An Examination of the Motives to Participate in Sprint Distance Triathlon

The purpose of this study was to explore the motivational factors of triathletes in order to better understand the specific motives that drive them to consume the product/service of and participate in triathlon events. The study looked specifically at participants in sprint triathlon, the shortest of the three main triathlon competitions. The study utilized a slightly modified Motives of Marathoners Scale (MOMS), an instrument developed by Masters, Ogles, and Jolton (1992), to better understand the reasons for triathlon involvement. The study focused on differences based on gender, the triathletes self-reported level of activity, and their previous experience in triathlon events. Participants in this study included 165 triathletes (male=98, female=67) from two sprint triathlons in Texas and one sprint triathlon in Florida. Separate factorial ANOVAs were performed on each of the dependent variables of interest with gender, age, level of activity, and level of experience as between-subjects factors and the two-way interactions of gender with age, level of activity, and level of experience. Results showed significant (p\u3c.05) gender differences in the motives of Affiliation (females higher than males), Life Meaning (females higher than males), and Personal Goal Achievement (females higher than males). Results also showed significant age differences in the motives of Affiliation (20s higher than 30s) and Competition (20s higher than 30s). Motivational differences also existed in triathletes based on levels of activity (competitiveness) and levels of experience. In addition, an interaction between age and gender was found and indicated that self esteem motives differed according to age and gender. A test of simple main effects revealed that females in their 40s had greater Self-esteem scores than males in their 40s. Practical and research implications are discussed

Implementing of Phase Potentiation Program with College Triathletes

The purpose of this study is to determine the effectiveness of an in-season resistance training program on improving measures of strength in female collegiate triathletes. Nine females (age = 19.2 ± 1.1 years, height = 166.5 ± 12.5 cm, body mass = 61.1 ± 9 kg) with limited resistance training experience were examined for this study. Formal RT intervention was monitored for 7 weeks with the athletes being assigned 6 weeks of independent RT prior to the pre-test. Athletes completed a standardized athlete monitoring program pre and post resistance training intervention. Paired sample t-tests were used to determine differences between conditions with Cohen’s d effect sizes describing the magnitude of change between pre and post-intervention. No significant changes were found between the two testing sessions (p \u3e 0.05). A longer duration of utilizing resistance training adhering to a phase potentiated approach may be necessary for significant changes to occur

Selected correlates of successful performance in female track and field athletes

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships of selected anthropometric and physiological variables to successful performance of female track and field athletes. These variables were also used to develop an equation to predict successful performance. [This is an excerpt from the abstract. For the complete abstract, please see the document.

The role of occupation in the treatment of hand conditions

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the extent to which occupational therapists that are certified hand therapists are using occupations as a therapeutic intervention and to examine the barriers and facilitators of using occupations as a type of therapeutic intervention in the area of hand therapy. [This is an excerpt from the abstract. For the complete abstract, please see the document.

Effects of beet juice supplementation in different concentrations and the importance of nitric oxide in endurance runners

More and more beetroot has been highlighted in sports, mainly in long-term aerobic modalities, due to its high concentration of nitrate (NO3- ), being an important precursor of nitric oxide (NO), providing an improvement in sports performance. The main objective of this study was to investigate the effects of acute ingestion of beetroot juice (BR), rich in NO3- in different concentrations in endurance exercise, evaluating performance, glycemic, cardiorespiratory and urinary responses of amateur runners. We hypothesized that BR would increase glucose uptake, minimize VO2max (maximum oxygen uptake), improve exercise economy and runners' performance. Nineteen male amateur runners were exposed to two conditions, ingestion of BR and PL (placebo), the individuals were divided into three groups (minimum, average and maximum concentration), being submitted to a 30-minute running test at maximum intensity, on a racetrack. Pre and posttest blood and urine samples were collected to determine glucose uptake, NO2- (nitrite) excretion, urinary pH and urinary density. Cooper's test also performed in order to assess VO2max. The main posttest results showed that through nitrite excretion there was a reduction of nitrate to nitric oxide (0 ± 0 vs 0.94 ± 0.23, P <0.05 (pre vs post)), increase in glucose uptake (139.94 ± 35.02 vs 122.88 ± 37.69, P <0.05 (PL vs BR)) and VO2max improvement(54.96 ± 6.87 vs 55.99 ± 6.88, P <0.05 (PL vs BR))], coinciding with the increase in physical performance (2972.63 ± 308.84 vs 3018.95 ± 309.29, P <0.05 (PL vs BR))]. The results found observed that beet supplementation in amateur runners increased glucose uptake, improved VO2max and running performance

Hydration and Fluid Needs during Physical Activity

Hydration during physical activity is a key component of both performance and safety. Several factors impact hydration, including, but not limited to: environmental conditions, such as heat and humidity; clothing and cooling strategies; individual fluid losses measured by sweat rate, sweat composition, dietary composition, and nutrition behaviors; and individual attitudes and perceptions of thirst. This Special Issue, “Hydration and Fluid Needs During Physical Activity”, discusses current knowledge and recommendations for assessing, monitoring, and maintaining sufficient hydration during exercise and sport for a diverse range of populations, sports, and conditions. It consists of eleven peer-reviewed papers that cover several aspects relevant to hydration and physical activity

Optimal Nutrition for Endurance Exercise: A Systematic Review

Introduction As fatigue in endurance events correlates with depletion of muscle glycogen, the traditional approach to nutritional support has been carbohydrate loading. However, there has been recent interest in improving athletic endurance performance by novel diets in the days to weeks prior to endurance events, the pre-event meal, and during exercise. Methods We searched PubMed and SCOPUS for randomized trials published from 1992-2017 with a primary endpoint of endurance performance. We identified 407 citations which were examined against our inclusion criteria of randomization or crossover allocation to diet and for which a primary outcome was endurance performance. Results Twenty full text articles met our inclusion criteria and were included in the present review. In the days to weeks prior to testing, one trial of a high-fat diet versus carbohydrate improved performance, the others were neutral. There was no benefit of substituting protein for carbohydrate during this time period, but almond intake did result in ergogenic benefits. In the pre-event meal, fat only showed ergogenic benefits when combined with carbohydrate intake. A single study suggested that vegetable-derived nitrates did provide benefit. During endurance events, partial substitution of carbohydrates with protein had varying results on performance and should be further examined. Conclusion Carbohydrates remain the best fuel source both before and during events for overall endurance performance compared to other macronutrients, including water. Partial substitution of carbohydrate with fat and protein immediately before and during events warrants further investigation. Additional trials on nitrates and almond consumption are also needed

The Abdominal Musculature and Cycling Performance

Purpose: The purpose was to determine if abdominal power and endurance were related to anaerobic and aerobic cycling performance and if abdominal fatigue influences cycling parameters. Methods: Twenty-three college aged subjects, whose X̅ ± SD for age, height, and weight, were 19.17 ± 1.0 years, 170.4 ± 7.5 cm, and 74.5 ± 14.1 kg, completed the front abdominal power throw and ACSM Crunch test so we could evaluate their abdominal power and endurance, respectively. The tests were completed twice across 48 hours to attenuate any learning effects. Twelve of the subjects completed the Wingate anaerobic power test on a Monark 834 E ergometer set at 7.5% of body mass. The remaining 11 subjects completed a 3.2 km cycling time trial (TT) on an Expresso S3U virtual reality bike; mean TT power and time were recorded as indicators of aerobic cycling performance. Subjects completed familiarization, baseline, and performance trials for the cycling measures; immediately before the performance trials, subjects completed abdominal crunches to fatigue. All tests were preceded and followed by a warm-up and cool-down. Dependent t-tests were used to assess differences between baseline and performance cycling trials, while correlational analyses were used to evaluate the relationships between abdominal and cycling measures; p was set at 0.05. Results: Abdominal muscle fatigue significantly decreased mean anaerobic power by 16% ( p = 0.000) and increased the rate of fatigue by 19.8% ( p = 0.004). Peak power decreased by 5.6%; the change approached significance ( p = 0.088). Abdominal muscle fatigue didn’t affect TT performance; however, after fatigue, abdominal power was significantly correlated with TT mean power and time ( r = -0.708 and 0.704, respectively). No other significant correlations were found between abdominal and cycling measures before or after fatigue. Conclusion: The data showed that abdominal fatigue negatively affects anaerobic cycling performance in non-cyclist trained subjects. Consequently, individuals may wish to avoid fatiguing abdominal exercise prior to anaerobic power tests or competitions that include anaerobic power elements

Statement of the Third International Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia Consensus Development Conference, Carlsbad, California, 2015

The third International Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia (EAH) Consensus Development Conference convened in Carlsbad, California in February 2015 with a panel of 17 international experts. The delegates represented 4 countries and 9 medical and scientific sub-specialties pertaining to athletic training, exercise physiology, sports medicine, water/sodium metabolism, and body fluid homeostasis. The primary goal of the panel was to review the existing data on EAH and update the 2008 Consensus Statement.1 This document serves to replace the second International EAH Consensus Development Conference Statement and launch an educational campaign designed to address the morbidity and mortality associated with a preventable and treatable fluid imbalance. The following statement is a summary of the data synthesized by the 2015 EAH Consensus Panel and represents an evolution of the most current knowledge on EAH. This document will summarize the most current information on the prevalence, etiology, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of EAH for medical personnel, athletes, athletic trainers, and the greater public. The EAH Consensus Panel strove to clearly articulate what we agreed upon, did not agree upon, and did not know, including minority viewpoints that were supported by clinical experience and experimental data. Further updates will be necessary to both: (1) remain current with our understanding and (2) critically assess the effectiveness of our present recommendations. Suggestions for future research and educational strategies to reduce the incidence and prevalence of EAH are provided at the end of the document as well as areas of controversy that remain in this topic. [excerpt

Supra-maximal speed interval training effect on a 40m standing start sprint and timed 3000m running performance in moderately trained female runners: Alterg anti-gravity treadmill running

The purpose of this study was to explore what the supra-maximal speed interval training effect was on a 40m standing start sprint and timed 3000m running performance was for two separate study groups when using either the AlterG® anti-gravity treadmill, or downhill running as a training intervention, for moderately trained female runners. The level of delayed onset of muscle soreness (DOMS) after each supra-maximal speed interval session was also captured. Data from 20 women was collected during initial pre-intervention testing; involving the 40m standing start sprint and 3000m timed trial run. During a four week training intervention the level of DOMS experienced by participants at increments of 24 hours, 48 hours and 72 hours, in each respective training group was recorded. Post-intervention testing was performed to once again measure the participants 40m standing start sprint and 3000m timed trial run values, results were analysed and compared to pre-intervention data