8 research outputs found

    TRANSMISSION OF VIBRATION ABOUT THE KNEE

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    The purpose of this study was to examine and describe effects of knee flexion angle, stance width and vibration platform frequency on the transmission of vertical acceleration about the knee. Fifteen adults were exposed to various vibration conditions while standing on a side-to-side vibration platform. Vertical acceleration data, expressed as transmission, were shown to be attenuated for all vibration conditions. A larger degree of knee flexion however, was conducive to greater attenuation about the knee. Such information may be used to develop vibration training programs with a more thorough understanding of effects of vibration

    Timing error by children identified with DCD leads to inefficient jump performance

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    The aim of this study was to identify outcome and response differences in vertical jumping between children typically developing (TD) and those identified with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD). Efficient vertical jumping is essential to physical activity in children. The TD group jumped higher as a result of a faster vertical velocity of the centre of mass (VCOM) at take-off. Peak VCOM was greater and occurred closer to take-off in TD when compared to DCD. Earlier occurrence of peak VCOM observed in DCD caused a noticeable loss of VCOM at take-off compared to TD. The timing of the peak VCOM before take-off resulted in large group variation for DCD (CV = 50%) compared to the stereotyped TD (CV = 6%). The difference between groups emphasises coordination difficulties of DCD during vertical jumping

    Discrepancy between actual and ideal body image: comparisons of university students

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    An understanding of body image perception by emerging professionals in areas of sport, exercise and physical activity is limited. This study considered how discrepancies between ideal and perceived actual body image differed in between male and female third year sport and exercise science university students. Participants completed questionnaires that examined body image, self esteem, and awareness of socio-cultural attitudes towards appearance. The Body Image States Scale (Cash et al., 2002), State Self-Esteem Scale (Heatherton & Polivy, 1991) and the Situational lnventory of Body Image Dysphoria - Short form (SIBID-S) (Cash, 2002). Additionally, female participants completed the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire (SATAQ) (Heinberg, Thompson & Stormer, 1995). A same-sex computer image was then manipulated to reflect the participant's perception of their ideal and current body shape (Maschette & Sands, 2003). Male (N=15) and female (N=29) participants participated (reword??) reported equally participation in physical activity (2 (1, 44)=0.09, p>0.05), while 54.5% of male and female participants included identified weight training as part of their regular exercise regime. Discriminant function analysis revealed one significant function (λ = 0.46, p<0.01) indicating that female participants were more likely to report negative body image perceptions and a belief that their thighs size was larger than the those of an idealised female body. In contrast, male participants were more likely to report a positive body image perception and a belief that their thigh sizes were smaller than the idealised male body. Classification procedures correctly classified 86.4% of participants into their respective gender. Female participants with increased awareness of the sociocultural attitudes towards appearance reported increased levels of anger (r=0.40, p<0.05) and negative body image (r=0.41, p<0.05) and lower levels of social (r=-0.46, p<0.05) and appearance self-esteem (r=-0.44, p<0.05). Whilst male and female participants shared similar physical activity patterns, it would appear that their psychological experience differed .the psychological experiences of body image and self-esteem were more negatively experienced by females, suggesting vulnerability within this area

    The reliability of spatiotemporal gait data for young and older women during continuous over-ground walking

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    Objective: To examine the reliability and systematic bias in spatiotemporal gait parameters recorded in healthy women during repeated single and continuous overground walking trials. Design: Test-retest. Setting: University laboratory. Participants: Young (n=13) and older adult (n=14) women volunteers. Interventions: Not applicable. Main Outcome Measures: Spatiotemporal data were collected from an 8.1-m GAITRite mat during 10 trials of discrete single walks and 10 laps of a continuous circuit presented in random order over 2 separate test sessions. Paired t tests, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs), SE of measurement, and coefficients of variation (CV) were calculated. Results: The relative and absolute measures of reliability showed most spatiotemporal variables recorded during the single and continuous walking protocols were reliable. Step length, foot angle, and step and stance times were found to be the most reliable parameters, with ICCs ranging from 0.84 to 0.95, CVSom 2.06% to 4.02%, and SE of measurements of 1.59 to 2.04cm for step length, 1.32° to 1.71° for foot angle, and 0.011 to 0.025 seconds for step and stance times. Reliability estimates were similar for the single and continuous trial conditions and between the young and older women. Although small mean differences in the gait parameters were found across the test sessions, many of these parameters showed systematic bias (P&lt;05). In the single trial condition, the majority (65%) of the gait parameters showed significant bias, whereas in the continuous condition only 19% of the parameters exhibited bias

    Optimization of performance in top-level athletes: an action-focused coping approach

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    In their target article, Yuri Hanin and Muza Hanina outlined a novel multidisciplinary approach to performance optimisation for sport psychologists called the Identification-Control-Correction (ICC) programme. According to the authors, this empirically-verified, psycho-pedagogical strategy is designed to improve the quality of coaching and consistency of performance in highly skilled athletes and involves a number of steps including: (i)identifying and increasing self-awareness of ‘optimal’ and ‘non-optimal’ movement patterns for individual athletes; (ii) learning to deliberately control the process of task execution; and (iii), correcting habitual and random errors and managing radical changes of movement patterns. Although no specific examples were provided, the ICC programme has apparently been successful in enhancing the performance of Olympic-level athletes. In this commentary, we address what we consider to be some important issues arising from the target article. We specifically focus attention on the contentious topic of optimization in neurobiological movement systems, the role of constraints in shaping emergent movement patterns and the functional role of movement variability in producing stable performance outcomes. In our view, the target article and, indeed, the proposed ICC programme, would benefit from a dynamical systems theoretical backdrop rather than the cognitive scientific approach that appears to be advocated. Although Hanin and Hanina made reference to, and attempted to integrate, constructs typically associated with dynamical systems theoretical accounts of motor control and learning (e.g., Bernstein’s problem, movement variability, etc.), these ideas required more detailed elaboration, which we provide in this commentar
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