Death is not a success: reflections on business exit

This article is a critical evaluation of claims that business exits should not be seen as failures, on the grounds that may constitute voluntary liquidation, or because they are learning opportunities. This can be seen as further evidence of bias affecting entrepreneurship research, where failures are repackaged as successes. This article reiterates that the majority of business exits are unsuccessful. Drawing on ideas from the organisational life course, it is suggested that business ‘death’ is a suitable term for describing business closure. Even cases of voluntary ‘harvest liquidation’ such as retirement can be meaningfully described as business deaths

Effects of an Active Lifestyle on Water Balance

Water is the most abundant chemical constituent of the human body, typically making up approximately two thirds of body mass, but body water content is maintained within relatively narrow limits by a number of regulatory mechanisms. Both a reduction (hypohydration) and increase (hyperhydration) in body water may, if sufficiently severe, lead to adverse health and performance consequences. Active lifestyles, warm climates, and high altitude, as well as some infectious illnesses, increase the likelihood of becoming hypohydrated due to an increase in water loss. Moderate reductions in body water result in changes in cardiovascular system function as well as altering cognitive function and mood. A significant number of elite athletes, recreational exercisers and those with active occupations begin their daily activities in a hypohydrated state and incur large sweat losses during periods of activity, and thus risk negative effects on physiological function. Sweat rate and fluid intake during physical exertion are highly variable between individuals suggesting that an individual hydration strategy may be necessary to avoid significant levels of hypohydration. Rehydration after the completion of physical activity may also be necessary to avoid starting further bouts of activity in a hypohydrated state. Undertaking physical activity in a hypohydrated state appears to increase an individual’s perceived exertion which may negatively influence exercise performance and self-selected exercise intensity, and may decrease the likelihood of further participation in physical activity. This is, therefore, an important consideration for public health as well as competitive sportspeople, be they elite or otherwise. Certain populations, such as the elderly, are more likely to become hypohydrated which may lead to other illnesses and contribute to morbidity and mortality

Effect of varying the concentrations of carbohydrate and milk protein in rehydration solutions ingested after exercise in the heat

The present study investigated the relationship between the milk protein content of a rehydration solution and fluid balance after exercise-induced dehydration. On three occasions, eight healthy males were dehydrated to an identical degree of body mass loss (BML, approximately 1.8 %) by intermittent cycling in the heat, rehydrating with 150 % of their BML over 1 h with either a 60 g/l carbohydrate solution (C), a 40 g/l carbohydrate, 20 g/l milk protein solution (CP20) or a 20 g/l carbohydrate, 40 g/l milk protein solution (CP40). Urine samples were collected pre-exercise, post-exercise, post-rehydration and for a further 4 h. Subjects produced less urine after ingesting the CP20 or CP40 drink compared with the C drink (P<0.01), and at the end of the study, more of the CP20 (59 (SD 12) %) and CP40 (64 (SD 6) %) drinks had been retained compared with the C drink (46 (SD 9) %) (P,0.01). At the end of the study, whole-body net fluid balance was more negative for trial C (2470 (SD 154) ml) compared with both trials CP20 (2181 (SD 280) ml) and CP40 (2107 (SD 126) ml) (P<0.01). At 2 and 3 h after drink ingestion, urine osmolality was greater for trials CP20 and CP40 compared with trial C (P<0.05). The present study further demonstrates that after exercise-induced dehydration, a carbohydrate–milk protein solution is better retained than a carbohydrate solution. The results also suggest that high concentrations of milk protein are not more beneficial in terms of fluid retention than low concentrations of milk protein following exercise-induced dehydration

The Effect of Exercise Intensity on Subsequent Gastric Emptying Rate in Humans.

Previous investigations have suggested that exercise at intensities greater than 70% VO2max reduces gastric emptying rate during exercise, but little is known about the effect of exercise intensity on gastric emptying in the post-exercise period. To examine this, eight healthy subjects completed three experimental trials that included 30 minutes of rest (R), low intensity (L; 33% of peak power output) or high intensity (H; 10 x 1 min at peak power output followed by 2 min rest) exercise. 30 minutes after completion of exercise, participants ingested 595 mL of a 5% glucose solution and gastric emptying rate was assessed via the double sampling gastric aspiration method for 60 minutes. No differences (P > 0.05) were observed in emptying characteristics for total stomach volume or test meal volume between the trials and the quantity of glucose delivered to the intestine was not different between trials (P > 0.05). Half emptying times (Thalf) were not different (P = 0.902) between trials and amounted to (mean ± SD) 22 ± 9, 22 ± 9 and 22 ± 7 minutes during trial R, L and H respectively. These results suggest that exercise has little effect on post-exercise gastric emptying rate of a glucose solution

A sodium drink enhances fluid retention during 3 hours of post-exercise recovery when ingested with a standard meal

The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of water and a 50 mmol/L NaCl solution on post-exercise rehydration when a standard meal was consumed during rehydration. Eight healthy participants took part in two experimental trials during which they lost 1.5 ± 0.4 % of initial body mass via intermittent exercise in the heat. Participants then rehydrated over a 60 minute period with water or a 50 mmol/L NaCl solution in a volume equivalent to 150% of their body mass loss during exercise. In addition, a standard meal was ingested during this time which was equivalent to 30% of participants predicted daily energy expenditure. Urine samples were collected before and after exercise and for three hours after rehydration. Cumulative urine volume (981 ± 458 mL and 577 ± 345 mL; P = 0.035) was greater, whilst percentage fluid retained (50 ± 20% and 70 ± 21 %; P = 0.017) was lower during the water compared to the NaCl trial respectively. A high degree of variability in results was observed with one participant producing 28% more urine and others ranging from 18 – 83% reduction in urine output during the NaCl trial. The results of this study suggest that after exercise induced dehydration, the ingestion of a 50 mmol/L NaCl solution leads to greater fluid retention compared with water, even when a meal is consumed post-exercise. Furthermore, ingestion of plain water may be effective for maintenance of fluid balance when food is consumed in the rehydration period

Assessment of Physical Demands and Fluid Balance in Elite Female Handball Players During a 6-Day Competitive Tournament

Little data exists on drinking behavior, sweat loss, and exercise intensity across a competitive handball tournament in elite female athletes. Heart rate (HR), fluid balance and sweat electrolyte content were assessed on 17 international players across a 6-day tournament involving 5 games and 2 training sessions played indoors (23 ± 2 °C, 30 ± 2% relative humidity). Active play (effective) mean HR was 155 ± 14 bpm (80 ± 7.5% HRmax) with the majority of time (64%) spent exercising at intensities >80% HRmax. Mean (SD) sweat rates during games were 1.02 ± 0.07 L · h-1 and on 56% of occasions fluid intake matched or exceeded sweat loss. A significant relationship was observed between estimated sweat loss and fluid intake during exercise (r2 = .121, p = .001). Mean sweat sodium concentration was 38 ± 10 mmol · L-1, with significant associations observed between player sweat rates and time spent exercising at intensities >90% HRmax (r2 = .181, p = .001). Fluid and electrolyte loss appear to be work rate dependent in elite female handball players, whom appear well capable of replacing fluids lost within a tournament environment. Due to large between-athlete variations, a targeted approach may be warranted for certain players only

A comparison of intermittent and continuous exercise bouts at different intensities on appetite and postprandial metabolic responses in healthy men

© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. Exercise intensity affects many potential postprandial responses, but there is limited information on the influence of exercise modality. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate if the nature of exercise at two different intensities would affect gastric emptying rate (GER), appetite and metabolic responses following ingestion of a semi-solid meal. Twelve healthy men completed, in a random order, four 60-min cycles at 60% VO2peak (MOD), 40% VO2peak (LOW) and in a continuous (CON) or intermittent (INT) manner. INT consisted of 20 × 1-min exercise bouts with 2-min rest breaks. INT and CON were matched for total work output at each intensity. GER of the post-exercise meal was measured for 2 h using the 13C-breath method. Blood glucose, substrate utilisation and appetite ratings were measured at regular intervals throughout all trials and 24-h energy intake (EI) post-trials was assessed. GER-Delta over Baseline (DOB) was lower (p 0.05). 24-h post-trial EI was similar between LOW-CON vs. LOW-INT (p > 0.05), although MOD-INT vs. MOD-CON 3500 ± 1419 vs. 2556 ± 989 kCal: p < 0.001 was elevated. In summary, MOD-INT exercise delays GER without stimulating perceived appetite in the 2 h period after meal ingestion, although EI was greater in the 24-h post-trial

The influence of angiotensin converting enzyme and bradykinin receptor B-2 gene variants on voluntary fluid intake and fluid balance in healthy men during moderate-intensity exercise in the heat

Angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) and bradykinin receptor B2 (B2R) genetic variation may affect thirst because of effects on angiotensin II production and bradykinin activity, respectively. To examine this, 45 healthy Caucasian men completed 60 min of cycle exercise at 62% ± 5% peak oxygen uptake in a room heated to 30.5 ± 0.3 °C with ad libitum fluid intake. Blood samples were collected pre-, mid-, and immediately post-cycle. Fluid intake, body mass loss (BML), sweat loss (determined via changes in body mass and fluid intake), and thirst sensation were recorded. All participants were genotyped for the ACE insert fragment (I) and the B2R insert sequence (P). Participants were homozygous for the wild-type allele (WW or MM), heterozygous (WI or MP) or homozygous for the insert (II or PP). No differences between genotype groups were found in mean (±SD) voluntary fluid intake (WW: 613 ± 388, WI: 753 ± 385, II: 862 ± 421 mL, p = 0.31; MM: 599 ± 322, MP: 745 ± 374, PP: 870 ± 459 mL, p = 0.20), percentage BML or any other fluid balance variables for both the ACE and B2R genes, respectively. Mean thirst perception in the B2R PP group, however, was higher (p < 0.05) than both MM and MP at 30, 45, and 60 min. In conclusion, the results of this study suggest that voluntary fluid intake and fluid balance in healthy men performing 60 min of moderate-intensity exercise in the heat are not predominantly influenced by ACE or B2R genetic variation