Performance In Healthy Athletes Research Articles

From Tissue to System: What Constitutes an Appropriate Response to Loading?

Optimal loading involves the prescription of an exercise stimulus that promotes positive tissue adaptation, restoring function in patients undergoing rehabilitation and improving performance in healthy athletes. Implicit in optimal loading is the need to monitor the response to load, but what constitutes a normal response to loading? And does it differ among tissues (e.g., muscle, tendon, bone, cartilage) and systems? In this paper, we discuss the "normal" tissue response to loading schema and demonstrate the complex interaction among training intensity, volume, and frequency, as well as the impact of these training variables on the recovery of specific tissues and systems. Although the response to training stress follows a predictable time course, the recovery of individual tissues to training load (defined herein as the readiness to receive a similar training stimulus without deleterious local and/or systemic effects) varies markedly, with as little as 30min (e.g., cartilage reformation after walking and running) or 72h or longer (e.g., eccentric exercise-induced muscle damage) required between loading sessions of similar magnitude. Hyperhydrated and reactive tendons that have undergone high stretch-shorten cycle activity benefit from a 48-h refractory period before receiving a similar training dose. In contrast, bone cells desensitize quickly to repetitive loading, with almost all mechanosensitivity lost after as few as 20 loading cycles. To optimize loading, an additional dose (≤ 60 loading cycles) of bone-centric exercise (e.g., plyometrics) can be performed following a 4-8h refractory period. Low-stress (i.e., predominantly aerobic) activity can be repeated following a short (≤ 24h) refractory period, while greater recovery is needed (≥ 72h) between repeated doses of high stress (i.e., predominantly anaerobic) activity. The response of specific tissues and systems to training load is complex; at any time, it is possible that practitioners may be optimally loading one tissue or system while suboptimally loading another. The consideration of recovery timeframes of different tissues and systems allows practitioners to determine the "normal" response to load. Importantly, we encourage practitioners to interpret training within an athlete monitoring framework that considers external and internal load, athlete-reported responses, and objective markers, to contextualize load-response data.

Effects of blood flow restriction training on sports performance in athletes: a systematic review with meta-analysis.

Blood flow restriction training (BFRT) is an effective training method to improve sports performance in healthy athletes. Nevertheless, a systematic review with meta-analysis regarding how BFRT affects sports performance in athletes is still lacking. Consequently, the study attempted to expand and consolidate the prior studies regarding the effect of BFRT on technical and physical performance in athletes. This study was based on PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyzes) statement guidelines for a systematic review of the academic databases Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, EBSCOhost (SportDiscus), and Google Scholar. The PEDro scale was used to assess the methodological quality of the included publications, which ranged from moderate to high quality. The systematic review protocol was registered on inplasy.com (INPLASY202380049). Out of 249 studies identified, 93 articles were evaluated as eligible, and after the screening, 18 studies were finally included in this systematic review. Meta-analysis results showed a significant enhancement on vertical jump height in the BFRT group compared to the control group (SMD=1.39, 95% CI=0.30-2.49, P=0.01). BFRT was able to significantly increase maximal oxygen uptake (SMD=1.65, 95% CI=0.56-2.74, P<0.01). While no significant improvement in sprint time was observed (SMD= -0.18, 95% CI=-1.18-0.82, P=0.115). The finding suggests that BFRT is beneficial to athletes as this training method can be effective in enhancing physical and technical performance in athletes. Nevertheless, further analysis needs to be conducted to fully determine the effectiveness of the moderators of the intervention on sports performance.

The Effect of Combining Blood Flow Restriction and Plyometric Exercise on Quadriceps Muscle Strength, Functional Ability and Balance Capacity - A Pilot Study Amongst Amateur Soccer Players

Football is one of the most popular sports employing a plethora of people around the world. Plyometric exercise and Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) exercise are two different means used to enhance athletic performance in healthy athletes and also during the rehabilitation of musculoskeletal injuries. To our knowledge, the combination of plyometric exercise and BFR has not been studied so far. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of BFR during plyometric lower limb exercise on quadriceps muscle strength, functional capacity and dynamic balance of the lower limb in amateur football players. This is a comparative study with a parallel 10-week, twice/week intervention in 2 different groups. Group A (N = 5) performed a plyometric exercise program and group B (N = 5) performed the same plyometric exercise program with the simultaneous application of BFR. Outcome measures were 1 Repetition Maximum of the squat exercise, Y Balance Test, Horizontal Countermovement Jump, Vertical Countermovement Jump, and single leg Triple Hop Test (THT). There was statistically significant improvement in both groups in all variable except THT on the non-dominant leg. There was no statistically significant difference between groups. Plyometric exercise, whether applied with or without blood flow restriction, improved strength, balance and functional capacity in male amateur football players

Acute Effects of Kinesio Taping on Functional Performance in Healthy Soccer Players: A Randomized, Controlled Crossover Trial.

This study aimed to investigate the acute effects of the Kinesio tape (KT) application on functional performance in healthy athletes. In this randomized, controlled crossover trial, a total of sixteen healthy soccer players (male = 14; age = 23.28 ± 3.13 years old) were assigned randomly into either KT over quadriceps, KT over hamstring, KT over quadriceps plus hamstring, or no intervention control condition. Four conditions were applied in a crossover design through three consecutive test sessions for each condition with a washout period of 2 days between the trials. Afterwards, all participants performed a 5-min warm-up routine and four sets of 30-s static stretching exercises for the hamstring and gluteal muscles for three consecutive treatment sessions. The running, jump, and flexibility tests were used to assess the functional performance of healthy athletes. A total of sixteen participants completed the study. No significant differences in the jump, flexibility, and running tests among the conditions were reported (p > 0.05). These findings suggest that KT application has no acute effects in improving functional performance in healthy athletes. However, further studies with larger sample sizes are needed to verify our results.

Efficacy of Nutritional Strategies on the Improvement of the Performance and Health of the Athlete: A Systematic Review.

Evidence shows that the use of food strategies can impact health, but a clear consensus about how the effects of different food strategies impact improvement in the athlete’s performance and health remain unclear. This study evaluated how food strategies, specifically intermittent fasting and a ketogenic diet affect health and performance in healthy athletes. Study selection for this review was based on clinical trial studies analyzing changes in performance and health in athletes. The Pubmed, Web of Science, PEDro, Dialnet, Scopus, CINAHL, ProQuest, Medline and Cochrane databases were searched. The Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale, PEDro Internal Validity Scale (IVS) and Standard Quality Assessment Criteria for Evaluating Primary Research Papers from a variety of fields (QUALSYT) checklists were used to evaluate the risk of bias of the included studies. Articles were selected based on criteria concerning the effectiveness of nutritional strategies on athletes’ performance; articles should be randomized clinical trials (RCTs) or uncontrolled clinical trials; they should be human studies and they should have been published less than 7 years ago. A total of 15 articles were evaluated, 8 randomised clinical trials and 7 non-randomized clinical studies, with 411 participants who satisfied our inclusion criteria and were included in this review. The results of the study showed intermittent fasting and time-restricted feeding as strategies that produce health benefits. On the other hand, the ketogenic diet did not reach an appropriate consensus. The articles presented a medium level of methodological quality in the PEDro scale, low quality in IVS scale and high quality in QUALSYT scale. Despite the lack of studies analyzing changes in the performance and health of athletes after the use of different nutritional strategies, intermittent fasting and time-restricted feeding should be considered since they seem to be effective, and further studies are necessary.

REVIEW STUDY ON THE EFFICIENCY OF THE USE OF KINESIOLOGICTAPE IN PERFORMANCE ATHLETES

Introduction. In Asia, in the early 1970s, a new concept was developed -kinesiological tape.Physiotherapists use the kinesiological band in both performance or amateur athletes and patients who are in a kinetic recovery program. The exact mechanisms by which the kinesiological band acts on the body have not yet been fully elucidated .Aim. The aim of the study was to identify in the literature the information about the potential positive or negative effects offered by the use of kinesiological tape inperformance athletes that had suffered injuries and also to identify potential prophylactic effects inhealthy athletes.Material and method. The selection of articles was made using the Google Scholar search engine, where 98 studies were found in the databasesof ResearchGate, PubMed, MinervaMedica, Journal of Athletic Training, Journal of Orthopedic &amp; Sports Physical Therapy. Only studies on groups of performance athletes were included.Results. Of the 28 selected articles, 12 studies showed results in which there were increases in performance and improvements in some parameters, in 12 studies it was concluded that there were no beneficial or significant effects, and in 4 articles the results of applying the bands kinesiological and placebo effect had relatively similar positive effects.Conclusions.Kinesiology tapes do not seem to bringmajor benefits in terms of the performance inhealthy athletes. Regarding the potential prophylactic effect of kinesiological bands, several complex and longer studies need tobe performed. But the kinesiological bands could be considered as an adjuvant method in rehabilitation.

Ten-Word List Performance in Healthy Athletes and Athletes at 3-to-5 Days Following Concussion.

Although the word recall component of the Sport Concussion Assessment Tool (SCAT) was updated from 5-to-10 words, its clinical utility across athletic populations remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to provide normative data on the SCAT-5 10-word test and examine its discriminative ability between healthy university level athletes and those with sport-related concussion (SRC). Cross-sectional. University. Three hundred sixty-three (363, M = 220, F = 153) healthy athletes and 49 (M = 30, F = 19) athletes following SRC. Healthy athletes measured preseason were compared with athletes following an SRC (median = 4.0 days postinjury). Ten-word list performance from the SCAT-5. There were no significant differences in either immediate ( P = 0.228, Cohen's D = 0.18) or delayed ( P = 0.908, Cohen's D = 0.02) recall tests between athletes with SRC and healthy athletes; the null findings extended to both the male and female subset comparisons. Among healthy athletes, females outperformed males on both immediate (mean difference = 1.0, P < 0.001) and delayed (mean difference = 0.5, P = 0.006) recall tasks. Concussion does not seem to impact immediate or delayed recall of the 10-word list in the subacute period following injury. Practitioners should be mindful of sex differences and the time point of administration following injury.

Blood Flow Restriction Therapy for Athletes: A Systematic Review

Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) is a novel technique involving the use of a cuff/tourniquet system positioned around the proximal end of an extremity in order to maintain arterial flow, while restricting venous return. The purpose of this systematic review was to analyze the available literature regarding the use of BFR to supplement traditional resistance training in healthy athletes. A systematic review was performed in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. From November – December 2018, studies that examined the effects of BFR training in athletes were identified using PubMed and OVID Medline. Reference lists from selected articles were analyzed for additional studies. The inclusion criteria for full text-review were randomized studies with control groups that implemented BFR training into athletes’ resistance training workouts. Case reports and review studies were excluded. The following data was extracted: patient demographics, study design, training protocol, occlusive cuff location/pressure, maximum strength improvements, muscle size measurements, markers of sport performance (e.g. sprint time, agility tests and jump measurements), and other study specific markers (e.g. electromyography, muscular torque, and muscular endurance). The initial search identified 237 articles. After removing duplicates and screening titles, abstracts, and full text, ten studies were identified that met the inclusion criteria. Seven of nine (78%) studies found a significant increase in strength associated with use of BFR training compared to control groups; four of eight (50%) found significant increases in muscle size associated with BFR therapy; three of four (75%) reported significant improvements in sport specific measurements in the groups that used BFR training. Occlusive cuff pressure varied across studies from 110-240 mmHG. This study demonstrates that BFR is effective at improving strength, muscle size, and markers of sports performance in healthy athletes. Combining traditional resistance training with BFR may allow athletes to maximize athletic performance and remain in good health. Additional studies should be conducted to find an optimal occlusive pressure to maximize training improvements.

Blood Flow Restriction Training for Athletes: A Systematic Review

Background: Blood flow restriction (BFR) is a novel technique involving the use of a cuff/tourniquet system positioned around the proximal end of an extremity to maintain arterial flow while restricting venous return. Purpose: To analyze the available literature regarding the use of BFR to supplement traditional resistance training in healthy athletes. Study Design: Systematic review. Methods: A systematic review was performed in accordance with the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines. From November to December 2018, studies that examined the effects of BFR training in athletes were identified using PubMed and OVID Medline. Reference lists from selected articles were analyzed for additional studies. The inclusion criteria for full article review were randomized studies with control groups that implemented BFR training into athletes’ resistance training workouts. Case reports and review studies were excluded. The following data were extracted: patient demographics, study design, training protocol, occlusive cuff location/pressure, maximum strength improvements, muscle size measurements, markers of sports performance (eg, sprint time, agility tests, and jump measurements), and other study-specific markers (eg, electromyography, muscular torque, and muscular endurance). Results: The initial search identified 237 articles. After removal of duplicates and screening of titles, abstracts, and full articles, 10 studies were identified that met the inclusion criteria. Seven of 9 (78%) studies found a significant increase in strength associated with use of BFR training as compared with control; 4 of 8 (50%) noted significant increases in muscle size associated with BFR training; and 3 of 4 (75%) reported significant improvements in sport-specific measurements in the groups that used BFR training. Occlusive cuff pressure varied across studies, from 110 to 240 mm HG. Conclusion: The literature appears to support that BFR can lead to improvements in strength, muscle size, and markers of sports performance in healthy athletes. Combining traditional resistance training with BFR may allow athletes to maximize athletic performance and remain in good health. Additional studies should be conducted to find an optimal occlusive pressure to maximize training improvements. Registration: CRD42019118025 (PROSPERO).

Effect of caffeine on maximal oxygen uptake in wheelchair rugby players: A randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study

Background: The positive effects of caffeine supplementation on strength-power and endurance performance in healthy athletes have been demonstrated in many studies. A possible mechanism for its ergogenic effect relates to its influence on the central nervous system. Post-traumatic complications in cervical spinal cord injury affect almost all body systems including the nervous system. For this reason, we expect that caffeine will have a different effect of performance in the group of athletes with spinal cord injuries. Objective: To examine the effects of caffeine supplementation on maximal aerobic power in elite wheelchair rugby players. Methods: Seven elite male wheelchair rugby players with complete cervical-level SCI (C4-Th1) were recruited (mean age: 28 ± 5.42 years; mean body mass index: 26 ± 2.84 kg/m2). The effect of caffeine was assessed by an incremental arm ergometer test until volitional exhaustion. The maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max/kg), maximum power (W max/kg), peak heart rate (HR peak), and intensity of perceived exertion (RPE) were measured. Participants performed the test twice with a two-week washout period. One hour before each exercise test subjects ingested a capsule of placebo or caffeine (3 mg per kg of body weight). The tests were applied in a double-blind, randomized, repeated-measures, and cross-over design. Wheelchair rugby players were chosen because of the expected high homogeneity of participants - in terms of the type and degree of disability, gender, and age of the players. Results: The monitored parameters were not significantly influenced by caffeine intervention as compared to placebo: VO2max/kg (p = .40), W max/kg (p = .34), HR peak (p = .50) and RPE (p = .50). Conclusions: The current findings suggest that a caffeine dose of 3 mg/kg body mass does not improve oxygen uptake and maximal power in elite wheelchair rugby players.

ANKLE BIOMECHANICS AND JUMP PERFORMANCE IN HEALTHY AND CHRONIC ANKLE INSTABILITY INDIVIDUALS DURING LANDING: A TRIPLE BLIND RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIAL OF ANKLE TAPING EFFICACY

BackgroundClinicians regularly utilize ankle taping procedures to prevent ankle sprains during practice/competition. Though many different ankle taping applications are employed, the effect of these on biomechanics and performance is unknown.ObjectiveTo...

The Effects of a Prophylactic Knee Brace and Two Neoprene Knee Sleeves on the Performance of Healthy Athletes: A Crossover Randomized Controlled Trial

Knee injury is one of the major problems in sports medicine, and the use of prophylactic knee braces is an attempt to reduce the occurrence and/or severity of injuries to the knee joint ligament(s) without inhibiting knee mobility. The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of one recently designed prophylactic knee brace and two neoprene knee sleeves upon performance of healthy athletes. Thirty-one healthy male athletes (age = 21.2±1.5) volunteered as participants to examine the effect of prophylactic knee brace/sleeves on performance using isokinetic and functional tests. All subjects were tested in four conditions in a random order: 1. nonbraced (control) 2. using a neoprene knee sleeve 3. using a knee sleeve with four bilateral metal supports and 4. using a prophylactic knee brace. The study design was a crossover, randomized, controlled trial. Subjects completed single leg vertical jump, cross-over hop, and the isokinetic knee flexion and extension (at 60, 180, 300°/sec). Data were collected from the above tests and analyzed for jump height, cross-over hop distance, peak torque to body weight ratio and average power, respectively. Comparisons of these variables in the four testing conditions revealed no statistically significant difference (p>0.05). The selected prophylactic brace/sleeves did not significantly inhibit athletic performance which might verify that their structure and design have caused no complication in the normal function of the knee joint. Moreover, it could be speculated that, if the brace or the sleeves had any limiting effect, our young healthy athletic subjects were well able to generate a mean peak torque large enough to overcome this possible restriction. Further studies are suggested to investigate the long term effect of these prophylactic knee brace and sleeves as well as their possible effect on the adjacent joints to the knee.

Effect of acute and short-term oral salbutamol treatments on maximal power output in non-asthmatic athletes

This study aimed to clarify the controversial effects of acute and short-term salbutamol (SAL) intake on sprint performance in healthy athletes. Based on the results of previous studies, an anabolic effect for the short-term treatment and increased glycolysis in both treatments were hypothesized. Eight male recreational athletes completed force-velocity exercise tests after administration of placebo (gelatin), acute oral SAL (6 mg) or short-term oral SAL (12 mg day(-1) for 3 weeks), using a double-blind and randomized protocol. A friction-loaded cycle ergometer fitted with a strain gauge, and an incremental encoder ensured accurate measurement of the force-velocity relationship during sprints. Mechanical data were averaged during each pedal downstroke. Compared with placebo after both acute and 3 weeks of continuous treatment, the force-velocity relationship shifted to the right with power output gains of 14 and 8% (p < 0.001), respectively. This effect was less marked for 3 weeks of continuous treatment compared with acute administration (p < 0.001), suggesting a down-regulation in adrenoceptors. Our first hypothesis thus seems rejected. Significantly higher end-of-exercise and recovery blood lactate concentrations were found under SAL compared with placebo (p < 0.001), supporting our second hypothesis. In conclusion, these data indicate that oral administration of SAL is an effective ergogenic aid for sprint exercise in non-asthmatic athletes. Moreover, an acute treatment seems to be more effective than 3 weeks of continuous treatment.

Effect of functional knee brace use on acceleration, agility, leg power and speed performance in healthy athletes

ObjectivesTo investigate performance levels and accommodation period to functional knee brace (FKB) use in non-injured braced subjects while completing acceleration, agility, lower extremity power and speed tasks.DesignA 2 (non-braced and...

β2-Agonists and Physical Performance

Inhaled β₂-agonists are commonly used as bronchodilators in the treatment of asthma. Their use in athletes, however, is restricted by anti-doping regulations. Controversies remain as to whether healthy elite athletes who use bronchodilators may gain a competitive advantage. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to assess the effects of inhaled and systemic β₂-agonists on physical performance in healthy, non-asthmatic subjects. To this end, MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) were searched up to August 2009. Reference lists were searched for additional relevant studies. The search criteria were for randomized controlled trials examining the effect of inhaled or systemic β₂-agonists on physical performance in healthy, non-asthmatic subjects. Two authors independently performed the selection of studies, data extraction and risk of bias assessment. Parallel-group and crossover trials were analysed separately. Mean difference (MD) and 95% confidence intervals were calculated for continuous data and, where possible, data were pooled using a fixed effects model. Twenty-six studies involving 403 participants (age range 7-30 years) compared inhaled β₂-agonists with placebo. No significant effect could be detected for inhaled β₂-agonists on maximal oxygen consumption (VO₂(max)) [MD -0.14 mL · kg⁻¹ · min⁻¹; 95% CI -1.07, 0.78; 16 studies], endurance time to exhaustion at 105-110% VO₂(max) (MD -1.5 s; 95% CI -15.6, 12.6; four studies), 20-km time trial duration (MD -4.4 s; 95% CI -23.5, 14.7; two studies), peak power (MD -0.14 W · kg⁻¹; 95% CI -0.54, 0.27; four studies) and total work during a 30-second Wingate test (MD 0.80 J · kg⁻¹; 95% CI -2.44, 4.05; five studies). Thirteen studies involving 172 participants (age range 7-22 years) compared systemic β₂-agonists with placebo, with 12 studies involving oral and one study involving intravenous salbutamol. A significant effect was detected for systemic β₂-agonists on endurance time to exhaustion at 80-85% VO₂(max) (MD 402 s; 95% CI 34, 770; two studies), but not for VO₂(max) (placebo 42.5 ± 1.7 mL · kg⁻¹ · min⁻¹, salbutamol 42.1 ± 2.9 mL · kg⁻¹ · min⁻¹, one study), endurance time to exhaustion at 70% VO₂(max) (MD 400 s; 95% CI -408, 1208; one study) or power output at 90% VO₂(max) (placebo 234.9 ± 16 W, salbutamol 235.5 ± 18.1 W, one study). A significant effect was shown for systemic β₂-agonists on peak power (MD 0.91 W · kg⁻¹; 95% CI 0.25, 1.57; four studies), but not on total work (MD 7.8 J · kg⁻¹; 95% CI -3.3, 18.9; four studies) during a 30-second Wingate test. There were no randomized controlled trials assessing the effects of systemic formoterol, salmeterol or terbutaline on physical performance. In conclusion, no significant effects were detected for inhaled β₂-agonists on endurance, strength or sprint performance in healthy athletes. There is some evidence indicating that systemic β₂-agonists may have a positive effect on physical performance in healthy subjects, but the evidence base is weak.

Plyometric Training Versus Resistive Exercises After Acute Lateral Ankle Sprain

Plyometric training is a widely used method to improve performance in healthy athletes. It is highly recommended in the late stage of rehabilitation of many lower limb injuries. However, its effects on muscle strength and function in management of lateral ankle sprain have not been reported. Therefore, the objective of the current study was to determine the effects of plyometric training versus resistive exercises on muscle strength and function following acute lateral ankle sprain. Twenty-two athletes (aged from 20 to 35 years) of both sexes with grade I or II unilateral inversion ankle sprain participated in the study (at least 3 weeks after acute injury). They were randomly assigned to two groups. The first group received plyometric training, whereas the second one received resistive training for 6 weeks. Isokinetic peak torque/body weight for invertors and evertors at 30 degrees/s and 120 degrees/s and functional tests were assessed before and after training. Both plyometric and resistive training improve isokinetic evertor and invertor peak torques and functional performance of athletes p < 0.05. There were no significant differences between groups concerning peak torque/body weight for invertors and evertors at both speeds measured p > 0.05. The functional test measures of the plyometric group were significantly higher than that of resistive group. Plyometrics were more effective than resistive exercises in improving functional performance of athletes after lateral ankle sprain.