0000000000272210
AUTHOR
Marko T. Korhonen
Effects of aging and training on sprint performance, muscle structure and contractile function in athletes
Cross-sectional studies were conducted to examine sprint running, anaerobic energy production and muscle properties in male sprinters aged 17-88 years. In addition, a 20-week training intervention was carried out to determine whether older runners can further improve their neuromuscular and performance characteristics by a greater emphasis on strength training. With age, sprint performance declined gradually (5-6%/decade). The slowing of maximum speed was characterized by a reduction in stride length and an increase in contact time along with lower ground reaction forces (GRF) and smaller leg and vertical stiffness during the contact phase. Stride frequency showed small decline while swing …
Motives for competitive sports participation in masters track and field athletes : Impact of sociodemographic factors and competitive background
Objectives Masters athletes due to their lifelong engagement in sport represent a unique group to study motivation for regular physical activity, but there is less scientific data on the sport motives in masters athletes. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the association of age, sex, education, nationality, competitive background and training amount with sport motives of masters track and field athletes. Methods 811 (254 women) athletes aged 35–89 years participated in European Veterans Athletics Championships in the year of 2000. Sport motives were assessed with a questionnaire and categorized into1) well-being, 2) competitive and performance 3) health and fitness motives. R…
Absence of an aging‐related increase in fibre type grouping in athletes and non‐athletes
The ageing‐related loss of muscle mass is thought to be partly attributable to motor neuron loss and motor unit remodelling that result in fibre type grouping. We examined fibre type grouping in 19‐ to 85‐year‐old athletes and non‐athletes and evaluated to which extent any observed grouping is explained by the fibre type composition of the muscle. Since regular physical activity may stimulate reinnervation, we hypothesised that fibre groups are larger in master athletes than in age‐matched non‐athletes. Fibre type grouping was assessed in m. vastus lateralis biopsies from 22 young (19‐27 years) and 35 healthy older (66‐82 years) non‐athletes, and 14 young (20‐29 years), 51 middle‐aged (38‐6…
Sprint and endurance training in relation to redox and inflammatory status and biomarkers of aging in master athletes
Purpose Studies have shown a positive influence of intense athletic training on several biomarkers of aging, but it remains unclear whether this influence is dependent of exercise-training-mode. This study compared redox balance, cytokine levels and biomarkers of aging between master sprinters and endurance athletes, as well as in young and middle-aged individuals as controls. Methods Participants were male master sprinters (SA, 50±8.9yrs; n=13) and endurance runners (EA, 53±8.2yrs; n=18) with remarkable athletic experience (∼25yrs of practice), besides untrained young (YC, 22.7±3.9yrs; n=17) and age-matched controls (MC, 45.5±9.8yrs; n=12). Anamnesis, anthropometrics, biomarkers of aging, …