Pembroke, November 21, 2011 – Congress recently unveiled a new bill
which includes language that will allow a serving of pizza to be
considered a vegetable if spread with two tablespoons of tomato paste.

The bill would deny funding to the new school meal nutrition standards
that were proposed earlier this year by the USDA. Those standards
include increasing the availability of fruits and vegetables on the
school lunch menu while limiting the availability of high sodium items
and starchy vegetables such as potatoes.

According to a statement from Margo Wootan, the Nutrition Policy
Director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, “This
legislation may go down in nutritional history as a bigger blunder
than when the Reagan Administration tried (but failed) to credit
ketchup as a vegetable in the school lunch program. Pizza should be
served with a vegetable, not count as one.”

The bill comes in response to heavy lobbying campaigns from large food
corporations that wanted to fight the proposed USDA standards.

“Although many people are outraged by the bill, this does not surprise
me,” said Timothy Ward, Vice President of Operations for Athletic
Revolution International, the fastest growing youth fitness franchise
organization in the country.

“What we have to realize is that businesses are always going to try
and protect their own revenue streams. It is up to us as responsible
adults to empower our kids to make healthy food choices. We have the
power to change lives regardless of what the government decides to
do.”

Dave Gleason, owner of an Athletic Revolution franchise in Pembroke
could not agree more. At Athletic Revolution, kids and teens
6-18 years old are given the opportunity to learn the value of
physical activity and healthy food choices on their health and
wellness… as are their parents.

“All we need to do is take personal responsibility for the well-being
of our children our young athletes and the community. If we do that,
everything will work out just fine, said Gleason.

And it’s true. What kind of vegetables did you serve your kids at
dinner last night? When was the last time you enjoyed participating in
free play with your kids at the local park? If you aren’t ashamed to
answer those questions, your kids are probably happy and healthy.

In an effort to help parents help their kids, Athletic Revolution will
be giving away as a holiday gift 2 free weeks of fun and fitness
training to all kids aged 6-18 in the South Shore if they come
in before the New Year. To take advantage of this opportunity, email info@athleticrevolutionsouthshore.com or call 781-312-7808.

“With or without the government’s support, we will continue fighting
to keep the kids in our community healthy.”
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Speed Clinic: Friday November 11^th 10:00am

Boys and Girls u10-u12
ONLY $29.00

Developing game changing speed is a skill.  Speed, agility and quickness can be learned just like shooting, dribbling and passing, skating, etc. Take your game to the next level with our cutting edge programs specifically designed for superior athletic performance.  All winter sports welcome!

Speed and Agility Skills:

• Acceleration
• Lateral vs. Linear Speed
• Agility
• Cuts
• Braking skills
• Power and Explosiveness
• Strength
• Timing and Rhythm

Pre-registration required.  All payments with the form below must be received by Friday, November 11th.

CLICK HERE for the registration form

Speed Clinic: Friday November 11^th 11:00am

Boys and Girls 14+
ONLY $29.00

Developing game changing speed is a skill.  Speed, agility and quickness can be learned just like shooting, dribbling and passing, skating, etc. Take your game to the next level with our cutting edge programs specifically designed for superior athletic performance.  All winter sports welcome!

Speed and Agility Skills:

• Acceleration
• Lateral vs. Linear Speed
• Agility
• Cuts
• Braking skills
• Power and Explosiveness
• Strength
• Timing and Rhythm

Pre-registration required.  All payments with the form below must be received by Friday, November 11th.

CLICK HERE for the registration form

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WATCH THIS to see what I mean!

See you soon!

Coach Dave

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Congratulations to the following athletes for successfully achieving higher rank on Saturday September 17th, 2011.

Testing, evaluating and assessing young athletes is and should be a continual process.  Those terms are all synonymous with each other.  One overlooked commonality they have is that they are largely misunderstood.  All to often the concept of grading young athletes is based solely on performance measures that illustrate how far, how far, how fast and how much.  A key problem with this connotation is it lacks a the emphasis  on the very skills required to perform any movement or exercise.

The Athletic Revolution Testing and Promotion System is based on 9 levels of achievement based on skill aptitude, character and fitness level.

We are proud to announce the 8 Champions that qualified and successfully achieved a new level this past Saturday:

Discovery-Level 1

Phase 1 – White

Kylee Dinneen

Kierstin Dinneen

Ryan Lebowitz

Phase 2 – Orange

Jack Rynning

Phase 3 – Black

Anthony Sulfaro

Alexis Rynning

Exploration-Level 2

Phase 1- White

Steven Cerventes

Phase 2- Orange

John O’Keefe

If and when you see these young champions…give them a high 5!

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Growing youth dependence on technology

As seen in Wicked Local Pembroke and the Pembroke Mariner

Children all over the US are returning to school next week, leaving houses empty for perhaps the first time since summer began. Recent research indicates that the number of children who remain indoors and “plugged in” to technology has been growing substantially at the expense of physical activity and free play.

The Pew Internet and American Life Project found that 93 percent of American adolescents use the Internet, with 73 percent having a Facebook account. These values have increased significantly from previous years, as well as ownership of cell phones.

“It is scary that children are no longer getting outside, exploring their neighborhoods, and physically playing with others. This is a key link in the chain of childhood obesity and sports injuries,” reported Dave Gleason who was recently name to the Board of Experts by the International Youth Conditioning Association.

A recent study by the Kaiser Family Foundation lays bare the extent of the issue. Americans aged 8 to 18 were found to spend more time with media – TV, internet, video games, etc. – than they did at school, with a whopping 7.5 hours a day devoted to media.

That is a lot of time spent indoors.

Gleason who is also owner of the Pembroke youth fitness organization Athletic Revolution, points toward the solution. “Reestablishing a physical culture in today’s youth is a critical step to improving the health of our children.”

Inactivity is linked to increased risk of obesity, diabetes, and depression in youth.

“We teach children that physical activity is not only fun, but also a great way to make friends,” said Gleason. “And if kids are having fun, they are going to want to keep moving.”

For more information on Athletic Revolution or what you can do to get your kids more active, contact Dave Gleason at 781-312-7808

References:

Pew Internet and American Life Project:

http://pewinternet.org/Commentary/2011/July/Teen-Data-Resources.aspx

Kaiser Family Foundation: http://www.kff.org/entmedia/mh012010pkg.cfm

Watch below a please feel free to leave comments

Coach Dave

As seen in the Pembroke Mariner and WickedLocal.com

1 Million Children Hire Personal Trainers

According to multiple sources, including MSNBC and Newsweek, more than 1 million children hire a personal trainer every year in the United States. The rate of youth obesity and the increased competitive nature of youth sports are cited as the major reasons for this relatively new phenomenon.

It is critical for parents to understand that when hiring a personal trainer for their child’s physical fitness needs, they pay close attention to the trainer’s qualifications and experience related to working with this specific demographic.

The following is a checklist for parents to use when hiring a personal trainer for their child:

1. Ask about the trainer’s schooling and continuing education. A degree in exercise science or related allied health field is preferable. Also, a certification as a Youth Fitness Specialist should be considered a primary requirement. Many nationally accredited certification organizations offer professional trainers education and credentials in fitness or sport training, but only the Youth Fitness Specialist certification from the International Youth Conditioning Association offers a specialized education for personal trainers in the aspects of working with children and adolescents.

2. Ask about the trainer’s experience working with children. Most personal trainers have experience working with adult clients, but only Youth Fitness Specialists have experience and exposure working with children and adolescents for weight loss and sports performance needs.

3. Ask to watch the trainer in action working with children. Personal trainers should be happy to have prospective parents view a training session in order to ascertain how well the trainer relates to children and adolescents.

Coach Dave Gleason, owner of Athletic Revolution in Pembroke instructs trainers, coaches and parents for the International Youth Fitness Association. For more information on the qualifications, experience and philosophy a youth fitness trainer needs to have call Gleason at 781-312-7808 or visit his website www.athleticrevolutionsouthshore.com.

The posterior chain is a term that describes the series of joints and muscles on the back side of our bodies.  The glutes, hamstrings (back of the thighs), lower back and upper back to name a few are all a part of the posterior chain.

What is so important about the posterior chain.

Most non-trauma related injuries to athletes (all athletes, not just young athletes) are due to poor braking mechanisms.  Most of the structures on the back side of the body are designed to help athletes put on the brakes.

Examples of Braking mechanisms in sport:

• Slowing down, stopping and changing direction quickly
• Slowing down or braking the throwing motion
• Landing from a vertical jump

All this being said….a young athlete still needs to have fun.  This video depicts on of the many ways we train the posterior chain to increase injury resistance and improve performance:

If you have never experienced the difference at Athletic Revolution and want to take advantage of our 2 week free trial just click here and we can get you started!

See you soon!

Coach Dave

At Athletic Revolution I will use ropes, balls, resistance bands and even PVC pipes (usually utilized for teaching bar skills) as the implement.  As a coach you can regress or progress depending on the skill and aptitude of your young athletes.

Some rules or boundaries you can easily layer in are:

• First person to put their other foot down loses the match
• One hand hold only
• No hopping allowed
• Eyes closed
• Two feet

BE CREATIVE!

Here is an example of this activity in action…

This game is can also be a great equalizer of strength and a terrific example in teaching young athletes the difference in absolute strength vs functional strength.

See you soon!

Coach Dave

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