Mediating effects of resistance training skill competency on health-related fitness and physical activity: the ATLAS cluster randomised controlled trial

The purpose of this study was to examine the mediating effect of resistance training skill competency on percentage of body fat, muscular fitness and physical activity among a sample of adolescent boys participating in a school-based obesity prevention intervention. Participants were 361 adolescent boys taking part in the Active Teen Leaders Avoiding Screen-time (ATLAS) cluster randomised controlled trial: a school-based program targeting the health behaviours of economically disadvantaged adolescent males considered “at-risk” of obesity. Body fat percentage (bioelectrical impedance), muscular fitness (hand grip dynamometry and push-ups), physical activity (accelerometry) and resistance training skill competency were assessed at baseline and post-intervention (i.e., 8 months). Three separate multi-level mediation models were analysed to investigate the potential mediating effects of resistance training skill competency on each of the study outcomes using a product-of-coefficients test. Analyses followed the intention-to-treat principle. The intervention had a significant impact on the resistance training skill competency of the boys, and improvements in skill competency significantly mediated the effect of the intervention on percentage of body fat and the combined muscular fitness score. No significant mediated effects were found for physical activity. Improving resistance training skill competency may be an effective strategy for achieving improvements in body composition and muscular fitness in adolescent boys.     

Effects of 12 weeks of combined training without caloric restriction on inflammatory markers in overweight girls

The objective of the present study was to investigate the effects of combined training without caloric restriction on inflammatory markers in overweight girls. Thirty-three girls (13–17 years) were assigned into overweight training (n = 17) or overweight control (n = 16) groups. Additionally, a normal-weight group (n = 15) was used as control for the baseline values. The combined training programme consisted of six resistance exercises (three sets of 6–10 repetitions at 60–70% 1 RM) followed by 30 min of aerobic exercise (walking/running) at 50–80% VO_2peak, performed in the same 60 min session, 3 days/weeks, for 12 weeks. Body composition, dietary intake, aerobic fitness (VO_2peak), muscular strength (1 RM), glycaemia, insulinemia, lipid profile and inflammatory markers (C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, tumour necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin-10, leptin, resistin and adiponectin) were measured before and after intervention. There was a significant decrease in body fat (P < 0.01) and increase in fat-free mass (P < 0.01), VO_2peak (P < 0.01), 1 RM for leg press (P < 0.01) and bench press (P < 0.01) in the overweight training group. Concomitantly, this group presented significant decreases in serum concentrations of C-reactive protein (P < 0.05) and leptin (P < 0.05), as well as in insulin resistance (P < 0.05) after the experimental period. In conclusion, 12 weeks of combined training without caloric restriction reduced inflammatory markers associated with obesity in overweight girls.     

Do cognitive training strategies improve motor and positive psychological skills development in soccer players? Insights from a systematic review

ABSTRACT

Soccer players are required to have well-developed physical, technical and cognitive abilities. The present systematic review, adhering to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines, examined the effects of cognitive training strategies on motor and positive psychological skills development in soccer performance and identified the potential moderators of the “cognitive training–soccer performance” relationship. Thirteen databases were systematically searched using keywords related to psychological or cognitive training in soccer players. The review is based on 18 studies, employing 584 soccer players aged 7–39 years. Cognitive strategies, particularly imagery, appear to improve sports performance in soccer players. Regarding imagery, the combination of two different types of cognitive imagery training (i.e., cognitive general and cognitive specific) has a positive influence on soccer performance during training, whereas motivational imagery (i.e., motivational general-arousal, motivational general-mastery and motivational specific) enhance competition performance. Younger soccer players employ cognitive general and cognitive specific imagery techniques to a greater extent than older soccer players. Combined cognitive training strategies were more beneficial than a single cognitive strategy relative to motor skills enhancement in elite (particularly midfielders) and amateur (i.e., when practising complex and specific soccer skills in precompetitive period) soccer players. In conclusion, it appears that there are differences in cognitive/psychological training interventions, and their efficacy, according to whether they are directed towards training or competition, and the age, standard and playing position of the players.     

Multivariate analyses of individual variation in soccer skill as a tool for talent identification and development: utilising evolutionary theory in sports science

The development of a comprehensive protocol for quantifying soccer-specific skill could markedly improve both talent identification and development. Surprisingly, most protocols for talent identification in soccer still focus on the more generic athletic attributes of team sports, such as speed, strength, agility and endurance, rather than on a player’s technical skills. We used a multivariate methodology borrowed from evolutionary analyses of adaptation to develop our quantitative assessment of individual soccer-specific skill. We tested the performance of 40 individual academy-level players in eight different soccer-specific tasks across an age range of 13–18 years old. We first quantified the repeatability of each skill performance then explored the effects of age on soccer-specific skill, correlations between each of the pairs of skill tasks independent of age, and finally developed an individual metric of overall skill performance that could be easily used by coaches. All of our measured traits were highly repeatable when assessed over a short period and we found that an individual’s overall skill – as well as their performance in their best task – was strongly positively correlated with age. Most importantly, our study established a simple but comprehensive methodology for assessing skill performance in soccer players, thus allowing coaches to rapidly assess the relative abilities of their players, identify promising youths and work on eliminating skill deficits in players.     

Motorische Leistungsfähigkeit von Kindern und Jugendlichen in Deutschland

Motor performance is an important health resource. Review articles revealed a decline of motor performance of approximately 10?% between 1975 and 2006. In the past most of the data available for such comparisons came from ad hoc studies with non-standardized methods. Within the framework of the ”Motorik-Modul“ (MoMo) study as part of the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS), it is possible for the first time to directly compare two cohorts in the ages of 4–17 years in a nationally representative database for Germany. The aim of this article is to report changes in motor performance of children and adolescents in the time period 2003–2006 (cohort baseline n = 4528) compared to 2009–2012 (cohort wave 1, n = 2820). Overall, it is clearly shown that the motor performance of children and adolescents in Germany did not decrease within the observational period of 6 years. The comparison of mean values of the baseline cohort compared to those of wave 1 showed that 28 out of 52 mean values of the two cohorts with a high probability did not differ based on 95?% confidence intervals (CI). In 24 out of the 52 mean values positive changes could be noted based on the individual 95?% CI values. There were more positive changes in primary school aged children than in other age groups. Within these positive changes, most effect sizes were small to medium. The results indicate that recent activities aiming at elevating motor performance levels may have started to make an impact and should be expanded, also in secondary schools. The comparative cohort study presented in this article is currently being checked by the ongoing MoMo wave 2 survey of 2014–2017.     

Una Antorcha de Esperanza: Mexico and the 1955 Pan-American Games

Abstract

While most equate Mexican Olympism with the 1968 Olympic Games, few know the drama of the event that laid its groundwork. From the creation of the Ministry of Public Education in 1921, cultural and military leaders heavily invested in sports infrastructure to help regenerate its rural masses, but by the 1940s, post-war modernizers sought the hosting of large international athletic events to boost its prestige, foment national pride, and prove to the world it was ready to springboard into modernity. This paper recounts the triumphs, betrayals, corruption, and politics of Pan-American sport and the Olympic movement in Mexico in the 1940s and 1950s that culminated in the improbable success of the 1955 Mexico City Pan-American Games.     

Exposing the dark side,an exploration of the influence social capital has upon parental sports volunteers

This study explored the influence social capital had over parental sports volunteers who are considered to be of paramount importance in the delivery of UK sports initiatives. A review of the relevant literature identifies and discusses the complexities within the debate to define social capital while human and cultural capital emerge as an essential element in the production of parental volunteers’ ability to access opportunities through a process of bonding or bridging social networks. This study used a grounded research focused on the use of semi-structured interviews and research diaries with (n = 8) study participants. The results from this study, which were analysed through a Bourdieuan perspective, suggested the process that recruits parental volunteers is exclusive; furthermore, the results show the insidious presences of the dark side of social capital, which affected the respondents by reinforcing exclusive ties and identities, which was found to exclude outsiders while reproducing a dominant social hierarchy. The paper concludes by considering the implications of the study for future practical and academic applications of social capital production within sports volunteerism.     

Validity of Self-Reported Pedometer Steps per Day in College Students

The purpose of this article was to examine the validity of self-reported pedometer steps/day. Forty-seven participants were provided a New Lifestyles NL-2000 (NL-2000; Lees Summit, MO, USA) pedometer and a physical activity (PA) diary for 3 weeks, but not informed of the data-storing capabilities. For weeks 2 and 3, each participant was given a step goal of 3,000 steps/day above week 1 average. A 2 × 3 repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to examine differences between reported steps/day. Bland–Altman plots assessed the mean bias and limits of agreement between reporting methods. Mean self-reported and NL-2000 steps/day were 9,264 ± 3,555 and 8,971 ± 3,590 steps/day (n = 26, p > .05). Mean biases were 216 ± 1,753 (week 1), –506 ± 1,355 (week 2), and –590 ± 1,360 (week 3) steps/day. Negative mean bias values indicate higher self-reported steps/day. Mean steps/day were similar between recording methods, but large differences were observed among individuals, suggesting self-reported steps/day may be valid for PA research at the population level, but not the individual level.     

Elite wheelchair rugby: a quantitative analysis of chair configuration in Australia

Limited recommendations of wheelchair configurations for court sports have been identified in the published literature. To accommodate the wide range of impairments in wheelchair rugby, players are given a point score that reflects their impairment. Players have regularly been grouped as high-, mid-, or low-point players in research, with high-point players having greater levels of muscle function compared with other classifications. This research documented the wheelchair configurations of elite Australian wheelchair rugby players across classification groups. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were found for increased seat height and decreased seat depth for high-point players compared with low- and mid-point groups, respectively. Low-point players displayed reduced wheelchair mass compared with high- and mid-point players, as well as increased frame length. Camber angles showed no significant differences across the classification groups. The incorporation of anthropometric measures, such as the elbow angle at the top dead center, was also investigated. While elbow angle showed no significant differences, seat height-to-total arm length ratio was higher for high-point players. Participants also completed surveys detailing their perception of the effect of altering wheelchair configurations. It is suggested that wheelchair configurations should consider an individual’s anthropometrics, impairment, training history, and court role to promote optimal performance, with predictive modeling having the potential to reduce the associated time and cost.