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Contents 2 Grassroot Teamwear Cheap training bibs 4 Meadons Insurance Cricket club insurance from Meadons Insurance - piece of mind guaranteed 6 MD’s Letter 7 Sports Psychology with David Harrison Get some tips to change the way you think about the game 9 Cricket Coaching with Andrew Beaven Time to look at your scorebooks from 2013... 11 Michael’s Trophies Great offers on trophies from Michael’s 12 Grassroot Teamwear If your cricket club is looking for new playing shirts you probably won’t be able to find them this cheap anywhere else 14 Cricket Club Corner With Lansdown Cricket Club 16 Match Minutes FC An interview with the inventor of a great new free app for football clubs to use to make their in-match tweeting easier and more effective
18 Twitter Directory See which clubs are where on Twitter 36 Grassroot Media Guide to... Well Colin Smith’s guide to fundraising ideas Colin back to give you details on some interesting loopholes/ideas 22 easyfundraising.org Easy & cost-free way to raise club funds 26 The Secret Non-League Footballer New to the magazine, The Secret NonLeague Footballer writes about England C 29 Player Fitness with Isaiah Barratt This month Isaiah looks at keeping your players fit during the cold winter months 31 JMN Sports Great value footballs for both training and match days from JMN Sports (and an exclusive discount code for member clubs) 32 ESU Scoreboards Good offers for member clubs that need a new cricket scoreboard
Grassroot Media Contacts Twitter @grassrootmedia Facebook.com/grassrootmedia LinkedIn search for Matthew Court Office telephone number 0800 8 20 21 22 Mathew Court’s email address mcourt@grassrootmedia.com
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The MD’s Letter Hello and welcome to November’s magazine. Another busy month with us working the DryWorld advertising partnership hard, they seem happy with what we’re doing but as always if you see anything on their Twitter feed that you think could be of interest to your players then please feel free to retweet/mention them as they like the interaction. They look like they have some big plans for 2014 and it would be great if we could keep them on board. On that note, if you could forward on to your players the footballers survey I sent out that would be a big help, we’ve only had 25 responses so far and at the moment I can’t use the results due to the small numbers. Remember, there’s a £50 donation to a club on offer as a prize, to be in it all the players have to do is complete the survey.
I’m also working hard on the partnerships side of things, there’s a new one in here for footballs from JMN Sports. If any of you buy anything from them it would be great to know what you think of their balls, they look good to me, but I’m just one person... That’s it for now, see you next month...
Mat Court - MD
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Sports psychology Extending the Comfort Zone of your players The focus of this month’s article comes as a result of talking to some colleagues at a sport psychology forum I attended. One the main principles I use when working with clients is the need to ‘extend your comfort zone’ in every endeavour you undertake and this out discussing elite youth football. Extending your comfort zone will promote continuous improvement as you seek to always be extending your comfort zone. This is hard work and difficult to do. We, as creatures, prefer to be comfortable and not to push too hard. This is often referred to as ‘plodding along’ or in sport ‘going through the motions’. We need to encourage our athletes to ‘get comfortable being uncomfortable’.
“...we need to ensure that we create an environment where the athletes are comfortable being uncomfortable...”
This will make them improve, this will make them seek out strategies to improve. Your comfort zone is the area within which we feel a sense of security and certainty, it is an area where any actions taken have been tried tested and are known to be safe but it doesn’t allow improvement as your actions have been tested and you are aware of what needs to be done and to go about doing it. It’s easy to remain comfortable and never really reach your potential. This is seen in countless sporting examples where potential is never fulfilled. So in our training sessions we use for our athletes we need to ensure that we create an environment where the athletes are comfortable being uncomfortable and where they are able to try and experiment new things without fearing the repercussions of making a mistake. Making mistakes are how we learn and is a key principle of extending your comfort zone.
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These mistakes cause you to develop new ways of working to improve. Encourage mistakes in training to extend your players comfort zone and don’t come down to hard when mistakes occur (unless they come from a lack of effort as the athlete will be in their comfort zone!).
“...Encourage mistakes in training to extend your players comfort zone and don’t come down to hard when mistakes occur...” Also reinforce improvement of skills at personal level and don’t focus on winning, instead focus on what you need to do to have the best chance of winning. By not creating the right environment you are creating player who play not to lose as opposed to the players we want to develop who play to win. These players play to win because they focus on the things they can control in a game as opposed to the outcome and in training they are constantly seeking ways to extend their comfort zone and work hard to improve and they do not go through the motions. Let me finish on a football example. It’s the 89th minute and the game is a draw. The attacking team plays a ball to the wing and the winger beats the full back and moves toward the byline for a cross.
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The midfielder of the attacking team, if they are playing to win, will not hesitate about working hard to get into the box and get on the end of the cross which will give their team a chance to win the game. If the same midfielder was playing not to lose they would hesitate slightly as they consider the what if I don’t get on the end of the cross and the other team then counter attack and go down the other end and score and they win the game. This all goes back the midfielders training and if they are encouraged to extend their comfort zone. If they are given opportunity to do this they will know that they can comfortably get back in position if the attack breaks down. I am a BASES Accredited Sport Scientist in sport psychology and I am based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire and my company is Pinnacle Performance (www.pinnacleperformance.co.uk). I work with a number of different sports. We will continue our understanding of improving your mental skills next month. If you have any questions then please get in touch.
Andrew Beaven Andrew Beaven from The Twenty20 Cricket Company writes about starting winter nets and getting the most out of indoor practice...
When does your club start winter nets? My Club started winter practice in mid-November this year. Talking with a couple of fellow coaches it seems that there is little agreement on the right time to get back into the nets after the outdoor season ends. But whilst anything pre-Christmas was too early for some, we did agree that winter indoor practice had an important role to play in a successful summer outdoor season. What is the point of indoor practice in the winter? • Fitness – if the only cricket we get over the winter is watching the Ashes on Sky, those first pre-season sessions are going to hurt! • A chance to work on remedial actions (probably supervised by an experienced and qualified coach, to avoid replacing one faulty technique with another…). • Social – unless all of your
cricketers also play football or rugby or go to school together, winter practice can be vital for bringing Club members together during the dark winter months.
Making winter practice work I have written before about the benefits of indoor cricket - there is a lot to be said for pushing the nets back and simply playing games, if you have the luxury of space and time. But indoor nets can be made to work, too, with a little thought.
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Make sessions competitive. Set batters specific challenges playing only in the "V" for the first 10 deliveries, say, then hitting only on the off-side for 10 deliveries. "10 off the last four balls" is fine, so long as you (the coach) encourage effective power hitting, not wild slogging. Introduce physical forfeits for missing targets – sit-ups and pressups. If the nets are wide enough, and the bowlers can stay safely out of the way in their follow-through, have the batsmen running in pairs "run two on the second delivery, take a single off the third" introduces a physical element to the challenge, and rotates the strike regularly.
Set challenges for the bowlers, as well - have them bowl a specific line or length; forfeits for missing targets and bowling wides or no balls. You could even introduce a "circuit training" element. Rotate bowlers out of the nets to spend 5-10 minutes on fitness, mobility, and core stability work. The players won’t thank you at the time, but they will as their improved fitness feeds into improved performance in the new outdoor season. Whatever you do, make it fun, and keep players involved. Enjoy the winter!
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Cricket Club Corner Crispin Gillbard, Publicity Officer, Lansdown Cricket Club in Somerset Tell us a bit about your club... what do you do, where are you, which leagues, how many members etc... Founded in 1825 Lansdown Cricket Club is the sixth oldest club in England and matches were played on the site of what is now Bath Racecourse. Their current ground at Combe Park was secured in 1865 and provides superb tracks for a high standard of cricket which benefits all teams that play there, ensuring entertaining and competitive cricket during the season. The club has a thriving social scene both in and out of season providing fabulous facilities for its 400 members together with many celebratory events being held in the clubhouse which allows nonmembers to be encouraged to be part of this welcoming community. Have you had any famous players pull on the shirt? Former players of interest include W.G.Grace who captained the club
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on a number of occasions in the days when captains were appointed on a match by match basis, The great West Indian Sir Viv Richards who played here to attain his registration for Somerset CCC in 1973 and Matthew Horne the New Zealand test cricketer in 1990. Who does what at the club to do with revenue generation/sponsorship? All members are aware that sponsorship however large or small is vital to a club of this nature and they have one person who raises advertising revenue, another who sets up “fun days” for juniors during summer holidays, a small committee who arrange the immensely popular pub six-a-side competition every May and many other initiatives all overseen by an executive committee. The chairman, Mark Hobbs-Shoulder says ‘The key to the sourcing of any sponsorship is the same as encouraging new business.We set
out our stall with all choices available, point out the benefits and then ask the customer what they think. If you can answer all their questions or objections and if necessary negotiate then nine out of ten people will at least consider it. It’s then a matter of following up a short while later and we have success using this approach. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a banner on the perimeter fence for £300 or several thousand pounds for new covers it all counts to improving the facilities, fostering our youth set up or pursuing our vision to be an attractive venue for the community with cricket at the helm.’ The club recently widened their community impact by linking up with Bath City FC, allowing their under 9 players to use the outfield as a football pitch during the winter months thereby providing extra revenue from not just the lads but their families as well, with many making enquiries about becoming members or possibilities for junior cricket during the summer. Have you got any advice for other clubs in our network looking to be more successful when it comes to generating funds? The future for Lansdown looks bright and the advice from them to all other clubs is ‘Know your product and capabilities, use them to your advantage and THINK BIG!
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Match Minutes FC – the easy way to update your fans in-match via Twitter We talk to Thomas Ang about his match reporting app, Match Minutes FC & how it can help your club Twitter commentators do a better job, easier.
So, Thomas, please tell us a bit about Match Minutes FC and the app. What I've done is build an app for football clubs, especially grassroots and women's clubs that don't get television coverage. I'm not selling anything: the app is completely free and I don't make any money from this, call it a hobby, a labour of love, or whatever, but I just felt someone needed to do it and I thought I could be that person to help the people who run club Twitter feeds
moving game and this app is designed simply to help the person doing the hard work during the match. If nothing else it gives them a little more time to actually watch the match rather than worrying about the auto spell check botching player names but the goal is to give clubs a more professional and consistent look and feel to their in-match comm’s.
How did you get the idea? Running a club Twitter feed is a tough job that in some cases doesn’t get much thanks from the rest of the club. I know this because I've personally experienced some of the difficulties that come with running a small football club and I just want to share a little something I made to help all of those who endure this thankless task out of love for the game. Football is a fast
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An example of the finished article on a Twitter feed
But why problem?
is
it
such
a
In the modern era, when fans follow many matches at once (and often ones being played far from home), Twitter has become an important way for clubs to update their outside-of-stadium supporters during matches.
A couple of screenshots of the user interface, designed to make it easier for your club Twitter feed to be easier to construct This is especially true for grassroots clubs that obviously aren't shown on the television, and that do not have the infrastructure to be publishing live text commentary directly to their websites. Twitter has also become an important way for these smaller clubs to attract sponsors, and as we all know sponsors like clubs to have more followers; this app is designed to be a large part of a club’s social media strategy to help get in-match commentary out to
more people and therefore increase follower count through better content.
Why is it a good idea? At grassroots clubs, a club official will be watching the match with a mobile phone in hand, and will type Twitter updates as frequently as possible. Unfortunately, it's difficult to type these updates on a small device that tries to autocorrect player names, while trying to keep an eye on the action. The Match Minutes FC iPhone app is designed to make it easier. Simples as that. We will have an Android version following at some point. The timestamps the app attaches to each tweet also give the club staff a record from which they can later compile detailed match reports, again reducing the amount of work that needs to go in to generating good content.
Sounds like a good idea to me. Who is using it at the moment? I've given the app to men's and women's clubs on both sides of the Atlantic and they're now happily tweeting with it every week. I have no reason to keep it from everyone else, so I'm trying to get the word out. You can see more info at matchminutesfc.com/the-app.html or via the link on the Grassroot Media site at grassrootmedia.com/grassrootstuff
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Twitter Directory Birmingham County FA: @birminghamfa Bosham FC: @boshamfc Bronze CC: @bronzeCC Clifton CC: @cliftoncricket Clifton CC ground: @cliftonccdevt Crawley Down Gatwick Football Club: @OfficialCDGFC Epping CC: @EppingCC Gateshead Fell CC: @gatesheadfellcc Hailsham Cricket Club: @hailshamcc1871 Marsden CC: @cuckooscricket Old Parkonians Association: @oldparks Old Parkonians FC: @oldparksfc Parkfield Amateur AFC: @parkfieldafc South Loughton CC: @southloughtoncc Southgate Compton CC: @sccricketclub Stapleton CC: @stapletoncc Steeple Langford CC: @steeplelangford Sussex County FA: @sussexcountyfa Tynedale CC:@tynedalecc Westinghouse CC: @westinghousecc Whickham CC: @whickhamcc Winterbourne CC: @winterbournecc Worlington CC: @worlingtoncc Worthing FC @official_w_f_c
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List your club’s Twitter account in here so everyone else can get following you. Only those clubs that are members of the network like yours are allowed on this list. To get listed just drop Mat a note at mcourt@grassrootmedia .com or on Twitter @grassrootmedia Grassroot Media recommends: @birminghamfa @fvhtweets @michaelsengrave @sussexcountyfa @meadonscricket @4grants @chance2shine
Successful Grant Fundraising and Bid Writing Tips for Clubs Colin Smith from Elvington & Tilmanstone Colliery Welfare Cricket Club continues talks about more great fundraising tips for our clubs. Writing grant bids for a new piece of equipment, facility upgrade, coaching course fees, volunteer course fees, clubhouse renovations/ extensions or anything else can take some time. So first of all don’t expect to write out a grant application in one session. This can happen but is very rare. Be patient and chip away bit by bit.
“...Writing grant bids can take some time...” Some funders have application forms and some have a simple details form and ask for additional information up to so many pages. The latter is becoming more common in my experience. NEED The most crucial point of any bid is to prove the NEED for the project. This is vital because if you cannot justify your application then you
will not succeed. The need can be drawn from information you have gathered from your community consultation and suggestions box. More widely and top tip here depending on what your bid is actually for you can draw on a wider consultation documents from the local Council. For example Dover District Council, where I live, have many District strategy documents that talk about well being, rural isolation, lack of funding, lack of certain facilities in certain areas, poor transport links, socially deprived areas, the indices of social deprivation etc. All of this information can be quoted in funding bids if it suits your application. If you live in a socially deprived area contact the Council or Google the Indices of Social Deprivation and quote some statistics on your application. This is all good information that will count positively towards your score when the funding Trustees sift it.
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Top tip – you do not need to reinvent the wheel here if the information is out there on the Council website - use it. I would go as far to say if you do not satisfy the criteria for the NEED for the project “you are doomed” in Dad’s Army speak. Specific needs could range from: •To improve facilities and access, •To improve the quality of playing surface, •To improve practice facilities •To get more people involved, •To provide as structure and volunteer policy that works to enable them to stay involved with your club, •To engage and involve more Businesses, Local Authorities, Schools, Community groups, •To widen your audience to provide a facility for other healthy activities like keep fit classes, dance, local meeting groups etc, •To attract more media coverage to increase membership, •To assist the Governments agendas for Health, Education, Crime and the Environment, •To assist the delivery of ‘Grounds to Play’ – the ECB’s strategic plan from 2010 –2013
Just remember to back up these aims with community consultation
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results when you come to writing your applications. Always detail the IMPACT your funding will have and how it will be SUSTAINED after the funding has been given. For Impact think: •An increase in people playing sport or engaged in healthy activity once a week, •Growth in participation by people with disability, •A reduction in drop off rates of ages 16,18, 21 •New or improved facility that is multi-functional not just aimed at one sport as per previous usage. •New engagement with schools and local groups, •An increase in facility use, •An increase in volunteers, •Numbers of healthy activity sessions delivered and numbers of participants •New coaches trained, •Impact on your area or Parish your club will have, •New skills gained by people trained or taking part in activities.
Colin with Derek Underwood & members of the club committee
For sustainability think:
•How will the facility be managed once funding is secured, •Forecast an income and expenditure, •Reserves of money for maintenance of project, •Switching activities if attendance drops off. For example Pilates may drop off so try Zumba sessions, •Think of ‘in kind’ support by volunteers. Calculate their input by minimum wage so saving figures are realistic and not inflated, •Go green – think about solar panel roof rental, rainwater harvesting, solar glass etc, •Host your own fundraisers like quiz nights, dinner/dances, discos, sponsored fun runs etc. •Demonstrate you have applied to other funders for partnership funding if preferred. This is not always necessary and ‘in kind’ contribution or own fundraising is always a plus though. RESEARCH Finding the right funder once you have your project identified and justified the need can be tricky. Don’t despair use all available resources like Grantnet or simply Google – just key in funding for synthetic pitches or whatever your project is. You will be surprised with the results. Quite often I have
found funders instantly that directly fit my project. Another useful search engine is Ask Jeeves, and don’t forget the local Council as well. The District Council do have funding streams although these can be very competitive and limited funding is available. Some grant funders will have anything up to ten separate criteria's for applications. It is of course vital that you choose the correct stream of funding and if you are in any doubt email or phone them for guidance. Again many funders have detailed guidance on their websites. Read these carefully and thoroughly. With any funding application it is again vital that you do lots of reading before you start on your bid. This is all part of the research process. Again a very important stage. You must be satisfied your project meets the criteria of the funder. Think about deadlines, budgets, grant maximum amounts and look at the funders case studies. If one of these case studies is similar to your project you will probably have a good chance of success. However be careful as your bid must still be written well and cover all of the funder’s criteria for funding. Don’t be lazy just because somebody else received funding for the same project. Get it right and be proactive in your research.
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My Top 10 Funders are:
1.Awards for All 2.Inspired Facilities Sport England. 3.Colyer Ferguson Trust 4.Bernard Sunley Foundation. 5.Charles Hayward Foundation 6.Garth Weston Foundation 7.Biffa awards. 8.People’s Postcode Lottery Trust. 9.Cash4Clubs 10.Reaching Communities BIG funding. These all have different but similar criteria's for grant bids and I have had success with most of them. They also have various upper funding levels and it depends on your project as to which would be the best for your idea. PUTTING THE BID TOGETHER Once you have proved the need and done your research then generally speaking you will need three quotes for an expensive piece of equipment or renovation project. This can take some time if you have to rely on others for quotes. Be patient here but also be a pain – pester people nicely. This can be frustrating but keep your focus on the end result not everybody will work at your speed. If you have a tight deadline to meet for the bid to be submitted – pester again. This is called being a nice
nuisance. Top tip here – you can get some quotes yourself by using EBay. Some items on buy it now can just be printed off as a quote. This can be particularly useful if you are installing something yourself i.e. a supply only needed quote. This way you are not relying on anybody else or waiting on a quote in writing – you just print it yourself. It is still valid and most importantly it is easy.
“...If you have a tight deadline to meet for the bid to be submitted – pester again. This is called being a nice nuisance...” Try and get the paperwork together as you go for example a site plan or project budget are normally requested. If you can add to your bid every couple of days you will feel you are getting there, rather than that this is never going to happen feeling that we have all had. Don’t spend money on posh folders for the paperwork – the funder will normally not consider this a plus although decent paper is always nice. In fact the BIG Lottery Fund have to waste money posting folders back to applicants so just nicely indexed will do.
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so just nicely indexed will do. The content and a simple index are the most important facets not fancy presentation folders or binding. CONCLUSION Best of luck with your applications as I have previously stated it is a great feeling when you get that letter through your door to say congratulations you have been funded. The best part is delivering the good news at the next committee meeting to say you’ve got it and watching the faces of the members who thought it would never happen. Don’t be to shy with your bids you really can achieve a great deal of success if you take your time and get it right. I’m no mastermind but I’ve written, or in some cases rewritten, funding bids, sponsorship deals and hosted fundraisers in the last 6 years totalling £170,000. My total successful grants within that figure currently stands at 31 and I have 3 more pending worth another £18,000. The money is out there for good causes like yours. Go and get it. Colin Smith Elvington & Tilmanstone CWCC Email:tilmanstoneminers@hotmail.co.uk
What it’s all about: Colin, Derek Underwood and members of the club at the opening of their brand new synthetic strip.
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The Secret Non-League Footballer Each month we print an article from the excellent Secret Footballer website – you can see more at www.thesecretfootballer.com
England C, a pathway into Europe I haven’t been fortunate to be selected for the England C squad to represent my country, but if I did get the opportunity, I would cherish the moment with passion and pride. Every player who is called on by their country should be honoured and privileged, whether it’s the full national team or England C. A few of my mates have had the chance to play for England C and have always gained great experience when going away with the squad and being coached by Paul Fairclough and Steve Burr. Playing for your country at any
level is an outstanding achievement and the players who are selected play against some quality opponents. I remember going to watch an England C v Turkey B game last season and Turkey had players who had played for the full senior side and some who had played Champions League football.
“...Gaining a call-up to the squad can give you good exposure, too...” This can only improve you as a player and is a great learning curve. I also remember when England met Portugal Under-23s a couple of seasons back. A friend played in this game and he called me up afterwards to tell me that he had played against some top-flight
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Portuguese players, including Yannick Djalo, who was once a Manchester United transfer target. Gaining a call-up to the squad can give you good exposure, too. There are many scouts and club managers attending these matches to see how their players get on, and it also gives them a chance to look at other players. From my time in Non-League, I’ve noticed that Cambridge United have signed many players who have played for England C. This is partly due to the players being young, which breeds hunger and desire.
I can see why Cambridge have done this because their philosophy in recent years has been about developing younger talent and turning them into better players
who could potentially play on a bigger stage. There have been many capped players who have gone on to play at a higher level; Craig MackailSmith, George Boyd, Steve Morison and Michael Morrison, to name a few. And with England’s frustrating impotence at senior international level, developing Non-League players and giving them the opportunity to play against some of Europe’s growing talent with England C is ideal.
“...From what I’ve heard, the set-up is very professional when they are at the training camp...” I’ve never felt bitter about not being selected for this squad. I’ve been in dressing-rooms and had the lads wind me up, asking me where my caps are? My reply has always been: “Where’s your League games?” Just the standard gentle banter that goes on.
There are a lot of lads capped at England C level in Non-League. I’ve been in a team that has had
Web: thesecretfootballer.com Twitter: @tsfnonleague Facebook: /TSFfootballer
many called up and, from what I’ve heard, the set-up is very professional when they are at the training camp. They are picked up in big Mercedes by their very own chauffeur and driven to the camp, where they meet the rest of the squad and coaching staff. This may sound big time and glamorous but, once they arrive, they are quickly knocked back down to earth and placed under strict orders.
They are given a very disciplined routine, in which they meet together in a room and have to stand up in front of the whole squad and staff to give a detailed account of themselves. They have to describe everything from their weaknesses as a player to what they like to do in their own time.
“...These fixtures aren’t only about playing but are to help the players interact with their peers...”
This shows that these fixtures aren’t only about playing but are to help the players interact with their peers. It improves self-esteem and recognises team values. It is what manager Fairclough and his staff have instilled in the training camps and their philosophies have been something that players have found a big part of their development and gained great experience from. The players also receive a bonus for playing, which is a nice reward! The next England C game is a friendly against the Czech Republic Under-21s at the Kingfield Stadium, Woking, next Tuesday (6pm). Fairclough’s 18man squad features only players from Non-League and all are aged under 23. It is an opportunity for them to have a taste of European football at a decent level, which can only enhance their game.
Entry is free, so why not pop along to judge for yourself? You can find out more about the England C set up on the FA website: http://www.thefa.com/england/engl and-c
Web: thesecretfootballer.com Twitter: @tsfnonleague Facebook: /TSFfootballer
Player Fitness Isaiah Barratt In his player fitness column this month, Isaiah Barratt looks at cold weather training
This month I will focus on what effects of cold weather does to our body whilst training throughout the winter.
Core temperature in our body ranges in-between 35-37 degrees, anything below this and our body cannot generate the sufficient heat through metabolism to keep its self warm. This is known as hypothermia and can result in death if not treated quickly. Try to wear clothes that are designed to insulate the bodies heat so that it prevents hypothermia or just getting cold in general. Covering the head is particularly important for outdoor athletes due to the fact that 50% of all body heat generated in cold weather is lost through the head surface, try wearing a hat with polypropylene layers alternatively cover your hands with gloves as this is also an area that loses body heat quickly. Cold weather affects our body in different ways. The cardiovascular system will be affected the vessels in
the heart that distribute blood throughout the body will respond to cold conditions and will start to increase the blood pressure and heart rate. Also reducing the amount of blood that’s closest to the surface of ones own skin. The cardio respiratory system will be affected and the airway passages tend to narrow up which would be a problem for those that suffer from asthma or any respiratory problems. Glucose stored as glycogen in the liver and muscles are converted into energy known as a component such as Adenosine triphosphate, this is depleted at around 5- 6 times more quicker in cold weather conditions. In a result to this the body has to switch to the conversion of body fat to ATP for its energy requirement. Glucose is depleted because of two factors: 1. Shivering cause’s your muscles to empty their glycogen store 5-6 times the normal rate as mention previously. 2. There are increased level of epinephrine. This is the adrenaline that the body produces, also a
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hormone in which stimulates glycogen breakdown. There are evidences that say that insulin is much lower in the winter period which is said to help spur the breakdown of fat; with this winter time is believed to be the best time of the year to lose weight and improve body composition, especially since the cold tends to raise your resting metabolic rate! Exercising in cold helps increase energy cost of movement which basically means that it helps push your body into negative energy balance. Evidence also shows that winter not only helps shed fat but also shed the dangerous fat in your body that you find in your body cavities, clinging to the organs. Bad fats increase risk of coronary artery disease. As I’ve mentioned in previous articles over the past few months, a very simple warm up and cool down are very crucial now that the cold weather is upon us, and for our body to adapt to the condition we have to prepare it in the correct ways so that we don’t occur any injuries. Warm ups will lessen both the mental and physiological shock of taking the body into the cold. Here are a few cold weather coping tips: 1. Don’t reduce your fluid consumption- cold weather can still dehydrate someone. The feeling of thirst can be
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1. diminished in cold air and with the end result being a dehydrated state which will damage your performances in your chosen sport. 2. Consume extra carbohydrates or good fats (monounsaturated fats). Although don’t overeat as this will amplify the fat under your skin, which doesn’t make things better for you when exercising. 3. Avoid heavy cotton materials that make you wetter and colder. Stick to wool or polyester fabrics.
I hope you found this information helpful and I look forward to any questions or feedback on this subject (if you may have any). Get in touch via my email address Isaiahbarratt@gmail.com and I’ll do my best to answer any questions. Remember to train safely as you don’t want to injury yourself over the winter period and I’ll see you in next months article. Isaiah Barratt Personal Trainer