Your dorm room should be your home away from home. For athletes, it’s important that you are stocked up on the right foods and supplies to help you max out your performance.
When it comes time to take care of your body (which is like every day for us athletes, right?) there are a few things that all athletes should have in their dorm room. Even if you live right around the corner from the training room, I highly advise athletes have these 6 items on hand to make sure your muscles, joints, aches and pains get the best tlc as possible.
6 Must-Have Athletic Aids for Dorm Living
Reusable ice pack. Having access to ice after a preseason workout, a heavy lifting session or an intense game is huge. There were times when my training room was closed or I just didn’t feel like walking over from my dorm room to get treatment. Icing sore joints and muscles can help reduce swelling and flush out lactic acid, so it’s nice to have a pack or sleeve on hand.
Athletic tape. I’m no trainer, so I would never attempt to wrap my own ankles or wrists. But I’d always have a small roll of tape to help if I jammed a finger. Just a small strip of tape to help support a jammed finger usually helped my injury heal faster.
Braces. It’s always great to have back up supplies. Again, I’m no trainer, but if I ever sprained or tweaked an ankle, having a brace to wear on my down time was helpful. If you can’t get to the training room or if you don’t feel like getting taped on your day off, having an ankle brace or wrist brace is great to have.
Bandaids and ointment. Typically any sport will involve scrapes, cuts, burns, etc. I always had a pack of bandaids and neosporin to help keep my ‘boo boos’ cleaned, medicated and protected.
Icy Hot. While this product or other muscle ache relievers won’t cure sore muscles, it’s great to have on hand to help relieve those preseason aches and mid-season pains.
Muscle Rollers Muscle rollers are affordable, easy to store and very helpful in aiding with athletic recovery. Besides helping to roll out sore muscles, they help with flexibility, can increase circulation and help warm up muscles.