014 - Health Movement Podcast - Emily Kaley - Performance Dietitian - Marathon Nutrition - Youth Sports

[00:00:04] Hi everybody, welcome back to another episode of the Health Movement Podcast. This is episode 14 and we have another special guest with us tonight. But before I introduce her, my name is Derek. I'm a teacher of over 20 years, certified personal trainer and a two sport collegiate athlete. With me as always is...

[00:00:24] I'm Tim. I'm a certified athletic trainer, nationally registered EMT and I'm a wellness doctor.

[00:00:29] And as always, we are not doctors. So before you begin any new fitness programs or changing nutrition or anything like that, please consult your physician.

[00:00:38] So without any further ado, here is with us Emily Kaley, who's a performance dietitian. And Emily, I'll let you let you explain more about what you do.

[00:00:50] Yeah. Thanks guys for having me. My name is Emily Kaley and I am a performance dietitian. I am a registered dietitian who is also has her CSSD, which is Certified Sports Specialist Dietitian. So I specifically work with the active population with athletes or people who want to become more active.

[00:01:18] I was born and raised in Maine. My mother is a dietitian and my father actually has diabetes and has had some organ transplant. So I basically grew up in the preventative nutrition kind of world.

[00:01:35] I knew I knew I wanted to become a registered dietitian at a very young age. And I went to my undergrad in Simmons College in Boston to get my nutrition and dietetics bachelor's.

[00:01:49] And then to become a registered dietitian, you actually have to go to a one year dietetic internship. So I went to Charlotte, North Carolina to complete my dietetic internship to sit for the board exam to become a registered dietitian.

[00:02:08] Wow. Yeah.

[00:02:11] That's a, that's a, I did. I was looking at the education stuff and I was psyched to see you come down from Maine to the Boston area and even intern over at Harvard. My sister taught a couple of classes over there and I feel like, you know, it's a big school, but I think you guys were there about the same time. So that was, I don't know, a little nostalgia there, I guess.

[00:02:30] Boston's great. Boston's a great place to go to school.

[00:02:33] Oh, that's, uh, when were you at Harvard?

[00:02:36] Um, Harvard was a internship just when I was in undergrad. So I was in Boston from about 2009 to about 2013. So Harvard must've been like my sophomore year. So like 2020 or 2010 or so.

[00:02:53] That's weird. Uh, that's the same time I was. So I did, I did one of my, uh, athletic training rotations with Harvard sports meds. So I was there, uh, it was the spring of 2010.

[00:03:04] When I was there. So maybe that's a little overlap.

[00:03:07] Maybe. That's so cool.

[00:03:09] Small world. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, the sports, the, the sports performance world, uh, tends to be kind of small.

[00:03:17] Absolutely.

[00:03:17] That's, uh, what's interesting. I, I, I, I had looked at you, your stuff a little earlier. I missed Harvard. So it's interesting.

[00:03:23] Yeah. Just a little gig there. Just a little gig.

[00:03:27] Yeah.

[00:03:27] So after all this schooling and all the hard work, what did that lead you to?

[00:03:33] Yeah. So after the board exam and the dietetic internship, that was probably the hardest part of it all. Um, but I wasn't done yet.

[00:03:44] I wanted to get my master's in sport nutrition. Um, so actually before I decided I wanted my master's, I was connected with a senior sport dietitian with the Olympics in Charlotte, North Carolina, which is where I was finishing my dietetic internship.

[00:04:01] So, um, she actually told me, Hey, come to Colorado Springs, get your master's in sport nutrition, come work for, um, team USA leading up to Rio.

[00:04:12] She gave me some, some work in Charlotte, North Carolina with team USA swimming. So with athletes like Ryan Lochte and Cullen Jones and these amazing meddling athletes.

[00:04:23] So she really set my knee up to really, um, have a really great beginning, uh, path into sport nutrition.

[00:04:31] So went out to Colorado Springs, which is a great hub for sport.

[00:04:36] Just because of the altitude, right?

[00:04:38] Everybody's like naturally blood doping.

[00:04:40] So we have our Olympians out there.

[00:04:43] We have military out there, um, collegiate sports out there, Broncos.

[00:04:48] I mean, you name it, there's that sport.

[00:04:49] So, um, went out to Colorado Springs, had a really great two years out there getting my master's in sport nutrition, working with, um, through the Olympic training center, um, all kinds of different jobs out there.

[00:05:03] Um, also got really well connected with a ton of strength coaches, other dietitians, athletic trainers, all within my program.

[00:05:10] So it was a really great networking opportunity too.

[00:05:13] Um, from there, I kind of went into baseball randomly.

[00:05:18] I had never even played softball and I knew nothing about baseball, but I wanted to stay like within the professional nationally ranked athletes.

[00:05:27] I wasn't interested in collegiate at the time.

[00:05:30] Um, so I went to the Chicago Cubs.

[00:05:32] So I worked with, um, the low A team, the South Bend Cubs in South Bend, Indiana.

[00:05:39] Um, they taught me about baseball.

[00:05:41] I taught them about nutrition and it was a really amazing summer.

[00:05:46] Um, so yeah, baseball was awesome.

[00:05:49] I had no idea how much I'd love with baseball, just bringing these guys from knowing nothing about like their bodies and how to fuel and hydration to a place where they were, they were, they were basically repeating what I was saying.

[00:06:04] And I was like, okay, this is sticking.

[00:06:06] Um, that's gotta be an amazing feeling to see these, like the peak athletes that we have and you're teaching them, you know, how to get even more out of, out of what they have.

[00:06:16] Well, it's gotta be pretty rewarding when they're like, all right, listen to Emily.

[00:06:20] She knows what she's doing.

[00:06:21] We got to go talk to her.

[00:06:22] Like that.

[00:06:23] It's really great.

[00:06:24] It's really.

[00:06:25] Yeah.

[00:06:25] So you started, did you start with the Cubs?

[00:06:28] Was that the first team you were with?

[00:06:30] Yeah.

[00:06:31] Um, so the Cubs was technically the first team I was with.

[00:06:36] Um, really great experience.

[00:06:38] Just one season.

[00:06:39] Um, they did want me to come back, but I, I wasn't, um, about to stay in Indiana.

[00:06:44] I wanted to get closer to my family in New York and back on the East Coast.

[00:06:49] So, um, thankfully there was a job posting with Madison Square Garden athletes.

[00:06:55] Um, so this was working with the New York Knicks, the New York Rangers at the time, the Liberty team, which is on fire right now.

[00:07:03] Like they're going to win it all.

[00:07:05] Yep.

[00:07:06] Yep.

[00:07:06] Um, they were actually with Madison Square.

[00:07:09] Now they're with Barclays Center.

[00:07:10] So they were with Madison Square.

[00:07:12] Um, and then the, basically the G League team of the Knicks, the Westchester Knicks and the like minor,

[00:07:19] the, um, the Rangers, the Wolfpack.

[00:07:24] So we had five, we had five teams.

[00:07:26] There was one dietitian for all five teams at the time.

[00:07:29] And then they brought me on.

[00:07:31] So that kind of showing you like the growth of this industry as well.

[00:07:36] There was one dietitian for all five teams and now it's, they're in a much better place.

[00:07:40] So I was able to go to Madison Square Garden, um, work with those five teams for a year, but I missed baseball.

[00:07:47] Um, so I wanted to get back outside and have that grind of a season and, um, work with those guys.

[00:07:55] So I kind of stayed patient after Madison Square Garden.

[00:07:58] I went to culinary school in Manhattan.

[00:08:00] That was super fun.

[00:08:01] And I've always wanted to do that.

[00:08:02] And then, um, the Mets called me up and the Mets are also having a fantastic season.

[00:08:09] I see a connection between all these teams and their fantastic seasons.

[00:08:13] I don't know what it is.

[00:08:15] Yeah.

[00:08:15] I've, I, it's been years since I've worked with them, but, um, yeah, they're, they're all kind of like coming about.

[00:08:20] Um, but yeah, the, the Mets are doing some, it's so fun seeing my minor league guys that I worked with in the Mets in 2019, 2020 to, you know, be out there on the big, on the big show.

[00:08:35] It's so cool to see them and, um, they're doing fantastic jobs.

[00:08:40] So yeah, the Mets picked me up.

[00:08:41] I was the Mets first full-time dietitian on the minor league side and I built them a nutrition, um, department, um, for the farm system.

[00:08:52] So that was a really, really, really great experience.

[00:08:55] And then COVID hit no minor league season, super fun.

[00:09:00] Um, then I was a free agent for about a year, worked with, um, the draft combine.

[00:09:06] So the inaugural combine as we were talking about, then the nationals.

[00:09:11] Yep.

[00:09:11] They picked me up for a couple seasons, um, built them a nutrition department.

[00:09:17] Minor league side was their first full-time dietitian as well.

[00:09:19] So a lot of these like pioneering roles, which I've really enjoyed building.

[00:09:24] Um, and now I have a private practice for about a year.

[00:09:28] Um, so I'm working with active individuals, athletes of all sorts.

[00:09:33] Um, and I'm also the lead dietitian for a running group called Endorphins, where we have about 20,000 members across the nation.

[00:09:41] So I'm running the New York City Marathon and I got, uh, wrapped up into that.

[00:09:45] So, um, please pray for me in about two weeks that my life.

[00:09:50] Yeah, I was going to say that's coming up.

[00:09:52] We're going to have to do a post here to, to let everybody know how it goes for you.

[00:09:58] Oh no.

[00:09:59] Yeah.

[00:09:59] Yeah.

[00:09:59] Yeah.

[00:10:00] How's the training for that been going?

[00:10:02] I mean, you're, you got a, this is like the big week, isn't it?

[00:10:06] Two weeks out.

[00:10:07] This past weekend I ran 21 miles, which was the biggest long run.

[00:10:12] Um, but basically I'm following a 16 week program.

[00:10:16] I've never run a marathon before.

[00:10:18] I've never run a race before, but leading this space in, you know, the nutrition front for

[00:10:25] this running company and they threw me a bib.

[00:10:28] I couldn't say no.

[00:10:29] And I was, I'm actually really excited.

[00:10:30] The training has been amazing.

[00:10:33] I'm so proud of my body, my 34 year old body.

[00:10:37] I'm turning 34 November 1st.

[00:10:39] So I'm really good.

[00:10:40] Good birthday.

[00:10:41] Yeah.

[00:10:41] Really, really proud.

[00:10:43] And I think because I've been able to properly fuel throughout the whole entire thing with

[00:10:50] during run fuel, right?

[00:10:52] My gels and my hydration, my electrolytes before run after run, my carbo loading, my sleep,

[00:10:59] um, you know, no alcohol, like all these things that I'm doing, I think have really helped.

[00:11:05] Um, so I'm, I'm really lucky that I've been put in this position where I'm putting my

[00:11:11] body through this so that I can help my clients as well.

[00:11:14] So yeah, it's going to be a big party on November 3rd.

[00:11:17] It's just going to be a fun mile.

[00:11:19] What's the date of the race?

[00:11:20] November 3rd.

[00:11:21] Oh, it is.

[00:11:22] Okay.

[00:11:23] I don't know if that was the day after and you needed a day.

[00:11:26] Oh, no, no, no.

[00:11:27] The race is going to be a party.

[00:11:29] The whole training is the, is the tough part.

[00:11:32] November 3rd will just be like, let's go.

[00:11:33] I'll just be highly caffeinated.

[00:11:35] I won't know where I'm at.

[00:11:36] I'm like, what burr am I in?

[00:11:38] I don't know.

[00:11:39] The hay is in the barn at that point.

[00:11:41] Right.

[00:11:41] So it's.

[00:11:43] Yeah.

[00:11:44] I remember, um, a buddy of mine had convinced us to do a, uh, a triathlon.

[00:11:51] It wasn't a real triathlon.

[00:11:52] It was a Massachusetts triathlon.

[00:11:54] So you had to row a mile, um, in like a kayak or a canoe and bike 12 and then run seven or something along those lines.

[00:12:05] And while like eating a sterile.

[00:12:08] Oh, I wish.

[00:12:09] Emily, I gotta tell you, I had no idea what to eat going into it.

[00:12:14] And I did some training.

[00:12:15] I'm like, I don't want to eat too much because I'm going to get sick and I don't want to throw up and all that.

[00:12:19] So I ate almost nothing.

[00:12:20] Yeah.

[00:12:21] And I had a pack of two packs of goo on my bike.

[00:12:24] Oh yeah.

[00:12:25] And by the, uh, no, it was run second bike at the end.

[00:12:28] My hands were like shuttering.

[00:12:30] And this isn't like road racing on the bike.

[00:12:33] It's through the woods, carrying the bike over stream.

[00:12:36] It was miserable.

[00:12:38] And by the end I'm shaking.

[00:12:40] I threw the bike across the finish line.

[00:12:43] They had this vat of peanut butter and bagels next to it.

[00:12:47] And I'm just scooping as much as I can.

[00:12:49] It was one of the worst experiences I've ever had, but I didn't fuel properly.

[00:12:55] And that was, I was probably, I wasn't going to do well, but I was top half for the first half.

[00:13:01] And then it just, I had nothing left in the tank and it was embarrassing to see everybody run by my buddy slaps me on the butt.

[00:13:09] Is he right by me?

[00:13:10] And I'm like, okay, thanks pal.

[00:13:12] That's what I want.

[00:13:13] So you sound like a lot of the runners and the clients that come my way asking.

[00:13:17] They're bonking out.

[00:13:18] They don't know what to do.

[00:13:19] They don't know how to train their gut.

[00:13:21] They don't want to eat because they don't want to feel, you know, nauseous or GI distress.

[00:13:25] And we take them on a path where they're fueling every half hour.

[00:13:30] They know how much water to intake.

[00:13:31] They know where to get their salt tablets from.

[00:13:35] So yeah, you sound like, you sound like all the-

[00:13:38] An idiot.

[00:13:38] You can say it.

[00:13:39] I sound like an idiot.

[00:13:40] Okay.

[00:13:41] Not the first time I've been called that.

[00:13:43] That sounds like a really cool triathlon though.

[00:13:45] I would, honestly, I would like to try it again.

[00:13:48] Yeah.

[00:13:49] When I have a little more knowledge of what to do.

[00:13:53] Well, I put it on new clients, so come my way.

[00:13:55] That sounds good.

[00:13:57] That sounds good.

[00:13:57] I am going to pick your brain a little bit while you're on here too.

[00:14:00] That's all right.

[00:14:01] Yeah, please.

[00:14:03] So what's your morning going to look like before the marathon?

[00:14:06] Do you have what you're eating?

[00:14:08] I assume you know that's all dialed in.

[00:14:11] Yeah.

[00:14:11] Thankfully, they just released our wave and our start time.

[00:14:16] So once you know your wave and your start time, you can kind of work backwards.

[00:14:21] This is my first marathon, so I've been a very slow time.

[00:14:26] So I'm the last wave.

[00:14:28] So I'm starting at 1130.

[00:14:31] Some people are starting at 9, right?

[00:14:34] And some people need to take this.

[00:14:35] Like I'm taking the ferry at 845.

[00:14:37] So we work backwards.

[00:14:38] And this is what I do with my clients.

[00:14:40] So I start at 1130.

[00:14:42] It's going to take with like which wave I'm in and how long it takes to like actually get it across the start line because there's a ton of people.

[00:14:50] It could take about a half hour.

[00:14:52] So I'm, you know, working backwards.

[00:14:54] On the start line, I take a gel.

[00:14:57] It's a caffeinated gel, Morton.

[00:14:58] I don't know if you guys have heard of the Morin gel.

[00:15:01] It like just blew on the scene.

[00:15:03] Like you can't find them at any fleet feed or anything.

[00:15:06] It's a really good gel.

[00:15:08] It's hydrolyzed.

[00:15:09] And they have a caffeine one with 100 milligrams of caffeine.

[00:15:12] So I'm doing a caffeinated gel on the start.

[00:15:16] And I'll also do a caffeinated gel on the hour every hour for hopefully not too many.

[00:15:23] And then leading up to 1130, about 11, I'll do my last whole fruit, my whole, like a whole piece of fruit.

[00:15:33] So like a banana.

[00:15:33] And then at 10, I'll do a peanut butter and honey sandwich on whole wheat bread because I have trained my gut to accept fibrous foods and a little bit of protein.

[00:15:46] And then that's 10.

[00:15:48] And then about eight before I get on the ferry, I'll do the second half of my overnight oats, which is oats, soy milk, maple syrup, chia seeds, flax meal, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and some banana.

[00:16:04] A big old portion of that.

[00:16:06] So I'll do the other half.

[00:16:08] When I wake up, I'll do my cold brew and the first half of my overnight oats to kind of like get the GI going, if you know what I mean, to kind of start that going.

[00:16:17] And I'll do 16 ounces of water and 500 milligrams of sodium.

[00:16:22] So I got this down.

[00:16:24] We have practiced on long runs.

[00:16:26] We have practiced.

[00:16:27] What I tell my clients is don't go into the marathon trying something new.

[00:16:33] We have six plus some people are doing 20 weeks of training.

[00:16:37] We have these beautiful long runs.

[00:16:40] I'm being optimistic.

[00:16:41] Beautiful.

[00:16:42] They're so beautiful.

[00:16:43] Where we can practice this pre-training fuel and during training fuel and listen to our body.

[00:16:50] The whole point is to practice and be like, okay, maybe I'm not a bagel girly.

[00:16:55] Maybe I am a overnight oats person.

[00:16:59] So to really kind of play around with different carbohydrate sources, make sure that we're comfortable with that pre-training meal so that we can go into the marathon confident that I've done this before.

[00:17:12] It's worked.

[00:17:13] I felt really good off this and I'm going to do it again.

[00:17:16] And then even more pre is the few days before the marathon.

[00:17:21] So I'm going to do a three-day carb load.

[00:17:24] So the first day is going to be 350 grams of carbs, which some people would think is low.

[00:17:32] But actually, that's for me going to work.

[00:17:36] So it really should be 800 per the science and the research.

[00:17:42] But that's way too many carbs.

[00:17:44] So the first day is going to be 350.

[00:17:46] The second day is going to be 400 grams.

[00:17:49] And then the third day I'm going to shoot for 450.

[00:17:51] It might still be around 400, but that's still totally fine.

[00:17:56] So I'm going to be a little bloated to start.

[00:17:59] But come mile 20, my glycogen stores will be depleted and my body will be very happy that I did that carb load.

[00:18:07] So it's the pros and the cons and teaching people that you'll feel uncomfortable here, but it's for this.

[00:18:16] So yeah, I'm psyched.

[00:18:18] I want the marathon to be here.

[00:18:19] I want to eat all my pasta.

[00:18:20] I want to eat all the things.

[00:18:22] And then I want to celebrate and not have to think about this training and stretching and everything that I do every single day.

[00:18:31] So obviously a lot of carbs in there and there's not a ton of protein on race day.

[00:18:36] Where are you getting?

[00:18:37] What's your protein like in the days leading up?

[00:18:41] That's a really great question, Tim.

[00:18:43] And I can tell you from my experience, the first time I practiced a carb load, I actually copied and pasted another marathon dietician's carb load day just to see.

[00:18:56] Sometimes I experiment with what other dieticians are preaching.

[00:18:59] And it had almost no protein.

[00:19:03] And I'm kind of hypoglycemic, meaning my blood sugars need to be a little bit more.

[00:19:09] I'm not insulin dependent or anything like that, but I definitely need to pair my carbohydrates with protein, healthy fat, and fiber to make sure I'm not shooting down or shooting up too quick.

[00:19:20] So for me, following that, I got really low really quick.

[00:19:26] So I shot up and I was feeling great.

[00:19:28] And then I came down and I started to feel a little like fainty.

[00:19:31] And I was like, I definitely need to incorporate more protein.

[00:19:34] So for me, and this is for me, not for anybody else.

[00:19:37] And I take everybody as they are.

[00:19:41] For me, I incorporate a good amount of lean protein, easy to digest protein and healthy fat and fiber with every single meal and snack.

[00:19:50] So I am putting on the calories for those few days for good reason.

[00:19:57] And I'll burn right through it.

[00:19:59] But for some people, if they struggle with getting enough carbohydrates, which is the number one fuel source for this event, then I do let them know we can decrease protein and fat in these kinds of ways.

[00:20:12] But we still do want to maintain our blood glucose to make sure that we're not cooking.

[00:20:21] So it's a little different for everybody.

[00:20:23] But I get it in every meal and snack to make sure I'm maintaining.

[00:20:29] Well, I love.

[00:20:30] And the big thing is, if you think of what 20 years ago, what the carbo loading was, right?

[00:20:35] Before the Boston Marathon, they had the big pasta dinner, right?

[00:20:40] Before.

[00:20:41] But the thing is, is like, you're not getting a ton of nutrients from those things as well, right?

[00:20:47] So you're, you have this diverse carb, these diverse carb sources that really are also giving other sources of nutrition or have other nutrients to them too that have, you know, I think that's a, but also makes it a little bit more palatable too, right?

[00:21:05] So I think that's a big piece to, and not so necessarily to you, but, you know, to think of the layman, the layman, the person that's going to be running these races, like, especially if they're running.

[00:21:15] I mean, those races are, there's, there's a small majority of people who are actually trained and are actually qualified.

[00:21:23] And a major majority of these people running these races have, are much like yourself who have never run them before, haven't run a race before.

[00:21:31] And, and they're trying to figure out as they go.

[00:21:34] And I think that's a big piece of, if they haven't had their nutrition dialed in prior to their racing or into their training, then they're trying to figure out their, their regular everyday nutrition and then also their training nutrition.

[00:21:47] So I think keeping it so you can make it a little bit more palatable for people, you know, for lack of a better word, I think that's a big, a big piece to, again, it's, I know it's your own experience, but dealing with, with the people, I'm sure you deal with plenty of people that are going through that same, same type of scenario.

[00:22:06] So I think that's definitely an interesting takeaway.

[00:22:09] Absolutely. And, and it brings to mind a client that came to me that was like, I think I'm missing a little protein in my day of carbo load.

[00:22:17] And I said, talk me through your day. And I think people forget that with grains, with pasta, with noodles, you have protein there, right?

[00:22:27] So she was talking to me about the kind of noodles that she was making. And in one serving, and she was doing two to three, in one serving, there was 10 grams of protein from the grains, right?

[00:22:37] So we, I like to preach like for a meal, 20 to 30 grams of protein or so, 20 to 25, depending on the size of the person.

[00:22:46] So she was getting plenty of protein. And for her, for me just to say, you're good. She just needed the AOP, like, okay, I could stick to my pasta dinner. This is great.

[00:22:55] Because if you think about it, the pasta has some protein. She was adding cheese to it. Cheese tortellini has a bunch of protein. So you don't necessarily need to do, we're not really talking about just animal protein, but let's actually what we're doing and how much protein is in there.

[00:23:11] And then if you don't want to have something like a meat protein, let's put an eight ounce of soy milk with your meal. And there's, you know, eight grams of protein right there too. So lots of different, lots of different tactics that we can take to make sure that we're getting enough carbohydrates in before, definitely.

[00:23:29] And I like what you said, how you, you looked at somebody, uh, another dietitian's, you know, plan, tried it out for yourself to see what worked. Um, because we've talked about, there's a bunch of, everybody's body's different response to things differently. So if you're just going to pick up a piece of paper, somebody printed three days before the marathon and be like, Oh, I'm good to go. I got this. You're in trouble.

[00:23:52] So like you said, you've got to try this out throughout the training process to see how your body reacts to everything. Is that when you have all these people that are running it? Uh, how many people from your group are running the New York marathon?

[00:24:07] So with endorphins, we have 20,000 across the nation and I want to say close to like five or 8,000 just here in New York. That could be, that could be a ton. We have a ton of people here in New York. This is where it started. Um, so

[00:24:22] So that's a really great question. I want to say like maybe close to a hundred, if not more, um, know all the, the, um, the coaches are. So like I'm running it. Um, our lead coaches are sports science, um, slash strength conditioning coaches running it. Um, so it's going to be quite the thing. Endorphins will be at mile 20 or 21 with confetti cannons and they'll be in the cheer zone and I'll need it.

[00:24:52] I'll be smiling and tell them like, let's do this again, but I'll be ready. Be ready to grab my, uh, my medal and, and walk out the park.

[00:25:01] Are you guys running as a group or are you going to try and beat everybody? You seem like a competitive person.

[00:25:07] Oh, yes, I am competitive, but I, um, everybody will be in different waves and then within the waves, there's different colors. So you're in different start villages.

[00:25:17] So yes, I actually do have a couple people through endorphins who I'll be running with and then I have my endorphins hat. So I'm sure I'll pick up some people here and there. Um, but the endorphins crew is an amazing crew.

[00:25:29] I've been doing some long runs with them. Um, really, really great people, really nice to pace with. I've been doing a lot of my runs solo just cause I'm in Brooklyn. Um, it's just like easier for me. Um, but I'll tell you this story. There was, there was a long run two weekends ago.

[00:25:49] It was an 18 mile long run and it was raining out and this was a solo run of mine. So this was going to be the longest that I had run by myself. And, um, it was raining and I was like, okay, I'm just going to get, was wet the whole time. I had great time, but there was a moment where a leaf came down from the tree. It stuck to my calf and I started talking to the leaf.

[00:26:14] So this is what I think goes into like the mental piece of like running and like I was solo and I just said, Hey leaf, like you're with me. We're taking a tour of central park. Like welcome to my run to your left. You'll see this. Like, and then it fell off and I was like, you have a good day.

[00:26:31] Oh, I didn't know if you like framed it and put it on the mantle or something.

[00:26:35] Oh yeah. Yeah. I, I should have, I should have took the leaf, but I'll, I'll never forget that run. So yes, a lot of runs by myself, which I don't know, is hurting me or making

[00:26:43] me insane. I don't know, but it's been, um, it's been a really great training.

[00:26:49] That'll help you on race day. I have a feeling that'll, that'll make a big difference.

[00:26:54] I can get through a leaf. I think I could do anything.

[00:26:57] And that's in, in honestly running more than, more than most, uh, physical activities is 90% mental. And in a lot of it is the fueling and your training and all that stuff. But the, the big thing is it's a lot of it is you versus yourself.

[00:27:13] And, um, you know, that a lot of the mind goes into the mindset piece, which we've talked about before, but, um, you know, I think, I think training like that will help you a lot on your race day.

[00:27:24] And that's where, and there's a lot of those things where the thing about race day, and I've worked with, I've worked with some clients that have gone through, I worked in a clinic setting as an athletic trainer, um, with people that were training and helps to try to, um, coach them through the, the, the, and this is the part where I'm not a runner, but I try to help along with their, the mental piece to it.

[00:27:48] And I had a few situations where there are things that pop up that are outside of your control, where you can't control, you can't control the weather on those things.

[00:27:58] You can't control, you know, some of the, the flow to, especially the beginning.

[00:28:03] I think, you know, we, we have, we, it's the one here, the one in Boston, people don't, some people don't even fully run for the first mile because there's so many people.

[00:28:13] And it's like, all right, well, how are you going to mentally, you know, deal with that?

[00:28:18] And are you going to get frustrated?

[00:28:19] Are you going to be able to work through that kind of stuff?

[00:28:22] And, and you're not going to know until you go through it the first time.

[00:28:25] So it's, it's a lot of the stuff that, um, you find out a lot about yourself in those, in those types of situations.

[00:28:32] I'm excited.

[00:28:33] I'm like, give it to me.

[00:28:35] Do you like running or do you like this new challenge that you have?

[00:28:39] That's a really good question too.

[00:28:41] What I have enjoyed the most, and I think it goes with the latter, is the challenge.

[00:28:47] So like after these massive runs, I feel like on top of the world.

[00:28:54] Like the endorphins like are real.

[00:28:56] The runner's high is so real.

[00:28:59] Like I feel like I could do anything.

[00:29:00] It really sets my whole entire week up to be like, that was such an accomplishment.

[00:29:05] So I, I do enjoy running.

[00:29:08] I do love what it does to my body and my legs feel strong and I get to like, like eat more and stay on top of my food and my hydration.

[00:29:16] Like I do love running in Prospect Park.

[00:29:19] It's so beautiful and it gets me outside and, you know, I get to see other, you know, everybody else moving and cute dogs and stuff like that.

[00:29:27] So it is like, it's just, it's sometimes it is boring.

[00:29:32] So I think, I think it really is.

[00:29:35] I do enjoy the challenge and I do enjoy what running has done for me.

[00:29:40] It gets me out.

[00:29:41] It keeps me on routine.

[00:29:42] It has given me this whole community of the endorphins members and access to this really great world into a marathon.

[00:29:52] But it could have been anything.

[00:29:53] It could have been biking.

[00:29:54] It could have been rollerblading.

[00:29:56] It could have been, I don't know, doing jumping jacks.

[00:29:59] I don't know.

[00:30:00] So that's a really good question.

[00:30:02] I do think I needed a challenge and I do think I'm enjoying it.

[00:30:06] And I definitely think that running will be a part of my weekly.

[00:30:12] I don't think the long runs are like, but I like like the three mile, like the 5k.

[00:30:18] I, I've been enjoying the halves.

[00:30:21] Like when my half, like a 13, 14, 15, I'm, I'm really, I'm really enjoying those lengths.

[00:30:26] So possibly like signing up for, um, a race at some point again.

[00:30:32] I can't.

[00:30:33] I gotta tell you, I'm, I'm doing a 30 day challenge of running a mile a day.

[00:30:39] Oh, cool.

[00:30:40] And it is awful.

[00:30:41] Every day, like go to the gym and I'm sitting on the couch by the door and I'll run after.

[00:30:47] I'm like, I want to do it.

[00:30:48] I don't want to go.

[00:30:48] I don't enjoy this one bit.

[00:30:50] And it's fine once I do it.

[00:30:52] Cause it's not, not a lot of time in the grand scheme of things, but it's just, maybe if I

[00:30:57] got into the three to five mile range and I can get into that flow, but I'm not, I'd

[00:31:03] like, we are, and you might not notice this.

[00:31:07] And you said you didn't really work.

[00:31:08] You wanted to work with like peak performing athletes.

[00:31:12] We're in a pretty competitive adult softball league.

[00:31:15] Uh, and we came in fifth place this year.

[00:31:18] So you're working at two incredible athletes.

[00:31:21] There's there are 16.

[00:31:26] Yeah.

[00:31:28] But, um, it, you know, that the sport I enjoy more.

[00:31:33] Um, but I, maybe, uh, maybe I have to try going a little further than a mile and see.

[00:31:37] Yeah.

[00:31:37] The mile is the first mile is the choppiest part is what I have found.

[00:31:42] Like I have, I now know when I start my run and my first mile, sometimes even up to a

[00:31:48] mile and a half, I'm like chop miss choppy over here.

[00:31:51] Like my legs are figuring themselves out.

[00:31:53] My hips are figuring themselves out.

[00:31:54] My lungs are.

[00:31:55] And then like mile two and three, I'm like, let's go.

[00:31:58] And you get into like this drive.

[00:31:59] You almost don't even feel like you're running anymore.

[00:32:01] You just kind of feel like you're doing whatever.

[00:32:04] Like you're just like floating at that point.

[00:32:06] Um, but yeah, that mile is, it seems a little choppy.

[00:32:11] Um, that's how I feel about most cardio sometimes.

[00:32:14] I feel like the first five to 10 minutes of any cardio workout, just like you said, you're

[00:32:19] still trying to figure it out.

[00:32:21] You're not feeling, you know what I mean?

[00:32:22] And you hit that mid portion and, you know, I'd say the meat of most of my cardio workouts

[00:32:27] is because, um, you know, I, I, you find that flow and then depending on how much you

[00:32:32] put yourself, the lat, the ending can be brutal or it can even float right into it.

[00:32:36] So it all depends on your pace and your, your intensity and all that stuff too.

[00:32:40] So, but I, I, so not to kind of branch off of the, the, the marathon thing, but I kind

[00:32:46] of want to get into the, the, the sport world.

[00:32:50] Like, so obviously my, my biggest thing for me, right.

[00:32:54] Is baseball is a different animal than any other sport, mainly because there's not a lot

[00:33:00] of physical, I mean, not to say that they're not athletes.

[00:33:03] I'm a baseball player, but there's not compared to other sports.

[00:33:07] There's, there's not a ton of physical exertion where you're burning, you know, thousands

[00:33:13] of calories in a, in a sporting event, you know, I, I, you know, again, it's, it's just

[00:33:18] a different animal than most of the, especially compared to baseball, football, hockey, where

[00:33:23] it's, it's, you know, it's a lot more, um, it's a baseball is a lot more court first versus

[00:33:29] the other sports.

[00:33:29] So what, what were some of the challenges like when you were trying, especially with not

[00:33:33] a lot of baseball experience, what was some of the stuff, some of the differences

[00:33:37] you had seen kind of working with that versus some of the, the other more endurance type

[00:33:42] of sports?

[00:33:43] Yeah.

[00:33:44] Every, every sport is very different.

[00:33:46] Um, going into baseball, the first thing that I figured out was the different disciplines

[00:33:53] within baseball, right?

[00:33:54] The different positions, the catcher is very different from the pitcher.

[00:33:58] The pitcher is very different from the position player.

[00:34:00] The position player is very different from, um, the guy, the pitch hitter or like whatever.

[00:34:05] So every guy, every position needs something different.

[00:34:08] Um, baseball is very unique in the sense that they play back to back games, sometimes double

[00:34:16] headers, which when I first came into baseball, I thought it was double hitter.

[00:34:20] And the boys were like, no, Emily, just, just go and do your nutrition.

[00:34:25] So, so double hitters, right?

[00:34:27] So they could be out there for many, many hours, which is very different from some other

[00:34:32] sports, right?

[00:34:32] So baseball or the pitching clock.

[00:34:34] And before all these rule changes, we could be out there for like four hours.

[00:34:39] That's a lot of calories, specifically fat being burned.

[00:34:42] So yes, might not seem like they're not like exerting themselves quite as like other sports,

[00:34:49] but they're for a long, long time.

[00:34:51] They are in fight or flight for a long, long time.

[00:34:54] So, um, unlike other sports too, they can fuel during exercise because there is so much

[00:35:01] stop and go.

[00:35:02] So unlike some other sports, they have to wait till halftime or in between quarters or, um,

[00:35:09] for a timeout.

[00:35:09] So baseball, we do have a lot of fueling opportunities in the dugout and in the complex that they can

[00:35:16] take advantage of.

[00:35:18] Um, so my role as a dietitian is to make sure that each discipline and each athlete specifically

[00:35:24] knows what they need.

[00:35:26] I have found that one of the best disciplines for me to work with and the discipline that

[00:35:33] typically always needs a dietitian is the catcher.

[00:35:37] I love working with the catchers.

[00:35:39] They are part of like every single play.

[00:35:41] They are the middleman between the, the ump and the coach and the position player and,

[00:35:46] and the, and the pitcher.

[00:35:48] They're, they're always in need of hydration.

[00:35:50] They're always sweating.

[00:35:51] They're always in, they need to be all while having a good body composition, right?

[00:35:57] So they're working on their, their body composition and weight.

[00:36:00] They're working on hydration.

[00:36:01] Um, they're also always needing to be head on a swivel.

[00:36:05] They're also really fun.

[00:36:06] Like I have found like, like catchers to just be like, so, so personable and so like lovely

[00:36:13] to work with because they need to be the personality on the field as well.

[00:36:16] Um, so I've always said like, if I can just be a dietitian for catchers, sign me up.

[00:36:21] So if you guys, let's make that happen.

[00:36:24] But, but so the catchers are very different.

[00:36:26] The, the pitchers, right?

[00:36:27] They, they're trying to shine, but are they a starter?

[00:36:29] Are they, um, you know, are they the, I'm losing the word.

[00:36:35] The closer.

[00:36:37] Or the, what's the last one?

[00:36:38] I'm, I'm closer.

[00:36:40] Thank you.

[00:36:40] Closer.

[00:36:41] Are they a closer?

[00:36:41] So are they just like waiting all game?

[00:36:44] So with them, it's really fueled timing.

[00:36:46] Cause they could be brought in like that.

[00:36:48] So they really need to make sure that they're training their guts.

[00:36:50] So let's put down some glucose and some fructose, like within 10 minutes and make sure that

[00:36:56] our gut is going to be good.

[00:36:57] So every single.

[00:36:59] What sort of foods, if they need a quick hit at something, what are, what are they getting

[00:37:05] in the dugout or wherever they are?

[00:37:07] Yeah.

[00:37:08] Everybody is very different, but easiest thing, if they're able to train their gut and if

[00:37:12] their gut accepts fibers, fruits is a piece of fruit.

[00:37:15] It could be an applesauce squeezy.

[00:37:17] Um, it could be some kind of like fruit, um, gummy.

[00:37:21] So everybody's very different.

[00:37:23] Sometimes the pitchers were so good that they would just continue to fuel throughout the

[00:37:26] game so that they wouldn't have to go nothing, nothing, nothing, everything.

[00:37:31] Um, so that's something to keep in mind as well.

[00:37:34] Um, to remind them like you can train your gut, you can keep your blood glucose up.

[00:37:40] Um, but everybody was very different.

[00:37:41] Sometimes we'd have pitchers out there eating full, like Jimmy John's sandwiches and

[00:37:46] the acidity could tell them the best thing to do, but he could eat his Jimmy John sandwich,

[00:37:51] go on the mound and get whatever he needs to get and go home.

[00:37:55] And if he has success with that, I can't tell him anything.

[00:37:58] Well, you hear about the pitchers in the eighties smoking butts and drinking whiskey in the

[00:38:04] innings.

[00:38:04] They tell me that.

[00:38:05] And I'll remind them.

[00:38:06] I'm like, well, the Cubs are doing this and the Reds are doing this.

[00:38:09] So if you want to stay up to date, you might want to.

[00:38:12] It's not the eighties anymore.

[00:38:13] Yeah.

[00:38:14] It's getting chicken noodle soup and hot dogs in the clubhouse.

[00:38:16] Like we have smoothie bars and like all this amazing things for them.

[00:38:20] So baseball, baseball was a really, really great place to work.

[00:38:24] And once you figure out the disciplines, once you figure out the position players, once

[00:38:28] you build rapport with the boys and know what they need, what they don't need, what they

[00:38:32] like, what they don't like.

[00:38:33] And you just have all the different varieties and options for them.

[00:38:37] Um, that's, what's going to really help them shine to make sure that they have what they

[00:38:42] need for their unique, um, position.

[00:38:45] That's good.

[00:38:46] There was a question I wanted to ask you, and I don't know, um, if you have an opinion

[00:38:51] on that or not.

[00:38:52] And I only ask cause there was, um, there was a, a, a show on Netflix called receiver

[00:38:58] that followed a bunch of NFL receivers around.

[00:39:00] I don't know if you're a football fan or anything, but there's a player named Justin Jefferson

[00:39:05] who's a receiver for the Vikings.

[00:39:07] Arguably the best receiver in the game.

[00:39:10] And he was talking about his nutrition and what he eats and he opened his cabinet and it

[00:39:15] was front to back candy, just gummy candies.

[00:39:18] And he would go through bags and, um, I might've been Kevin Garnett was talking to another

[00:39:24] receiver DK Metcalf and he's like, yo, you know how much, how important nutrition is and

[00:39:29] all that.

[00:39:29] And DK was like, I'm not the guy to talk to cause I eat candy all the time.

[00:39:34] And that's all I eat.

[00:39:35] Um, is that like they're in your opinion?

[00:39:38] I know you haven't worked with them personally, but if they were on the right plan with food

[00:39:44] and all that stuff, are they able to get even more out of what they have if they fueled

[00:39:50] properly?

[00:39:51] Or are they just physical freaks in, in their body just takes anything and they're good?

[00:39:56] Yeah, that's a, that's a really good question.

[00:39:58] And every team and every place that I've been, there's always those handful of, um, athletes

[00:40:04] that can just get away with doing that.

[00:40:07] Um, but we can see what they're doing.

[00:40:10] I also see their blood work.

[00:40:12] So I see the objective information, what's going on the inside.

[00:40:15] So if I get their blood work back and they have high cholesterol or their blood glucose

[00:40:20] is out of whack or their A1C is somewhere, or we have these inflammatory, um, triggers

[00:40:26] coming up, then I will let them know, um, Hey, let's normalize your nutrition biomarkers.

[00:40:31] Like, let's like, like, let's make sure that you stay in the game for as long as you can.

[00:40:35] Cause you want a long career, right?

[00:40:37] Right.

[00:40:37] So we use that tactic as like, you're 16, 18, 22, whatever you are now, but you want

[00:40:44] to be here for another 10 years.

[00:40:46] Right.

[00:40:46] Like you want to make it to the big show, right?

[00:40:48] Like minor league is not enough for you or, you know, football, you want to be here for

[00:40:51] a long time.

[00:40:52] You want, right.

[00:40:53] Like you want to protect your body.

[00:40:54] So I kind of take that stance as like, let's make sure you have a long career.

[00:40:59] Let's normalize this nutrition blood work now.

[00:41:02] Um, and let's make sure that we're decreasing the chance of injury and illness by making

[00:41:06] sure that your diet is where it needs to be.

[00:41:09] No, I'm not going to take away your candy.

[00:41:10] No, I'm not going to take away your beloved Oreos or your McDonald's, but let's incorporate

[00:41:16] some of this good stuff at the right time to recover properly.

[00:41:19] And let's take it from there.

[00:41:21] Once they kind of get a taste of some good nutrition or they're starting to see their buddy

[00:41:26] benefit from it, then they start kind of getting a little bit more weight.

[00:41:30] This is you're onto something.

[00:41:33] So to not scare them by like, let's avoid all the stuff that you like.

[00:41:37] No, let's like incorporate it in a smart way while getting in all this performance good

[00:41:42] in you as well.

[00:41:43] Um, and then there's just some guys and some gals that just don't want any of it.

[00:41:48] And it's their career we can't do.

[00:41:51] And all we can do is give them, um, as much as we can.

[00:41:55] And sometimes, unfortunately, um, an injury or a bad game or some bad news health wise kind

[00:42:03] of brings them into the office.

[00:42:04] Unfortunately, we hate those scenarios, but sometimes, um, it takes that to get them on

[00:42:11] the health train.

[00:42:12] So.

[00:42:13] Yeah.

[00:42:14] And like you said, at the end of the day, they're adults, but at the end, at the end,

[00:42:18] at the same time, they're basically, they're all, they're all talented at that level.

[00:42:25] Everybody has talent at that level.

[00:42:27] And they're all looking for that 1% difference, that half a percent difference.

[00:42:32] It's going to set them apart.

[00:42:34] And, and it's going to, and I think you touched on it the most is what's your longevity going

[00:42:38] to look like?

[00:42:39] All right.

[00:42:39] That works for you for one, two, maybe three seasons.

[00:42:42] But once you start to get four or five, six, a decade into the league, what are you going

[00:42:47] to have?

[00:42:47] You're going to be forced to, because you're not going to recover the same.

[00:42:51] Your, your body physiologically changes and you're going to start to slow down.

[00:42:56] And how do you, you, it's, you never, there's, there's a lot of research out there that they're

[00:43:01] trying to reverse aging processes and stuff like that.

[00:43:04] But these are, these are things that you're going to, you're going to save that off as long

[00:43:09] as you possibly can.

[00:43:10] Look at Tom Brady.

[00:43:11] Tom Brady played for 20, he played for two decades and he was arguably playing better

[00:43:17] at the end of his career than he was at the beginning.

[00:43:20] And that was some of it's cognitive, mental, his drive is insane.

[00:43:24] But the other, the other piece to that is his nutrition was dialed in.

[00:43:28] His, his hydration was so dialed in.

[00:43:31] He was, he was still obsessive about what he was putting in his body that he, he was able

[00:43:38] to, you know, be able to fight through.

[00:43:41] A lot of those things.

[00:43:42] Cause it's not like he didn't have those injuries.

[00:43:44] He didn't, it's not like he didn't have these things that other players had.

[00:43:47] It's just, he was doing everything he could.

[00:43:50] Not, not just, you know, nutritionally.

[00:43:52] He's, he put a lot of other work into it, but the nutrition was a major, major piece to

[00:43:57] what he was doing.

[00:43:58] And it's the same thing for other people where you, like you look at LeBron James and basketball

[00:44:02] or, you know, the longevity and all these, all these, um, long-term athletes, it's because

[00:44:08] of their dedication.

[00:44:09] And there's even a, um, there's a golfer in the PGA, Bernard Langer, who he's, he's in

[00:44:16] his sixties and he, he has been on this train since the eighties.

[00:44:21] And he has literally just been, he, he, I mean, he's still playing in PG.

[00:44:25] He's the oldest guy playing in PGA tour events because he's made, he's made this commitment

[00:44:30] to being as healthy as he possibly can.

[00:44:34] And that's through fitness and movement and all the other things.

[00:44:36] But the nutrition train is, is the biggest piece to a lot of what, what these long-term

[00:44:41] athletes are doing.

[00:44:42] And, and trying to, and half of that is they're in these, some of these guys are in their early

[00:44:47] twenties and just don't, don't understand.

[00:44:50] And they, in, in trying to get them to understand, like you said, sometimes it does take a wake

[00:44:55] up call, like an injury or an illness or something like that, which is unfortunate, but that can

[00:45:00] even write the train for them too.

[00:45:01] So I think it's, it's really just trying to, you know, it takes a good, a good coach and

[00:45:07] a good, good clinician to be able to hold that thread on different people.

[00:45:14] You have to be a chameleon.

[00:45:15] You have to, you talked about rapport earlier too, and rapport is huge and people aren't

[00:45:20] going to listen to you if they don't trust you or like you.

[00:45:22] So that's, you have to really get that trust in that, in that, that rapport or like, you

[00:45:28] know, that likeness to the person.

[00:45:30] And you have to be able to do that with all different types of personalities too.

[00:45:33] So that's where, you know, a good clinician is able to do all of those things.

[00:45:37] Yeah.

[00:45:38] I have found that in, specifically in baseball since I've been, since I've seen multiple

[00:45:45] drafts.

[00:45:46] So the guys coming in, right?

[00:45:50] From 2017, from, you know, with the Cubs to 2023 with the Nationals, in that span, I

[00:45:58] noticed how many more draft guys were coming in.

[00:46:01] In my initial assessment, I always ask, have you ever worked with a dietician before, a nutrition

[00:46:05] professional?

[00:46:06] From 2017 to 2003, almost nobody in 2017 to almost everybody in 2023 either knew what a

[00:46:14] dietician was or had seen one.

[00:46:17] So that's a huge difference.

[00:46:18] That means that there's more collegiate dieticians.

[00:46:21] There's more dieticians in the high school realm or their parents are realizing that, oh

[00:46:27] my gosh, I want my kid to make sure that they know how to properly fuel.

[00:46:31] So they're seeing private dieticians.

[00:46:34] So my job became a lot easier from 2017 to 2023 from them saying, oh, I don't, if I see

[00:46:42] a dietician, that means like I'm fat or like I have problems.

[00:46:45] In 2023, my guys come in to me and being like, hey, can I tell you about my food allergies

[00:46:49] and can I tell you how, what supplement I like?

[00:46:52] And can I tell you about this gut nutrition biomarker that is often my blood work to make

[00:46:57] sure that we're on the same page?

[00:46:59] And I'm like, you guys are speaking my language.

[00:47:00] Like, let's go.

[00:47:01] Like, I had plenty of work to do.

[00:47:03] Right.

[00:47:03] So it was a really, it's been a really great time to be a sport dietician to see this and

[00:47:10] like this evolvement of like going from dieticians or not people not really knowing about dieticians

[00:47:18] or going to like other practitioners to talk about food, which isn't always great, to going

[00:47:23] to the expert and making sure that they're doing the right things.

[00:47:27] Um, and they have worked with dieticians in their last line of work.

[00:47:33] So to be able to continue that line of work with the dietician in that organization is great.

[00:47:38] So it's, I've always said the sooner you start learning about your body and nutrition and

[00:47:43] what you need to do to perform the best you can, the better.

[00:47:46] So from, you know, handshaking our 15 year olds in the DR for, you know, our DR Academy

[00:47:53] to sign, um, with baseball, um, the earlier, the better.

[00:47:57] Yeah.

[00:47:58] I could take a 30 year old and start telling him, you know, what's best, but they're already

[00:48:02] stuck in their ways.

[00:48:03] They're already doing what they're doing.

[00:48:05] They can make some big movements and some big, um, changes, but to get like a 15 year

[00:48:11] old and start there, man, that's huge.

[00:48:14] You can mold them into what, what they should be.

[00:48:18] Absolutely.

[00:48:19] And you kind of, you kind of touched on it too, because this is an area where

[00:48:22] I recently left the division one setting as far as being an athletic trainer.

[00:48:27] Um, but you are starting to see in some of it has to do with funding with these athletic

[00:48:32] departments and that's kind of what it is in the mid majors to the lower levels of, of

[00:48:37] colleges anyways.

[00:48:38] But I was in the Patriot league as I'm wearing Holy Cross.

[00:48:41] That's where I was working.

[00:48:43] But, um, the big thing for us is we were always jealous because Navy just had, had just

[00:48:48] put in this full nutrition department and they had, they had a registered dietitian and might

[00:48:55] have been more than one on staff that, you know, they, and they have their own instant,

[00:48:59] like dedicated Instagram handle just for Navy sports, uh, sports nutrition.

[00:49:03] And we were, we were always watching.

[00:49:05] They had their, these boxes for every team that, um, either the, the, the, you know, the,

[00:49:11] the dietitian would, would stalk them.

[00:49:13] And either the athletic trainer or the, uh, strength and conditioning coach would bring

[00:49:17] them on the road with them.

[00:49:18] So they would have them on the road with them.

[00:49:20] They had, you know, smoothies after practices that were made directly from the sports nutrition

[00:49:24] department.

[00:49:25] And it's, you're, you're seeing it start to be more of a, of an area where it is being

[00:49:33] developed into, or added into an area of the athletics department.

[00:49:37] That isn't just because before it was a lot of my job, it was a lot of the sports, uh,

[00:49:44] the, the strength and conditioning coach and, and a lot of working in between, which we have

[00:49:48] some background in that stuff, but I'm not a registered dietitian.

[00:49:51] I, I, I, I would refer out, we were able to refer out, but it was just, it was an area

[00:49:57] that there was no direct person in the department to go to.

[00:50:00] And you're starting to see, and I'm sure that a lot of these power five schools have it

[00:50:04] now, you're starting to see it, to, to see it come in.

[00:50:07] And it's, it really is a major area of what we do.

[00:50:12] And, and it, it has to do with, you know, it, it's a, it's a, it was a big unchecked

[00:50:18] box before.

[00:50:19] And like you said, it makes your job easier.

[00:50:21] It was the same thing with me.

[00:50:22] There's a ton of high school kids that would come in that never had an athletic trainer

[00:50:25] in high school.

[00:50:26] And they would come into the training room and be like, I don't know, like they would have

[00:50:30] no idea what to do.

[00:50:31] Right.

[00:50:32] And it was like, all right, well, you need to start with hydration.

[00:50:34] You need to start with foam rolling and doing mobility work every day.

[00:50:37] You need to start with strengthening and you work with the strength and conditioning coach

[00:50:40] and it's all intertwined and it needs to be, you know, it all needs to be addressed together

[00:50:45] because they are all majorly affect each other.

[00:50:48] And it's, you know, it's, it's definitely a huge space that is, is really continuing to

[00:50:55] grow and is really getting to the point that, um, you know, it's, it's great to see.

[00:51:00] Yeah.

[00:51:01] I think it's, it's also no longer a luxury to have this when you get to, it's a necessity.

[00:51:07] It's just as important strength training and everything else, um, to get the most, especially

[00:51:12] in the pro leagues where you're paying these players millions of dollars and, you know,

[00:51:18] at the end of the day, it's a business and they want to, they want to make money and

[00:51:21] see their investments perform to the best of their abilities.

[00:51:24] And, and obviously there are people and you want to see them succeed on a personal level

[00:51:28] too, but it's, it's an absolute necessity now.

[00:51:32] Absolutely.

[00:51:33] Um, just for the, uh, the listeners that have kids, uh, in like the high school level or

[00:51:39] even a little younger, is there any advice you can give it?

[00:51:42] I know you can't give like a general statement that applies to everybody, but in terms of like

[00:51:48] if they have a weekend tournament coming up where they're playing three or four baseball

[00:51:52] games on a weekend and they're, you know, they don't know what to eat or how to prepare

[00:51:56] themselves for that.

[00:51:58] What advice would you give, um, to, to parents or to the kids themselves?

[00:52:04] Yeah.

[00:52:04] Some of the biggest, uh, hurdles with kids, uh, who are, um, training a lot and especially

[00:52:13] going back to back tournaments, playing in the morning, eating breakfast, like number one,

[00:52:18] like they don't want to eat breakfast.

[00:52:19] They'd rather sleep.

[00:52:20] They don't want it to disturb their GI system, um, or they don't know what to eat and they've

[00:52:26] tried certain things and it made them sick.

[00:52:28] Um, so for parents, I would say, um, if you're bringing them to a tournament or you're bringing

[00:52:35] them in the car to their practice, have quick acting carbohydrates on hand.

[00:52:41] Number one, like keep them in the car.

[00:52:43] Your kid can eat breakfast in the car.

[00:52:45] Your kid can, um, take the quick acting carbohydrates, um, to their, um, soccer tournament or whatever

[00:52:51] sporting tournament.

[00:52:52] When you say quick acting carbs, do you have any examples of, of good ones for that?

[00:52:57] Yeah.

[00:52:57] So the quick acting carbs would be, and these would also be self-stable.

[00:53:02] So nothing too crazy.

[00:53:04] So it could like sit in the kid's bag for a little bit or be outside.

[00:53:08] So the easiest things are going to be fruit.

[00:53:11] So any kinds of whole fruit, banana would be best.

[00:53:15] Um, any kind of like clementines.

[00:53:16] If your kids like apples, applesauce squeezy's are like huge, like just so easy.

[00:53:22] Uh, you can also make, uh, jelly sandwiches or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

[00:53:54] Um, or like a wrap with a banana.

[00:53:58] Banana inside of it with peanut butter and honey and you roll it up.

[00:54:01] That sounds good.

[00:54:02] That's so good.

[00:54:03] That's a go-to for sure now.

[00:54:05] Yeah.

[00:54:05] Make like a bag of those and send them off with them.

[00:54:10] And, and once they get into the car, like if you're going on to school, like before practice,

[00:54:15] just pass them one thing.

[00:54:17] And if they're like, I'm not in the mood for that, like pass them in something different.

[00:54:20] Like have them go into this bag and be like, one of these things is going to give you good

[00:54:24] energy for the day.

[00:54:25] And then for the tournament, make sure you have these things all day long.

[00:54:29] So like, it'll be like the fuel bag.

[00:54:31] Okay.

[00:54:31] Reach in, grab something.

[00:54:33] This will give you 15 grams of carbohydrates.

[00:54:35] It'll get you through the next hour or so.

[00:54:38] Um, kids are pretty resilient.

[00:54:40] Like we were talking about with like, as the younger you are, like you don't really need,

[00:54:46] well, you do need, but like it's not going to affect them as much, but it'll teach them

[00:54:50] these habits of get something in you so that you're not bonkers.

[00:54:55] Um, so quick acting carbohydrates is number one.

[00:54:58] Um, definitely for these parents.

[00:55:02] Um, and also depending on how young they are and how much time they have, have them, um,

[00:55:10] have them participate in some of these things.

[00:55:14] So ask them, Hey, I'm going to the grocery store.

[00:55:19] Do you want to come with and pick out three carbohydrates that you think that you would

[00:55:22] like?

[00:55:22] Or, Hey, I'm making, I'm going to prep all these banana roll up.

[00:55:27] Why don't you make a couple for your next couple of days?

[00:55:29] Like get them involved.

[00:55:30] So that eventually they're just knowing what to take and what they like.

[00:55:35] They feel like they're involved and not being like forced this stuff.

[00:55:38] So they can kind of understand.

[00:55:40] And the sooner they do that, the better.

[00:55:42] And before you know it, they're 15 making their own peanut butter banana wraps and picking

[00:55:47] out their own carbohydrate sources at the grocery store.

[00:55:50] And they're just like in charge so that when they go to college, they'll be able to kind

[00:55:55] of know, Oh yeah, I did this in high school.

[00:55:57] This feels good.

[00:55:58] Um, so have them involved.

[00:56:00] Don't force anything, give them options in this fuel bag, um, and kind of just like make

[00:56:06] it a part of like the daily ride to school or the tournament, um, to always have these

[00:56:11] things around.

[00:56:13] I like calling it the fuel bag because it starts to associate food with energy.

[00:56:19] And, you know, I think that's a big thing.

[00:56:22] And in the last episode, um, with Jess Wilson, the functional nutritionist we were talking

[00:56:27] about, I was speaking about talking to my son's Cub Scout troop about food and healthy foods

[00:56:34] and one of the big things that in their seven, they're little, but still trying to get them

[00:56:38] to understand like, this is your energy.

[00:56:40] So if you want to run around and do things, you have to eat healthy foods to make that,

[00:56:45] uh, make that possible and to, to be able to play as long as you want.

[00:56:49] Right.

[00:56:49] And starting it even at that age, I think is, is an important thing because it instills this,

[00:56:55] this lifelong association with food where I spoke about it in the, in our, in our, um,

[00:57:02] previous episode where I did, I never understood that one.

[00:57:07] And then again, you said you had kind of, um, early on because of your upbringing too.

[00:57:12] Right.

[00:57:12] So it's like, I didn't learn a lot of these things until I was in college and, you know,

[00:57:17] but athletically that was far too late for me.

[00:57:20] You know what I mean?

[00:57:21] And that's, that's a thing that I really wish I understood when I was, you know, in youth

[00:57:25] sports and through, especially through high school sports.

[00:57:28] Um, you know, it was definitely an area where I was lacking personally and I wish I knew

[00:57:34] it a lot earlier than I did.

[00:57:35] And, and, you know, I think if, if we can start to kind of instill that and especially

[00:57:39] where youth sports are so big nowadays and, and kids are so damn busy with all everything

[00:57:46] that they're doing and they're playing multiple sports in a season, or like you said, multiple

[00:57:50] games in a weekend, which is, it's like, that's the norm now.

[00:57:53] It's not uncommon for kids to play three or four games in a weekend.

[00:57:56] And to learn, to understand that they have to fuel and use that as energy and prioritize

[00:58:03] that is super important, especially if they have goals of trying to play at a higher level

[00:58:08] or do anything, which we know is difficult, but not impossible.

[00:58:12] So, um, I really liked the, the fuel bag is we used to call it the snack bag.

[00:58:17] When I, when I worked with that, uh, the basketball, the basketball game I was with,

[00:58:21] the fuel bag sounds a lot better.

[00:58:24] Yeah.

[00:58:25] I get 10% of any, uh, copyright.

[00:58:28] I don't like that.

[00:58:28] No, no, it's, it's just going to start, you know, especially with the youth kid.

[00:58:34] That's, that's mostly, I'm, I coach flag football.

[00:58:36] So it's, uh, I'm just starting to start bringing the fuel bag, you know?

[00:58:40] So yeah.

[00:58:40] Yeah.

[00:58:41] Dietician approved.

[00:58:42] There you go.

[00:58:42] Yeah.

[00:58:43] It's great.

[00:58:44] All right, Emily.

[00:58:45] Well, we really appreciate you coming on.

[00:58:47] I didn't even realize it had been an hour that we had been chatting.

[00:58:51] That went by, uh, very, very quickly.

[00:58:54] Yeah.

[00:58:55] So, um, we would love to hear how your, uh, your marathon goes, uh, day, a couple of days

[00:59:01] after your birthday.

[00:59:02] That's good.

[00:59:02] That's going to be pretty exciting.

[00:59:03] It'll be fun.

[00:59:04] It'll be fun.

[00:59:05] Yeah.

[00:59:05] Well, thank you very much.

[00:59:07] And, uh, we will definitely be in touch.

[00:59:10] Oh, wait, you know, sorry.

[00:59:11] Before I hit, how can people get in touch with you if they, um, if they want to reach out

[00:59:15] if they need some help?

[00:59:16] Um, yeah, you can reach out to, you can simply DM me on LinkedIn.

[00:59:22] You could just find me, Emily Kaylee.

[00:59:25] You'll see my face.

[00:59:26] You'll see I'm a performance dietitian.

[00:59:28] Um, so you can definitely feel free to DM me on LinkedIn.

[00:59:31] You can also DM me on my Instagram.

[00:59:34] Instagram is emilybk6.

[00:59:37] Feel free.

[00:59:39] Um, I definitely need to work on my website a little bit more.

[00:59:43] Um, and, and all that just has been working without.

[00:59:47] Um, but yeah, definitely feel free to, to DM me in any way, shape or form.

[00:59:53] I'm always checking them, checking them out.

[00:59:56] Awesome.

[00:59:56] Awesome.

[00:59:57] Well, thank you.

[00:59:57] Thank you again very much.

[00:59:59] Yeah.

[00:59:59] Thank you guys so much.

[01:00:00] You guys have a good night.

[01:00:01] You too.

[01:00:03] That brings another episode of the Health Movement Podcast to an end.

[01:00:07] And as always, we appreciate you all taking the time to listen.

[01:00:11] If you have any questions, head over to the website, healthmovement.us.

[01:00:15] You can ask us questions.

[01:00:17] If you need help with coaching or anything like that, there's a coaching tab where you

[01:00:21] can submit questions there as well.

[01:00:23] So please don't hesitate to reach out and we look forward to talking to you in the next

[01:00:28] episode.