Pro Prep Academy takes a holistic approach to the student-athlete experience. With this in mind, sport nutrition is a critical aspect of every athlete’s success in sport performance. The benefits of a well-developed sport nutrition plan have been scientifically proven time and time again, and can impact immune function, mental clarity, physical energy, recovery time, growth and development and more.
Pro Prep’s Performance Nutrition Team includes three experienced dietitians and two students who are proud to offer group, team and individual sessions both online and in person. They provide individual consultations that include personalized nutrition goals, performance nutrition plans, grocery store tours and cooking classes.
“Our key message is that you can train as much as you want, however if you’re not fuelling properly or appropriately, you’re not going to get to that next level. Nutrition can help support you physically, and on the academic side, to reach that next level,” said Performance Nutrition Lead Janelle Vincent.
“Even working with varsity and national-level athletes, most of them don’t have a sport nutrition plan in place. If these athletes at this level can get that in place, they’re going to be miles ahead of most athletes out there. Nutrition can give you that little extra edge that you need, when everyone’s training as hard as everybody else.”
Other members of the Performance Nutrition Team are Halee Pachal, Reede Hawton, Maxine Chartier and Cathérine Lemoine-Courcelles. Each expert specializes in different aspects related to their field, resulting in a diverse staff that’s hands on and empathetic to the needs of the community.
“For me, I was a track and field athlete, so I know track really well and distance running. I personally have celiac disease as well, so if anyone has any questions on that, or gastrointestinal, I can help. There’s three of us that speak French, so I think it all just depends, based on what the best fit will be for the athlete,” noted Vincent.
“We like to be very individual. All of these athletes could be on the same soccer team, but they’re all going to be different. They’re all going to have different home situations and they might have different preferences, such as with allergies. We like to sit down with the athlete and ask them what their goals are. For us, we’re here to help and support you in any way that we can nutritionally. From there, is it performance related? Is it stomach related? We can work through all of that, and help get you from where you are, to where your goals are for nutrition.”
Nutrition aligns with every area of Pro Prep’s 360-degree athlete development model.
“With sports psych, we work a lot with them with eating disorders, stress and anxiety, because your brain is directly connected to your stomach. Whatever is happening in your head, you’ll feel more symptoms in your stomach and vice-versa,” mentioned Vincent.
“Even with exam time, when you’re studying, are you stressed? Are you a stress eater? Are you an emotional eater? Are you pulling all-nighters? Are you relying on caffeine? What fuel are you burning when you’re lifting? Are you timing your nutrition for what to eat before and after training? Nutrition can fit into all of those pieces.”
Zachary Topping, a grade 11 quarterback at River East, has already seen the benefits of the performance nutrition team. Interested in adding some more weight to his frame, he reached out, and was aided by Hawton.
“Weight is something that’s tough, especially when you have a quick metabolism like I do. I went and talked to [Pro Prep co-founder DJ Lalama] and he set me up. I did a zoom call with [clinical dietician] Reede [Hawton]. She helped me out a tonne. She helped me understand all these words and ingredients that I’m putting in my body and I found it helpful. I didn’t really understand what I was putting in my body, I just knew it was healthy for me. She helped me out with that. It was great. She told me to just keep doing what I’m doing.”
If you’d like to set up a consult with our Performance Nutrition Team, please send an email to nutrition@proprepacademy.ca. They’ll make sure to find a dietician who’s a good fit you’re your needs. Also, below is a valuable PDF on meal prep, created by Reede!
