Abstract
BackgroundThe purpose of this study was to clarify the characteristics of body composition and cardiometabolic risk of Japanese male heavyweight Judo athletes compared with heavyweight athletes of other sports.MethodsNineteen heavyweight Judo athletes (mean age, 20.4 ± 1.1 years), as well as 22 heavyweight (mean age, 21.5 ± 0.9 years) and 17 nonheavyweight (mean age, 21.1 ± 0.8 years) American football and Rugby football athletes in Japan participated in this study. Body composition was assessed by using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and magnetic resonance imaging. Cardiometabolic risk was evaluated by measuring blood biochemical variables.ResultsHeavyweight Judo athletes had significantly heavier body mass (122.7 ± 13.1 kg vs. 99.0 ± 8.1 kg), higher body fat percentage (27.5 % ± 5.2 % vs. 19.4 % ± 4.7 %), and larger visceral fat cross-sectional area (118 ± 35 cm2 vs. 67 ± 24 cm2) (P < 0.01) compared with heavyweight football players. Although the cardiometabolic risk was higher in heavyweight athletes compared to nonheavyweight athletes, there were no significant differences between heavyweight Judo and heavyweight Football athletes in the blood biochemical variables, except for high concentration of uric acid in heavyweight Judo athletes.ConclusionsEven though heavyweight Judo athletes had more excess fat mass, especially VF mass, their cardiometabolic risk in terms of blood biochemical parameters was not significantly higher compared with heavyweight athletes of other sports. Therefore, excessive fat accumulation may not necessarily increase cardiometabolic risk for heavyweight Judo athletes.Trial registrationThis trial is registered with the University Hospital Medical Information Network Clinical Trial Registration (UMIN-CTR) UMIN000020564.
Highlights
The purpose of this study was to clarify the characteristics of body composition and cardiometabolic risk of Japanese male heavyweight Judo athletes compared with heavyweight athletes of other sports
A previous study showed that heavyweight Judo athletes carry one of the heaviest body mass (BM) and highest body fat percentage compared with other heavyweight athletes in other sports such as wrestlers and weightlifters [7]
We examined body composition parameters in detail by using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), while cardiometabolic risk was assessed by measuring blood biochemical variables in fasting state
Summary
The purpose of this study was to clarify the characteristics of body composition and cardiometabolic risk of Japanese male heavyweight Judo athletes compared with heavyweight athletes of other sports. Especially having visceral fat accumulation, is known to be a major risk factor in cardiovascular disease [1, 2] Heavyweight athletes, including those who participate in Judo, American football, and Rugby football, often intentionally try to increase their body mass (BM) because it significantly influences their athletic performance [3]. If heavyweight Judo athletes have high cardiometabolic risk, such risk may harm their present health It may increase their risk of cardiovascular disease after they retire from their playing sport [8]. We hypothesized that because heavyweight Judo athletes had higher body fat percentage [7], they expected to have excessive VF mass and increase cardiometabolic risk compared with heavyweight athletes in other sports
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