Playing tournaments in the heat - advice from the experts

All,

As the weather starts to warm up, I am hoping to learn from the collective experiences of the board on how to keep girls cool for the HOT summer TB tournament days. My DD plays catcher on a 12u TB team. Last weekend it was nearly 90 hear in GA, and those girls got hot and lethargic as the day went on. We bring plenty of cold water, Gatorade, and frog togs for the girls. What else should I include?


Appreciate all advice/recommendations.

A rigorous conditioning program is key. The girls should be working out hard several times per week leading into the season.
There is no substitute for it; we have beaten better teams late on a Sunday because our girls are the fittest on the field. At this age they start to appreciate the fitness aspect, and the aesthetic benefit of excercise. Instill this culture in them, and you will have given them a life tool that will last them a long time.

If it's not going to happen, then misting bottles are pretty good.

Take coachbob's advice with a grain of salt, his girls have never played in 90% humidity nor have they been farther east than Vegas

Hydration in the days leading up to the weekend can make a huge difference.

Also wet towels in a cooler are nice.

How much water does she drink prior to the tournament?

Mix the Gatorade 50% with water or at least drink as much or more of the water during the tournament. I've had a girl pass out during tryouts due to an electrolyte inbalance because she only drank Gatorade. It's actually for after the event as opposed to during. Also, start hydrating on Wednesdays as far as water goes. Catchers especially can never replace it as fast as they sweat it out during the weekend. A surplus going in will definitely help during a hot weekend. Eat plenty of fruits containing high water content such as watermelon, grapes, oranges etc during the tournament. Good snacks high in protein such as protein bars, peanut butter and crackers/sandwiches are also good. Pickles and pickle juice which are high in electolytes will keep them balanced as well. Healthy eating 3 days prior to the tournament is a must in high humidity/high heat environments. As CoachBob said, conditioning is also a must. If they haven't done it by now, then these suggestions will hel,p but not alleviate all of it. I'm sure many others will help out with other suggestions.

[SUB][/SUB]Bring it on Rocket! My girls don't do yoga!

softball_mom#7 said:

How much water does she drink prior to the tournament?

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My DH got her started on hydrating well before the weekend - he picked this up when he was in the Army. I cannot vouch for how many ounces, but I do notice a significant difference between when she good about drinking water leading up to the weekend and when she does not. Thank for the reminder - I'll go tell her to drink!

Mom_Coach_Fan said:

My DH got her started on hydrating well before the weekend - he picked this up when he was in the Army. I cannot vouch for how many ounces, but I do notice a significant difference between when she good about drinking water leading up to the weekend and when she does not. Thank for the reminder - I'll go tell her to drink!

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We start hydrating at the beginning of the week and limit caffeine too. (My DD cannot drink Gatorade, it makes her sick to her stomach.) Does your DD like pickles? Strange question, I know. But my DD absolutely loves is frozen pickle juice, good thing it has some health benefits too.

YES..the hydration process starts before the weekend. Drink water frequently on Thursday and Friday.

You also want to minimize the salt you sweat out so you want to eat potassium rich foods/snacks like broccoli. My kids love sliced fruit and veggies on game days. Watermelon, honeydew, celery, green pepper pickles are all regular items we bring and are all great to help with hydration and maintaining salt.

The other item I bring are cloths in an ice bucket. My youngest is a catcher and she'll wrap these around her neck when the heat starts to get to her. The two places you want to put cold cloths are around the neck or the underarm....both places the bloodstream is very close to the skin. The cold cloths will affectively cool the blood in both places and the blood will circulate to help cool the entire body.

Hope this helps.

Good luck,

T.