Performance Nutrition: Optimizing Performance in Rehab and Beyond

Thank you

Are your patients fatiguing in the middle of their rehab sessions? Are they not making the gains you would expect? These common problems are often less about the PT's programming and more about the patient's lack of proper caloric intake prior, during, and after their rehab session.

This presentation will provide physical therapist-appropriate knowledge to assist a patient to develop a general "rehab fueling & recovery" plan as well as how to provide general advice on caloric increases based on the nature of the patient's injury. Fueling and recovery strategies can also be extrapolated to the Human Performance sector to assist in optimizing performance during training and occupational activities. Limits will also be provided to ensure the participant knows when it is appropriate to have their patient consult with a Registered Dietician.

Speaker:
Shelly Morales, MS, RD, CSSD
Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Nutrition
United States Air Force Academy

Moderator:
Eric Wilson, PT, DSc, OCS, SCS, CSCS, FAAOMPT
Deputy Program Director, USAF Tactical Sports & OMPT Fellowship
United States Air Force Academy

Description

Are your patients fatiguing in the middle of their rehab sessions? Are they not making the gains you would expect? These common problems are often less about the PT's programming and more about the patient's lack of proper caloric intake prior, during, and after their rehab session.

This presentation will provide physical therapist-appropriate knowledge to assist a patient to develop a general "rehab fueling & recovery" plan as well as how to provide general advice on caloric increases based on the nature of the patient's injury. Fueling and recovery strategies can also be extrapolated to the Human Performance sector to assist in optimizing performance during training and occupational activities. Limits will also be provided to ensure the participant knows when it is appropriate to have their patient consult with a Registered Dietician.

Speaker:
Shelly Morales, MS, RD, CSSD
Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Nutrition
United States Air Force Academy

Moderator:
Eric Wilson, PT, DSc, OCS, SCS, CSCS, FAAOMPT
Deputy Program Director, USAF Tactical Sports & OMPT Fellowship
United States Air Force Academy

Contributors

Shelly Morales

Shelly Morales is the Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Nutrition at the United States Air Force Academy. She previously served as the Nutrition Program Director for the Cadet Wing at USAFA for fourteen years. Ms. Morales is the first full-time Sports Dietitian hired at any of the Military Service Academies. She is responsible for the development of all aspects of a sports nutrition program for the institution’s NCAA Division I Intercollegiate Athletic Program. Ms. Morales comes with a true passion to have a positive impact and influence on the lives of cadet-athletes across all sports. One of her primary missions is to help athletes perform at their best through proper nutrition and fueling strategies. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Nutrition and Food Science from Colorado State University in Fort Collins; her dietetic internship at University Hospital, Fort Collins WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) Clinic, and Greeley School District; and her master’s degree in Nutrition from Colorado State University. Ms. Morales is a registered dietitian (RD) and is board certified as a specialist in sports dietetics (CSSD). She is also an active member in the Collegiate & Professional Sports Dietitians Association (CPSDA).
Eric Wilson, PT, DSc, OCS, SCS, CSCS, FAAOMPT

Eric Wilson is the founding Program Director and current Deputy Program Director for the USAF’s Tactical Sports & OMPT Fellowship – a training pipeline preparing USAF PTs to become embedded in Special Warfare units. Prior to retiring from the USAF in 2016 as a Lieutenant Colonel, he served as the USAF Academy’s Associate Athletic Director for Sports Medicine and the USAF’s PT consultant for Special Warfare PT. He stepped down to the Deputy Program Director position in 2019. Eric enlisted in the US Army after high school and served over 4 ½ years as an Airborne Infantryman, earning the rank of Sergeant and fighting in the first Gulf War with the 82nd Airborne Division. While stationed in the Army’s Airborne Battalion Combat Team in Italy, Eric was able to travel across Europe and Africa, which gave him a permanent aversion to foreign food and riding in the back of C-130’s. After the Army, he earned a Masters degree from the Medical College of Virginia in 1998 and worked for three years as a civilian PT prior to accepting a USAF commission in 2001. He was Rocky Mountain University of Health Profession’s first terminal doctorate graduate, earning his Doctor of Science in Orthopedic Physical Therapy in 2001. Eric graduated from Regis University’s Post-Professional Fellowship in Manual Therapy in 2008 and earned his FAAOMPT credential at that time. He also completed his Transitional DPT from MGH Institute of Health Professions in 2010. Eric developed and taught the USAF’s first dry needling course in 2013. He was also one of the USAF’s “original seven” embedded PTs, serving as the 93rd Air Ground Operations Wing’s Director of Human Performance from 2012-2015 and is the only USAF PT to have graduated from the US Army’s Flight Surgeon course as well as NOAA’s Dive Medical Officer course. Eric has taught continuing education courses since 1999 and has presented at numerous state and national meetings and has published in both peer-reviewed journals and medical texts. He has taught in Residency and Fellowship programs and has been a full-time Fellowship instructor since 2016. He lives in Colorado Springs, CO with his wife and the world’s most spoiled dog.