Best way to keep cool in the heat?

I know this may have been asked before, and it's a little bit late in the summer to be asking, but what do you all do to keep your daughters cool and hydrated during games and training?

Skip them.

Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate BEFORE the game/training. Keep a squeeze bottle handy on the sidelines for a quick drink and my DD keeps 2 Frog Tog towels in a cooler of ice water to put on her neck and head when she gets a break. Cools her down a lot.

I agree with 'love of the game', and will add it is important for them to hydrate far ahead of any practice or event outdoors in the heat. I always suggest they start the evening before, but should include taking in water two hours before, as well as, one hour before the practice/game.
If they wait until the actual event, it is too late.
Many of my players enjoy the Frog Toggs as well.

I would also suggest eating a healthy meal two hours ahead of practice. This will help give them the necessary energy to make it through any athletic exertion. Nothing heavy before an event, but they should carb up the evening before. Any RN's or MD's, please correct me if I'm mistaken.

Be Safe out there. Here in Texas, we can't really avoid the heat.

CoachMac@Saints-Soccer.org.

Frog togs or rags in ice water

Coconut Water

Drink plenty of water the day before and the day of your game or training, frog togs soaked in ice water in a small rolling cooler. Get in the shade whenever possible, popups tent are awesome, and if you are as inventive as one of the dad on our team, a battery powered portable mister feed from a rolling cooler with ice. Yeah man, it's the bomb!

Just heard a player died today at practice during 2-a-day practice.

Hydration for the weekend starts during the week. Train them to constantly be drinking water, Mon-Fri, not just on the weekends. Teach them to look for signs of proper hydration (the easiest is the color of their #1 - sprite color is good, mountain dew not so much).

Frog tog is key during games and practice.

We had a family bring a cooler full of wash cloths in ice water during tourneys, and the girls enjoyed that.

Then of course rehydration and recovery is just as important as "pre hydration". This might be a good time for a "treat" such as something a little sweeter and tastier than gatorade.

Joe scafone wrote:Just heard a player died today at practice during 2-a-day practice.  

Seriously?

debit wrote:

Joe scafone wrote:Just heard a player died today at practice during 2-a-day practice.  

Seriously?

Local girl?

Thoughts and prayers to the family.

Here's what we try to do, for the two hours before you ever step on the field we always tried to have her drink two bottles of water, not a pound it down type thing, just a slow steady build. During games we had the big water jug and anytime she'd come of the field she was required to pound the water down, as much as she could. Now you want to be careful with frog togs or like what a lot of kids like to do these days which is pour the water over their heads. Sometimes what that actually does it make it harder for the body to cool down because you don't sweat as much. Sweat is a good thing. So a cool frog tog is a good thing around the neck, a soaked frog tog that ends up getting you all wet maybe not so much.

After games or practices, gatorade or water for rehydration and chocolate milk to help rebuild muscle. Most kids actually love chocolate milk so it's an easy thing for them to drink. Just make sure you make them continue to drink water to help rehydrate them.

Also, with tents being so darn cheap, every team should have one and they make misters for those things so invest in those as well.

We also started weighing our DD before and after practices just to get a better idea of how much fluid she was actually losing. My DD had a problem with getting over heated and dehyrdated because she simply didn't drink enough during games. She would take sips but never really drink like she needed to be doing. It wasn't until we showed her that she was losing a couple of pounds and it was all water weight that she realized how serious it was.

Santos is right on about the color of your #1. It's the easiest indicator of how hydrated you actually are and something everyone can understand.

debit wrote:

Joe scafone wrote:Just heard a player died today at practice during 2-a-day practice.  

Seriously?

Not 100% on details of who and would not post here if I did.  I did hear it was a '97 Sting team practicing.  

Such terrible news.  I'm tired of hearing about people dying.

Joe scafone wrote:

debit wrote:

Joe scafone wrote:Just heard a player died today at practice during 2-a-day practice.  

Seriously?

Not 100% on details of who and would not post here if I did.  I did hear it was a '97 Sting team practicing.  

Such terrible news.  I'm tired of hearing about people dying.

Tragic news. Our kids can't play in rain but spend hours on the field in sweltering heat. Insane!

where's the flow of the game people now?

I don't know anything about the situation but I always preach caution on things like this, I'm sure the heat played a part in it but many times when someone young passes away in this manner it's due to other circumstances not previously diagnosed, not just because of the heat.

Terrible situation any way you look at it though, my heart breaks for the parents and her teammates.

We were fortunate with lower temps last weekend for the 1st round of QT. This weekend forecasted to be 100+ degrees and humid. For the first round of boys' classic QT, 5 minute water breaks are mandated for each half by rule.

I have seen people fall out for heat exhaustion and heat stoke, training in the heat is serious business and can be a matter of life of death. I haven't heard of any news of a player falling out, hope it isn't true.

Unfortunately it is true. Got confirmation from my daughter who is friends with the players teammate.....
Very sad.

this is really sad and speaks directly to the point most of us were making about the flow of the game conversation. I highly recommend your DD hydrate every day during the summer months and heat and not just on the day before or of practice or game. They may not like it, but the better they are at hydrating, the better their chances at staying healthy.

None of us are 100% sure our children are completely healthy - even when they look it. My prayers are with the family and team.

Please love your DD enough to make sure she stays healthy. To Mr. "flow of the game" I hope you think three times before you EVER complain again.

Heart-wrenching!! So incredibly sad to hear this!  My thoughts and prayers go to her family, friends and the team.

Couldn't agree more InaB! I have it so ingrained into my DDs brain that hydration is the most important factor of her playing that she comes and tells me every day how many glasses or bottles of water she drank that day. It helps not only with the heat but also keeps the body healthy! Hug your kids tight tonight!

All comments above on early hydration are above are absolute; hydration just prior to exposure is of little value; and absolutely no cokes, caffeine drinks the day of or prior.

We also need to instruct our DDs on the warning signs leading up to a heat illness. Hydration can't be completed quickly.

Dark yellow and/or hot urine is a early indicator of a lack of hydration and precedes the other well known, more serious symptoms.

My family's hearts, love and prayers goes out the family.

Sadly my DD confirmed a former teammate has passed, a 97. My deepest condolences to the family.

It's a small thing, but our boys love the round up sprayer full of ice water. Spraying down the head and neck on every break helps keep them from over-heating.

footbull wrote:It's a small thing, but our boys love the round up sprayer full of ice water.  Spraying down the head and neck on every break helps keep them from over-heating.

You actually have to be careful putting cold water over the scalp. A high percentage of heat escapes from the scalp and putting cold water over it shrinks the pores for a time and reduces the heat dissipation from that area. It's actually more effective to hold ice over the wrist for 30 seconds and it doesn't psychologically fool you that you're not as thirsty because initially you still feel warm. Additionally, especially with young kids, they waste so much water doing this they run out of water early, putting it over their heads, down their necks, their shin-guards, etc.

What is more dangerous is seeing kids turn up to a game or 90 minute practice with one bottle of Gatorade. Not only does it temporarily draw water from the vital organs to dilute it in your stomach. Gatorade is not designed to be the only thing you drink during a workout or game. The NFL, NBA, etc. water that stuff down like crazy.