Strength training combined with blood flow restriction (BFR) have been used to improve the levels of muscle adaptation. The aim of this paper was to investigate the acute effect of high intensity squats with and without blood flow restriction on muscular fatigue levels. Twelve athletes (aged 25.95 ± 0.84 years) were randomized into two groups: without Blood Flow Restriction (NFR, n = 6) and With Blood Flow Restriction (WFR, n = 6) that performed a series of free weight squats with 80% 1-RM until concentric failure. The strength of the quadriceps extensors was assessed in a maximum voluntary isometric contraction integrated to signals from the surface electromyogram. The average frequency showed significant reductions in the WFR group for the vastus lateralis and vastus medialis muscles, and intergroup only for the vastus medialis. In conclusion, a set of squats at high intensity with BFR could compromise muscle strength immediately after exercise, however, differences were not significant between groups.
The purpose of this study was to determine if the HRindex Method (VO2max = [6 x HRindex - 5] x 3.5, where HRindex = HRmax/HRrest) was accurate for tracking changes in VO2max following 8-weeks of endurance training among collegiate female soccer players. Predicted VO2max via the HRindex Method and observed VO2max from a maximal exercise test on a treadmill were determined for a group of female soccer athletes (n = 15) before and following an 8-week endurance training protocol. The predicted (pVO2max) and observed (aVO2max) values were compared at baseline and within 1-week post-training. Change values (i.e., the difference between pre to post) for each variable were also determined and compared. There was a significant difference between aVO2max before (43.2 ± 2.8 ml.kg.min-1) and following (46.2 ± 2.1 ml.kg.min-1) the 8-week training program (p < 0.05). However, pVO2max did not significantly change following training (pre = 43.4 ± 4.6 ml.kg.min-1, post = 42.9 ± 4.1 ml.kg.min-1, p = 0.53). Furthermore, the correlation between the change in aVO2max and the change in pVO2max was trivial and non-significant (r = 0.30, p = 0.28). The HRindex Method does not appear to be suitable for predicting changes in VO2max following 8-weeks of endurance training in female collegiate soccer players
The main aim of the research was to examine the relationship between motivational orientations and parents’ behavior with regard to the players’ motivational orientation, motivational climate, enjoyment and amotivation. The sample comprised 723 athletes (M = 12.37, SD = 1.48) and 723 parents (M = 46.46, SD = 2.56). Players were male and female who belonged to federative basketball, handball, football and volleyball teams. Parents and athletes completed questionnaires that assessed motivational orientations, parents’ involvement in the practice as well as enjoyment and motivation in the sport. Results showed a positive relationship between parents’ support of the sport and players’ enjoyment and a negative relationship with players’ amotivation. Moreover, in players who perceived more pressure from their parents, there was a positive association with amotivation and a negative one with enjoyment. Lastly, it was emphasized that appropriate parental participation can promote an increase of players’ enjoyment of and motivation for sport
In the present study, we evaluated the plasma concentration of inflammatory mediators including cytokines and their relation with oxidative damage markers in training cycles of basketball players.Sixteen professional players of the Polish Basketball Extraleague participated in the study. The basketball players were observed during the preparatory period and the play-off round. Twenty healthy and untrained males composed of the reference group.The comparative study has shown significantly higher levels of lipid peroxidation (TBARS) and protein carbonylation (PC) in nonathletes than in basketball players during the observed training periods. Tumour necrosis factor α (TNFα), similarly to TBARS and PC, was significantly higher in nonathletes than athletes, except at the end of the play-off round. Interleukin-6 (IL-6) was lower in nonathletes than athletes in the preparatory period but it was higher in athletes in play-off round. In basketball players, the high level of IL-6 directly correlated with TBARS (r = 0.763, p<0.001) and PC (r = 0.636, p<0.001) during the preparatory period, whereas the high level of TNF α inversely correlated with TBARS (r = −0.601, p<0.001) and PC (r = −0.650, p<0.001) in the play-off round. The activity of creatine kinase (CK) was significantly increased during the training mezocycles in basketball players compared with nonathletes, and reached the highest activity at the end of the play-off round. CK activity did not correlate with oxidative damage markers and cytokines in both untrained and trained subjects.Our results have shown the reduction in oxidative damage and improvement in cytokine response following professional training, as well as the relationship between inflammatory and pro-oxidative processes in basketball players.
In team games, due to the great number of stimuli, perceptive skills have a cardinal significance, especially in players' anticipation and decisionmaking processes. The aim of this study was to compare peripheral perception of handball players (n=16) and nonathletes (n=16) of the same age. A comparative analysis involves abilities connected with general visual functions - such as the field of vision (hardware system) and reaction time to visual stimuli (software system). Peripheral perception was examined using the peripheral perception test included in the Vienna Test System (Schuhfried, Austria). The results show that the examined groups did not differ in regards to visual functions connected with the peripheral field of vision and the correctness of stimuli recognition. Handball players had a significantly shorter response time to stimuli appearing in the peripheral field of vision compared to nonathletes.
Ventilatory threshold is one of the ways to measure cardiovasculatory fitness of the body. Therefore, in the present study it was decided to demonstrate which physiological parameters most accurately express the second ventilatory threshold (VAT2) depending on the cardiovasculatory fitness of different groups of athletes and untrained men. The study involved the following athletes: race walkers (n=14), weightlifters (n=16), powerlifters (n=16), runners (n=14), professional soccer players (n=13), amateur soccer players (n=16), martial arts (n=12), and untrained men (n=15). Subjects’ VAT2 and maximal load (ML) were recorded and at these levels were determined the value of achievable maximal power (P), oxygen uptake (VO2), heart rate (HR), the ratio for oxygen uptake and heart rate (VO2/HR) and the rate-pressure produkt (RPP). It was shown that subjects were of similar age but different body mass (BM) and BMI. There were also differences between athlete groups at VAT2 and ML in relation to: P, VO2, VO2/HR (p<0.001) and RPP only at VAT2 (p<0.023). Reached HR values at VAT2 as well as at ML have not differed between the groups. There were also intergroup differences at VAT2 in terms of relative values: %VO2max (p<0.002), %Pmax(p<0.016), %VO2max/%HRmax (p<0.03). Relatively expressed %HRmax and %RPPmax reached at VAT2 did not differ between the two groups. Runners, professional soccer players and race walkers achieved the most favorable indicators of physical performance. It has been demonstrated that VAT2 besides P i %Pmax was best described by VO2, %VO2max and by VO2/HR and %VO2max/%HRmax, as well as by RPP. On the other hand HR and %HRmax, as well as %RPPmax are not useful in this regard. Furthermore it should be recognized that athletes in whose structure of the training occurred running of varying intensity achieved the highest physical fitness.
Background: With environmental pollution increasing, interest in organic farming and organic foodstuffs has been growing all over the world. Data on organic food consumption by Lithuanian athletes is not yet available. This lack of data determined the aim of this study: to identify the particulars of organic foodstuff consumption among athletes. Methods: In September–November 2012, we polled 158 of the best-performing athletes of the Olympic sports team through direct interviews. An approved questionnaire was used to identify the specifics of organic foodstuff consumption among athletes. Results: The survey results showed that 97% of athletes consume organic foodstuffs, and 80% of athletes highlighted the positive impact of organic food on health. Nevertheless, a slim majority of athletes (51.7%) consume organic foodstuffs seldomly, 2–3 times per week. The range of organic foodstuffs consumed depends on the gender of athletes, and the consumption of some products depends on monthly incomes. Conclusions: Survey results confirm the need for the production and expansion of the variety of organic foodstuffs. In the course of the development of the organic food market, it should be beneficial for manufacturers to target high-performance athletes and physically active people.
Introduction: Research has shown that exercise increases levels of dopamine in cer tain sub - cortical brain regions. Increased dopamine activity in the brain has been linked to increased risk - taking. The purpose of this study was to determine if an increase in risk - taking is apparent in male athletes and non - athletes after strenuous exercise. Method: Ten athletes (age: 20.2±SD year) and ten non - athletes (age: 20.7±SD) in a university setting completed the BART (a validated protocol to asses risk - taking behavior) either after exercise or at r est. Result: Athletes obtained total 24.92 ± 10.99 pumps and Non - Athletes 42.76 ± 16.45 pumps . Discusion: AN C OVA’s showed that there was significant difference between athletes and non - athletes ( p< 0 .0 1) on the risk behavior test. Post hoc tests showed that for non - athletes there was also a significant difference for those that exercise immediately before the risk behavior test, p= 0 .003. This was not the case with athletes, p= 0 .683. Results indicate that while exercise increased risk - taking in the non - athlete subjects, it did not have an effect on the athlete population.
Introduction : The study of athletes’ psychophysiological characteristics is one of the major problem at sports science. The aim of the study is to perform comparative analysis of athletes’ power and adaptive capacities during the implementation process of controlled activity, like performing screen -selection activity. Materials and methods: I n research participated divided into 3 groups martial arts athletes: taekwon -do ITF and karate WTF (n=34); Greco -Roman and freestyle wrestling athletes (n=18); sambo and judo athletes (n=11). As a device, a tablet of Apple company - iPad, fourth- generation, with 9,7 -inch screen was used. For the heart rate (HR) registration it was used BT4.0&ANT+ Heart Rate Mo nitor. Participants performed a sample: the response rate of the selection. The attempt was to react to one given signal from the five proposed. Results: Taekwon -do ITF athletes, karate WTF , hand -to - hand combat showed the best reaction selection time rates . The worst reaction selection time rates were shown by Greco- Roman and freestyle wrestling athletes. Conclusions: The handled comparative analysis reaction time of selection for athletes of different kinds of martial arts has verified its high informative value. Taekwon -do ITF, karate WTF , hand -to -hand combat athletes have better results. The results suggest that participants’ state of adaptiveness was normal. The high informative value of used test allows recommend it as screening in the selection of prom ising athletes to the combat martial arts which mostly emphasize striking techniques.
It is generally believed that athletes experience pain in a different way than normally active individuals. Many scientists have confirmed the hypothesis that long-term physical activity can alter the perception of pain, i.e. athletes have a higher pain sensation and pain tolerance thresholds. The measurement of pain intensity is carried out using subjective methods based on verbal and non-verbal information, describing the clinical characteristics of pain. These psychological methods include the use of scales and questionnaires. Objective methods (thermal, mechanical and electrical) are used only to determine the pain sensation and pain tolerance thresholds. The specificity and prevalence of chronic pain syndromes have resulted in the increased number of studies on healthy and physically active individuals. It seems that determination of the effects of exercise on the perception of pain might help in the understanding of mechanisms of pain generation.
The aim of this study was to identify the morphological configuration of youth athletes from professional soccer clubs and to verify their differences according to the tactical position on the field. Overall, 67 male players aged 15 to 17 years were evaluated. The examined anthropometric measurements included body mass, body height, skinfolds (triceps, subscapular, supraspinal and medial calf), girths (flexed and tensed arm and calf) and breadths (humerus and femur). For statistical purposes, analysis of variance and post hoc Bonferroni and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used. We concluded that goalkeepers were heavier and taller than center backs (p = 0.015 and p = 0.001), midfielders (p = 0.005 and p <0.001) and center forward players (p = 0.024 and p <0.001). The average somatotype for defense, forward and goalkeeper positions was a balanced mesomorph. Midfield players showed ectomorphic-mesomorph characteristics. It was concluded that goalkeepers were characterized as being taller and heavier and that somatotype features of athletes were similar between positions, except for midfield players
The purpose of this work was to ascertain the association of the level of athletes’ self-esteem with their stress management and experiencing the flow state. The study included 56 men and 18 women, aged 19 to 25, who practiced sport and lived in Gorzów Wielkopolski and its vicinity. The following tools were employed: the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, N.S. Endler and J.D. Parker’s Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS), and S. Jackson and D. Eklund’s Flow State Scale – 2. For the analysis of variables descriptive statistics, correlation measures (Pearson’s r) and regression analysis were used. It was found that there is a positive correlation at the level of 0.05 between high self-esteem and the task-oriented style of coping with stressful situations, and a significant negative correlation at the level of 0.01 between self-esteem and the emotion-oriented style of stress management. The level of self-esteem also correlates with experiencing the flow state. Self-esteem is an important predictor of the method of coping with stressful situations and experiencing the flow state. People with higher self-esteem achieve the state of a kind of felicity, an autotelic experience. They are aware of their own abilities, have the feeling that they effortlessly control their situation and themselves, and can distance themselves from the surrounding environment. In a stressful situation, they focus on the problem.
Introduction The evaluation of flexibility is important to coaches to assess their players’ flexibility status, predict future performance, and even detect talented players. The aim of this research was to develop a new flexibility test to examine the forward split in athletes. Material and methods In this study, 15 gymnasts, 10 Taekwondo athletes, 5 football players, and 10 karate athletes (20 males and 20 females) volunteered for this experiment and were evaluated in a common movement pattern, the forward split. In the experimental condition, participants performed the forward split on a mattress using infrared sensor technology (IST test), and, afterward, they performed the forward split on a mattress without infrared sensor technology (N-IST test). Two trials of this procedure were conducted. Results For concurrent validity, no significant difference in the average distances of the anterior superior iliac spine (ASIS) from the mattress in Trials I and II was found between the IST and N-IST tests - p = 0.664 and p = 0.710, respectively. Conclusions The findings of this study confirm the concurrent and construct validity of the IST test, which was created to measure the height of the ASIS from the mattress in a forward-split test. Thus, this test can be used by coaches, athletes, and sports scientists to improve and monitor the forward-split tests of athletes in training programs.
The purpose of this study was to identify the effects of warm-up strategies on countermovement jump performance. Twenty-nine male college football players (age: 19.4 ± 1.1 years; body height: 179.0 ± 5.1 cm; body mass: 73.1 ± 8.0 kg; % body fat: 11.1 ± 2.7) from the Tuzla University underwent a control (no warm-up) and different warm-up conditions: 1. general warm-up; 2. general warm-up with dynamic stretching; 3. general warm-up, dynamic stretching and passive stretching; 4. passive static stretching; 5. passive static stretching and general warm-up; and, 6. passive static stretching, general warm-up and dynamic stretching. Countermovement jump performance was measured after each intervention or control. Results from one way repeated measures ANOVA revealed a significant difference on warm-up strategies at F (4.07, 113.86) = 69.56, p < 0.001, eta squared = 0.72. Bonferonni post hoc revealed that a general warm-up and a general warm-up with dynamic stretching posted the greatest gains among all interventions. On the other hand, no warm-up and passive static stretching displayed the least results in countermovement jump performance. In conclusion, countermovement jump performance preceded by a general warmup or a general warm-up with dynamic stretching posted superior gains in countermovement jump performance.
The purpose of the study was to analyze the psychophysiological characteristics of football players and water sports athletes as factors of professional selection. Materials and methods: The study involved students of a specialized sports school (n = 31, age: 16-17 years). The participants were divided into two groups: group 1 - 20 football players, group 2 - 11 water sports athletes (swimming). The level of sportsmanship is 1 category, Candidates and Masters of Sports. Tests applied: determination of the duration of an individual minute (IM), measuring of a 10 cm segment (SM), determination of simple hand-eye coordination (SHEyC), and simple hand-ear coordination (SHEaC), the technique of “Figures memorizing”, solution of 10 sums. Results: The results of the IM test reflect the prevalence of the earlier test completion. All participants indicated a lower value in 9th test of a segment measuring. The results of the SHEyC and SHEaC of the participants were similar. The results of all tests were less than 10 in the test of “Figures memorizing”. Football players revealed link between coordination and psychophysiological tests results, while swimmers revealed link between coordination and sensory type of tests. Conclusions: The carried out psychophysiological analysis of athletes' condition of team sports and water sports confirmed the possibility of applying these tests for selection. The results obtained reflect the specific influence of the sport on the athletes' bodies. These indicators demonstrate the increased requirements for spatial orientation, the importance of reaction to auditory stimuli and the increased ability of football players to control the surrounding space and control the game situation.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of glycerol supplementation on aerobic and anaerobic exercise performance in sedentary subjects and athletes. The glycerol supplement treatments were as follows: 40 volunteers were selected and divided into two groups, sedentary and exercise groups. These two groups were further subdivided into two groups. The first group, the placebo (S), only consumed water; the second group (GS) consumed glycerol followed by water. Neither of these groups did any exercise for 20 days. The third and fourth groups consisted of the exercise group subjects; they were required to perform a 20-m shuttle run test every day for 20 days. The third group’s subjects, the placebo (E), only consumed water. The last group (GE) consumed glycerol followed by water. The Astrand Cycle Ergometer Test (ACET) was performed, and the Cosmed K4b2 portable gas analysis system was used to determine the aerobic capacity, while the Wingate Anaerobic Power Test (WAPT) was performed to determine the level of anaerobic power. The 20 Meter Shuttle Run Test (20MSRT) was performed after glycerol supplementation throughout the 20 days, and the exercise periods and distances were recorded. The glycerol supplement was found to have an increasing effect on aerobic and anaerobic performance in GS, E and GE. A similar effect was found for the covered distances and time in the same groups. However, an adverse effect was found on body weight.
The aim of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Test of Performance Strategies-Competition scale (TOPS-CS; Thomas et al., 1999) in Greek athletic population. The TOPS-CS was designed to assess eight psychological strategies used by athletes in competition (activation, automaticity, emotional control, goal-setting, imagery, negative thinking, relaxation and self-talk). In order to evaluate the psychometric properties of the inventory, two different research studies were conducted in two different age groups (n1=382 athletes, aged 16 to 20 years and n2=343 athletes, aged 12 to 15 years). Furthermore, 263 athletes, (aged 16 to 20 years) completed the TOPS-CS, purposing to perform confirmatory factor analysis. The results of the first study supported the initial factorial structure of the TOPS-CS for athletes aged 16-20 years. Reliability analysis also provided adequate evidence for the internal consistency and stability of the scale for Greek athletes of this age. However, for athletes aged 12 to 15 years, the validity and reliability of the inventory were questionable and further research is required.
Movement is an essential characteristic that has developed over the course of human evolution. With the inclusion of various populations in sports activities, sports have become an important part of people’s daily lives. Knee injuries are common among athletes, with knee joint being the most vulnerable to various injuries. Knee injuries require appropriate treatment to allow the athlete to return to their sports activities. Additionally, this study aimed to increase awareness of the importance of preventing knee injuries in sports and to highlight the potential impact of such injuries on an athlete’s ability to participate in their sport.A cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate the functional outcomes of athletes with knee injuries. The study included 38 patients with knee injuries (ACL, meniscal injuries, collateral ligament injuries) out of which 21 were physically active athletes, 9 were not, but they were athletes who were not involved in sports at the time of the testing and 8 were recreational athletes. The majority of respondents (76%) reported that they sustained the injury during sports activities. Knee pain was reported as at least once a week by most respondents. The study highlights the importance of proper knee injury prevention measures during sports activities and the need for prompt and effective rehabilitation for those who do suffer injuries. Overall, these findings have important implications for the treatment and management of knee injuries among athletes and individuals seeking to maintain an active lifestyle.
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