Athletic Lab

Just a reminder that we’re spreading the holiday spirit by inviting everyone to bring a friend, family member or colleague to one or more of our December “Guest Days.” Guest days start today and go through the 16th of December. While it would be best if guests came with there member friend, if guests cannot attend sessions at the same time as the client they can come at any other available time slot. Guests can attend multiple sessions during the month’s 3 day “guest” period but are limited to a total of 3 visits. Guest sessions apply to all Scholastic and CrossFit / Performance Fitness classes.

Bring in the holidays by inviting a friend, family member or colleague to one or more of our December “Guest Days.” We’ll be having guest days on the following dates:

• December 14th, 15th and 16th

We’re encouraging all members to bring a guest to one of their classes, however, if guests cannot attend sessions at the same time as the client they may come at any other available time slot. Guests can attend multiple sessions during the month’s 3 day “guest” period but are limited to a total of 3 visits. Guest sessions apply to all Scholastic and CrossFit / Performance Fitness classes.

Professional and Elite athletes have their choice to train wherever they want. Many choose Athletic Lab. We have over 40 professional or Olympic development athletes training at Athletic Lab in sports ranging from Soccer to Skeleton. Several travel from across the country to do so. There isn’t another training center in the Triangle that can boast as many top flight athletes as Athletic Lab. These athletes choose Athletic Lab for the facility and the coaching. Follow the leaders. Train at Athletic Lab.

As we enter into this special season of thanksgiving, I wanted to take a moment to thank all our clients and supporters for trusting Athletic Lab with your health, fitness and athletic performance needs. Without your support and business we wouldn’t be where we are today. I recognize that you have many options for places to train and I am grateful that you have placed your confidence and trust in our services. I thank you and look forward to providing you with the best possible sport performance and fitness services for years to come. I hope you, your family and friends have a great holiday. Happy Thanksgiving!
-Mike Young on behalf of Athletic Lab and staff

Injuries are no fun. They can limit what you want to do and hurt athletic performance. And even if you’re not a competing athlete they’re still painful. Thankfully, most musculoskeletal injuries can be easily addressed through appropriate therapy. And if you take care of yourself and address small issues before they become long-term chronic problems you’ll have better performance and less time in the ER.

Most injuries are like weeds…you only see what’s on the surface and the underlying causes (the roots) often go unaddressed. Identifying the pain is only the beginning.  Finding and addressing the root of the pain is much more difficult. Successful rehab and injury prevention must attempt to trace back to the problem and kill the roots not just the weeds. That’s why Athletic Lab strives to provide a comprehensive list of services to ensure that our clients can stay healthy and achieve their top performance. Our training staff understands how the body works to ensure that the likelihood of injury is minimized but if an injury should occur our in-house Physical Therapist, massage therapist, and musculoskeletal therapist can ensure that you get back to your life and your sport as quickly as possible.

While we strive to provide the best quality athletic development and training services in the country, it’s important to note that the outcomes of the best training will only be fully realized if a strong nutritional foundation is in place. 

Nutrition is an important part of an athlete’s restoration from training and shouldn’t be overlooked. A balanced nutritional program that meets the needs of the individual will go a long way in maximizing progress from daily workouts. Here are some general pointers for a sound nutritional program for athletes.

• Athletes should consume approximately 1-2.0 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight daily. For example, a 70 kg athlete (~154 pound) would need between 70-140 grams of protein daily.
• Consumption of processed foods should be minimized. Processed foods are those not from mother-nature. Examples of unprocessed foods are fruits, vegetables, nuts, and grains. Examples of processed foods are candy, bread products, and luncheon meats.
• Alcohol should be eliminated or minimized from the diet as it is an empty source of calories and also puts the body into a catabolic state.
• Not all fats are bad. Certain fats such as those found in olive oil, avocados, nuts, and fish are excellent for vascular health. Saturated fats, such as those found in fried foods, are terrible for vascular health, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels.
• Not all carbohydrates are good (or bad). Sugars are a type of carbohydrate that should be minimized for their negative effect on energy levels, fat storage, and blood sugar levels. Complex carbohydrates are best because they will provide a more sustained and longer lasting source of energy.
• Not all proteins are the same (part 1). Proteins can be sub-grouped into complete and incomplete varieties. Complete proteins contain all essential amino acids. Incomplete proteins are named as such because they are missing one or more of the essential amino acids. Non-animal sources of protein are typically incomplete but when consumed with other incomplete complementary proteins can effectively be made complete.
• Not all proteins are the same (part 2). Some proteins are digested very fast while others take considerably longer. Consuming easily digestible proteins such as whey protein within 30 minutes following a workout can be extremely beneficial to recovery, especially when combined with a simple carbohydrate. Likewise consuming a slowly digested protein such as casein prior to bed will help keep you in an anabolic state.
• Taking a multi-vitamin will ensure that you are consuming all your necessary vitamins and minerals. Note that these are supplemental to a strong diet and not absolutely necessary.
• Stay well hydrated by drinking water, juice, or teas (preferably unsweetened).
• Red meats should be consumed sparingly.
• Sodium (salt) intake should be minimized except following excessive perspiration.
• Try to maintain stable blood sugar levels by eating several smaller meals throughout the day.
• Minimize empty calories. This means that if a food has many calories but little nutritional value (vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants) you probably shouldn’t be eating it. Candy is an excellent example of an empty calorie food. In contrast, a piece of fruit may have a similar sugar and caloric content but it is packed with vitamins and antioxidants.
• Satiety of hunger is not necessarily an indication that the body has all the nutrients it needs.
• After a workout, a small meal or snack containing both carbohydrates and protein should be consumed to maximize recovery. After a workout, it is also acceptable and advantageous to consume moderate amounts of sugar. This will better help to fuel the energy starved muscles and assist in protein uptake.
• The depth of color of fruits and vegetables is highly correlated with their nutritional value. That is, deeply colored fruits and vegetables such as fresh green spinach or blueberries have better profiles than their less colorful counterparts.
• Consumption of high fiber foods has many benefits. Fiber has been shown to improve vascular health, reduce the risks of certain types of cancer, stabilize blood sugar, and reduce hunger. Try to consume at least 25 grams of fiber each day. To do so, eat whole fruits instead of drinking fruit juices, choose whole-grain products rather than their “white” counterparts when possible and snack on raw vegetables instead of pretzels, chips or candy.
• There are no “miracle foods” or supplements that can supply all of your nutritional needs. Eating a variety of foods rather than the same ones every day provides you with a better opportunity of covering all the “nutritional bases.”

We will have modified scheduling for the Thanksgiving Holiday

• Thanksgiving Day - Thursday, November 25: Open Gym (CrossFit / Scholastic Training) @ 9:30am….we’ll be serving baked goods from La Farm Bakery and coffee
• Friday, November 26: CrossFit @ 9am; Scholastic Training @ 10am
• Saturday, November 27: Open Gym (CrossFit / Scholastic Training) @ 11am

The difference between an Olympic winner and the 4th place finisher in sports like Track & Field, Olympic weightlifting, Swimming and Cycling is less than 3%. Typical basketball games are often decided by less than a single basket. The difference between a home run and an out can be as little as a couple inches. Given that outcomes in sport are decided by such small margins why would you be willing to train with anything less than the best. Is being good good enough?

While many think that speed is something that your simply born with, we’ve proven this to be a myth. We regularly improve the sprint times of our athletes by as much as a half second over distances as short as 40 yards. We do this by enhancing both the physical capacity of the athlete as well as teaching them the most mechanically efficient way to sprint. Get faster today, sign up for our Scholastic training sessions.

Just a reminder that we’re having Athletic Lab guest days next week. We invite all members to bring a guest to work out with them during any or all of the three guest days next week. We promise not to hard sell them. Guests should arrive 10 minutes prior to the scheduled class time to fill out our waiver and meet our staff before joining the workout.