Something in the news ....

Exercise and the brain


How exercise can strengthen the brain.
By Gretchen Reynolds
September 28, 2011


I found this article very interesting because the scientists thought to check the activity in the already existing brain cells and mitochondria and not the fact that new mitochondria's were being produced. The conclusions that they drew from the experiment on the mice was that there was more mitochondrial activity was taking place from the brain cells. With more mitochondrial activity it is believed that this could help with cell revitalization which would then in turn help with mental fatigue. I like how they also mention that they knew it was being performed on mice and that it may not be the same relation to humans but exercise will still be beneficial.


I felt like this would be helpful for high school kids because I feel as though they should all be exercising. If exercise was implemented more regularly then it could potentially help with school. High school kids are still growing and still developing so by keeping the brain active and gaining more mitochondria's they will be keeping more than just their bodies fit. Also this study showed that it could help with the prevention of neurodegenerative diseases which to me would be important because I believe in prevention and even though this hasn't been proven yet, exercise performed correctly wouldn't hurt. Working on preventing things can help to further an athlete's sports performance and work on their mental fatigue.

Just remember ....

What you see in the magazines and on the billboards isn't always what the model looks like.  Not everyone looks like this, but with the right technology and airbrushing, anyone could.  Don't let these images make you think you're not pretty!  

My Philosophies

Philosophies are important for professionals to have. They give them something to stand by as well as something to keep in mind when dealing with difficult situations. As I am going through this program, I am starting to develop my own philosophies towards athletic training while also thinking about the mission of the NATA's.

One of my first beliefs is that the best interest for the athletes needs to come first. If the athlete sustains an injury then their recovery needs to be progressed at a rate that is good for them. A swollen ankle could heal at a different rate for each person. These are all could be case by case. Some coaches could be really pushy and want to get their player back, especially if it is one of their number one players. I know this can be hard for an athlete or coach to hear when the player needs to sit for a few.

Another thing that I believe is that an athlete should strengthen the injured area after it has healed to help prevent re-injury. Strengthening could also begin before the area has completely healed, they would just have to make sure it was within the athletes tolerance and that they didn't push themselves too far. Athletic trainers need to get athletes back to competition as quickly as possible and strengthening is a way to help keep the athlete performing. The health of an athlete is very important.

Going along these lines, gaining the trust of an athlete is something I feel is very important as well. If an athletic trainer can gain the athletes trust then working with them and getting them to do rehabilitation exercises will be much easier. Also when an athlete trusts you then they will feel more comfortable coming up to you and asking you questions or talking about things going on in their life. Last year I spent the whole year at high schools and it was noticeable when they trusted you and felt more comfortable. It was like a light switch was turned on and they would ask me questions and just come up and talk to me.

Nutrition is an area that is changing and the most recent knowledge on it should be obtained. One way to try and gain the athletes trust is being able to help them when they come up with questions about what foods to eat and if they wanted to diet, what the safest way would be. I feel like high school kids have all sorts of questions about nutrition and an athletic trainer should be able to educate them on the questions they have.

Continuing education is an area that should also be followed up by the athletic trainer. This is very important because techniques are changing every day and so isn't the information in the health world. We need to be on top of our game and try our best to have the most up-to-date information for our athletes. Our main goal is to keep our athletes healthy and get them back to competition and if we don't stay current, then we may be using methods that aren't as effective. Each one of these philosophies draws on the others and by improving one, a chain reaction will occur helping to improve the others.