Sports Nutrition at IMG Academy, Shawn Pitcher

IMG (International Management Group) Academy describes itself as the world’s largest and most advanced multi-sport training and educational institution. It is located in Bradenton, Florida. IMG offers strength & conditioning, mental conditioning, nutrition, leadership coaching, athletic training, and some of the highest levels of sports coaching in the country. American football, for example, has coaches with multiple years of professional experience coaching or playing in the National Football League, which gives the athletes next-level insight into their development and understanding the nuances of the game. As the sports nutritionist, Shawn Pitcher MS RD communicates daily with the coaches and athletic performance staff.

This interview with Shawn gives a few insights into his role at IMG.

What is your role in terms of supplement management for the athletes?

Our department values a food first approach. Supplements are to “supplement” the diet. There is no magic pill or potion that is going to compete with sleep, hydration, and fueling/snacking. Those “big three” make up 98% of an athlete’s success where supplementation may give 1-2%. We are not anti-supplement. Supplementation can be beneficial for athletes dealing with nutrient deficiencies or who have mastered the basics but are looking to get an edge in their nutritional strategies. We have developed a permissible supplement policy that allows athletes to utilize NSF certified products.

We routinely educate our athletes on the risk and rewards of supplementation through visuals, PowerPoints presentation, videos, and testimonials. We promote NSF products because across every level of athletics they represent the gold standard. Our curriculum focuses on developing the athlete’s foundational nutrition knowledge in developing routines, habits, and skills that will allow them to apply the information they have learned into a real-life setting (practice, competition, during meals). As APD (Athletic performance and development department) staff, we have daily contact with our athletes during workshops, practice, meals, and competition to reinforce and apply what they have learned.

Do athletes continue working remotely with you after they depart IMG?

I have an open-door policy with all my former athletes and keep in communication with many of them. I encourage them to reach out to me any time they need help. I am passionate about playing a role in our youth and young adult’s lives to help them develop long term habits that make them successful not only in their sports careers but in life.

What are your words of wisdom for aspiring sports dietitians who would like to get connected with a training center?

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s six rules of success include trust yourself, do not be afraid to fail, ignore the naysayers, work like hell, give something back, and sometimes you must break the rules or do things outside the norm. These rules resonate with being a sports dietitian. Many colleges do not have a specific degree in sports nutrition, so getting the education and training you want can require creativity. You will always have people telling you that you cannot handle a role, you do not have enough experience, or you are not ready. Remove yourself from those individuals that bring you negativity and surround yourself with individuals who are positive, supportive and are willing to invest in helping you become a better dietitian.

There is only so much you can learn from reading a textbook. Some of the best learning experiences you will have as a sports dietitian come from hands-on experience as a volunteer, intern, graduate assistant, fellow, or entry-level positions. Never be afraid to reach out to sports dietitians in the field with questions. Always ask if you can set up a continuing education talk or shadow them for a day at their facility. These experiences and connections can be invaluable.

There are going be times in your sports nutrition career that you will fail or make mistakes, but it is how you learn and improve from those mistakes that will make you a better practitioner. Athletics is not for everyone. There are times where there will be long hours, high demands, and on the fly stressful decisions. When applying for a position don’t let the new equipment, buildings, and flashy gimmicks dictate your decision. Do what is in the best interest for you and make sure that if you accept a position that you feel comfortable and supported by your athletics department. Know what you are worth, and do not let anyone undervalue you!

Do not be afraid to go outside the norm. Just because you are doing something different from another dietitian does not mean you are wrong. Challenge those around you and take constructive criticism so that you and your department become better as a unit and not just individuals. My last tip is to communicate, communicate, communicate! Departments frequently fail to communicate with each other, which can cause unnecessary conflict and tension. Get to know the staff you are working with, build relationships, gain respect, and make it the type of environment that you would enjoy working in

What does a day in your life at IMG look like?

I work with three sports that include: football, soccer, and lacrosse. Each dietitian here works with roughly 280-330 athletes. Soccer has ten teams, lacrosse two, and football three. Soccer teams come in August and lacrosse comes in September. In July, we are in the pre-season camp for football.

Below is an example of an of my typical day as a sports RD during pre-season training for football. My schedule changes based on the semester and training seasons.

Monday night:

7pm: Communicate with chef and food & beverage staff to make sure we are prepped for breakfast in the morning which includes, 150 boxed meals, fluids, Gatorlytes, Gatorade, condiments, and utensils

Recently we have done boxed meals in the players dorm room common area to reduce their contact amongst other athletes on campus.

Tuesday:

4:15am – 4:45am: Light breakfast for me

4:45-5:45am: My training time

5:45am – 7:30am: Due to COVID, we are currently giving to-go meals for our players. Food is picked up from the kitchen and delivered to the dorm. Breakfast is set-up by 6:15 am for athletes who need to be at treatment by 6:30 a.m. Because the athletes are training in Florida’s heat and high humidity, we take pre-hydration weights to see if athletes have gotten back to their original weight from the day prior. Hydration recommendations are provided for proper fluid and electrolyte intake.

We are fortunate enough to have on staff two sports scientists. IMG has partnered with Kitman labs. Kitman developed our athlete management system. We use Bluetooth scales that input the weight data into our management system; this allows myself and the athletic trainers to track hydration fluctuations daily. On this system we also track breakfast attendance, post weight outs and wellness surveys.
In the wellness surveys, we ask the athletes five questions. They consist of a 1-10 scale rating of their mood, energy, stress, soreness, and sleep (one being poor, ten being perfect). These five simple questions allow our athletic performance staff (S & C, ATC, RD’s, Mental conditioning, leadership) insight into how athletes are handling day to day stressors and training which enable us as staff to implement daily coaching and communication with players to meet their needs sooner rather than later

7:30-8am: Review players hydration and wellness surveys with the athletic training staff

8-9:30am: Football practice

Assist with athlete fueling and hydration needs
Provide tips and advice to players during water breaks
Communicate with coaches, football operations and football director

9:30-10am Prep classroom for workshops

10-12pm: Mon, Tues, Thurs, and Fridays are athletic performance and development workshops. These include nutrition, mental conditioning, or leadership classes. I have three back to back 30 minutes sessions. Each session contains position groups that keep the class size small to enable the athletes to focus and concentrate better. The sessions are short to keep in mind attention spans, and physically they are drained from their 1.5-2-hour training period

12-1pm To-go meals are handed out and post hydration weights are taken

Advice is given to educate athletes how much fluid they lost and how much they will need to rehydrate with to regain what they have lost during training
Gatorade recovery protein shakes and protein bars are included with this meal

1-1:30pm Communicate with head coach and ATCs

2-3:30pm Catch up on e-mails, answer texts, review hydration numbers, review wellness surveys respond to athletes’ messages, sent out handouts or information to athletes to reinforce a topic or message.

Commonly I interact with our athletes through text, facetime, Coach Now, TeamSnap and scheduled 1:1 session

3:30-4:30pm Communicate with operations for dinner. Football staff have taken charge of dinner. We do a mix of to-go meals from our cafeteria and IMG country club.

I work with our chefs on a 2-4-week cycle menu for pre-season dinners and pre-game meals

5-8:30pm Time to recharge for the next day!

Author

My background: Over the last 10 years, I have had stops at multiple institutions as an intern, graduate assistant, sports performance coach, strength coach, and sports dietitian. These places include SUNY Buffalo State, University of Buffalo, Pittsburg State, University of Missouri, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Spot Athletics, Ole Miss, and currently IMG Academy. I have worked with athletes in high school, D1, D2, D3, NFL combine, and Olympic trial athletes. My goal is to continue to develop my skillset and gain experience in the field to enable me to take on a director role with athletics or transition into tactical nutrition opportunities that are available in the upcoming years.