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Institute
Background
The aim of this study was to analyze the shoulder functional profile (rotation range of motion [ROM] and strength), upper and lower body performance, and throwing speed of U13 versus U15 male handball players, and to establish the relationship between these measures of physical fitness and throwing speed.
Methods
One-hundred and nineteen young male handball players (under (U)-13 (U13) [n = 85]) and U15 [n = 34]) volunteered to participate in this study. The participating athletes had a mean background of sytematic handball training of 5.5 ± 2.8 years and they exercised on average 540 ± 10.1 min per week including sport-specific team handball training and strength and conditioning programs. Players were tested for passive shoulder range-of-motion (ROM) for both internal (IR) and external rotation (ER) and isometric strength (i.e., IR and ER) of the dominant/non-dominant shoulders, overhead medicine ball throw (OMB), hip isometric abductor (ABD) and adductor (ADD) strength, hip ROM, jumps (countermovement jump [CMJ] and triple leg-hop [3H] for distance), linear sprint test, modified 505 change-of-direction (COD) test and handball throwing speed (7 m [HT7] and 9 m [HT9]).
Results
U15 players outperformed U13 in upper (i.e., HT7 and HT9 speed, OMB, absolute IR and ER strength of the dominant and non-dominant sides; Cohen’s d: 0.76–2.13) and lower body (i.e., CMJ, 3H, 20-m sprint and COD, hip ABD and ADD; d: 0.70–2.33) performance measures. Regarding shoulder ROM outcomes, a lower IR ROM was found of the dominant side in the U15 group compared to the U13 and a higher ER ROM on both sides in U15 (d: 0.76–1.04). It seems that primarily anthropometric characteristics (i.e., body height, body mass) and upper body strength/power (OMB distance) are the most important factors that explain the throw speed variance in male handball players, particularly in U13.
Conclusions
Findings from this study imply that regular performance monitoring is important for performance development and for minimizing injury risk of the shoulder in both age categories of young male handball players. Besides measures of physical fitness, anthropometric data should be recorded because handball throwing performance is related to these measures.
This study aimed at examining the effects of nine weeks of sand-based plyometric jump training (PJT) combined with endurance running on either outdoor or treadmill surface on measures of physical fitness. Male participants (age, 20.1 +/- 1.7 years) were randomly assigned to a sand-based PJT combined with endurance running on outdoor surface (OT, n = 25) or treadmill surface (TT, n = 25). The endurance miming intervention comprised a mixed training method, i.e., long slow distance, tempo, and interval running drills. A control group was additionally included in this study (CG, n = 25). Participants in CG followed their regular physical activity as OT and TT but did not receive any specific intervention. Individuals were assessed for their 50-m linear sprint time, standing long jump (SLJ) distance, cardiorespiratory fitness (i.e., Cooper test), forced vital capacity (FVC), calf girth, and resting heart rate (RHR). A three (groups: OT, TT, CG) by two (time: pre, post) ANOVA for repeated measures was used to analyze the exercise-specific effects. In case of significant group-by-time interactions, Bonferroni adjusted paired (within-group) and independent (between-group comparisons at post) t-tests were used for post-hoc analyses. Significant group-by-time interactions were found for all dependent variables (p < 0.001 - 0.002, eta(2)(p) = 0.16 - 0.78). Group-specific post-hoc tests showed improvements for all variables after OT (p < 0.001, Hedges'g effect size [g] = 0.05 - 1.94) and TT (p < 0.001, g = 0.04 - 2.73), but not in the CG (p = 0.058 - 1.000, g = 0.00 - 0.34). Compared to CG, OT showed larger SLJ (p = 0.001), cardiorespiratory fitness (p = 0.004), FVC (p = 0.008), and RHR (p < 0.001) improvements. TT showed larger improvements in SLJ (p = 0.036), cardiorespiratory fitness (p < 0.001), and RHR (p < 0.001) compared with CG. Compared to OT, TT showed larger improvements for SLJ (p = 0.018). In conclusion, sand-based PJT combined with either OT or TT similarly improved most measures of physical fitness, with greater SLJ improvement after TT. Coaches may use both concurrent exercise regimes based on preferences and logistical constrains (e.g., weather; access to treadmill equipment).
This study aimed to investigate the effects of eight weeks of barefoot running exercise on sand versus control on measures of walking kinetics and muscle activities in individuals with diagnosed pronated feet. Sixty physically active male adults with pronated feet were randomly allocated into an intervention or a waiting control group. The intervention group conducted an 8-weeks progressive barefoot running exercise program on sand (e.g., short sprints) with three weekly sessions. Pre and post intervention, participants walked at a constant speed of 1.3 m/s +/- 5% on a 18 m walkway with a force plate embedded in the middle of the walkway. Results showed significant group-by-time interactions for peak impact vertical and lateral ground reaction forces. Training but not control resulted in significantly lower peak impact vertical and lateral ground reaction forces. Significant group-by-time interactions were observed for vastus lateralis activity during the loading phase. Training-induced increases were found for the vastus lateralis in the intervention but not in the control group. This study revealed that the applied exercise program is a suitable means to absorb ground reaction forces (e.g., lower impact vertical and lateral peaks) and increase activities of selected lower limb muscles (e.g., vastus lateralis) when walking on stable ground.
Purpose:
This study aimed to examine the effects of individualized-load power training (IPT) versus traditional moderate-load power training (TPT) on strength, power, jump performance, and body composition in elite young Nordic athletes.
Methods:
In a randomized crossover design, 10 young male athletes (ski jumpers, Nordic combined athletes) age 17.5 (0.6) years (biological maturity status: +3.5 y postpeak height velocity) who competed on a national or international level performed 5 weeks of IPT (4 x 5 repetitions at 49%-72% 1-repetiton maximum [RM]) and TPT (5 x 5 repetitions at 50%-60% 1-RM) in addition to their regular training. Testing before, between, and after both training blocks comprised the assessment of muscle strength (loaded back squat 3-RM), power (maximal loaded back squat power), jump performance (eg, drop-jump height, reactive strength index), and body composition (eg, skeletal muscle mass).
Results:
Significant, large-size main effects for time were found for muscle strength (P < .01; g = 2.7), reactive strength index (P = .03; g= 1.6), and drop jump height (P = .02; g= 1.9) irrespective of the training condition (IPT, TPT). No significant time-by-condition interactions were observed. For measures of body composition, no significant main effects of condition and time or time-by-condition interactions were found.
Conclusions:
Our findings demonstrate that short-term IPT and TPT at moderate loads in addition to regular training were equally effective in improving measures of muscle strength (loaded back squat 3-RM) and vertical jump performance (reactive strength index, drop jump, and height) in young Nordic athletes.
The prevalence of obesity in the pediatric population has become a major public health issue. Indeed, the dramatic increase of this epidemic causes multiple and harmful consequences, Physical activity, particularly physical exercise, remains to be the cornerstone of interventions against childhood obesity. Given the conflicting findings with reference to the relevant literature addressing the effects of exercise on adiposity and physical fitness outcomes in obese children and adolescents, the effect of duration-matched concurrent training (CT) [50% resistance (RT) and 50% high-intensity-interval-training (HIIT)] on body composition and physical fitness in obese youth remains to be elucidated. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the effects of 9-weeks of CT compared to RT or HIIT alone, on body composition and selected physical fitness components in healthy sedentary obese youth. Out of 73 participants, only 37; [14 males and 23 females; age 13.4 ± 0.9 years; body-mass-index (BMI): 31.2 ± 4.8 kg·m-2] were eligible and randomized into three groups: HIIT (n = 12): 3-4 sets×12 runs at 80–110% peak velocity, with 10-s passive recovery between bouts; RT (n = 12): 6 exercises; 3–4 sets × 10 repetition maximum (RM) and CT (n = 13): 50% serial completion of RT and HIIT. CT promoted significant greater gains compared to HIIT and RT on body composition (p < 0.01, d = large), 6-min-walking test distance (6 MWT-distance) and on 6 MWT-VO2max (p < 0.03, d = large). In addition, CT showed substantially greater improvements than HIIT in the medicine ball throw test (20.2 vs. 13.6%, p < 0.04, d = large). On the other hand, RT exhibited significantly greater gains in relative hand grip strength (p < 0.03, d = large) and CMJ (p < 0.01, d = large) than HIIT and CT. CT promoted greater benefits for fat, body mass loss and cardiorespiratory fitness than HIIT or RT modalities. This study provides important information for practitioners and therapists on the application of effective exercise regimes with obese youth to induce significant and beneficial body composition changes. The applied CT program and the respective programming parameters in terms of exercise intensity and volume can be used by practitioners as an effective exercise treatment to fight the pandemic overweight and obesity in youth.
Associations between measures of physical fitness and cognitive performance in preschool children
(2022)
Background:
Given that recent studies report negative secular declines in physical fitness, associations between fitness and cognition in childhood are strongly discussed. The preschool age is characterized by high neuroplasticity which effects motor skill learning, physical fitness, and cognitive development. The aim of this study was to assess the relation of physical fitness and attention (including its individual dimensions (quantitative, qualitative)) as one domain of cognitive performance in preschool children. We hypothesized that fitness components which need precise coordination compared to simple fitness components are stronger related to attention.
Methods:
Physical fitness components like static balance (i.e., single-leg stance), muscle strength (i.e., handgrip strength), muscle power (i.e., standing long jump), and coordination (i.e., hopping on one leg) were assessed in 61 healthy children (mean age 4.5 +/- 0.6 years; girls n = 30). Attention was measured with the "Konzentrations-Handlungsverfahren fur Vorschulkinder" [concentration-action procedure for preschoolers]). Analyses were adjusted for age, body height, and body mass.
Results:
Results from single linear regression analysis revealed a significant (p < 0.05) association between physical fitness (composite score) and attention (composite score) (standardized ss = 0.40), showing a small to medium effect (F-2 = 0.14). Further, coordination had a significant relation with the composite score and the quantitative dimension of attention (standardized ss = 0.35; p < 0.01; standardized ss = - 0.33; p < 0.05). Coordination explained about 11% (composite score) and 9% (quantitative dimension) of the variance in the stepwise multiple regression model.
Conclusion:
The results indicate that performance in physical fitness, particularly coordination, is related to attention in preschool children. Thus, high performance in complex fitness components (i.e., hopping on one leg) tends to predict attention in preschool children. Further longitudinal studies should focus on the effectiveness of physical activity programs implementing coordination and complex exercises at preschool age to examine cause-effect relationships between physical fitness and attention precisely.
The purpose of this study was to examine the test-retest reliability, and convergent and discriminative validity of a new taekwondo-specific change-of-direction (COD) speed test with striking techniques (TST) in elite taekwondo athletes. Twenty (10 males and 10 females) elite (athletes who compete at national level) and top-elite (athletes who compete at national and international level) taekwondo athletes with an average training background of 8.9 ± 1.3 years of systematic taekwondo training participated in this study. During the two-week test-retest period, various generic performance tests measuring COD speed, balance, speed, and jump performance were carried out during the first week and as a retest during the second week. Three TST trials were conducted with each athlete and the best trial was used for further analyses. The relevant performance measure derived from the TST was the time with striking penalty (TST-TSP). TST-TSP performances amounted to 10.57 ± 1.08 s for males and 11.74 ± 1.34 s for females. The reliability analysis of the TST performance was conducted after logarithmic transformation, in order to address the problem of heteroscedasticity. In both groups, the TST demonstrated a high relative test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficients and 90% compatibility limits were 0.80 and 0.47 to 0.93, respectively). For absolute reliability, the TST’s typical error of measurement (TEM), 90% compatibility limits, and magnitudes were 4.6%, 3.4 to 7.7, for males, and 5.4%, 3.9 to 9.0, for females. The homogeneous sample of taekwondo athletes meant that the TST’s TEM exceeded the usual smallest important change (SIC) with 0.2 effect size in the two groups. The new test showed mostly very large correlations with linear sprint speed (r = 0.71 to 0.85) and dynamic balance (r = −0.71 and −0.74), large correlations with COD speed (r = 0.57 to 0.60) and vertical jump performance (r = −0.50 to −0.65), and moderate correlations with horizontal jump performance (r = −0.34 to −0.45) and static balance (r = −0.39 to −0.44). Top-elite athletes showed better TST performances than elite counterparts. Receiver operating characteristic analysis indicated that the TST effectively discriminated between top-elite and elite taekwondo athletes. In conclusion, the TST is a valid, and sensitive test to evaluate the COD speed with taekwondo specific skills, and reliable when considering ICC and TEM. Although the usefulness of the TST is questioned to detect small performance changes in the present population, the TST can detect moderate changes in taekwondo-specific COD speed.
The aim of this review was to describe and summarize the scientific literature on programming parameters related to jump or plyometric training in male and female soccer players of different ages and fitness levels. A literature search was conducted in the electronic databases PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus using keywords related to the main topic of this study (e.g., “ballistic” and “plyometric”). According to the PICOS framework, the population for the review was restricted to soccer players, involved in jump or plyometric training. Among 7556 identified studies, 90 were eligible for inclusion. Only 12 studies were found for females. Most studies (n = 52) were conducted with youth male players. Moreover, only 35 studies determined the effectiveness of a given jump training programming factor. Based on the limited available research, it seems that a dose of 7 weeks (1–2 sessions per week), with ~80 jumps (specific of combined types) per session, using near-maximal or maximal intensity, with adequate recovery between repetitions (<15 s), sets (≥30 s) and sessions (≥24–48 h), using progressive overload and taper strategies, using appropriate surfaces (e.g., grass), and applied in a well-rested state, when combined with other training methods, would increase the outcome of effective and safe plyometric-jump training interventions aimed at improving soccer players physical fitness. In conclusion, jump training is an effective and easy-to-administer training approach for youth, adult, male and female soccer players. However, optimal programming for plyometric-jump training in soccer is yet to be determined in future research.
Objective: To determine the effects of low- vs. high-intensity aerobic and resistance training on motor and cognitive function, brain activation, brain structure, and neurochemical markers of neuroplasticity and the association thereof in healthy young and older adults and in patients with multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and stroke. Design: Systematic review and robust variance estimation meta-analysis with meta-regression. Data sources: Systematic search of MEDLINE, Web of Science, and CINAHL databases. Results: Fifty studies with 60 intervention arms and 2283 in-analyses participants were included. Due to the low number of studies, the three patient groups were combined and analyzed as a single group. Overall, low- (g=0.19, p = 0.024) and high-intensity exercise (g=0.40, p = 0.001) improved neuroplasticity. Exercise intensity scaled with neuroplasticity only in healthy young adults but not in healthy older adults or patient groups. Exercise-induced improvements in neuroplasticity were associated with changes in motor but not cognitive outcomes. Conclusion: Exercise intensity is an important variable to dose and individualize the exercise stimulus for healthy young individuals but not necessarily for healthy older adults and neurological patients. This conclusion warrants caution because studies are needed that directly compare the effects of low- vs. high-intensity exercise on neuroplasticity to determine if such changes are mechanistically and incrementally linked to improved cognition and motor function.
Physical fatigue (PF) negatively affects postural control, resulting in impaired balance performance in young and older adults. Similar effects on postural control can be observed for mental fatigue (MF) mainly in older adults. Controversial results exist for young adults. There is a void in the literature on the effects of fatigue on balance and cortical activity. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the acute effects of PF and MF on postural sway and cortical activity. Fifteen healthy young adults aged 28 ± 3 years participated in this study. MF and PF protocols comprising of an all-out repeated sit-to-stand task and a computer-based attention network test, respectively, were applied in random order. Pre and post fatigue, cortical activity and postural sway (i.e., center of pressure displacements [CoPd], velocity [CoPv], and CoP variability [CV CoPd, CV CoPv]) were tested during a challenging bipedal balance board task. Absolute spectral power was calculated for theta (4–7.5 Hz), alpha-2 (10.5–12.5 Hz), beta-1 (13–18 Hz), and beta-2 (18.5–25 Hz) in frontal, central, and parietal regions of interest (ROI) and baseline-normalized. Inference statistics revealed a significant time-by-fatigue interaction for CoPd (p = 0.009, d = 0.39, Δ 9.2%) and CoPv (p = 0.009, d = 0.36, Δ 9.2%), and a significant main effect of time for CoP variability (CV CoPd: p = 0.001, d = 0.84; CV CoPv: p = 0.05, d = 0.62). Post hoc analyses showed a significant increase in CoPd (p = 0.002, d = 1.03) and CoPv (p = 0.003, d = 1.03) following PF but not MF. For cortical activity, a significant time-by-fatigue interaction was found for relative alpha-2 power in parietal (p < 0.001, d = 0.06) areas. Post hoc tests indicated larger alpha-2 power increases after PF (p < 0.001, d = 1.69, Δ 3.9%) compared to MF (p = 0.001, d = 1.03, Δ 2.5%). In addition, changes in parietal alpha-2 power and measures of postural sway did not correlate significantly, irrespective of the applied fatigue protocol. No significant changes were found for the other frequency bands, irrespective of the fatigue protocol and ROI under investigation. Thus, the applied PF protocol resulted in increased postural sway (CoPd and CoPv) and CoP variability accompanied by enhanced alpha-2 power in the parietal ROI while MF led to increased CoP variability and alpha-2 power in our sample of young adults. Potential underlying cortical mechanisms responsible for the greater increase in parietal alpha-2 power after PF were discussed but could not be clearly identified as cause. Therefore, further future research is needed to decipher alternative interpretations.