October/November 2023 - 26

Nutrition Focus
Plateauing Performance
Why pre-workout may not be the answer
By Hannah Champine,
MDN, RDN, Gatorade SNIP
Fellow at the University of Michigan
P
icture this. You are a part of
the performance team for a
sport and it is mid-season.
An athlete shows up to practice.
Something looks off. They are lacking
their usual energy, speed, power, and
focus. Coaches are concerned, and as
a member of the performance team,
they are asking you what might be going on.
Before responding, you give the situation more
thought. It might be that the athlete is under-fueled
for this specific training session. Additionally, it could
be a result of poor recovery, lack of sleep, dehydration,
outside stressors, acute sickness, or another medical
complication.
There are a variety of possibilities to consider in
getting to the root cause of this situation.
As a sports dietitian, I decided to tell the coaches
that there are many potential causes for this concerning
performance, so the best thing to do next would be to
ask the athlete to start by taking me through what they
26 | Training & Conditioning | October/November 2023
have had to eat and drink that day and for the days
leading up to today.
Beyond the capability to assess the dietary recall of an
athlete, a sports dietitian is capable of bringing value to
the performance team through expertise in a myriad of
other areas that might help in assessing complex issues.
Once the probable cause for this specific athlete is
able to be identified, the next step would be to treat
the athlete accordingly. Depending on your role on the
performance team, this may include refueling, education
on proper fueling habits, increasing knowledge on the
importance of recovery and sleep, talking through the
impact of stress, coordinating referrals outside your scope
of practice, or other multidisciplinary interventions.
Notice that throughout this entire process, a preworkout
supplement or a caffeine-containing energy
drink is not considered a recommendation. Whether it's
in a powder form or a ready-to-drink can, it may likely be
the first option on the athlete's mind for that extra preworkout
push.
Athletes may be intrigued by the trendy product
marketing, their favorite social media influencers'
promotion of the product, or maybe a role model athlete
using their compensated sponsorship agreement to
advocate for and/or use this product. We live in a world

October/November 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of October/November 2023

Editors Letter: The strength of a team
CSCCa Strength Focus: How to influence and implement a winning team culture
Strength Training Facilities of Excellence
2023 Strength Coaches Survey Results
CPSDA Nutrition Focus: Why pre-workout may not be the answer
Training & Conditioning’s Innovative Products for 2024
Therapy Focus: Narrative shift surrounding cannabinoids
Product Marketplace
Ad Index
October/November 2023 - 1
October/November 2023 - 2
October/November 2023 - 3
October/November 2023 - Editors Letter: The strength of a team
October/November 2023 - 5
October/November 2023 - 6
October/November 2023 - 7
October/November 2023 - CSCCa Strength Focus: How to influence and implement a winning team culture
October/November 2023 - 9
October/November 2023 - 10
October/November 2023 - 11
October/November 2023 - 12
October/November 2023 - Strength Training Facilities of Excellence
October/November 2023 - 14
October/November 2023 - 15
October/November 2023 - 16
October/November 2023 - 17
October/November 2023 - 18
October/November 2023 - 19
October/November 2023 - 20
October/November 2023 - 21
October/November 2023 - 2023 Strength Coaches Survey Results
October/November 2023 - 23
October/November 2023 - 24
October/November 2023 - 25
October/November 2023 - CPSDA Nutrition Focus: Why pre-workout may not be the answer
October/November 2023 - 27
October/November 2023 - Training & Conditioning’s Innovative Products for 2024
October/November 2023 - 29
October/November 2023 - Therapy Focus: Narrative shift surrounding cannabinoids
October/November 2023 - 31
October/November 2023 - 32
October/November 2023 - Product Marketplace
October/November 2023 - Ad Index
October/November 2023 - 35
October/November 2023 - 36
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/october-november-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/august-september-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/june-july-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/april-may-2024-purchasing-guide
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/february-march-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/october-november-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/august-september
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/2023-video-playbook
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/june-july
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/tc-april-may
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/february-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/october-november
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/august-september-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/june-july-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/training-conditioning-video-playbook-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/april-may-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/february-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/october-november-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/august-september-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/june-july-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/may-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/april-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/april-may-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/february-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/october-november-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/august-september-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/may-june-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/april-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/march-april-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/february-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/october-november-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/august-september-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/Training-and-Conditioning/may-june-2019
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com