Ohio High School Athletic Association rules allowed for the first day of football coaching to begin Monday and as is almost always the case, football season's conditioning period coincides with the hottest time of the year.

With temperatures regularly reaching into the 90s, the OHSAA has again released it's regulations to help keep Ohio's student athletes safe during intense workouts in the intense heat.

The OHSAA mandates five days of acclimatization to allow players to get used to the heat. The first two days of coaching, pads are prohibited. The third and fourth days shoulder pads may be worn and the first allowed day of full pads is Aug. 6. Contact practices may start Aug. 7.

The most important safety tip of course, for football players or any other athlete, is to drink plenty of water.

"What (athletes) really need to do is No. 1, hydrate before they participate and exercise," said Dr. Aaron Adams, Scioto County Health Commissioner. "They should stay out of the mid-day and mid-afternoon heat like we had (Wednesday). If you're going to exercise do it in the morning or later afternoon toward the evening hours and have water available to cool yourself off with too and not just to drink but to cool yourself off with too.... Be sure to think about it when you get home. You still may not have had enough to drink."

Adams acknowledged that every athlete is different but most heat precautions apply to everyone.

"Most of your young athletes are in excellent physical condition and they should have a sports physical before they participate so you can identify people that have a risk like a heart problem or a hernia or asthma," Adams said. "People with a chronic condition should definitely avoid (the heat) completely. Basically you want to protect the whole group. You want to avoid mid-day participation when the index is probably 100 degrees. When it is going to be 100 degrees or more the activity should be limited to the early morning and probably late afternoon and evening."

Last but not least, athletes should remember to build up gradually to avoid injury.

"Avoid strenuous activities of increasing weight lifting and duration of running activities without gradually building up to those levels," Adams said. "You prepare yourself in a correct way of gradually getting yourself into shape, not to strain and stretch your muscles and ligaments to cause injury."

The following is a list of some of the OHSAA's heat precautions for football practices. The release says the guidelines are appropriate for all sports.

* Athletes should drink 17-to-20 ounces of water or sports drink 2-to-3 hours before exercise and an additional 17-to-20 ounces 10-to-20 minutes prior to exercise.

* During practice, athletes should be allowed unrestricted fluid replacement. A general guide is to drink 7-to-10 ounces of water/sports drink every 15 minutes. Water must be available during practice.

* After practices, athletes should drink 20-to-24 ounces of water/sports drink for each pound of weight lost, and the rehydration should occur within two hours of the completion of practice.

* Practice sessions should be revised when conditions (heat index) warrant. High heat and humidity should alert coaches to health concerns of their athletes. When the temperature/humidity factor (commonly referred to as the heat index) is elevated, revision in practices shall occur. Revisions could include: shortening practice sessions; holding practices in the morning or evening; altering the amount of equipment worn; reducing the intensity of practice sessions.

JOHN STEGEMAN can be reached at jstegeman@heartlandpublications.com