{"id":2081,"date":"2015-03-19T09:00:42","date_gmt":"2015-03-19T13:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/?p=2081"},"modified":"2015-03-19T09:00:42","modified_gmt":"2015-03-19T13:00:42","slug":"a-chilly-warm-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/2015\/03\/19\/a-chilly-warm-up\/","title":{"rendered":"A Chilly Warm-Up"},"content":{"rendered":"

BY ADAM FALLUJI – STAFF WRITER<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

This year Centre has faced a big challenge with extreme weather conditions. Cancelling class is nearly unheard of, yet the College did so for two-and-a-half days this Spring term in order to ensure the safety of students and faculty. While many of us crowd in the warmth of our rooms or the Campus Center sipping hot chocolate and watching the flakes drop, athletes face the inclement weather unhindered.<\/p>\n

While it may seem odd to onlookers from indoors, some athletes appreciate the cold weather. Sophomore lacrosse player Tom Whalen finds that the weather helps prepare him for trying games ahead.<\/p>\n

\u201cOccasionally we\u2019ve been told we can\u2019t go out by our trainers but we try to go out as often as we can to get used to it. Sometimes we play in the snow and we use a yellow ball to distinguish it from the snow,\u201d Whalen said. \u201cSometimes you feel it\u2019s hard to breathe but it\u2019s nothing you can\u2019t fight through.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lacrosse players are not the only ones who appreciate the physical challenge the cold brings. Sophomore soccer player Destinie Graves sees how the cold weather strengthens herself and her teammates.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe off-season is kind of during the winter but we do some conditioning. Although most of it is inside we\u2019ll go outside for a [few] minutes,\u201d Graves said. \u201cThose come in our 6 a.m. workouts which we have one day a week, and they\u2019re just really physical activities and sometimes if it\u2019s really cold and snowing we\u2019ll go outside for that. It\u2019s hard to breathe in the cold, and you\u2019re wearing thin socks and cleats so you can touch the ball better. Your feet get cold really fast and it affects how you play.\u201d<\/p>\n

Soccer players are not the only ones whose performance is affected by the cold, however. Sophomore softball player Brittany Sears also feels the weather playing tricks on her.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t throw when it\u2019s cold. My muscles don\u2019t work the same way,\u201d Sears said. \u201cWhen you make contact with the bat, it hurts. It\u2019s weird [because] I can\u2019t really describe it. The way softball bats are made, if you hit it your hands sting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Slower reaction times are also a common symptom of the cold. Cooler weather prompts the body to increase its blood pressure and heart rate and reduce the blood flow closest to the skin, all to conserve heat. A consequence of this imbalance, however, is reduced circulation, which is quickly felt in the muscles and extremities. The cold is only amplified when the velocity of the wind picks up, resulting in the wind chill effect.<\/p>\n

Yet athletes learn from experience how to tackle the weather. In addition to making sure they remain fueled due to glucose stores becoming depleted five-times faster in the cold weather than normal, athletes choose their clothing carefully.<\/p>\n

\u201cLayer up,\u201d Sears said. \u201cI wear Underarmor and fleeces. I always wear extra socks and a headband because if my ears and feet get cold I\u2019m done.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sears\u2019s sentiment was a popular one among other athletes as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnderarmor, long sleeves, warm-ups, and coats are all easily removable stuff because you will get hot. I usually don\u2019t wear a shirt under my jersey but I\u2019ll wear a coat or jacket,\u201d Graves said.<\/p>\n

Layering up is a balance; however, as some players feel that too many layers can restrict their movement.<\/p>\n

\u201cDress as warmly as you can, but you need to be able to move around. No matter what you wear, if you\u2019re not moving around you\u2019re going to freeze. I\u2019m from up North so I\u2019m pretty used to it,\u201d Whalen said. \u201cEven on the sidelines you have to be moving, [like] doing jumping jacks. If you stop moving, your hands go numb and then it\u2019s harder to play.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yet the players are not the only ones who are affected by the cold. The game can change as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve lost a lot of balls that were shot into a snow bank, never to be seen again,\u201d Whalen said. \u201cOver break there were some days when the turf would freeze over, and that can really effect the bounce of the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n

Softball players on the other hand can\u2019t play in the snow due to the limited abilities of their facilities.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe field has to be dry. It\u2019s dirt, not turf,\u201d Sears said.<\/p>\n

The next time you think it is too cold to walk to Cowan, remember your peers out there practicing out on the field \u2014 and make sure you layer up.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BY ADAM FALLUJI – STAFF WRITER This year Centre has faced a big challenge with extreme weather conditions. Cancelling class is nearly unheard of, yet the College did so for two-and-a-half days this Spring term in order to ensure the safety of students and faculty. While many of us crowd in the warmth of our […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2081","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-features"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2081","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2081"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2081\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2081"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2081"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2081"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}