Wednesday, November 30, 2016

What to Eat Before and After Exercise?

If they are well-nourished, they will enjoy more every activity they do. 
We all know how important and impactful it is to do physical exercise, not only for releasing the so-called ‘happiness’ hormones but also to increase our overall health. Integral activities increase heart health, pulmonary capacity, muscular resistance, bone strength and improves the immunologic system, making us feel healthy and strong. But while it’s great to do exercise, most people forget that for physical activity to work it needs to be paired with balanced meals to give the body the nourishment it needs to take advantage of all the benefits. In fact, there’s a whole counter-culture of people that firmly believe that skipping meals is the way to go to take a turn in the slimmer direction but in order to be healthy you need to eat correctly. However, as I said before, there’s much more to exercise than just weight loss. Children with special needs are prone to suffer from cholesterol or muscular problems depending on their particular condition. That’s why it is important for parents and caretakers to know how essential it is to eat healthy food after doing any physical activity.

Why do you need to eat?
There’s a firm belief that if you drastically reduce the intake of food when you start to incorporate  a physical activity into your routine, it will make you healthier. This is a lie that can lead to terrible consequences, like the rebound effect because you are putting your body under strain and it will take the necessary measures to avoid going into organic stress, saving up the extra food that you provide and creating more fat deposits on your body which are harder to shade away. It also impacts the hormone liberation process of the body, as it will take this as an emergency state and it will react differently. That’s why you need to make sure your child eats the right amount of food before and after exercise. Now I’m about to give you some subsections on what to eat before and after doing physical activities.  

Eating BEFORE doing physical activity
Their bodies are going to need protein to increase energy levels. While it can take some from the liver, the idea is to eat a complex carbohydrate and protein snack before doing exercise to make sure they have the necessary nutritional elements for the body to enough power. That way they’ll enjoy the physical activity while not impacting negatively their health.

Best alternatives:
  • Yogurt
  • Broccoli
  • Oatmeal
  • Trail Mix
  • Smoothies
  • Bananas
  • Apples

Eating AFTER doing physical activity
After they practice a sport, they’ll need to replenish their fuel deposits and protein replacement is the first step that has to be done. It needs to be consumed in the first 30 minutes after they do physical activity. While you are doing it, your body is burning the reservoirs of glycogen, and if you don’t reincorporate them into your organism, your body will take it from the muscle reserves, causing damage in the long run. For this reason, you need to eat and drink liquid to incorporate these nutritional elements to your system right away.

Best alternatives:
  • Grilled chicken breasts.
  • Quinoa
  • Black bean salad
  • Peanut butter and whole grain toast
  • Protein smoothies
  • Tuna and spinach salad
  • Chocolate drinks

Now that you know the importance of eating before and after doing exercise, you can be sure that it will have a positive impact on your child’s health. Teach them they how crucial it is for their body to be full of energy when they practice any sport. That’s why Autism Soccer encourages parents and caretakers to incorporate healthy snack options in their kid’s menu for them to have the energy to enjoy themselves while playing soccer in a great environment!
If kids are going to do exercise, they need to have their body full of nutrients and vitamins in order to have the required energy. 



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Tuesday, November 29, 2016

3 Helpful Tips to Control Your Child’s Anxiety

You can use toys to help them soothe and to teach how to play with them by themselves to control their anxiety.

Stress and anxiety are things that affect everyone, whether it is by personal experiences or situations that are not in our hands, the truth is almost every time we are prone to feel this way. However, adults know how to react when things get dire, but kids on the other hand, are sponges. They pick up everyone’s mood and often copy other’s behaviors in certain situations, specially when it comes to the way people react to problems. Something you need to keep in mind as a parent or caretaker is that they need your help to handle the constant emotions that could be a part of their day to day experiences. In fact, it’s important for them to know you are 100% on their side and that they can rely on you when stress levels go up for any reason.  

Teach them how to express proactively: Children need to be taught coping mechanisms that are positive in the long run. This means that although outburst and crying are accepted, they can not be the main response when it comes to trouble. Anxiety can be paralyzing and increase their heart rate as well as their breathing rate, which can lead to emotional asthma or hyperventilation. Teach them it is fine to express talking coherently and threading their ideas for others to understand how they feel.

Encourage relaxing activities: Children love to play and one of the things they can do to cope with stressful situations is to use this natural impulse of enjoyment to deal with emotions. Relaxing activities and sports are great ways to let them see not everything has to be awful and problematic. For example, instead of acquiring hurtful behaviors like self-harm, teach them to shake the stress away by stretching, doing yoga, playing a game or drawing how they feel.

Focus on problem solving: Avoid focusing on problems, as this can lead to a sense of helplessness. Teach them that although problems might seem to be big, overthinking can cause more stress. That’s why it's important for them to find other alternatives to solve them. Let them know you can both work together to find positive ways to resolve the problems and that focusing on that and the lessons they can learn from them are great ways of experiencing the world. It will also help them gain a sense of personal achievement.

One of the things you can do to impulse the control of anxiety and stress is to teach them how to have another point of view when it comes to expressing their anxiety. Remember you need to encourage communication and cooperation for them to have a great life. And if you want guidance with the physical exercise that can help them manage stress, look no further than Autism Soccer. They offer great alternatives for your kid to experience sports in a whole different way!
Sometimes, all you need to do is let them express their feelings in a logical way, allowing them to control their anxiety in the long run.



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Monday, November 28, 2016

How Much Exercise Does My Child Need?


You'll see they'll feel more relaxed and calmed when they get enough exercise.
When it comes to sports, there’s little agreement on the correct amount everyone has to practice and this is especially true when it comes to children. Most of the time, doctors would recommend a certain amount, but that can include the physical exercise they do at their schools or not, and can include playtime with friends, classmates or family members. The one thing they all agree upon is the fact that children need to engage in physical activities to achieve a healthy growth, not only in the skeletal and physical sense but also in the way these activities help them shape their interaction and physical responses to the outside world. In this aspect, parents of children with special needs have a difficult time balancing the needs for their particular conditions with the fact that they need the exercise to allow them to relief stress and improve their overall health.

Establishing the required amount of time for them to stay healthy is a matter that should be left in the hands of their pediatricians. However, since kids between 2 and the teen years are always on growth spurts and their muscular and skeletal system need to exercise in order to stay healthy, the general consensus is that 1 hour of physical activity a day is more than enough. What you must know is that not all physical activity has to do with sports per se, as you need to make sure the activity that you child endeavors makes them happy. In fact, ideally you should try to figure out what are their natural inclinations: Do they love nature? Are they more of an indoors person? What types of play do they engage on by their own? and such. Using this knowledge you can find more physical alternatives that follow this pattern and help them feel comfortable and safe with the options you offer. Sometimes, if they love doing things alone, a great sport for them is swimming, or if they like running, soccer works like a charm. You as a parent, teacher or caretaker are responsible for figuring out the best alternative for them and work with their doctor to see what are the particulars that you need to be informed of when it comes to the practice itself.

Once you have the correct information on the amount of exercise your child needs according to their organism, you can contact with Autism Soccer: they offer a great opportunity for children with special needs, in a safe and stimulating environment! Let your kid experience different alternatives of physical activity with people who know exactly how to treat them and make them feel confident!
Make sure you know the limitations and characteristics of your child before you define the amount of exercise they'll get. 



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Friday, November 25, 2016

Pick the Signs in a Behaviorally Challenging Child

Certain attitudes are clear indicators that the kid might be behaviorally challenging. 
In recent years, we’ve seen a statistic surge of kids with a particular condition: they are behaviorally challenging. Most of the time, this behavior was pinned down to poor parenting or just a spoiled attitude, but with the advance of paediatric psychiatry, doctors were able to narrow down this type of behavior as unrelated to the parents, because they were up in the same category as other cognitive conditions that can affect children. In fact, ever since this became public knowledge, parents, teachers, and caretakers are being encouraged to transform the notions of kids being a handful into a symptom of a deep set condition that could impact the rest of their lives if not treated and managed correctly. But to act upon these things, you need to be able to recognize these signs, as sometimes, a tantrum could be hiding something else. That’s why I’ve compiled a list of the most frequent indicators for you to check:

  • Frequent temper tantrums: While it’s normal for kids to stress and have tantrums, sometimes the frequency could be indicating an underlying problem. This behavior can occur in situations where such reaction might seem uncalled for or are an usual event in the child’s life.

  • Challenging responses: Most of the kids compel to parents’ and teachers’ indications by nature, but to some, this is not adequate and would prefer to act up instead of doing the things they must. Dismissing and forgetting what they have to do and responding (sometimes even bad-mouthing) figures of authority is a frequent challenging behavior that needs to be assessed soon.

  • Sudden withdrawal: Another red flag kids with challenging behavior have is the fact that they suddenly draw away from the things they normally engage in. Whether it is playing or doing other activities, when they refuse to participate and communicate there’s a cause that needs to be investigated as it often leads to bad responses when people try to get them engaged back in.

  • Childlike responses: Small children have a set of behaviors that are normal for them, but when these continue to be their preferred coping mechanisms as they grow up, you need to consult with professionals. This can mean they haven’t quite surpassed those stages or that they have a particular reason to why these are they way of reacting to the world.

  • Strong emotional responses: Happiness, sadness or anger are indeed part of a normal behavior but outbursts can indicate an underdevelopment in the control of emotions, which can lead to serious problems in the long run. If your child's emotions seem a bit on edge, it might be an indicator of something bigger. However, some kids get really excited about things, so this should not be taken solely as an indicator, but as a plus in the list.

These signs can clues of behaviorally challenging children but this diagnosis can only be given by professionals. If you think your child is showing these along with other behaviors that can be interpreted as red flags, it’s about time you got the right help to deal with this situation. If you want to incorporate your child (regardless of their diagnosis) in a physical activity that helps them drain stress, you can enroll them in Autism Soccer. They have a team of professionals who are ready to work hard to help your child unleash their full potential in a great environment!
Once you know the diagnosis, all you need to do is connect with them in a different way.



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Thursday, November 24, 2016

Probiotics and Autism: a Beneficial Relationship

These are microorganisms that help improve digestion, and studies have shown their benefits in other areas.

One of the main concerns for parents of children with special need is that they feel comfortable and go about their lives with the best energy and one why they could feel like their energy is going down might be because of the nourishments. Scientific studies have revealed the overall stomachal and intestinal health have a great impact on the mood and disposition of people to do something, as well as their energy levels. This is especially delicate when it comes to children with special needs, as they are more than likely to reflect those small affectations in the way they react to the world. In fact, for kids who have problems interpreting and connecting with others, such as autistic and ADD children, the evidence is pointing to correlations with tummy problems. That’s why people are getting used to the consumption of probiotics as a palliative for these disturbances in hopes to alleviate the intestinal symptoms.

The relationship between probiotics and overall health has been part of the medical knowledge for long, but for most people, it started to buzz as a solution after certain studies proved how beneficial they were for the body. In fact, little do people know about the importance of microorganisms in our metabolism: most of our digestive system is filled with beneficial types of bacteria that help process and gather the nutrients in the food we consume. These bacteria are there since birth, transmitted by the mother as a mechanism to develop a healthy organism. Maybe the most shocking fact is not a few of them cohabitate with us, but at least a trillion of them compose the overall digestive tract microbiome. This microbial rapport we develop with them is the reason why people have devoted their time to study how these small living entities affect our health and why there’s a direct relationship between the amount and nature of said microorganisms and the conditions that affect brain development.

Without the proper amount, or simply by having more of the bad bacteria (in which the correct term is “dysbiosis”), anyone’s whole constitution can be affected: whether it is their sleeping patterns, their health, their defenses or simply a great affectation to their overall mood. Those are just a few reasons why doctors have decided to take the leap of faith and use the knowledge they have gathered to treat children with conditions in the autistic spectrum. It has proved to be a beneficial treatment for intestinal problems that often accompany these conditions. This, in turn, helps them feel less anxious and stressed, alleviating these symptoms and helping them relate to others in a more relaxed state, allowing them to enjoy the interactions with the world and diminishing overwhelming feelings.

If you want to have another option to alleviate their condition while helping them free their stress, you can take your kid to Autism Soccer. They can offer advice in more than just the practice of this sport, as they have a great support system that helps them comprehend and handle with care and devotion  every child’s particular requirements. Visit them now!
Scientists have proved that the consumption of probiotics improves stomach problems related to autism and other conditions. 



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Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Cardiovascular Benefits Of Playing Sports


When you increase their physical exercise, you are helping them reach their goals. 
Physical activity is beneficial for every part of the body, from the influx of oxygen to the balance and strength of the skeletal system. Among those, there’s also the fact that the cardiovascular system gets an incredible boost by just a few minutes of exercise a day, and children with special needs can benefit from this like you have no idea. Truth is that in most cases, they need to participate in activities that help them clear their minds from the routine and to allow them to vent and feel relaxed with the help and support from people who care about them.

  • Reduction of blood pressure: While doing sports does indeed increase heart rate and blood flow, truth is it also helps the body control blood pressure in the long run. It helps blood vessels respond to the changes in pressure, in turn, making them more able to fully relax during rest periods.

  • Improves oxygen transportation: With the increase of red blood cell, improvement of oxygen transportation is instantaneous. This in combination with the pulmonary benefits, makes the breathing process more efficient and beneficial for children who have a certain amount of physical activity in their routine.

  • Better insulin sensitivity: Physical exercise modifies the body's response to hormones, making it more sensible. This has a direct impact on the health of those who practice a certain sport when it comes to responding to insulin, as it makes the pancreas to have to secrete less in order to deposit and work glucose.

  • Control of cholesterol: This is one of the most obvious benefits of any exercise, as it impacts directly on cholesterol levels. LDL (“bad” cholesterol) levels are reduced significantly, as HDL (“good” cholesterol) is increased almost instantaneously. A reduction also means clearing arterial deposits, making blood flow even more efficient.

  • Impulses cellular renovation: Physical activity has the potential to trigger the sensors to action the cellular renovation process. This normally occurs during a certain period, but to blood cells, the condition to which they react are activated by indicators related to exercise, and it also boosts the production of red globules which transport oxygen and other nutrients.

Of course, these benefits are not obtained alone and automatically, you need to perform at least 2 hours of physical exercise a week to see results in the long run while also pairing it with changes in habits. For most people, this can be done by doing 30 minutes of some physical activity 4 times a week, or just shorter period of activity per day. It’s also recommended to implement dietary changes, such as reduction of sodas and sugar, as well as the amounts of fat and incorporating more liquids to keep the body hydrated.

If you want your kids to have the cardiovascular benefits of playing a sport while having fun, look no further than Autism Soccer. They have a great program to incorporate children with special needs into soccer, making them create an everlasting love for sports in a great environment in which they are taken care of by experts.
Cardiovascular health is incredibly important for children with special needs. 



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Tuesday, November 22, 2016

The Benefits of Creating a Support System

Being the caretaker of a child with special needs can be a hard full-time job, but it gets easier with the right support system.

Most of the time, parents and caretakers are draped in the coat of superheroes. They are people who can do pretty much anything without even blinking and find solutions where others don’t see them. Their work is pretty much 24/7, as they need to be up to date on everything, for the fear those little details affect their loved ones. The size of this responsibility can take a great toll on self-esteem, care, and strength, not only in the physical but in the spiritual terrain. They need to be focused and think of possible outcomes all the time. Long days and nights are common occurrences, and while sometimes it seems like they superpowers, truth is they are humans like you and me and they sometimes need support.

That’s why you need to have a great system to help you overcome those moments of exhaustion and to hold your hands during hard times. With that in mind, I’m going to show you the benefits that having this offers:

Motivation: While sometimes you’d think that having to take care of a loved one’s health is enough motivation, truth is people can get exhausted by the routine. When they know that someone can help, they are often more motivated to get things done with their support.

Stress relief: Tending to medical conditions can be incredibly hard on the nerves of caretakers and can increase their stress levels exponentially. That’s why it’s so important for them to have people to support them, whether to take over with something or just to talk and offer a shoulder to lean on. This helps lower stress levels.

Communication: Sometimes adults need a grown-up conversation to relax and focus and that’s when support systems come in handy. Usually, these people are acquaintances going through a similar situation, and they can become a helping hand in those moments where decisions need to be made.

Avoid being overwhelmed: Being responsible for medications, medical appointments, therapies, care, and such can be a heavy load on anyone's shoulders. Support systems can help them avoid the sense of being over their heads and control being overwhelmed with responsibilities by lending a hand and helping resolve some situations.

Rest: Taking care of someone is exhausting and it can drain people’s energy real quick. With that in mind, taking power naps can help them get back in shape, and this can be achieved when someone they trust is taking the wheel on things during that time. It allows them to recharge and be rested to tackle the rest of the tasks.

These are just some of the benefits that having a support system has for people who take care of a member of their family. It allows them to find moments to sit back and relax, and enjoy the wonders of the trip they walk through along their loved one. Sometimes, these systems can be achieved with the help of people who want the best for children, as Autism Soccer does. It offers them the option of sitting back and enjoying their kids playing a sport with the guidance of professionals who know exactly how to encourage them to try new things and get physical exercise while having fun!

If you find others in these situations, the best thing you can do is to offer them your support.



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