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Change Your Shirt, Change Your Performance – Presented by 37.5® Technology
Athletes will do strange things for an edge over their opponents. Magnets to improve recovery after workouts, hologram bracelets, and the copper-fit compression sleeves that supposedly kept Brett Farve throwing bullets until well into his 40’s are just a few examples of things athletes have embraced to improve their performance in practices and games. But what if playing harder, longer was as easy as changing your shirt?
By now, moisture-wicking apparel is just something everyone thinks they need when they work out. At the time the technology was released, the performance over a plain cotton t-shirt was improved. Now, a study published in January’s International Journal of Sports Medicine, shows that cooling, not wicking, is key to improving athlete performance.
The harder you compete, the more you heat up, and as those of us who play know, if you get too hot, your body slows down and needs a rest. So the test, performed at the University of Colorado Boulder, measured core body temperature, and pitted a moisture wicking t-shirt against another utilizing a proprietary technology by Cocona called 37.5 ® technology as well as a jacket circulating ice water to find out how athletes would hold up under strenuous exercise while wearing each.
Not surprisingly, when the athletes wore the ice water jacket they were able to keep their body temperature lower for longer than when they wore a moisture-wicking t-shirt. But more, when the athletes wore the 37.5 technology shirt hey kept pace with the ice jacket, too. Both the ice jacket and 37.5 shirt allowed athletes to go 26% longer than in the wicking shirt at their lactate threshold. For athletes, trainers and coaches looking to increase their performance, the answer doesn’t have to be something from out of left field, it can almost be as easy as changing your shirt!
If you’re interested in learning more about how 37.5 technology in gear can increase your performance, you can find it in Mission apparel for training, Inaria for soccer, and Bauer for hockey, among others.
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Where's the Nation's Toughest Place to Play?
Ever been rattled at an away game because you couldn’t hear the play over the crowd noise? What about changing your approach to a meet because the course is absolutely treacherous? What if you call that place home?
We’re looking for the nation’s toughest places to play. Nominate your school, or an opponent’s, with the form below. Nominations will be open through midnight EST on August 21, and voting begins across the network on the 22nd.
Ramona (CA) debuts new Adidas uniforms
The Ramona Rams (CA) Varsity Football Team debuted their new Adidas uniforms on Tuesday which feature their Columbia, White and Navy school colors. We’re especially loving the italic font and bold white outlines. Click this link to check out the away whites.
Colleyville Heritage (OH) players win big in Vegas
3D Kingdom, an AAU team anchored by three players from Colleyville Heritage won the 15U Platinum Championship at the Bigfoot Hoops Las Vegas Classic. The players took home the title after besting teams from Northern California, Houston, Oklahoma, and Indiana.
Blakesley Earns National Title
South Bend Riley (IN) Senior Madison Blakesley won a National Title last week, at the YMCA Nationals in Greensboro, North Carolina.
In her event, the 50 yard breaststroke, she took home the win by setting a new meet record of 32.54 seconds. She’ll be swimming for the Wildcats this Winter.
Eight Great Fundraising Ideas for Booster Clubs
New jerseys, gear, entry fees, retreats – the wish list of opportunities to improve your teams is long, and often, the ways to finance them are short. While there’s no perfect one-size-fits-all fundraiser for every community, good inspiration is the first step.
Whether its your booster club, team, or program looking to raise funds and increase school spirit, here’s a few of our favorite ideas that we’ve seen across the network:
Jail-N-Bail – DeSoto High School (KS)
$10 files a warrant to arrest members of the community with phony allegations like “impersonating a golfer,” “failure to yield at the end of a sentence,” and “wearing pants way too high.” Once served with the warrant for their ‘arrest,’ the jailbirds are placed in a jail cell, a mug shot is taken, and they must call family/friends to raise bail.
Cheerleading Day – Pickens High School (SC)
Blue Flame cheerleaders dedicated their time to teach younger members of the community motion drills, jump technique, stunting fundamentals and sideline spirit in a day camp for a donation to the program. The campers, led by the PHS cheerleaders, performed a showcase at the conclusion of camp.
Lap-a-Thon – Gilmer High School (GA)
Anyone who has ever ran distance before knows that the hardest part isn’t necessarily the physical aspect, but the mental component of the sport, and in true Cross Country fashion, the Bobcats’ ‘hardest fundraiser,’ forces participants to run for an hour and a half around the track without stopping, with the main goal of seeing who can run the most laps consecutively in that time. Each lap ran accumulates money from sponsors, and all proceeds go towards funding the team.
Lift-A-Thon – Avon Lake (OH)
Earlier this Summer, the Shoremen football team held their 26th annual lift-a-thon, where players perform their max in 4 lifts, including the squat, hang clean, bench press, and deadlift in front of a crowd. Donations could be made in a player’s name, or to the team generally. Whittier Christian (CA) has a similar event coming up, the Push-Up-a-Thon, and Gilmer.
3 v. 3 Soccer Tournament – Roy High School (UT)
In the warm up to the Utah Spring Season, the Roy Royals Boys Soccer team held a 3v3 soccer tournament. At $20 per player, it was billed as a tune up for the year’s games across all levels, with teams starting at age 6 through adult.
Home Run Derby – Desert Ridge High School (AZ)
To help assist a teammate with unforeseen medical costs, the Jaguars held a home run derby. Split into two age groups, “19 and over” and “18 and under,” participants paid $20 to hit baseballs out of the park. The total raised, including raffles, auctions, and concessions, was $2,671!
Top Golf – Lakota West High School (OH)
Instead of practicing their own sport, the Firebirds of Lakota West held a fundraiser at the local West Chester Top Golf branch. At $100 per golfer, the cost included heavy appetizers, soft drinks, and visits from Lakota West NFL alumns Jordan Hicks (Philadelphia Eagles) and Ryan Kelly (Indianapolis Colts).
Local Restaurant Events – Erie (CO), Lowell (MI), Westonka (MN)
If there’s one thing everyone loves, it’s food. Several schools connected with local restaurants and held fundraisers there. Whether the deal was for a portion of the day’s earnings donated back to the school (Chipotle and Buffalo Wild Wings are good national candidates for this), an ‘all-you-can-eat’ Belgian Waffles special, or selling coupons, this idea is a simple turn-key way to start earning.