ALLENDALE, Mich. — High School athletes in West Michigan are adapting to the warm conditions this week while still getting their reps in at practice.
At Allendale High School, football players told 13 ON YOUR SIDE they can't wait for their first game on Thursday against Holland Christian.
"It's going to be a heck of a game," said Senior Drew Ashby.
Before game time, though, the team is powering through the warm weather. One change to their normal routine is practicing without pads on Monday.
Ashby added, "the difference in how hot you are in your upper body, especially your head and shoulders, it's crazy different."
Players are also taking plenty of water breaks.
Michigan High School Athletic Association Communications Director Geoff Kimmerly said the organization offers guidelines for schools for warm conditions.
"We have health and safety training that's part of our mandatory coaches meetings every year, for every season, for every sport," Kimmerly explained.
He wants parents and children to know heat is a serious condition, but also, "this is the one area where, if we're reading what the climate conditions are, if we are taking care of ourselves from a hydration point of view, if we're using the right level of activities in the heat, we can prevent, almost always, some bad things that can happen if we push things too far when it's too hot and humid outside."
For more heat-related resources from MHSAA, click here.