Skip to content
White TrueSport logo.
Search
Close
  • About
    • Ambassadors
    • Award Program
    • Media
    • Partnerships
    • True Experts
    • TrueSport Team
  • Learn and Teach
    • For Coaches
    • For Educators
    • For Parents
    • Mindset of a TrueSport Champion
    • Publications
    • Videos
    • TrueSport Topics
      • Sportsmanship
        • A Good Sport
        • Bullying Prevention
        • Conflict Resolution
        • Leadership
        • Respect & Accountability
        • Teamwork
      • Character Building & Life Skills
        • Decision Making
        • Goal-Setting
        • Mental Wellness
        • Performance Anxiety
        • Perseverance
        • Shortcuts
      • Clean & Healthy Performance
        • Body Image
        • Clean Sport
        • Dietary Supplements
        • Energy Drinks
        • Hydration
        • Nutrition
        • PEDs
        • Preparation & Recovery
  • Join Us
    • #ShowYourValues
    • Cohort for Change
    • TrueSport Talks
      • TrueSport Talks – RESOURCES
    • Newsletter Sign-Up
    • Events
  • Shop TrueSport
Menu
  • About
    • Ambassadors
    • Award Program
    • Media
    • Partnerships
    • True Experts
    • TrueSport Team
  • Learn and Teach
    • For Coaches
    • For Educators
    • For Parents
    • Mindset of a TrueSport Champion
    • Publications
    • Videos
    • TrueSport Topics
      • Sportsmanship
        • A Good Sport
        • Bullying Prevention
        • Conflict Resolution
        • Leadership
        • Respect & Accountability
        • Teamwork
      • Character Building & Life Skills
        • Decision Making
        • Goal-Setting
        • Mental Wellness
        • Performance Anxiety
        • Perseverance
        • Shortcuts
      • Clean & Healthy Performance
        • Body Image
        • Clean Sport
        • Dietary Supplements
        • Energy Drinks
        • Hydration
        • Nutrition
        • PEDs
        • Preparation & Recovery
  • Join Us
    • #ShowYourValues
    • Cohort for Change
    • TrueSport Talks
      • TrueSport Talks – RESOURCES
    • Newsletter Sign-Up
    • Events
  • Shop TrueSport
Search
Close
Facebook Twitter Youtube Instagram Linkedin Pinterest
Facebook Twitter Youtube Instagram Linkedin Pinterest

Heat Illness: Keeping Youth Sports Athletes Safe

  • May 28, 2018
  • Hydration
CoachesEducatorsParents

Young boy sweating and holding a water bottle in summer.Exercising in hot and humid weather is tough on all athletes, but kids face an elevated risk of heat illness due to inexperience.

Kids are more likely to continue exercising past the onset of mild heat illness either because they don’t recognize the symptoms or because they feel pressure to continue practicing or playing. As a result, it is crucial for parents and coaches to learn the signs and symptoms of heat illness, to be proactive in preventing it, and to have an action plan in case an athlete does develop heat exhaustion or heat stroke.

 

Signs and Symptoms of Heat Illness

Heat illness begins with dehydration and progresses to heat exhaustion and then to heat stroke. Here’s what to look for:

Dehydration:

  • Increased thirst
  • Dry mouth
  • Tiredness, lack of energy
  • Reduced urine output
  • Darker urine color
  • Headache

Heat Exhaustion:

Heat exhaustion is a mild to moderate form of heat illness that can rapidly progress to heat stroke if appropriate action is not taken. Symptoms of heat exhaustion include:

  • Dehydration
  • Headache
  • Profuse sweating or pale skin
  • Loss of coordination, dizziness, fainting
  • Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea
  • Persistent muscle cramps
  • Stomach cramps

Heat Stroke:

Heat stroke is a severe and potentially life-threatening form of heat illness that requires rapid intervention and immediate medical attention. Symptoms include:

  • Potential loss of consciousness
  • Central nervous system dysfunction, such as seizures, confusion, emotional instability, combativeness, or irrational behavior
  • Headache, dizziness, and weakness
  • Hot skin – with or without sweating
  • Increased heart rate and rapid breathing
  • Nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea

Some of the symptoms of heat exhaustion are similar to that of heat stroke, like headache, dizziness, nausea, and vomiting. Some of the key differentiators are hot skin and central nervous system dysfunction. Kids with heat exhaustion feel awful, but are typically cognizant enough to complain. In contrast, a child with heat stroke may not complain but instead be increasingly disoriented and irrational.

 

Factors that elevate heat illness risk

Some athletes are at greater risk than others of developing heat illness. The following factors make a person more vulnerable:

  • Hot and humid environment
  • Insufficient heat acclimatization
  • Overweight/obesity
  • Low cardiovascular fitness
  • Poor hydration status
  • Successive bouts of exercise with insufficient rest and rehydration
  • Wearing excessive clothing/equipment
  • Excessive duration or intensity of physical exertion
  • Certain medications (consult child’s physician)

Strategies for Preventing Heat Illness

The best remedy for heat illness is to avoid it altogether. Because kids and teens are more naïve about recognizing the signs and symptoms of heat illness, it is up to parents and coaches to create a youth sports environment that minimizes these risk factors and adequately monitors kids to detect signs of heat illness.

Heat illness is almost entirely preventable by modifying controllable factors, including those below:

  • Ensure athletes are adequately hydrated before practice or competition.
  • Make fluids readily available for all athletes. There is no benefit to restricting access to water; athletes do not adapt to dehydration.
  • Remove equipment/clothing. As temperatures increase, practices should be modified to remove the need for equipment that increases heat retention, including helmets, shoulder pads, and restrictive clothing.
  • Schedule practices and competitions during cooler portions of the day.
  • Provide shade and water for dousing/wetting clothing during breaks.
  • Institute proactive monitoring of fluid intake and athlete behavior. Talk to athletes during breaks, assign “hydration buddies” so athletes monitor and remind each other to stay hydrated.
  • Increase frequency of breaks. The Georgia High School Association mandated the following activity and rest break guidelines based on Wet Bulb Globe Temperature, a measure that takes into account temperature, humidity, sun angle, and other factors in measuring what it calls ‘heat stress’.
Wet Bulb TemperatureActivity and Rest Break Guidelines
82.0Normal Activities – Provide at least three separate rest breaks each hour with a minimum duration of 3 minutes each during the workout
82.0 – 86.9Use discretion for intense or prolonged exercise; watch at-risk players carefully. Provide at least three separate rest breaks each hour with a minimum duration of 4 minutes each.
87.0 – 89.9Maximum practice time is 2 hours. For Football: players are restricted to helmet, shoulder pads, and shorts during practice, and all protective equipment must be removed during conditioning activities. If the WBGT rises to this level during practice, players may continue to work out wearing football pants without changing to shorts. For All Sports: Provide at least four separate rest breaks each hour with a minimum duration of 4 minutes each.
90.0 – 92.0Maximum practice time is 1 hour. For Football: no protective equipment may be worn during practice, and there may be no conditioning activities. For All Sports: There must be 20 minutes of rest breaks distributed throughout the hour of practice.
Over 92.0No outdoor workouts. Delay practice until a cooler WBGT level is reached.

Source: Georgia High School Association

Recommendations for Treating Heat Illness

Despite taking as many precautions as possible, it is possible that a young athlete will exhibit signs of heat exhaustion and/or heat stroke. Most sports camps, youth leagues, and coaching organizations have written and practiced action plans for heat-related illnesses, include the following recommendations:

For Heat Exhaustion

  • Move athlete into shaded or air-conditioned area.
  • Remove extra clothing and equipment.
  • Cool athlete with cold water, fans and/or cold towels.
  • Have athlete lie with legs raised above heart level.
  • Encourage athlete to drink chilled water or sports drink if not nauseated or vomiting.
  • If condition persists, seek medical attention.

For Heat Stroke

  • Call emergency medical services, if not on-site already.
  • Begin proactively cooling athlete before emergency medical personnel arrive.
  • Remove extra clothing and equipment.
  • Immerse athlete in cold water if possible. If immersion is not possible, use cold water, wet towels, fans, ice packs, etc. to aggressively cool athlete.

Return-to-Play After Heat Illness

Any young athlete who exhibits symptoms of heat exhaustion should not return to play until all symptoms of heat exhaustion and dehydration are gone. Generally speaking, that means taking the rest of the day off, and potentially the following day as well. Any young athlete who is treated for heat stroke should only return to play with a doctor’s approval.

Heat illness can be very serious, but it is also very preventable. Keeping kids well-hydrated all the time is the first line of defense. After that, it’s a matter of making the appropriate modifications to clothing, equipment, activities, and behaviors as temperatures heat up.

Related Content

Powder being put into a glass of water.

Are There Benefits to Using Enriched Water?

  • June 1, 2022
CoachesEducatorsParents
Alkaline water, mineral water, carbonated water, coconut water: There are so many different water options available that it can feel...
Read More
Woman holding a sports drink in a gym while sitting.

3 Times Sports Drinks Should be Your Go-To Recovery Drink

  • June 1, 2022
CoachesEducatorsParents
As an athlete, sports nutrition and hydration can get incredibly confusing. Are you supposed to be drinking plain water, or...
Read More
Kara Winger and Stephanie Miezen.

TrueSport Expert Series: Stephanie Miezin on The Carbohydrate Mouth Rinse

  • June 1, 2022
CoachesEducatorsParents
Registered dietitian, Stephanie Miezin, explains the carbohydrate mouth rinse trend and why she doesn't recommend its use by young athletes....
Read More
Tired cyclist standing next to bike.

5 Signs of Dehydration and How to Best Rehydrate

  • June 1, 2022
CoachesEducatorsParents
Hot weather is coming, and that means your athletes are at a higher risk of becoming dehydrated during practices and...
Read More
1 2 … 6 Next »

Join Us

Subscribe
Shop TrueSport
Host TrueSport

TrueSport logo without icon in white.

© 2023 TrueSport | Privacy Policy | Terms and Conditions | Sitemap

Goal-Setting Lesson Video Transcript

Hi. I’m Trevon, Trey, Jennifer. Team USA wheelchair basketball player, paralympian, and true sport athlete. Today, I want to talk to you about goal setting. And there are three things that I would like you to know. First, successful athletes set goals and a planned roadmap. Second, goals should be written down, assessed over time, and changed if necessary. And third, goals need to be challenging in order to be worthwhile. As a freshmen at Edinboro University, I was a part of a team that made the national championship game. And at that time I recognized I was the low man on the totem pole, but I felt in my heart that I knew my dreams were so much bigger than winning a national title. I wanted to make Team USA. I knew what achieving my lofty goal was not going to be easy and that I would need to work hard every day.

So, as a reminder, I created a pyramid of goals that I kept right above my bed. This pyramid reminded me of the accomplishments that I was working towards and visually represented my need to create a solid foundation underneath me before reaching the top. In the bottom roll of my pyramid of goals I listed goals such as obtaining my bachelor’s degree, becoming a scholar athlete award recipient, and becoming an All-American. The middle row listed winning a national title and playing for a professional team. And at the top row, the most challenging of them all, I listed becoming a gold medalist for Team USA.

By understanding that there are smaller stepping stones to achieving my ultimate goal of being on Team USA, I was able to stay motivated and to stay focused on completing the smaller stepping stones fully before moving onto the next one. Now I’ll be the first to admit that not every goal that I listed on my pyramid was accomplished, but seeing my goals every day when I went to bed, I was able to push through the days that I felt like doing nothing in hopes of achieving the bigger picture. Remember, create a clear goal roadmap, assess your goals often, and continue to challenge yourself. I hope that you never stopped dreaming big or reaching for the stars. And I look forward to seeing where your roadmap takes you.

Body Image Lesson Video Transcript

Hi, I’m Kara Winger, Olympic javelin thrower, and true sport athlete. Today I want to talk to you about body image and I have three things I’d like you to know. First, healthy thoughts often lead to healthier bodies. Second, there are varying body types and no one’s body is exactly like another. And third, true beauty goes deeper than the skin. As a multi-time Olympian, I’ve experienced a lot of variation and progression in my training. My coaches and I adapt to my training frequently, all with the goal of supporting my long-term success and health in the sport of javelin. I’m talking to you about body image today because sometimes even with the best of intentions and a common goal in mind, the changes you make to your training habits can prove to be detrimental if made for the wrong reasons. In the lead up to the 2012 Olympic trials, I was told in order to improve my performance on the field, I should try to become a leaner, skinnier version of myself.

So I changed my diet. I went along with what I was being told to do, even though I’d had great success at a slightly heavier weight and higher body fat percentage, and became much leaner than ever before. It seemed like a successful change at first, but I didn’t have nearly the results I’d had before. And I believe becoming leaner than my body naturally wanted to be was what caused my ACL to tear. In the end, it cost me heavily going into the 2012 London games. The takeaway for me, and hopefully for you, is that it’s important to know what works for you and your body and to not compare yourself to others. You should do your research and experiment with your diet to find what makes you feel the best, rather than focusing on what you look like. Today, if I feel like having a chocolate chip cookie, I have one, just not every day.

I’ve learned what a properly balanced meal for my body looks like and I recognize food as the fuel that keeps me throwing. I hydrate and allow myself time to recover. And I listen to and communicate with my body so that I can be the best version of myself. In the end, you are in control of how you see, treat, and respond to your body. We only get one and it’s amazing to discover how many things our bodies can do. Be a true sport athlete. Love who you are in this moment and get excited for all the places your body will take you.

A Good Sport Lesson Video Transcript

Hi, I’m Izy Isaksen, Team USA, Modern Pentathlon, Olympian, US Army Sergeant, and True Sport Ambassador. Today, I want to talk to you about being a good sport. There are three things I’d like you to know. First, real winners act the same toward their opponent, whether they win or lose. Second, follow the rules and be a gracious winner and respectful loser. And third, sportsmanship reveals your true character.

I started competing in Modern Pentathlon eight years after my older sister and three-time Olympian, Margaux Isaksen, began competing. I soon realized that people often compared the two of us. I would overhear spectators and teammates asking, “Who’s the better athlete,” and “Who’s going to beat the other.” Instead of letting outside pressures create a negative experience for us, I chose to practice winning and losing with grace and respect. I know that it would have been easy to let our hyper competitive mindset affect our relationship, but instead we decided to support and cheer for each other, regardless of our own performance. My experience of competing against and being compared to my older sister, taught me to focus on how to perform at my best, rather than putting wasted energy into wishing for others to fail.

I believe that sportsmanship reveals true character. So, no matter what situation I encounter during competition, I know it’s important to always treat people with respect and be a good sport. Remember, be a fierce competitor, find grace in all your victories and losses. And I hope to see you out there.

What Kind of Coach Do You Want to Be? Video Transcript

Edwin Moses: You’re a coach. Maybe what you want is very simple, for everyone to just run in the right direction, score for their own team, to try and try again and again. Maybe you want your athletes to become all stars. You want them to earn trophies, medals, win titles. You want them to reach the highest height their sport allows. And wanting all of that, of course, that’s good. But as every great coach discovers, developing a great athlete means nurturing, nurturing the even greater person within. Truth is, you have even more influence than you know.

You have the ability to affect even deeper change, to take what’s in your hands and do something even more extraordinary. You can be both the coach who provides the skills needed to win the game and the coach who helps them learn and succeed beyond the sport, to become all stars wherever they land in the future, and to enjoy their lives more now, because the confidence and courage they find working with you will stay with them when they need it the most. There are games to be won, lives to change. Coaches have the power to do both.

I’m Edwin Moses, and the lessons I’ve learned through sport have challenged me, guided me, and shaped my life forever. What kind of coach do you want to be?

THE SIMPLE TRUTH: DECODING THE SUPPLEMENT INDUSTRY VIDEO TRANSCRIPT

At first glance, dietary supplements look the same. They seem safe and healthy, but just because the label says a product is a dietary supplement, that doesn’t mean it’s safe. Unfortunately, you can’t tell whether a product is safe or not just by looking at the label. Most vitamins, minerals, fish oil, and other supplements containing nutrients are probably just fine, but supplements are not evaluated or approved by FDA before they are sold. Although it is rare for vitamins or minerals to be contaminated with drugs, there has been at least one case of a vitamin containing an anabolic steroid.

At the other extreme are products that contain drugs, stimulants, anabolic steroids, or other hormones. Even though these are not technically dietary supplements, many of them are labeled as supplements. For example, body-building products sometimes contain anabolic steroids or Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators, known as SARMs, or other hormones. Some pre-workout or energy products contain illegal stimulants like DMAA, ephedra, or other amphetamine-like stimulants. Weight loss products might contain prescription drugs like sibutramine, or hormones, like human chorionic gonadotropin, also known as hCG. All natural or herbal sexual enhancement products might contain hormones or Viagra-like drugs. Products like these can harm your health and career, but they’re for sale online, in some nutrition stores, and they’re labeled as dietary supplements.

When you pick up a supplement, especially one that promises performance enhancement, you don’t know if it belongs in the “Mostly O.K.” pile or in the “Dangerous” pile. After all, two products might look the same, but one might contain just amino acids and other legitimate ingredients, while the other also contains anabolic steroids. Because of this, FDA has issued a warning about certain categories of supplements: body building products, weight loss products, and sexual enhancement products. Be extremely careful when considering a supplement in one of these categories. We strongly recommend that you avoid products in these categories.

Even when FDA tests supplements and finds dangerous ingredients, companies sometimes refuse to recall them. Sometimes, they simply repackage their product and continue selling it under a new name. Just because a product is on a store shelf doesn’t mean it is safe. You need to do your research and be an informed consumer. The dietary supplement industry is enormous. Supplements that appear to be safe could actually be dangerous products in disguise. If you use dietary supplements without doing your research, you may be taking serious risks with your health and your career. Please visit USADA’s Supplement 411 for more information about dietary supplements.