College Life

Private Schools That Are Well Known for This Major

• University of Miami
• Boston University
• George Washington University
• University of Tulsa
• Marquette University

State Schools That Are Well Known for This Major

• University of Michigan—Ann Arbor
• University of Florida
• University of Illinois—Urbana-Champaign
• University of Texas—Austin
• University of Georgia

Classes in the Major

Nutrition. You are what you eat. That's one of those things your mother says that also happens to be true. After all, you make new cells for yourself based on the stuff you put in your body. Athletes generally want to add one type of tissue—lean muscle—and not so much fat. It's why you don't see famous athletes eating pizza outside of an endorsement deal. So you're going to learn about all the best stuff to feed athletes to turn them into lean, mean, sporting machines.

Psychological Principles of Sport Performance. A wise man once said, "Ninety percent of this game is half-mental." That was Yankee great and possible crazy person Yogi Berra, who was as famous if not more so for bon mots like this than he was for his skill on the diamond. Leaving aside his shaky command of math, Berra is correct. An athlete's state of mind has a huge bearing on their performance. Some of it is as simple as the power of positive thinking, while some is the mysterious and interesting ways the brain works. In any case, keep your athletes mentally healthy as well as physically.

Pharmacology. We're not advocating recreational drug use here, but drugs do have a place in athletic training. And we're not talking about steroids here, either. For injuries, both anti-inflammatories and painkillers can be incredibly important. You will have to learn which drugs are helpful, which are legal, and how much you can use for the different kinds of injuries.

Prevention and Care of Athletic Injuries. You can look at injuries as the dark side of athletic training. In some cases, you will not be able to do much about them. Certain injuries can only be healed by the assistance of a surgeon, and that's the purview of sports medicine. Minor injuries, however, is all you. Additionally, some preparation can help prevent injuries altogether. For example, putting on muscle is often used by basketball players to better protect their bodies. Sound weird? It won't after you take this class.

Rehabilitation Techniques. After an injury (either a minor one you treated or a major one a surgeon has corrected), the athlete is going to want to get back on the court/field/diamond/gridiron/arena/battlefield as soon as possible. They also don't want to lose any more ability than absolutely necessary. The key is rehab. Stretches, exercises, and various other mysterious techniques will be all yours. You'll have your athletes fixed up good as new.