Welcome Back!

On July 28th, thirty-two athletic training students, ten graduate assistants, and nine staff members reported to Football Operations for the annual orientation meetings. Orientation precedes the start of football two-a-days and serves as an introduction for the newly selected first year students and a refresher for the returning students. As always, orientation began with Jack Marucci leading the way with the introductions and fun facts. Topics covered during orientation included CPR and First Aid, modalities in-service, demo spine boarding, emergency management planning, heat illness, and concussions.


A new addition to this year’s orientation was an athletic trainer bonding evening. The evening was hosted by the Alpha Tau Sigma officers and held at Broussard Athletic Training Center. Athletic training students enjoyed Jimmy John’s catering and participated in the ultimate trivia game. Trivia consisted of six categories: Sports, Louisiana History, Quotes, Music, Who am I, and Random. In order to determine a winner, the Hamster Ninjas, Hivamat Homies, and Mutt Cutts competed in tiebreaker challenges. The Hivamat Homies and Mutt Cutts competed in the “Chubby Bunny” event to decide who would move on to face the Hamster Ninjas for the championship. After two rounds of “Chubby Bunny”, the Hivamat Homies succeeded and moved on for the final round. To determine the champion, one participant from each team, with their hands taped behind their backs, had to eat a bowl of pudding within two minutes. In just one minute and eleven seconds, the Hamster Ninjas were victorious and crowned trivia champions

A New Addition to LSU

The LSU Athletic Department is proud to welcome a new member to its team, Jamie Mascari, RD. Jamie is a native of New Orleans who completed her undergraduate studies in Dietetics here at LSU. She has taken on the position as the Graduate Assistant Registered Dietitian for LSU Athletics. Jamie will be working towards a Master's degree in Exercise Physiology. The LSU Athletic Training Department is looking forward to working closely with Jamie to improve our athletes' health. Jamie graciously sat down with us for a quick interview.

Upon graduating from LSU, you received an internship at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), what did you gain from that experience?
As tough as it was to leave LSU, completing my dietetic internship in Arkansas was probably one of the best decisions I have made. This particular internship was a jointly sponsored program by the College of Health Related Professions at UAMS and the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System. During my year there, I had the opportunity to experience a wide variety of dietetic-related practices including: hospital in-patient care, out-patient clinics, pediatric nutrition, community and public health programs, nutrition research, corporate wellness, school food service, fitness centers, and the food industry. I thoroughly enjoyed the diversity of topics offered to me and the chance to learn from numerous, respectable registered dietitians (RD) in the Little Rock area. Each rotation lasted 1-3 weeks, which challenged me to be able to quickly learn and adapt to each RD and their different ways of practice. Another great opportunity of mine was working with our country’s Veterans at the Little Rock Veteran Affairs hospital. Caring for their nutritional needs and getting to know them and their stories truly was an amazing experience.
In addition to my practical experience, I also completed 12 hours of graduate level coursework. Classes consisted of various topics such as Medical Nutrition Therapy, Nutrition Counseling, and Nutrition Research.

Why did you choose to return to LSU after you internship?
Even though my experience in Little Rock was a great one, I wanted to narrow my dietetic focus and practice to Sport Nutrition for athletes. After much research about the role of Sport RDs and reputable advice from New Orleans Saints registered dietitian (and LSU alum) Tavis Piatolly, I decided that a Master’s degree in Exercise Physiology would be the perfect combination with my nutrition background. LSU graduate school was my one and only choice; there was no other place I wanted to be. One year away from my Tigers was hard enough! I was accepted to the Exercise Physiology Master’s program in LSU’s Kinesiology department and began my graduate studies fall of 2010. Over the past year, I have been able to successfully apply my nutrition knowledge to many new concepts of sports and exercise. It has been a gratifying learning experience with inspiring professors and enthusiastic classmates. I am certainly looking forward to my final semester in the program.

What do you hope to bring to the LSU Athletic Department?
Many college and university athletic departments are taking advantage of registered dietitians’ valuable guidance and practical nutrition recommendations for their athletes and using them to build prominent sport nutrition programs. According to the Collegiate and Professional Sports Dietitians Association, dozens of major college and professional teams have rebuilt the infrastructure of their support service systems by placing sports dietitians among their staff. The registered dietitian works closely with the athletes and promotes nutrition as an essential component in performance as well as overall health. In addition to attending to the athletes’ nutritional needs, the registered dietitian works in conjunction with the team coaches, medical staff, athletic trainers, strength and conditioning staff, and administrators in order to ensure all athletes a comprehensive team of professionals who can assist in maximizing their athletic abilities.
Here at LSU, Senior Associate Athletic Trainer, Shelly Mullenix, has developed a successful wellness program that has helped meet the needs of the student athletes academically, physically, and psychologically. Furthermore, the nutrition component of the wellness program has benefitted many of the LSU sport teams and individual athletes, but it still has the potential of growing into a top university sport nutrition program. Accordingly, as a registered dietitian, I feel as though I am a valuable addition to the nutrition section of the wellness program and an integral member of LSU’s sport medicine team of professionals.
Sport nutrition has grown tremendously over the past decade and undoubtedly has shown to have a positive effect on athletes’ performance potential. Most collegiate athletes understand their food choices and dietary habits ultimately influence their body composition, overall health, and in particular, their athletic performance. However, many of these student athletes arrive to college with limited nutrition knowledge and several misconceptions concerning diet and performance. In addition, the lifestyle of a college athlete creates many challenges in meeting the nutritional demands their body requires. With a RD on staff, LSU student athletes have the opportunity to receive nutrition counseling and education that are tailored to the needs and lifestyle of the individual.

What do you hope to gain from working with the LSU Athletic Department?
I have come to realize that once I graduate from my Master’s program, my learning will continue on forever. Athletics is a fast-paced, ever-changing job that requires keeping up with the most current nutritional research and recommendations on a daily basis. I am looking forward to working closely with the sports medicine team and strength staff. These professionals possess a breadth of invaluable experience working with athletes, and I hope to learn as much as possible from them.
Furthermore, the leadership of the team coaches and administrators, expertise of the medical staff, knowledge and experience of the certified athletic trainers, and skill of the strength and conditioning staff already play a key role in the continual success of the LSU athletic program. I hope that as the new registered dietitian for LSU athletics, I can establish not only the value of sport nutrition at LSU but also a top sport nutrition program in collegiate athletics.

How has your past experiences with LSU Athletics helped you in your new position?
As a former LSU cheerleader, I had the chance to meet and cheer for some of LSU's greatest sport teams (including the 2007 football National Champions and 2006 Men’s Final Four basketball team), as well as get to know several members of the coaching and athletic staff. It was through my four years of cheering at LSU that helped me realize that proper nutrition is essential for optimal performance- on and off the field. Cheerleading itself is a highly demanding athletic activity, consisting of team practices, workouts, cheering at LSU sporting events, promotional appearances, and national competitions. The positive effect of appropriate dietary habits on my personal skills, strength, and health made me a true advocate to sport nutrition for all athletes. In addition, I was able to see and experience first-hand the lifestyle of student athletes, who are always on-the-go and rarely have time to sit and enjoy wholesome, homemade meals. I recognized the need for consistent nutrition education that includes practical advice that fits the athletes’ sports, schedules, and individual needs.
Lastly, but certainly not any less important than the topics above, is that my past experiences with LSU Athletics have had a huge impact on the pride and love I have for the Fighting Tigers. It is truly a blessing to be working with our athletes and contributing to the success of one of the best and most traditional universities in the country. GEAUX TIGERS!

Presentations at NATA Conference

This summer the National Athletic Trainer’s Association held its annual conference in New Orleans. Dr. Ray Castle, Dr. Melissa Thompson and Shelly Mullenix represented Louisiana State University. Dr. Ray Castle, Dr. Melissa Thompson, and Dr. Rick Ahmad, MD (LSU hand surgeon) worked in conjunction with the NBA Athletic Trainers’ Association on the 2011 Ron Culp Athletic Training Student Cadaver Workshop. Over 300 hundred students learned about athletic hand and wrist injuries and the related anatomy using 20 cadaver hand/forearm sections. Dr. Ahmad did a fantastic lecture and live dissection for the student attendees. Dr. Melissa Thompson did an oral presentation related to shoulder research that she has been working on with colleagues from the Department of Kinesiology. Overhead athletes are at greater risk for shoulder injuries, especially subacromial impingement syndrome. However, based on static analysis of the size of the subacromial space it is unclear if overhead athletes have a relatively larger or smaller subacromial space as compared to non-athletes. Melissa used the fluoroscope to capture dynamic images of the subacromial space during scaption exercises in female overhead athletes and non-athletic female college students. Based on the results, the athletes who were significantly stronger than the non-athletes in external rotation also had a larger subacromial space. This provides support for the influence of external rotation strength (rotator cuff) in maintenance of the subacromial space, and may be an important factor in the prevention subacromial impingement syndrome. Dr. Melissa Thompson and Dr. Dennis Landin (Professor in the Department of Kinesiology) also did a poster presentation related to the torque produced by the gastrocnemius during different knee and ankle joint combinations. Based on their findings they concluded that the best manual muscle testing position, with most gastrocnemius torque, is in a long sit position. The gastrocnemius produces the least torque when the patient is sitting at the end of the table with the knee flexed to 90 degrees and the foot in a gravity dependent plantar flexion position, which makes this the least desirable manual muscle testing position for clinicians.

Shelly Mullenix, along with researchers and team physician's from around the country presented the NATA's Position Statement on Safe Weight Loss and Maintenance Practices Among Physically Active Individuals. Specifically, Mullenix was able to contribute her keen insight to the challenges that face Division I collegiate athletes as they try to meet the sometimes unrealistic goal weights and how to do this while maintaining high levels of self-esteem and self-confidence. The hope for the panel was to educate athletic trainers, coaches, administrators, parents, and athletes on more effective ways to reach these goals while simultaneously reducing the prevalence of eating disorders and other unhealthy eating habits among athletes. Mullenix spoke about not only eating well while in-season, but developing diet plans and lifestyle changes that are safe and healthy year round, all at a pace that is realistic and specifically accommodating. "You have to do things in a healthy way," Mullenix says. "A lot of student-athletes are too quick to enter into bad patterns of eating, but you have to approach these goals in small increments. Quite often athletes - as well as the regular population - will want an entire diet plan laid out for them, but it's not something that gets fixed in a day." To read more please see articles below:

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/2011-06-13-national-athletic-trainers-association-weight-loss_n.htm

http://www.nola.com/sports/index.ssf/2011/06/ex-lsu_gymnast_clare-kearney_t.htm

2011 LSU Alumni Social in New Orleans

A fun time was had by all at our LSU Alumni Social during the NATA Summer Symposium in New Orleans, LA. We had an incredible turnout of athletic trainers, both present and past, that have contributed to the family environment and the success of the athletic training program over the last 15-20 years! Having so many of us in one place gave an opportunity to see how special and unique of an athletic training program we all have been able to build over the years. With Ana Gross (now Couture) as the party planner, we enjoyed a night of local cuisine, good music and great friends. Having the photo booth was lagniappe and gave everyone a space to express their true feelings about LSU! Everyone had an opportunity to use the open mike to talk about their favorite memories of staff members, fellow athletic training students or events that they experienced during their time at LSU. In looking back on this evening, it was moving for us to see how many of our students and graduate assistants, now professional colleagues and friends, created the legacy that is LSU Athletic Training. We are turning out incredible athletic trainers that continue give back to not only LSU, but to the profession of athletic training. Thanks for your continued support and friendship. We always taught that relationships are what this profession is about...and this function was living proof!

To see all of the pictures from the photo booth, click here.

LSU Athletic Training Student of the Month

Congratulations to Nick Badeaux! Nick was chosen as our September Athletic Training Student of the Month by the LSU Athletic Training Staff and Graduate Assistants. Nick is a 3^rd year athletic training student currently working with the LSU Football team. His previous assignments have been Swimming and Diving and Track and Field. Nick has been a great role model for his fellow students not only at football but throughout the Athletic Training Program. When asked about Nick, Shelly Mullenix, MS, ATC, Staff Certified Athletic Trainer for LSU Football and Director of Wellness said, “Nick has been a great addition to our crew of athletic training students at football this year. We expected Nick to step into a leadership role as a senior student as well as mentor the younger students. He has done just that. He really exemplifies much of what we look for in our students; he is hardworking, a team player and has a sincere interest in learning and improving his skills. He has taken initiative in assisting with rehabilitations and this will pay off over time as he begins to gain independence and confidence. We are proud of Nick and look forward to watching him evolve over the season.”