Abstract
The military are selected on the basis of physical standards and are regularly involved in strong physical activities, also related to particular sports training. The aims of the study were to analyze the effect of a 7-month military training program on body composition variables and the suitability of specific ‘bioelectrical impedance vector analysis’ (spBIVA), compared to DXA, to detect the changes in body composition. A sample of 270 male Brazilian cadets (19.1 ± 1.1 years), composed of a group practicing military physical training routine only (MT = 155) and a group involved in a specific sport training (SMT = 115), were measured by body composition assessments (evaluated by means of DXA and spBIVA) at the beginning and the end of the military routine year. The effect of training on body composition was similar in SMT and MT groups, with an increase in LST. DXA and spBIVA were correlated, with specific resistance (Rsp) and reactance (Xcsp) positively related to fat mass (FM), FM%, LST, and lean soft tissue index (LSTI), and phase angle positively related to LST and LSTI. Body composition variations due to physical training were recognized by spBIVA: the increase in muscle mass was indicated by the phase angle and Xcsp increase, and the stability of FM% was consistent with the unchanged values of Rsp. Military training produced an increase in muscle mass, but no change in FM%, independently of the sample characteristics at baseline and the practice of additional sports. SpBIVA is a suitable technique for the assessment of body composition in military people.
Highlights
Introduction iationsThe military paradigm is associated with healthy appearance, athletic bearing, and high-level physical performance
The aims of the present study were two-fold: (1) to analyze the effect of a 7-month military training program on body composition variables, and (2) to analyze the correlation between the changes in body composition measured by specific ‘bioelectrical impedance vector analysis’ (spBIVA) and dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in a Brazilian military sample
The sample was divided into two groups: (1) the cadets who were involved in the military physical training routine only (MT, n = 155); (2) the cadets who were involved, by their own choice, in the military physical training routine plus a specific sport training for military competition (SMT, n = 115): track and field (n = 25), basketball (n = 16), fencing (n = 3), soccer (n = 18), judo (n = 3), swimming (n = 13), trekking (n = 4), shooting (n = 2), triathlon (n = 11), volleyball (n = 15), or chess (n = 5)
Summary
Introduction iationsThe military paradigm is associated with healthy appearance, athletic bearing, and high-level physical performance. There are various methods usable to evaluate body composition, including anthropometry; bioimpedance; and more accurate techniques, such as potassium 40 counting, water isotope dilution, underwater weighing, imaging techniques, and dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) [2]. Due to the high suitability and low cost, the anthropometric techniques are the most used in many fields of application, including the routine military practice [3,4,5]. These methods, are not very accurate in detecting the main body compartments.
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