Tip of the Week: Managing stress does not have to include the use of alcohol or drugs. The best way to handle stress is through healthy habits.

Exercise, healthy eating, sleeping well and maintaining close relationships are important in stress management. These key actions can help reduce stress levels and improve your quality of life. Quick fixes like drugs or alcohol may temporarily mask stress but the long-term effects are unhealthy.

Life of a Student Athlete- Tip of the Week: Set goals for what you want to achieve in school and in your sport.

Make an action plan for how you will accomplish your goals. Keep meals healthy, drink enough water and electrolytes, get enough sleep at night and stay away from drugs and alcohol. Constantly keep goals in sight as part of your successful finish line.

Life of a Student Athlete- Tip of the Week: Develop healthy habits early in life.

As a teenager it’s important to start healthy habits now that will keep you healthy later in life. Eat lean proteins, fruits and vegetables and some complex carbohydrates. For proper hydration, drink six to eight 12-ouce glasses of water a day. Exercise three to five days a weekand be sure to get 8-10 hours of sleep each night. Choose to be drug and alcohol-free.

Tip of the Week: To increase flexibility hold each stretch for at least 45 seconds

Hold each of your stretches for at least 45 seconds and repeat two to three times and remember to breathe through each. Stretching for this period of time will lengthen your muscles therefore increasing your range of motion. Additional benefits also include improved circulation, better posture, stress relief and enhanced coordination.

Tip: Using alcohol and marijuana shuts down 10-11 of the 13 geographic regions of the brain, reaction diminishes significantly.

Using alcohol and marijuana can cause significant negative effects on an individual. Marijuana impacts your coordination, resulting in decreased ability to move, react and stay balanced. The use of alcohol controls the brain in many ways and can result in difficulty walking, blurred vision, slurred speech, slowed reaction times and impaired memory. Think about these facts before using alcohol or marijuana.

Tip: Overcoming barriers to performance is how groups become teams

Every team is made up of a set of diverse individuals who bring a variety of strengths to their sport. When a group of athletes are faced with a difficult opponent, they share a purpose to be part of something larger – to score that one goal or even to defeat the team who has been undefeated all season. Make it a priority to understand your group’s common goal and use the benefits of working as a team to accomplish that goal.

Tip of the Week: Misusing prescription drugs can be harmful to your health and impact your participation in sports.

Only take medications that are prescribed to you and follow instructions from the doctor carefully. Prescription drugs and over-the-counter drugs including sleeping pills, anti-anxiety drugs and cough and cold remedies can be harmful to your health if you don’t take the medication as directed. Do not take any medications that are prescribed to someone else, side effects can include nausea, dizziness, loss of appetite or even vision loss.

Tip of the Week: Just one night of binge drinking will erase 2 weeks of practice.

Binge drinking can be defined as consuming five drinks for males and four drinks for females in about two hours. You may show up to practice but you will not see any gains for two weeks. It will also take 96 hours to rebalance hormones and you will see an 11% decrease in your performance.

Tip: Being challenged in life is inevitable. Being defeated is optional.

Every time you fail, you move one step closer to succeeding. Embrace failure as part of success and get going. Perseverance will help to overcome challenges; it is easy to become overwhelmed so take it one step at a time.

Tip: Never increase your exercise intensity or the amount of weight lifted by a factor of 10% every 2 weeks

Be smart to avoid injury when training for your sport. Gradual increases in exercise intensity and amount of weight lifted will provide the best results. Progression is the key to the success of your workout.