Sex Differences in Elite Swimming with Advanced Age Are Less Than Marathon Running

The sex difference in marathon performance increases with finishing place and age of the runner but whether this occurs among swimmers is unknown. The purpose was to compare sex differences in swimming velocity across world record place (1st–10th), age group (25–89 years), and event distance. We also compared sex differences between freestyle swimming and marathon running. The world\u27s top 10 swimming times of both sexes for World Championship freestyle stroke, backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly events and the world\u27s top 10 marathon times in 5-year age groups were obtained. Men were faster than women for freestyle (12.4 ± 4.2%), backstroke (12.8 ± 3.0%), and breaststroke (14.5 ± 3.2%), with the greatest sex differences for butterfly (16.7 ± 5.5%). The sex difference in swimming velocity increased across world record place for freestyle (P \u3c 0.001), breaststroke, and butterfly for all age groups and distances (P  \u3c 0.001) because of a greater relative drop-off between first and 10th place for women. The sex difference in marathon running increased with the world record place and the sex difference for marathon running was greater than for swimming (P \u3c 0.001). The sex difference in swimming increased with world record place and age, but was less than for marathon running. Collectively, these results suggest more depth in women\u27s swimming than marathon running

Men Are More Likely than Women to Slow in the Marathon

Studies on nonelite distance runners suggest that men are more likely than women to slow their pace in a marathon. Purpose: This study determined the reliability of the sex difference in pacing across many marathons and after adjusting women\u27s performances by 12% to address men\u27s greater maximal oxygen uptake and also incorporating information on racing experience. Methods: Data were acquired from 14 US marathons in 2011 and encompassed 91,929 performances. For 2929 runners, we obtained experience data from a race-aggregating Web site. We operationalized pace maintenance as the percentage change in pace observed in the second half of the marathon relative to the first half. Pace maintenance was analyzed as a continuous variable and as two categorical variables, as follows: maintain the pace, defined as slowing=30%. Results: The mean change in pace was 15.6% and 11.7% for men and women, respectively (P \u3c 0.0001). This sex difference was significant for all 14 marathons. The odds for women were 1.46 (95% confidence interval, 1.41–1.50; P \u3c 0.0001) times higher than men to maintain the pace and 0.36 (95% confidence interval, 0.34–0.38; P \u3c 0.0001) times that of men to exhibit marked slowing. Slower finishing times were associated with greater slowing, especially in men (interaction, P \u3c 0.0001). However, the sex difference in pacing occurred across age and finishing time groups. Making the 12% adjustment to women’s performances lessened the magnitude of the sex difference in pacing but not its occurrence. Although greater experience was associated with less slowing, controlling for the experience variables did not eliminate the sex difference in pacing. Conclusions: The sex difference in pacing is robust. It may reflect sex differences in physiology, decision making, or both

The Two-hour Marathon: What\u27s the Equivalent for Women?

The principal characteristic of the runner who may break the two-hour barrier in the marathon will be their sex: the person will be male. The fastest men outperform the fastest women because of sex differences in physiology including a higher VȮ2 max. This viewpoint addresses the questions of what is the two-hour equivalent for women, and who will break this barrier? The current sex difference in the world record for the marathon is ~10% which is slightly less than the mean sex difference in performance usually documented between elite men and women distance runners. Based on comparisons of the top 50 marathon times run by men and women, we argue that Paula Radcliffe\u27s world record of 2:15:25 (hr:min:s) set in 2003 is at least equivalent to a two-hour marathon for women. We also provide evidence that there is less depth in elite women\u27s distance running, in part, due to historical and social factors that have led to less opportunity for women than men

Simple Bodyweight Training Improves Cardiorespiratory Fitness With Minimal Time Commitment: A Contemporary Application of the 5BX Approach

International Journal of Exercise Science 14(3): 93-100, 2021. Bodyweight training (BWT) is a style of interval exercise based on classic principles of physical education. Limited research, however, has examined the efficacy of BWT on cardiorespiratory fitness. This is especially true for simple BWT protocols that do not require extraordinarily high levels of effort. We examined the effect of a BWT protocol, modelled after the original “Five Basic Exercises” (5BX) plan, on peak oxygen uptake (VO2peak) in healthy, inactive adults (20 ± 1 y; body mass index: 20 ± 5 kg/m2; mean ± SD). Participants were randomized to a training group that performed 18 sessions over six weeks (n=9), or a non-training control group (n = 10). The 11-minute session involved five exercises (burpees, high knees, split squat jumps, high knees, squat jumps), each performed for 60-seconds at a self-selected “challenging” pace, interspersed with active recovery periods (walking). Mean intensity during training was 82 ± 5% of maximal heart rate, rating of perceived exertion was 14 ± 3 out of 20, and compliance was 100%. ANCOVA revealed a significant difference between groups after the intervention, such that VO2peak was higher in the training group compared to control (34.2 ± 6.4 vs 30.3 ± 11.1 ml/kg/min; p = 0.03). Peak power output during the VO2peak test was also higher after training compared to control (211 ± 43 vs 191 ±50 W, p = 0.004). There were no changes in leg muscular endurance, handgrip strength or vertical jump height in either group. We conclude that simple BWT— requiring minimal time commitment and no specialized equipment — can enhance cardiorespiratory fitness in inactive adults. These findings have relevance for individuals seeking practical, time-efficient approaches to exercise

Case Studies in Physiology: Male to Female Transgender Swimmer in College Athletics

There is current scientific and legal controversy about sports competition eligibility regulations for transgender athletes. In this case study, we quantified performances by an elite, transgender woman (male sex, female gender identity) college swimmer who competed in both the men’s and women’s National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) categories. We also contextualized her performances with respect to world-record performances and contemporary elite college swimmers. These data demonstrate that the declines in freestyle swimming performances of a transgender woman after about 2 yr of reported feminizing gender-affirming hormone treatment (0.5% for the 100 to 7.3% for the 1,650 yard distance) are smaller than the observed sex-related differences in performance of top 200 world record performances in metric distances of similar durations (11.4% for the 100 m to 9.3% for the 1,500 m distance). Despite slower performances, the transgender woman swimmer experienced improvements in performance for each freestyle event (100 to 1,650 yards) relative to sex-specific NCAA rankings, including producing the best swimming time in the NCAA for the 500-yard distance (65th in the men’s category in 2018–2019 to 1st in the women’s, 2022). Similarly, NCAA-ranked male swimmers had no improvements in rank in the men’s category during the same time frame. Our findings suggest that the performance times of the transgender woman swimmer in the women’s NCAA category were outliers for each event distance and suggest that the transgender woman swimmer had superior performances relative to rank-matched swimmers. Our analysis may be useful as a framework for regulators considering participation guidelines, which promote fair competition for all athletes—irrespective of gender identity

Association of Cardiac Baroreflex Sensitivity with Blood Pressure Transients: Influence of Sex and Menopausal Status

The magnitude of decrease in blood pressure (BP) during a vasoactive drug bolus may be associated with the calculated baroreflex sensitivity (BRS). The purpose of the present study was to evaluate whether sympathetic and/or cardiac BRS relates to the extent of change in BP and whether this was altered by sex hormones. Fifty-one young women (27 ± 1 years), 14 older women (58 ± 1 years), and 36 young men (27 ± 1 years) were studied. Heart rate, BP, and muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA) were monitored. Sympathetic BRS was analyzed using the slope of the MSNA-diastolic blood pressure (DBP) relationship and cardiac BRS was analyzed using the R–R interval-systolic blood pressure (SBP) relationship. Young women and men had similar mean arterial pressures (MAP, 91 ± 1 vs. 90 ± 1 mmHg), cardiac BRS (19 ± 1 vs. 21 ± 2 ms/mmHg), and sympathetic BRS (−6 ± 1 vs. −7 ± 1 AU/beat/mmHg), respectively. Older women had higher MAP (104 ± 4 mmHg, p < 0.05) and lower cardiac BRS (7 ± 1 ms/mmHg, p < 0.05), but similar sympathetic BRS (−8 ± 1 AU/beat/mmHg). There was no association between BP transients with either cardiac or sympathetic BRS in young women. In the older women, the drop in SBP, DBP, and MAP were associated with cardiac BRS (r = 0.60, r = 0.59, and r = 0.70, respectively; p < 0.05), but not sympathetic BRS. The decrease in SBP was positively related to cardiac BRS in young men (r = 0.41; p < 0.05). However, there was no relationship between the decrease in BP and sympathetic BRS. This indicates that older women and young men with low cardiac BRS have larger transients in BP during nitroprusside. This suggests a more prominent role for cardiac (as opposed to sympathetic) BRS in responding to acute BP changes in young men and older women. The fact that these relationships do not exist in young women suggest that the female sex hormones influence baroreflex responses

Using Research Metrics to Improve Timelines: Proceedings from the 2nd Annual CTSA Clinical Research Management Workshop

The Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) Consortium Workshop was conceived as a venue to foster communication among Academic Medical Centers (AMCs) in the development of methods to improve clinical research management. The consortium, comprised of 46 awardee sites as of 2009, many with multiple AMCs, is expected to expand to 60 sites when fully implemented. At the 2nd Annual CTSA Clinical Research Management Workshop held on June 22 nd and 23 rd , 2009, on the National Institutes of Health (NIH) campus, consortium members and potential CTSA sites gathered with stakeholders from private industry, the NIH, the Food and Drug Administration, and private research organizations, to formulate a plan to address challenges in clinical research management. Specific aims included improving protocol processing and sharing process improvement initiatives in the expectation that best practices will be implemented and improvements will be measured and reported. The findings presented at this workshop indicated significant variance in Institutional Review Board approval of protocols and contract execution by AMC and CTSA sites. Most represented marked delays compared to non-AMC sites and that, as a likely consequence, AMCs were later to enroll patients and/or meet enrollment targets compared to dedicated or professional sites. Clin Trans Sci 2010; Volume 3: 305–308Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/79218/1/j.1752-8062.2010.00246.x.pd