Next Level Performance Nutrition Program

Our purpose is to help each athlete maximize all factors that contribute to overall basketball performance. Since nutrition is one of those key factors, we take pride in working with a highly qualified nutritionist specifically trained to work with athletes. Our head trainer, Dickey Simpkins, began working with nutritionist Julie Burns, MS, RD, CCN, when he decided to enhance his own basketball performance back in the 1994-'95 season while playing for the Chicago Bulls. Through Julie's direction, Dickey was able to customize a diet which helped him maintain a long and healthy professional career.

Julie Burns is founder of SportFuel, Inc. and Eat Like the Pros - a sports nutrition consulting firm with online nutritional services and products including personal chef services, both located in Western Springs, IL. (www.SportFuel.com and www.EatLikeThePros.com). Past and current clients include the Chicago Bulls basketball team, Chicago Blackhawks hockey team, Chicago Bears football team, Chicago White Sox baseball team, Northwestern University's varsity teams and individual pro and elite athletes.

Julie regularly provides nutrition guidance to coaches, athletic trainers, amateur athletes, and health care professionals. As a mother of 12-year old active triplets, she is often asked to address mother's groups, parent associations, and other lay audiences. Julie also consults with food and public relations companies.

Julie previously served as director of Research at the Chicago Center for Clinical Research, a former affiliate of Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke Medical Center, where she specialized in cardiovascular experimental nutritionals and pharmaceuticals. She has a faculty appointment at Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center in Department of Nutrition.

Julie is a regular presence on Chicago-area network and cable television and is frequently quoted in major newspapers and magazines. She co-edited the second edition of Cardiovascular Disease: Nutrition for Prevention and Treatment a manual for health professionals, by the American Dietetic Association (ADA). She has published articles in major medical journals, and authored a brochure for the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) based on their Position Stand on Exercise and Fluid Replacement. Julie's sports nutrition chapter contributions include a Sports Beverage chapter for
Macroelements, water, and Electrolytes and Basketball: Power Jam Nutrition, in Sports Nutrition: A Guide for the Professional Working with Active People-3rd edition.

Julie earned her bachelor degree in Dietetics from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana (1983) and her Masters of Science in Clinical Nutrition from the Massachusetts General Hospital Institute of Health Professions (1987). Julie is a registered and licensed dietitian (R.D, L.D.) in the state of Illinois and is a Certified Clinical Nutritionist (CCN).

Julie is a member of Nutritionists in Complementary Care (NCC) and Sports, Cardiovascular and Wellness Nutritionist (SCAN), practice groups of the American Dietetic Association. She is a member of the Chicago Nutrition Association and the Illinois, Chicago and West Suburban Dietetic Associations. She has served on SCAN's Executive Board and was Cardiovascular Editor for the Pulse newsletter, a SCAN quarterly publication. Julie served on the Gatorade Sport Science Institute's Sports Nutrition Advisory Board from 1995-2003.

Julie was rated "one of the top ten experts to help revamp your diet" by Harper's Bazaar magazine. She received the American Dietetic Association Sports, Cardiovascular and Wellness Nutritionists "Achievement Award" in 2002 and was awarded "Recognized Young Dietitian of the Year" by the Chicago and Illinois Dietetic Associations.

NLP NUTRITIONAL PROGRAM OFFERS:

• Mini-Seminars on topics including:
  • “How to Fuel Before, During and After Play”
  • “How  to Maximize Recovery and Performance with Nutrition”
  • “ABCs of Safe and Effective Nutritional Supplementation”
  • “Become a Supermarket Sleuth!” (Grocery Shopping Tour)
• Customized Nutrition Plan
  • Body Composition Analysis: weight, body fat, evaluate current diet
  • Fluid and fuel prescription: prescribe foods and fluids for maximum performance
  • Nutritional supplement recommendations: identify safe and effective supplements based on body comp analysis
• Personal Chef Services
  • Meals customized based on nutrition analysis
  • Fresh nutritious food specifically prepared to meet client’s needs
  • Front door delivery

"I always knew that training and conditioning were key to a successful basketball career. Julie (Burns) helped me to understand better the importance of nutrition when I met her my first year with the Bulls. She personalized a nutritional plan to promote my overall health and specific needs as an athlete. Learning how to eat properly and incorporate the proper supplements has helped me stay healthy and perform my best."

-Dickey Simpkins