on the discs while sleeping the discs can accumulate fluid and swell, increasing their size. A larger disc then has less physical space to the adjacent vertebrae. With less physical space between the...

Do you watch The Bachelor? If you're not familiar, this is the ABC show that involves a young bachelor dating 25 young women to find his future partner. And there is a comparable franchise, The Bachelorette, where the set up is the opposite and the 25 suitors are men vying for the hand of one fair maiden. Contestants on the show spend six weeks living in a mansion during which time there are a variety of challenges, dates and other opportunities to compete for an engagement ring at the end. There have been over fifty seasons of this show since 2002. And although the goal at the end of each season is to have two young people get engaged, the long term success of these couples is about 10%. Shocking, right? While on the show contestants have time off from work and family commitments, they are whisked around the world on private jets, staying in luxury resorts, enjoying gourmet meals all while living in a mansion in Southern California staffed with chefs, maids, chauffer and stylists. Once the show ends all of these amenities and perks end. The clock has struck midnight for Cinderella and the day-to-day grind resumes. Is it any surprise 90% of these relationships fail? This is completely ignoring the fact that the best relationships take time, and not just six weeks, as is the time frame for this show. The Bachelor relationships fail because: All stress is removed from the individual's lifeThe end goal is fast-trackedContestants focus on the end goal of getting a rose and then a ringAll the experiences during the show are the best you'll have in lifePeople act differently in front of the cameraEveryone shows their best side and tries to hide their wartsAlcohol typically worsens decisions and relationships The reason The Bachelor...

  'It's the most important meal of the day.' 'I fast and don't eat until noon.' 'I'm never hungry when I wake up.' 'I train in the morning and feel nauseous when I eat before.' 'I'm so rushed in the morning I don't have time to eat.' Maybe you've heard, or used one of these before? Because when it comes to breakfast there are more options and opinions compared to lunch and dinner. Breakfast is kind of in a category by itself. But may it deserves a little more attention and priority. We've written previously here how nutrients are used differently in the morning compared to the rest of the day. We are also more likely to overeat at dinner compared to breakfast. And those that lose weight, and keep it off, are more likely to eat breakfast. And now a new study suggests skipping breakfast may leave us lacking in certain nutrients. The study looked at the diets of 30,000 Americans and found them to be missing the calcium in milk, the vitamin C from fruit, the vitamins, minerals and nutrients in fortified cereals, and were never made up during the day. So when you don't eat breakfast, you miss out on certain nutrients, which you don't get later in the day and this creates gaps in the nutritional profile. Low levels of calcium, fiber, potassium and vitamin D, as well as iron for expectant mothers, can lead to health problems including weak teeth and bones, digestive issues, cramps and anemia. For children, nutrient deficiencies can impact cognitive function, concentration and lead to behavioral issues. In this study a little over 15% of participants admitted to skipping breakfast. Missing this meal meant lower levels of folate, calcium, iron and vitamins A, B, B2, B3, C and D. And breakfast skippers...

Three Okanagan Peak Performance Inc athletes will compete next month at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. Kierra Smith and Taylor Ruck will compete in swimming with Malindi Elmore joining them for the marathon in track and field. Tokyo bound Canadian marathon record holder Malindi Elmore. Kierra Smith (2nd from left) and Taylor Ruck (right) heading to Tokyo for swimming. And while their stories are all a little different as are their sports and events, there are a few things they share in common. 1 - They chose well in university Kierra studied communications. Malindi did a double major in French and International Relations. Taylor was undeclared in her first year at Stanford (where Malindi was as well btw). But it wasn't the choice of major that I'm referring to but where they put their time and attention. In university there are three things you can do including academics, athletics and partying. And you can do two of these things really well. These three women chose well and worked hard in the classroom, the track and the pool. Take home message: There are a lot of options, and distractions, in life. Success comes from putting in the work and turning down opportunities and fun times occasionally. 2 - When it's time to be all-in, they're all -in At the top levels of any sport, everyone is talented. What distinguishes the good from the great is the commitment to the process, day in and day out. They get the sleep they need. They eat the foods to fuel training and enhance recovery. They take care of their bodies and make decisions which move them closer to their goals. I remember Kierra sharing a story after the end of a season at Minnesota. She finished last at the NCAA championships. This wasn't what...

Nothing makes us happier as coaches to see one of our clients achieve the results they are seeking. Coach Trevor has been working with Mike Lee over the last year and wanted to share some of his successes. Take it away Coach Trevor! Hello! I’d like to present to you Mike Lee. Mike is a sommelier who recently wrapped up an 8-year career at Quail’s Gate winery. He spent an additional 3 years at Mission Hill prior to Quail’s Gate and originates from the UK. Mike is a skilled golfer who plays about 2 times per week at the Bear and Quail and enjoys his free time cooking and going for walks with his girlfriend Deb. His favourite show is Seinfeld, and he loves a glass of white wine with a side of olives. Currently, Mike is a part of Fine Vintage Ltd where he gets to share his passion and educate others on how to master the world of wine. There is no question Mike enjoys this culture, but he possesses the same passion for his own health and fitness. He gets himself to the facility 3 times a week with additional days to warm up for golf. Mike enjoys going to the cabin and getting out for some fishing. About a year ago Mike had injured his back on the golf course. He wobbled in one day and met with Chris. Together, they were able to relieve the pain and start picking up weights within a month or two. I think this was a turning point for Mike, as he saw results through his commitment and hard work. So where is he now? Mike is currently eating 5 heads of lettuce every two days and has dropped 25 lbs in the last 5 ½ months. He is moving better...

Do you remember when Michael Phelps was competing and there was an article that came out about him eating 12,000 calories per day? There were some that said there's no way this could be and was all made up. And others were saying they heard he liked to eat McDonald's and therefore it was very reasonable that he could eat this much. And then a metabolic specialist did the math and looked at Phelps's size (he's 6'4"), his training volume (swimmers can do up to 100 km a week in the pool), his age (he was 30 years at the time) and did the math to see if this amount of calories was reasonable. In the end they did deem this to be a possible (although not regular) caloric intake due to the fact that being immersed in and surrounded by water causes the body to expend more calories to maintain a normal temperature. And whether it's Phelps or any of our sports heroes it's always interesting to learn what they do. While we not be able to match the God-given talents many of them possess, we can certainly mimic the positive habits that allow them to be great. A recent paper looked at what a professional soccer player eats on game day. Here's what they found. 1 - They eat 6-8 grams of carbohydrate per kg body mass Portuguese soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo tips the scales at 83 kilograms which means on game day he will consume 498-664 grams of carbohydrate on game day. If he eats three meals on this day this works out to 166-221 grams per meal or 100-132 grams per meal if he eats five times per day. The take home message is that carbs are crucial to fuel top level soccer performance. Low-carb and keto...

In the past year, there have been a number of things we started doing to lessen our chance of catching COVID. These include limiting our social bubbles, wearing masks, washing our hands, sanitizing surfaces and social distancing. But what we don't hear a lot about from our health authorities and governments is the value of exercise and nutrition. We've written previously here about the benefits of exercise as it relates to COVID. Sleep has always been known to be highly correlated with how effectively our immune system functions. And now new research is showing that healthy eating plays a huge role as it relates to the coronavirus. A joint study between King's College in the UK and Harvard University looked at the nutritional habits of 600, 000 participants during the pandemic. The study had participants fill out questionnaires about the quality of their nutrition, whether the contracted COVID, and if so, what their symptoms were like. The investigators defined higher quality nutrition as that which includes eating larger amounts of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, oily fish and fewer processed foods and refined carbohydrates. Study subjects that ate a higher quality diet were 10% less likely to catch COVID compared to those eating the lowest quality nutrition. Of all 600,000 involved in the study almost 19% contracted COVID. As well, those eating higher quality nutrition were 40% less likely to become severely ill. Lastly, consuming a high quality diet was associated with healthier and more diverse bacteria microbes in the gut, lower inflammation, lower body fat and improved blood fat and blood sugar. Researchers aren't sure what accounted for the difference in lower risk and lessor symptoms when eating a higher quality diet. They speculate that it is related to the level of inflammation in the body and this may play...

Hi Peak Performer! I've got a question for you and it's if you had a great weekend? Because we sure did. And what made is so great? Well, it's because we had so much quality family time and some great meals. Some of the fun things we got up to included going to the beach on Saturday for a swim followed by dinner and ice cream with some friends. And...

Hi Peak Performer! We're one week from the opening of the Tokyo Olympics. What do you think about that? There are a variety of opinions on this. Some huge supporters of sport are not sure the Games should go ahead. They cite the state of emergency in Japan and the fact that many countries are still recovering from the pandemic. And I get that. At t...