The Real Athlete Blog

Expert Contributor: BJ Maack

Biography

BJ Maack, ATC, CSCS: BJ has over 17 years experience of directly helping athletes be the best they can be. He spent 6 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals, and over 14 years working for a local orthopedic group. He also has organized the annual FCA Football Combine, and through this event has been responsible for directing the athletic testing of over 3,500 football players.

Most Recent Articles

Labral Repair Versus Tommy John Surgery

by BJ Maack 08-23-2011 01:31 AM Injury & Rehabilitation

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The purpose of this piece is not to focus so much on anything fantasy-related, although if anything I hit on here helps you with line-up decisions, well then that's just gravy. But what I really hope to do here is to highlight these two surgical procedures for our baseball players who read the site and give you a little more background as to what they are specifically and do a little compare/contrast. All of this from an athletic trainer's perspective (and fantasy player as well) to hopefully give you more insight when you hear one of these terms or a teammate suffers one of these injuries in the near future. Because it WILL happen eventually. Fair warning: there will be some medical jargon tossed around, but hopefully not too much that it gets boring.

So here we go......

First, the labrum. There is actually a labrum associated with the hip joint. Both the hip and the shoulder are ball-and-socket joints, with the end of one bone forming a "ball" that fits into another bone's "socket." The labrum is a piece of cartilage that serves to deepen the socket. The hip is a much deeper socket than the shoulder, which allows for more range of motion (i.e. it allows the shoulder to throw a ball overhead). For the rest of this article, the term labrum and labral repair will refer to the shoulder labrum.

The shoulder wasn't made to throw a ball in an overhead motion with the force and frequency that a baseball pitcher's position requires. It can do it, and do it very well, but the odds of something breaking down over time or of something "abnormal" developing are very high. When this happens, sometimes a surgical procedure is required to repair or "clean-up" the damage.

A typical injury to the labrum is a SLAP lesion. SLAP: "Superior Labral tear, Anterior-to-Posterior" refers to the direction of the cartilage tear. Symptoms for a pitcher include loss of velocity, a dull ache, location issues, and trouble sleeping. Often there is no "I felt it on one pitch" complaint; it's more of a build-up over time.

The picture above shows the tear before and then after the surgery to repair it. Once it's torn, it's torn—there is no "letting it heal on its own" thing here. It must be repaired, either arthroscopically or through an open procedure. Does it work? Yes and no.

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Dealing with Heat-Related Illnesses

by BJ Maack 06-23-2011 05:43 PM Training | Nutrition

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With triple-digit temperatures being recorded in many parts of the country already this month, it’s a very appropriate time to discuss heat issues and ways to train in the heat without causing heat-related illnesses. Let’s start with a key point: Heat-related illnesses are 100% preventable. That’s right—it is the one thing athletic trainers and other medical professionals come across that can be stopped before it starts.

Key information and education needs to be relayed to athletes, parents & coaches—if all three groups are on the same page, then the chances of bad things happening go WAY down.

ATHLETES:

-Drink fluids throughout the entire day: Never pass a water fountain without getting a drink.

-Take in 17-20 ounces of fluids while at home before a game: Take in another 7-10 ounces of fluids while on the way to practice or a game. Take in 28-40 ounces of fluids while participating in practice or a game, and take in 20 ounces of fluid per each pound of weight lost during practice or a game. You should be taking in up to 80 ounces of fluids for each practice or game.

-Keep up with urination habits: You should be urinating frequently. If you are not urinating, you are in grave danger of becoming a heat casualty. Keep up with the color of your urine. If it is a light yellow to a dark yellow color, you are already dehydrated. Take in fluids immediately.

-Take note of you how you feel: If you notice you are having trouble focusing, if you feel sick, or are not feeling right, tell someone. Make sure it is legitimate, and do not use this as an excuse to get out of practice.

-Eating Habits: Make sure your athlete is eating well-balanced meals before and after practice. Hydrating yourself is great, but you must eat right as well. Make sure you are eating the right kind of meals and snacks, as well as taking in the proper types of hydration. Any kind of fruit is great. Your body will use the sugars and convert them into fuel your body can use. When playing sports, you need to ingest more carbohydrates than proteins and fats. Your body is using and building muscle when you are active, so you need to help your muscles by taking in high carbohydrate meals.

There are a lot of water and hydration properties in fruit. For instance, if you eat an apple, you are taking in the fluids which will help rehydrate your body. You also need to take in high fiber meals. Eat a lot of pasta and breads. High carbohydrate and low protein drinks are fine. You need more carbohydrates than you need protein. Studies have proven that low fat chocolate milk is better for you than sports drinks like Gatorade when used as a recovery drink. It has the right balance of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.

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Stephen Strasburg & His Friend Tommy John

by BJ Maack 01-04-2011 11:49 PM Injury & Rehabilitation | Training

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Washington Nationals wunderkind Stephen Strasburg is the type of pitcher that can instantly transform a franchise, as evidenced by the incredible start to his career in 2010. The unbelievable hype was lived up to, as Strasburg clearly demonstrated he can pitch at the major league level. Plus, the fans wanted to see what this kid could do, and they turned out in droves. What an impact he had in a short 2010—from stats to economic impact—Strasburg has the “it” factor.

But things took a turn in the opposite direction nearing the end of the 2010 season. He had some elbow soreness, went on the DL, and never really recovered. Finally it was diagnosed that he had a torn ulnar collateral ligament, and had to have it surgically repaired. This procedure is known as Tommy John surgery, named after the pitcher who first had it done on his arm. The surgery was developed and pioneered by the legendary Dr. Frank Jobe.

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Chronic Injuries in Athletes: Are they busts, or is there more to it?

by BJ Maack 12-09-2010 11:04 PM Injury & Rehabilitation | Athlete Career Development | Training

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So the news broke a few weeks ago that Greg Oden, the heralded former No. 1 draft pick of the Portland Trailblazers, will miss yet another season. Three years, three major surgeries. First, it was a cartilage injury that required microfracture surgery on his right knee. Last year, he sustained a fractured patella on his left knee. Now, unrelated to the patella, is a new injury to his left knee, also requiring microfracture surgery. This guy was supposed to be the next Kevin Durant, right? Wait, my bad…same draft. That's right…the Blazers PASSED on Durant to get Oden. That's another story. Anyway, Oden was to be a star, and now folks are calling him a bust.

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Injuries Caused by "Other Side" Weaknesses

by BJ Maack 02-04-2010 10:27 PM Injury & Rehabilitation | Training

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If you don't fully rehab an injury, you could be susceptible to injuring the other side of your body.

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Speed Training

by BJ Maack 01-12-2010 12:41 AM Training

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Tips about how to get faster - Increase stride length & frequency

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"Man, I Gotta Do Something..."

by BJ Maack 11-26-2009 12:31 PM Training | Sports Psychology

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Remember, when you get to the point of realizing that you need to do something, anything is better than nothing. Get moving people. Inaction is what hinders people, not action.

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What Are You Training For?

by BJ Maack 10-18-2009 03:33 PM Training

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Remember, one size does not fit all in this business...it fits ONE.

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How much is TOO much training for an athlete?

by BJ Maack 12-17-2008 02:00 AM Training | Sports Psychology

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Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, BJ Maack, espouses the training philosophy of "WORK SMARTER, NOT HARDER."

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Next Season...

by BJ Maack 11-02-2008 01:00 AM Sports Psychology | Training

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As an athlete, you should always be assessing your performance and looking for ways to improve it.

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Basketball-Specific Training

by BJ Maack 10-08-2008 02:00 AM Training

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Certified strength and conditioning specialist BJ Maack lays out what sport-specific training is and how it relates to basketball.

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Hydration for the Athlete

by BJ Maack 09-23-2008 02:00 AM Nutrition | Training

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1164 Views

The keys to staying hydrated as an athlete.

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Post-Workout Nutrition

by BJ Maack 09-12-2008 02:00 AM Nutrition

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Protein or Carbohydrate?

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Pre-Exercise Meals/Snacks

by BJ Maack 09-12-2008 02:00 AM Nutrition

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1470 Views

11 Nutritional Tips from NFL Darren McFadden's Athletic Trainer.

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Discussion About the 40-yard Dash

by BJ Maack 07-25-2008 02:00 AM Training

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Is the 40-yard dash really as important as people say it is?

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To Stretch or Not To Stretch?

by BJ Maack 05-29-2008 02:00 AM Training

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When an athlete should stretch and what is appropriate.

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