Applied Sports Science newsletter – April 14, 2015

Applied Sports Science news articles, blog posts and research papers for April 14, 2015

 

Stevens won’t let Celtics limit expectations – Boston Celtics Blog – ESPN

ESPN Boston from April 12, 2015

With his team on the verge of securing a playoff berth, Boston Celtics second-year coach Brad Stevens was asked Sunday if he felt his squad was ahead of schedule in the rebuilding process. There was a noticeable pause as Stevens carefully considered his words.

“I like the progress we’ve made,” he said. “I don’t want to say that we’re ahead of schedule, because that would limit us. But I like the progress we’ve made.”

 

Derrick Rose to play more minutes as Chicago Bulls get back to full health

ESPN, NBA from April 12, 2015

Derrick Rose is expected to play some fourth-quarter minutes on Saturday night against the Philadelphia 76ers, which would mark the first time he has done so since returning Wednesday against the Orlando Magic after rehabbing a meniscectomy on his right knee. Rose, who missed almost six weeks after the procedure, has played about 20 minutes per game in his first two appearances since his return.

“We’re going to add another segment to it, so we’ll see how it unfolds,” Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said after Saturday’s shootaround. “He handled the first two (games), which was good. So we’re going to go from there.”

 

Q&A with USMNT and AZ striker Aron Johannsson

US Soccer Players from April 13, 2015

… The 24-year-old took the time to answer some questions we put to him ahead of several high-profile friendlies and this summer’s Gold Cup.

You are one of several Americans playing abroad who is having a great season. What has changed most for you this season compared to last year?

This season has been the most difficult in my life, with injuries playing a big part. It’s been hard to find the same rhythm from last year but I am working hard to get in the same momentum like last year.

 

Comprehensive Recovery Training for Athletes [Part 1]

SpeedEndurance, Travis Hansen from April 10, 2015

I don’t think that there exists a complete guide for athletes that tackles the underrated topic of “Recovery-Regeneration” strategies. In this part one of a multi-part series, I’m going to disclose all of the scientific and practical information that I know of on this topic. In short, I need to breakdown recovery training into two essential categories: Passive and Active.

Both approaches are vital and complement one another.

 

Ask Well: Vigorous Exercise for the Knee-Challenged – NYTimes.com

The New York Times, Well blog from April 10, 2015

Are there high intensity workouts suitable for someone with a bad knee, i.e., torn meniscus?

High-intensity exercise typically involves repeated bouts of brief, lung-burning intervals, interspersed with a few minutes of easy recovery exercise. High-intensity interval training, or H.I.I.T., is appealing because it improves health and fitness in much less time than longer moderate workouts, studies show.

 

Busting A Slump

Kevin Neeld Hockey Training and Athletic Development from April 13, 2015

A lot of teams will go through a slump at some point throughout the season. In recognizing this, it’s imperative to minimize collateral damage and try to keep the team focused.

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This is exactly what happened with the UMass Lowell Hockey Team this season. After graduating a lot of seniors, the team got off to a (surprisingly?) great start before sliding a bit. When the team turned it around coming down the home stretch of the season (ultimately dropping the Hockey East Championship to BU), I asked Devan McConnell (their Director of Sports Performance) to share some insight into how he handled the situation. His thoughts below…

 

Network “hubs” in the brain attract information, much like airport system

University of Michigan Health System from April 13, 2015

One of the brain’s main jobs is information processing – what is critical, however, is that information in the brain gets transferred to the right places at the right times.

Research on large-scale brain networks by the University of Michigan Medical School reveals that “hubs” in the brain – highly connected regions that like hubs of the airport system – tend to consistently attract information flow.

 

A whole new ball game: how data and tech are changing sport | Technology

The Guardian, Technology from April 09, 2015

In February of this year, Charles Barkley, once a US National Basketball Association (NBA) star and now an analyst on TV programme Inside the NBA, said about his mindset whilst a player: “I always believed analytics was crap.”

On the face of it this is a pretty strange comment for an analyst to make. But if you look a little closer at the world of sports, the wider stakeholders stand to benefit as much, if not more, from analytics than the players themselves. With the current data revolution happening in sport, clubs, event organisers and sponsors are even more attuned to the transformative possibilities wrapped up in analytics. But who really has the most to gain?

 

My last run

Jon Udell from April 12, 2015

I don’t mean last as in most recent. I mean last in my lifetime. What I thought was a groin pull a few years ago turns out to have been hip osteoarthritis.

So that sucks. It isn’t life-threatening. I am OK and will be better. It’s not breast cancer, or macular degeneration, or any number of worse things that friends and family have suffered through. I get that. But it’s going to be a hell of an adjustment for me. I’m an active person. I was always planning to be that guy who does mini-triathlons into his 80s. Turns out that wasn’t in the cards.

 

Chicago Cubs among MLB teams offering mental health support systems

ESPN, MLB, Associated Press from April 11, 2015

For Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer, Josh Lifrak is just like hitting coach John Mallee or pitching coach Chris Bosio.

Lifrak is the director of the team’s mental skills program, while Mallee and Bosio are two key members of Joe Maddon’s coaching staff. While Hoyer looks at each of them in a similar way, he also knows what that means in terms of a shift in thinking when it comes to mental health and major league baseball.

 

Protein-rich sports drink developed at Center for Food Innovation

Penn State University from April 09, 2015

A new sports recovery drink developed by a Penn State researcher, produced by the Penn State Berkey Creamery and tested by Penn State football players is now available.

Dr. Pete’s Recovery Drink, a chocolate milk infused with an innovative research-based protein formula, is currently on sale at Café Laura in Mateer Building and will be available in the near future at Berkey Creamery.

 

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