Abstract
BackgroundModified team sport activity has been proposed as effective exercise modality for promoting markers of health that are comparable or greater than continuous forms of activity. However, research using modified team sports is currently limited to sedentary populations using 2–3 sessions across a minimum of 8 weeks.AimTo investigate the effects of a 4-week touch rugby and self-paced interval running intervention on a range of health markers in active men.MethodsSixteen participants (age 26.4 ± 6.4 years) were matched for age, demographic and physical activity before completing a single touch rugby (n = 8) or running (n = 8) session per week for 4 weeks. Measures of systolic and diastolic blood pressure, resting heart rate (RHR), body composition and biochemical status were recorded pre- and post-intervention.ResultsANCOVA analysis revealed between-group differences for impedance (P = 0.027), fat mass (P = 0.008), percentage body fat (P = 0.008) and fat-free mass (P = 0.002), with greater changes after touch rugby. Systolic blood pressure decreased for both groups with greater reductions observed after touch rugby (P = 0.002). No between-group difference was observed for RHR, interleukin-6 or C-reactive protein (P > 0.05). Contrasting internal, external and perceptual loads were observed.ConclusionThe results of this study suggest that a single session of touch rugby over a 4-week period elicited greater improvements in body composition and SBP than self-paced running, with both being equally beneficial for improving RHR, diastolic blood pressure and inflammatory status in active young men.
Highlights
Regular physical activity (PA) has been advocated as an important prevention strategy against the development of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) [1,2,3]
The purpose of this study was (1) to assess the effectiveness of touch rugby and interval running for promoting positive changes in blood pressure, resting heart rate (RHR), body composition and pro-inflammatory cytokines and (2) to determine if these modes of exercise performed once per week over a 4-week period were sufficient to induce a positive change in health markers in already active participants
The change in fat-free mass (FFM) was different between groups (F = 14.673, P = 0.002) and within-group analysis revealed significant increases after the touch rugby (t = 3.778, P = 0.007) intervention but not in running (t = 1.295, P = 0.236)
Summary
Regular physical activity (PA) has been advocated as an important prevention strategy against the development of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) [1,2,3]. Modified team sport activity has been proposed as effective exercise modality for promoting markers of health that are comparable or greater than continuous forms of activity. Aim To investigate the effects of a 4-week touch rugby and self-paced interval running intervention on a range of health markers in active men. Methods Sixteen participants (age 26.4 ± 6.4 years) were matched for age, demographic and physical activity before completing a single touch rugby (n = 8) or running (n = 8) session per week for 4 weeks. Systolic blood pressure decreased for both groups with greater reductions observed after touch rugby (P = 0.002). Conclusion The results of this study suggest that a single session of touch rugby over a 4-week period elicited greater improvements in body composition and SBP than self-paced running, with both being beneficial for improving RHR, diastolic blood pressure and inflammatory status in active young men
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