Fueling Champions

Sound nutrition practices contribute to Coach Tommy Moffitt\'s strength and conditioning program at LSU and the Tigers\' BCS National Championship
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As Director of Strength and Conditioning at LSU, Tommy Moffitt knows how to train athletes to become champions. With his second BCS National Championship at LSU in the last five years, Moffitt solidified his reputation as one of the country’s top strength and conditioning coaches. The 2003 Samson Strength and Conditioning Collegiate Coach of the Year, Moffitt understands the critical role that nutrition plays in supplementing the hard work that happens in the weight room. AFM recently asked Moffitt to address a topic of increasing importance to coaches, nutritionists and athletes – helping muscles recover from strength training with proper post-workout nutritional management.

AFM: What has winning the BCS National Championship meant to you personally in terms of your strength, conditioning and nutrition program?

Moffitt: It gives us satisfaction that what we are doing here at LSU for our student athletes is working. There are so many different means and methods to use when training for various sports. Winning the SEC and BCS National Championship gives our strength staff, our football staff, our team and our administration the reassurance that we are headed in the right direction in terms of putting healthy, well-conditioned athletes on the playing field.

How important is post-workout nutrition for athletes in your program?

It's actually as important as the workouts themselves. The body gets stronger, faster and more conditioned when it recovers from the workout due to proper rest and nutrition. Therefore, it is very important that the athlete puts the correct amount of nutrients in the body at the right time to ensure that he or she recovers and is ready to go for the next training session or competition. Muscle Milk Ready-to-Drink(RTD) offers us a great source of quality proteins, carbs and fats in a ratio that ensures that the muscles get what they need - proper regeneration.

What is your post-workout nutritional strategy and what products do you use as part of your program?

It all basically depends on the type of work that we do for each particular day. An easy recovery workout such as the day after a game, general flexibility training or a rehab session would consist of basically a light carbohydrate solution like the new Collegiate CytoMax and/or a small serving of Muscle Milk Collegiate either in powder or RTD form.

More strenuous workouts are followed with at least one serving of Collegiate powder or RTD. If we know the individual isn't going to immediately eat a good nutritious meal within an hour to an hour and a half, we would also recommend a Muscle Milk Collegiate bar or two depending on the size and caloric needs of the athlete.

Do you use different products (i.e., powders, bars, RTDs) for different types of athletes?

Yes we do, this is a very good question. We have so many different types of athletes with different body types and rates of metabolism that this is probably the most important aspect of supplementing an athlete’s diet. To ‘supplement’ means ‘in addition to’, so in that regard you have to first educate your student athletes that they must first eat right and then use our products to ‘add to’ what they have eaten to round out or fine-tune their nutritional needs.

What is your nutritional strategy for your athletes between workouts?

As stated earlier, if they are not going to immediately eat a meal they naturally would consume more products than those who will consume a meal within an hour to an hour and a half. Although Muscle Milk Collegiate products are well-balanced and nutritious, it's important that athletes consume whole foods as meals and use our nutritional products to immediately fuel recovery following intense training sessions and competition.

How has your understanding of how nutrition can help athletes recover from workouts changed over the years?

When I first started coaching twenty years ago, there was a big emphasis on carbohydrates for recovery. But today we know that a ''balance'' of proteins, carbohydrates and fats actually improves recovery substantially over using just one of the nutrients alone.

How would you compare Muscle Milk Collegiate products to others on the market?

The thing that we like most is the variety of flavors that we get in the powders. Most companies limit your selection to strawberry, chocolate and vanilla but not CytoSport and Muscle Milk. CytoSport and Muscle Milk products taste great and are made with quality proteins, carbs and fats to meet the demands of serious athletes all over the world.

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CONFIDENCE IN THE PRODUCTS YOU CHOOSE
While Muscle Milk Collegiate products, as the name implies, are being used by athletes at LSU and over 100 other universities coast-to-coast, the product line is a safe and effective way for top athletes at any level to train more effectively and promote post-workout muscle recovery. “Muscle Milk Collegiate products are an excellent source of proteins, fats and carbohydrates for recovery, while Cytomax Collegiate provides fuel and hydration during exercise,” according to CytoSport’s Director of Sports Marketing Chris Kildow. “For athletes at all levels – from high school to college to pros and everyone in between – these products can help bridge the gap to your next meal and kick-start the recovery process from training or competition.”

Kildow also notes that top high school athletes who are looking to advance to the college level can benefit from using Muscle Milk Collegiate products as part of their training and nutrition regimen. “Most younger athletes dismiss the importance of nutrition, but these products can help keep the body fueled properly as part of a solid overall nutrition program,” he said.

The CytoSport manufacturing facility is independently certified through NSF International’s Dietary Supplements Certification Program to be free of banned substances and meet all Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) Standards.

“We have always believed in the importance of ensuring the identity, purity, quality, strength and composition of our products,” says Michael Pickett, COO of CytoSport. “Our objective is to satisfy consumer needs with superior product quality, efficacy and reliability. We want to make athletes, parents and all consumers confident in the products we make, and by obtaining NSF GMP registration, we can ensure that confidence.”

For more information: www.cytosport.com

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