Make Your Tailgating Snacking a Touchdown

Fall is here, which means one thing: FOOTBALL SEASON IS IN FULL SWING. I’m Ohio born and raised and a recent graduate of The Ohio State University, so you can guess who my team is.

On any given Saturday you can find me watching football on the couch, at a bar, sitting in the stadium cheering on my Buckeyes, or one of my favorites….tailgating.

There’s nothing better than stadium parking lots fired up with team spirit on a fall Saturday with friends, family and of course, delicious food. I don’t know about you, but after hours of continuous snacking on greasy, unhealthy, fried food, I feel like I should go run a marathon…but I’m so full I can’t move.

I’m here to tell you that you CAN enjoy football Saturday and all its yummy snacking without the guilt! Using some of these easy tailgating snack swaps for the next big game will leave you cheering in the end zone!

SWAP

- Burgers for chicken sandwiches

- Pork bratwurst for turkey bratwurst

- Queso dip for pico de gallo

- Queso for guacamole or hummus

- Fried snacks for baked

- Big bowls of dips for individual servings

- Mayo and sour cream for yogurt or Greek yogurt

- Full fat cheese/milk for low fat products

- Buns and bread for whole wheat tortillas or lettuce wraps

- Tortilla chips for whole wheat pita chips or veggies

- Cookies and brownies for delicious, fresh fruit skewers with dip

- Alcoholic beverages for flavored water, iced tea or 100% fruit juice

It’s also really easy to sit for the entire game (which can sometimes be up to 4 hours.) So instead of becoming a couch potato or permanently stuck in your lawn chair, try some of these fit tailgating tips to stay active during the game.

TRY

- Standing instead of sitting for the whole game

- Passing a football, Frisbee or baseball during halftime

- Playing corn hole during the game (only if you have the game on TV close by obviously!)

- Do a push up/sit up competition with your friends every time your team scores

Tailgating shouldn't leave you feeling guilty because of the mass amounts of potato skins and chicken wings you consumed. You can still have a great time cheering on your team while enjoying delicious and HEALTHIER snacks!

Try out some of my personal favorites for smarter game day snacking:

Skinny Southwest Chicken Dip




Buffalo Chicken with Skinny Ranch




Fruit Skewers with Vanilla Honey Yogurt Dip




Happy snacking! And of course, GO BUCKS!

This blog post was contributed by Allie Squires, a PR and Marketing intern with Hedstrom-Ball Bounce & Sport. She recently graduated from The Ohio State University with a degree in Strategic Communications and thinks dogs are better than cats. 

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Training for Football

Football season is upon us. Americans wait the whole year for the distinct smells that combines aromas of crisp fall, new pigskins, wet grass, booze, and hot chocolate. We’re so enthused that we follow football at every competitive level: from peewee to high school to pro.  One team is never enough. One football game never satisfies. We always come back begging for more.

The roar of the stadiums will soon be drowning out any intelligible thoughts as the two teams have spent months preparing come face to face. One team will emerge victorious. Player motivation, coaching decisions, fan support, talent, and not least of all training will determine who will rise as victor.

The time and diligence spent repeating drills, weightlifting, and bulking up pay off in the stadium. The imposing figure of a football player leads an outsider to believe that most time spent strength training and packing on the muscle; balance also is an integral, if less obvious, part of a football team’s training regimen. For obvious reasons, players need to be in tune with their bodies. Incidentally, balance training is shown to reduce chances of ankle sprains. While balance training is incorporated during rehabilitation for athletes who sprain an ankle, it is worthwhile for trainers to be proactive and incorporate training that will reduce chances of sprains occurring in the first place. To achieve balance training objectives trainers will design workouts using the BOSU® Balance Trainer. Don’t believe it? Check out some of the informational clips on the web (like this one) that people have made for football players.

Or if you want real, authentic proof straight from the pros, I’ll redirect to your attention to these shots that have been floating around cyberspace of the Steelers.

Questioning the power of balance? I’ve seen these people on the field. I have enough faith in the powerful combination of their balance, stability, and power to know that I wouldn’t want to be caught standing in front of them.

During football season I cheer from the sidelines or from the safety of my living room with firm confidence that balance training leads a team to have poise and stability that will make certain that their opponents on the field will be in for one wild ride.

This entry was contributed by Stephanie Berger, a Public Relations and Marketing intern at Hedstrom - Ball, Bounce and Sport. She studies at the University of South Carolina and is addicted to breakfast foods and sunshine.

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