THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE WOMEN’S FLAT TRACK DERBY ASSOCIATION (WFTDA) ISSUE 15, SPRING 2012
fiveonfivemag.com
fiveonfive contents 34-35
4-5 advice
ask ms d’fiant and em dash!
WFTDA The 2012 cycle for the WFTDA Officiating Clinics is underway.
6-9 business league website tips and tricks raising money for a nonprofit
lifting weights for roller derby yoga for derby post bout depression
Jules Doyle
10-17 health and fitness
42-43
18-25 games and coaching
Banked and Flat Track
line ups performance analysis world cup recap
Can we all coexist in the derby world?
26-27 gear 36-37 junior derby youth concussion training
Jules Doyle
finding the right pads
44-45 Bridging the Gap
38-41 rookie
How can leagues bring fresh meat and vets closer together?
transfer process a balancing act
james fisher
48-50 international derby 52-62 art and media 63 classifieds 68 horoscopes
health and fitness
post bout depression S H A M R O C K N . R O L L E R , S A N TA C R U Z D E R B Y G I R L S
You spend all week preparing for a bout; physically, mentally and emotionally. You may think after years of playing the game, you don’t spend too much time devoted to thinking about your upcoming bout on Saturday, but you do. It just doesn’t have the same effect on your body and mind like it once did. The butterflies are not as intense and you have more control over your thoughts than you did when it was all new to you (although I do know some veteran skaters who still get tweaked mentally before a bout). The point is, that while you may not notice it, you’re still preparing. Come bout day, you’re focused, you’re driven and you’re ready to put it all out on the track. The bout comes and the bout goes. You’ve driven your body to the breaking point, adrenaline rushing through your veins for over an hour. Then what do you do? You head to the after party and you drink! You have a great time and you dance, possibly burning even more calories than you did during the bout. You go to bed late that night and wake up the next morning bummed out with no idea why. Your team won the bout and you seriously won the after party, but you’ve got the blues and there’s nothing you can do about it. So what are these post-bout blues all about? I wish I had a definitive and scientific answer to that question, but I don’t. I have talked to a couple of doctors and done a ton of research on the web. And although a large amount of people have similar feelings, I did not find a study that states why people feel this way after working out so hard. So, what I am going to give you is a series of ideas of what may be going on and perhaps through some trial and error, you can identify what works for you to keep the post-bout blues away. One theory is that the feelings are not physiological but rather psychological. People who are naturally anxious and have a tendency to ascribe success or failure to outside forces, as opposed to being due to their own actions (rightly or wrongly), tend to have more feelings of depression. Theoretically then, if you can focus on your role in things, as well as attempt to decrease anxiety in daily life (through diet, exercise, meditation, etc.), you could potentially decrease those depressed emotions. If you find that this does not take care of your post-bout blues, plan to engage in a supportive
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social interaction the day after a bout and some moderate exercise, which many of us do not actually do the next day. Better yet, why not get some of your teammates together and go for an outdoor skate. You can kill two birds with one stone. Another theory, based on some web hunting, is that a decreased blood sugar level is causing your mood to turn blue. Many of us have to arrive to the bout location hours ahead of time to help setup and warm-up. Sometimes it can be hours from when you eat to when you actually play. Couple that with over an hour of bout time, and it’s now five hours before you get food into your body again. And of course, during all of that working out, your blood sugar level has naturally dropped. After bouting, your body is focused on replacing your glycogen stores while you’re heading to the after party where you start dancing (working out again) and consuming alcohol. Alcohol consumption halts the process of replacing your glycogen stores and can cause blood sugar levels to stay at an unhealthy level. And since so many of us do not eat a substantial meal after a bout (replacing it with drinking), our blood sugar level continues to stay low. The brain requires a constant supply of blood sugar, so it may be possible that the next morning your hypoglycemic state could be causing your altered mood. When you have low blood sugar levels, you begin to feel less sure of yourself, and have low energy levels, which can lead to the blues. Some ideas are to eat a combination of carbs, proteins and fat before you exercise, and following your bout, eat within thirty minutes to refuel your body and brain. Another possible cause for the post-bout blues is a reduction in serotonin levels. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that plays an important role in the regulation of mood. Physiologically, the amino acid tryptophan is required by the brain to produce serotonin. When more serotonin is present, nerves in the brain function more normally. Dehydration can prevent the needed amount of water available to transport tryptophan to the brain, causing less serotonin to be produced. Serotonin is also strongly influenced by our diet. Foods rich in carbohydrates cause an increase in the concentration of tryptophan, which induce a sense of calm and feelings of satisfaction. Anyone who has played derby for any length of time knows how easy it is to not eat properly and become dehydrated. If you are
Preflash Gordon
someone who does not consume the recommended daily amount of water and does not increase consumption leading up to a bout, then you are more likely to become dehydrated, especially if you end the night with alcohol. So this solution can be relatively easy – eat well and HYDRATE. Something as simple as being hung over could lead to your feelings of depression and anxiety. Two big factors of hangovers are what? Hypoglycemia and dehydration. And what CAN cause feelings of depression? Hypoglycemia and dehydration. Again, I have no scientific basis for this; I’m just theorizing based on what I’ve read and what I’ve experienced. So, it’s possible there is a mixture of the three theories at play and it’s also possible that none of this is the cause of your post-bout blues. What I do know is that it’s important for us to prepare for our bouts in many ways. Keep the anxiety of an upcoming bout to a minimum. Know that the training you have done with your team will all come together and you’ll personally give it your all. Stay positive on the track and know that no matter what, win or lose, you gave everything you could give. Eat healthy and well in general but especially the week leading up to and on bout day. Consume a solid meal as close to bout time as you can and have healthy snacks at the ready before, at halftime and after to keep a healthy blood sugar. Stay hydrated. It’s extremely important that your hydration start days before a bout. Don’t wait until the day of a bout to pound water. Drink water as recommended and continue to increase that dosage a couple of days before your bout. And continue that hydration, with water, throughout the day, the bout and afterwards. If you are going to go out and party with your team, eat first and continue to consume water along with alcohol to counteract the dehydration. And if you can, try and get as much sleep as possible. Will these tips solve your post-bout blues? I can’t really say, but it’s worth a shot and testing out one theory over another might be what you need to do. Acknowledge that the feeling is there, you’re not alone, and you may be able to do something about it.
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international
Nicholas Charest
Haka. It was intense. New Zealand gave us a great first game as we played them in the seeding rounds. We won the bout 377-8. Thursday night was our Stars vs. Stripes bout. The venue was absolutely packed, loud, and full of energy. The bout was back and forth the whole night. In the end, the Stars creaked out with a one-point win, 109-108. On Friday morning, we played Team Scotland for another bout to determine our tournament seeding. We needed to rack up points to secure the top seeding for the tournament. We also wanted to show the world our very best derby played by our very best skaters. After the 40 minute bout, we won 435-1. The seeding was released later that day and we learned that we were number one. Our seeding gave us a bye and scheduled us to play the winner of Germany vs. New
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Zealand. New Zealand won that game Saturday and we played them a second time later that night. We won that bout 470-8, advancing us to the semi-finals against Team Australia on Sunday. The Australians were a fun team to skate against. They had great sportsmanship and kept the atmosphere light. We continued to dominate the field with a 532-4 victory that put us into the finals with Canada. The final bout of the weekend was on Sunday night against the home crowd favorite, Canada. The venue was so packed that people had to watch the bout on a jumbotron on the other track. The noise was deafening and the energy massive. Although Canada certainly had the most fans, the US fans were both loud and visible. Canada put up an incredible fight. They challenged us like no other team in
the tournament had done previously. They were smart, strong, and incredibly competitive. Although we won the bout (336-33), they were the only team to open any of our weaknesses. We were presented our medals and the World Cup trophy during the closing ceremonies. As I helped hold the Cup in the air, I had an enormous smile on my face. I was full of pride to represent the United States in such an historic event. And to have done it with my amazing teammates and coaching staff made it that much more special. The roller derby was so much fun, but the relationships that we made with our team and with other teams from around the world were really the highlights of the experience for me. Team USA is planning additional bouts and boot camps in 2012 and 2013.
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