Male Australian Rules Football Research Articles

Evening Whey Protein Intake, Rich in Tryptophan, and Sleep in Elite Male Australian Rules Football Players on Training and Nontraining Days.

To investigate the effect of evening whey protein supplementation, rich in tryptophan, on sleep in elite male Australian Rules Football players. Double-blinded, counterbalanced, randomized, cross-over study. Sleep was assessed using wrist activity monitors and sleep diaries in 15 elite male Australian Football League players on two training and nontraining days following evening consumption of an isocaloric whey protein supplement or placebo in preseason. A 5-day preintervention period was implemented to determine habitual dietary intake and baseline sleep measures. These habitual data were used to inform the daily dietary intake and timing of ingestion of the evening whey protein supplement or placebo on the intervention days. The whey protein supplement or placebo was consumed 3hr prior to habitual bedtime. Separate one-way repeated-measures analyses of covariance revealed no differences between the whey protein supplement and the placebo on sleep duration, sleep onset latency, sleep efficiency, or wake after sleep onset on either training or nontraining days. Evening whey protein supplementation, rich in tryptophan, does not improve acute sleep duration or quality in elite male Australian Football League players. However, elite athletes may be able to ingest a high protein/energy intake close to bedtime without impairing sleep, which is important for athlete recovery. Future research should investigate the effect of evening protein intake, high in tryptophan, on sleep duration and quality, including sleep staging during periods of restricted sleep and in poor-sleeping athletes.

Supramaximal Interval Running Prescription in Australian Rules Football Players: A Comparison Between Maximal Aerobic Speed, Anaerobic Speed Reserve, and the 30-15 Intermittent Fitness Test.

Collison, J, Debenedictis, T, Fuller, JT, Gerschwitz, R, Ling, T, Gotch, L, Bishop, B, Sibley, L, Russell, J, Hobbs, A, and Bellenger, CR. Supramaximal interval running prescription in Australian Rules Football players: A comparison between maximal aerobic speed, anaerobic speed reserve and the 30-15 intermittent fitness test. J Strength Cond Res 36(12): 3409-3414, 2022-Accurate prescription of supramaximal interval running during Australian Rules Football (AF) preparatory periods is important to facilitate the specific targeting of physiological and neuromuscular adaptation. This study compared the variability in supramaximal interval running performance prescribed by proportion of maximal aerobic speed (MAS), anaerobic speed reserve (ASR), and 30-15 intermittent fitness test (30-15IFT) terminal speed. Seventeen male junior AF players first completed assessments of MAS, ASR, and 30-15IFT in a randomized order. They subsequently performed supramaximal interval running trials (15 seconds on: 15 seconds off until volitional exhaustion) at 120% MAS, 20% ASR, and 95% 30-15IFT in a randomized order. Variability in time to exhaustion (TTE) for each prescription method was calculated as the mean of the square root of the squared difference between the individual value and the mean value, and it was compared via repeated-measures analysis of variance with statistical significance set at p ≤ 0.05. Time to exhaustion during supramaximal interval running was not different between the prescription methods ( p = 0.58). Time to exhaustion residuals were reduced when prescribed by ASR compared with MAS (standardized mean difference [SMD] = -0.47; 29%); however, confidence intervals about this reduction indicated that there was some uncertainty in this finding (SMD = -1.03 to 0.09; p = 0.09). Trivial differences in TTE residuals were present when prescribed by 30-15IFT compared with MAS (SMD = -0.05 ± 0.59; p = 0.86). Although there was some uncertainty about the reduction in supramaximal interval running performance variability when prescribed by ASR compared with MAS, the 29% reduction exceeds the inherent error in TTE efforts (i.e., ∼9-15%) and may thus be considered practically meaningful. Reducing supramaximal interval running performance variability ensures similar physiological demand across individuals, potentially facilitating similar degrees of physiological adaptation.

Set distance time trials for predicting maximal aerobic speed in female Australian Rules Footballers

ObjectivesMaximal aerobic speed (MAS) may be predicted from 2.0km time trial (TT) running speed in male Australian Rules football (AF) players. Given the between-sex differences in physiological variables precursory to endurance performance, and the impact of this on MAS distance limit, this study determined running speed across various TT distances best approximating MAS in female AF players. Method33 female AF players completed assessments of MAS and TT performance separated by at least 48h. In a randomised order, half of the athletes completed TT distances of 1.2, 1.6 and 2.0km, and the other half completed distances of 1.4, 1.8 and 2.2km. Bias, limits of agreement (LOA) and linear mixed modelling determined agreement between TT-derived running speed and MAS. ResultsAverage speed for all TT distances were different to MAS (bias≥0.59±0.45km·h−1; p≤0.015) with the exception of the 1.4km TT (bias=−0.12±0.26km·h−1; p=0.34). LOA was narrowest for the 1.4km TT (±0.76km·h−1; ±6.1%) compared to other TT distances (±0.82–1.67km·h−1; ±6.7–12.9%). A significant linear association between bias and TT distance (r=−0.73; p<0.001) indicated TT speed would be equal to MAS when a 1.4–1.5km TT was completed, and that MAS may be predicted from any distance between 1.2 and 2.2km. ConclusionsMAS was best approximated by a 1.4–1.5km TT in female AF players, but may be predicted from TT speed for any distance between 1.2 and 2.2km. TT-derived MAS provides a time and resource efficient method for the quantification of aerobic fitness and prescription of future training intensities.

Serum Protein Biomarker Findings Reflective of Oxidative Stress and Vascular Abnormalities in Male, but Not Female, Collision Sport Athletes.

Studies have indicated that concussive and sub-concussive brain injuries that are frequent during collision sports may lead to long-term neurological abnormalities, however there is a knowledge gap on how biological sex modifies outcomes. Blood-based biomarkers can help to identify the molecular pathology induced by brain injuries and to better understand how biological sex affects the molecular changes. We therefore analyzed serum protein biomarkers in male (n = 50) and female (n = 33) amateur Australian rules footballers (i.e., Australia's most participated collision sport), both with a history of concussion (HoC) and without a history of concussion (NoHoC). These profiles were compared to those of age-matched control male (n = 24) and female (n = 20) athletes with no history of neurotrauma or participation in collision sports. Serum levels of protein markers indicative of neuronal, axonal and glial injury (UCH-L1, NfL, tau, p-tau, GFAP, BLBP, PEA15), metabolic (4-HNE) and vascular changes (VEGF-A, vWF, CLDN5), and inflammation (HMGB1) were assessed using reverse phase protein microarrays. Male, but not female, footballers had increased serum levels of VEGF-A compared to controls regardless of concussion history. In addition, only male footballers who had HoC had increased serum levels of 4-HNE. These findings being restricted to males may be related to shorter collision sport career lengths for females compared to males. In summary, these findings show that male Australian rules footballers have elevated levels of serum biomarkers indicative of vascular abnormalities (VEGF-A) and oxidative stress (4-HNE) in comparison to non-collision control athletes. While future studies are required to determine how these findings relate to neurological function, serum levels of VEGF-A and 4-HNE may be useful to monitor subclinical neurological injury in males participating in collision sports.

Thought processes during set shot goalkicking in Australian Rules football: An analysis of youth and semi-professional footballers using Think Aloud

At present, there has been little attention given to exploring the cognitive processes of athletes in Australian Rules football during self-paced tasks such as the set shot goal kick attempt. Therefore, this study used a Think Aloud (TA) protocol analysis to explore the cognitions of Junior and Adult footballers undertaking the performance of a set shot goal kicking attempt in naturalistic conditions. This involved 64 male Australian Rules footballers, comprising 37 elite-level senior (adult) players (M age = 23.3 years) and 27 elite-level junior (M age = 14.6 years) players. Player's verbalisations were recorded during each performance of the goal kicking task, transcribed verbatim, and deductively and inductively analysed. The analyses revealed that planning, gathering information and description of outcome were the main three verbalised themes overall among junior and adult footballers. The analyses also indicated that as task difficulty increases, athlete cognitions relating to self-doubt increases and pre-performance routines decreases. In contrast to Adults, our results indicate that Junior footballers gather more information when undertaking close range set shot goal kicking attempts and also verbalise more diagnostic outcomes and comments relating to self-doubt when undertaking long range set shot goal kicking attempts. Adult footballers were also found to verbalise more reactive comments across all kick distances and verbalise more thoughts relating to mental readiness and pre-performance routine from close range compared long range distances. These findings have implications for the acquisition of skill in sport and draw on key perspectives from Dynamic Systems Theory to advance understanding of the cognitive processes underpinning set shot goal kicking performance in Australian Rules football.

Correlating clinical assessment and MRI findings in diagnosing calf injuries in elite male Australian rules footballers.

Calf complex injuries represent a significant injury burden among Australian Rules athletes. To date, there has been limited research correlating clinical and radiological findings of pathology within the calf. The objective of this study is to determine how accurately magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings correlate with clinical measures of calf muscle complex pathology in elite male athletes. A prospective cohort study was conducted on Australian rules elite athletes. A cohort of 45 athletes underwent a high-load training session of approximately 10 km of running. Athletes were then assessed by a sports physiotherapist who made a diagnosis of no pathology, delayed onset muscle soreness, strain or other. Subsequently, the athletes underwent MRI of their bilateral calf complexes. Radiologists interpreted the MRI findings and radiological diagnosis were correlated with clinical diagnosis. A total of 90 calf MRIs were performed. Correlation of clinical and radiological diagnosis occurred in 57 cases. Of the 33 cases which did not correlate, there were 4 radiologically significant acute calf strains in clinically asymptomatic athletes, 3 of which involved old scar tissue. MRI may detect clinically insignificant injuries within the calf complex. If an athlete does not have any clinically relevant symptoms, abnormal signal on MRI may represent a different diagnosis to muscle strain. Signal change on MRI proximal to scar tissue may represent reactive oedema. Clinical history and examination should be correlated with radiological findings is recommended when diagnosing calf injury in elite athletes.

Domain Specific Life Satisfaction in the Dual Careers of Junior Elite Football Players: The Impact of Role Strain

Using a holistic perspective on athlete talent development, this study examines the impact of role strain on the life satisfaction in various life domains of junior elite Australian Rules Football players. One hundred and twelve talent-identified male Australian Rules Football players (Mage = 16.8; SD = .71) completed measures of role strain and multidimensional life satisfaction. The results indicated that role strain explained twelve to twenty-four percent of the variance in life satisfaction in the players’ life domains. Experiences of role strain related to the players’ dual careers were associated with decreased life satisfaction in sport, friendships, family, yourself, and global life satisfaction domains. Situations in which the players perceived that their abilities were underutilized were also negatively associated with life satisfaction across various life domains. This study thus evidences the importance of a domain specific, holistic approach to investigate the life satisfaction in junior athletes’ dual careers.

Monitoring of In-Season Salivary Alpha Amylase Trends for Professional Australian Rules Footballers

Salivary Alpha Amylase has been considered a surrogate biomarker of autonomic nervous system, and may be considered useful to highlight periods of physiological fatigue in athletes. Novel lateral flow technology has allowed for rapid salivary assessment and offers an alternative practical method for monitoring salivary markers such as Alpha Amylase in AFL athletes throughout the in-season. Therefore, the present study aimed to (1) examine week-to-week and month-to-month variations in AFL athletes [sAA] throughout a 16 match period of the AFL in-season, and (2) examine the acute relationship between post-match measure of [sAA] and match-play exercise workloads. Twenty elite male Australian Rules Footballers (24.3 ± 4.2 years, 186.7 ± 7.3 cm, 87.6 ± 8.0 kg) were monitored throughout 16 in-season AFL matches for sAA taken 36-h post-match and exercise workloads (player load) using GPS IA. The present study utilized a linear mixed model analyses for time dependent changes in [sAA] and player load. A significant main effect was found for week-to-week analysis of 36-h post-match [sAA] (F (15, 36)=5.12, p<0.001) and for match-play player loads (F (15, 61)=2.33, p=0.011). Further a significant main effect (F (3 19)=11.88, p<0.001) was found for month-to-month changes in 36-h post-match [sAA]. Finally, high inter- (103%) and intra-subject (110 %) variation of [sAA] were found. The present study presents novel data of trends in 36-h post-match [sAA] for AFL athletes. Results demonstrated a significant changes in month-to-month 36-h post-match [sAA] peaking in the final month of the study. Month-to-month analysis of [sAA] may highlight an accumulative SNS fatigue effect throughout the AFL in-season, however results on a week-to-week basis need to be analysed with caution given the high levels of intra- and inter-subject variation.

Mental toughness and behavioural perseverance: A conceptual replication and extension

ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to conduct a conceptual replication of the proposition that mental toughness is associated positively with behavioural perseverance. DesignRepeated-measures design. MethodsIn total, 38 male Australian rules footballers took part in this study (age, 21±3 y; mass, 82.7±11.0kg; height, 1.84±.07m; football experience, 13±4 y). Participants self-reported mental toughness approximately one week prior to their first testing session where we assessed their aerobic capacity via the measurement of peak oxygen consumption (V˙O2peak). Approximately one week later, participants completed a 20m shuttle run test (MST). The final testing session took place approximately one week later, where participants completed a simulated team game circuit (STGC; 60min) to simulate game-relevant level of fatigue, which was followed immediately by a 20m MST. ResultsMental toughness was a salient determinant of the variation in behavioural perseverance under typical circumstances, when prior knowledge from past research was incorporated directly into the estimation process. However, the positive association between mental toughness and behavioural perseverance did not generalise to a performance context in which participants were fatigued. ConclusionsThe results of the current study suggest that mental toughness represents a salient psychological correlate of behavioural perseverance in a discrete physical task that taxes the aerobic energy system in some but not all situations. When fatigued, the effect of mental toughness is outweighed by greater underlying fitness.

Physiological and Performance Responses to a Training Camp in the Heat in Professional Australian Football Players

To examine the physiological and performance responses to a heat-acclimatization camp in highly trained professional team-sport athletes. Eighteen male Australian Rules Football players trained for 2 wk in hot ambient conditions (31-33°C, humidity 34-50%). Players performed a laboratory-based heat-response test (24-min walk + 24 min seated; 44°C), a YoYo Intermittent Recovery Level 2 Test (YoYoIR2; indoor, temperate environment, 23°C) and standardized training drills (STD; outdoor, hot environment, 32°C) at the beginning and end of the camp. The heat-response test showed partial heat acclimatization (eg, a decrease in skin temperature, heart rate, and sweat sodium concentration, P < .05). In addition, plasma volume (PV, CO rebreathing, +2.68 [0.83; 4.53] mL/kg) and distance covered during both the YoYoIR2 (+311 [260; 361] m) and the STD (+45.6 [13.9; 77.4] m) increased postcamp (P < .01). None of the performance changes showed clear correlations with PV changes (r < .24), but the improvements in running STD distance in hot environment were correlated with changes in hematocrit during the heat-response test (r = -.52, 90%CI [-.77; -.12]). There was no clear correlation between the performance improvements in temperate and hot ambient conditions (r < .26). Running performance in both hot and temperate environments was improved after a football training camp in hot ambient conditions that stimulated heat acclimatization. However, physiological and performance responses were highly individual, and the absence of correlations between physical-performance improvements in hot and temperate environments suggests that their physiological basis might differ.

Cognition in the days following concussion: comparison of symptomatic versus asymptomatic athletes

Background: Concussion is a common neurological injury occurring during contact sport. Current guidelines recommend that no athlete should return to play while symptomatic or displaying cognitive dysfunction. This study compared...

Does the toe-touch test predict hamstring injury in Australian Rules footballers?

This prospective cohort study evaluated the relationship of hamstring and lumbar spine flexibility to hamstring injury. Sixty-seven senior male Australian Rules footballers were videotaped while performing a toe-touch test from erect standing. The Peak Motion Measurement System was used to obtain measurements of end range hip flexion, lumbar flexion, toe-touch distance (TTD) and the ratio of lumbar spine flexion to hip flexion. Over the following football season, eight subjects (11.9 per cent) sustained a hamstring strain. Results showed no significant difference between the hamstring injured or uninjured players for any of the measured variables with no variable able to predict the likelihood of injury (p > 0.05). In this cohort, the toe-touch test would not appear to be a useful screening tool to identify footballers at risk for hamstring strain.

Isokinetic strength testing does not predict hamstring injury in Australian Rules footballers.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the relation of hamstring and quadriceps muscle strength and imbalance to hamstring injury using a prospective observational cohort study METHOD: A total of 102 senior male Australian...