Our group spent the morning at The Training Ground, a new workout facility in Lafayette. Co-owner Heather led us through a challenging boot camp-style high-intensity workout, where partners worked together to complete tasks, interweaving strength and cardiovascular training. (See photo for a list of tasks) 

In the afternoon, Dawson’s athletic trainer, Josh Lanam, introduced us to basic practices through which an athletic trainer responds to overuse and injury. The students were able to try their hands at ankle taping. And the most adventurous ones fully immersed themselves in an ice bath, a standard treatment to reduce inflammation.

For the morning session, we visited the Lafayette Balfour campus to participate in a chair workout led by Alisa Mallinger, owner of Aspire Fitness. Alisa put everyone through a complete workout, including stretching, cardio, and strength. The students also had the chance to talk to 97-year-old Balfour resident Roz, who attends three such workouts each week. In the afternoon, we visited Kinetic Chiropractic in Lafayette. Dr. Mark Perez works with weekend warriors and hardcore athletes to ensure they are fully biomechanically prepared to participate in all their sports. Dr. Perez guided the students as they performed a Function Movement Screening on their groupmates. He then explained the types of treatment he would apply to different dysfunctions.

Day 4 (March 20)