Search results for "Sport Science"

Differences in the Psychological Profiles of Elite and Non-elite Athletes.

2021

One of the main goals of sport psychology is to identify those psychological factors that are relevant for sport performance as well as possibilities of their development. The aim of the study was to determine whether the set of specific psychological characteristics [generalized self-efficacy, time perspective, emotional intelligence (EI), general achievement motivation, and personality dimensions] makes the distinction between athletes based on their (non)-participation in the senior national team, that is, their belonging to the subsample of elite or non-elite athletes depending on this criterion. According to the group centroids it can be said that elite athletes are characterized by a …

Continuity and Discontinuity of Sport and Exercise Type During the COVID-19 Pandemic : An Exploratory Study of Effects on Mood

2020

Involvement in sport and exercise not only provides participants with health benefits but can be an important aspect of living a meaningful life. The COVID-19 pandemic and the temporary cessation of public life in March/April/May 2020 came with restrictions, which probably also made it difficult, if not impossible, to participate in certain types of sport or exercise. Following the philosophical position that different types of sport and exercise offer different ways of “relating to the world,” this study explored (dis)continuity in the type of sport and exercise people practiced during the pandemic-related lockdown, and possible effects on mood. Data from a survey of 601 adult exercisers, …

The importance of coaches' autonomy support in the leisure experience and well-being of young footballers

2018

Drawing on the self-determination framework, the study examined the effect of coaches' autonomy support on the leisure experience of young male football players. Specifically, a model was tested analyzing the long-term predictive power of the players' perceptions of the coaches' autonomy support at the beginning of the season on the subjective vitality of young football players at the end of the season, through needs satisfaction and intrinsic motivation (IM). Moreover, we tested whether the effects of coaches' autonomy support on the aforementioned variables (needs satisfaction, IM, and subjective vitality) at the end of the season remained at the beginning of the following season. Because…

Job Satisfaction of Fitness Professionals in Portugal: A Comparative Study of Gender, Age, Professional Experience, Professional Title, and Education…

2021

This research characterizes and compares the job satisfaction of fitness professionals in Portugal between genders, ages, professional experience, professional title, and educational qualifications. A total of 401 fitness professionals answered the online questionnaire Job Satisfaction Scale, which has 16 factors rated on a Likert scale with seven levels. The statistical analysis comprises descriptive and statistical tests to compare the results of two (t-test) or more (ANOVA) groups. Overall, the results demonstrated that fitness professionals were moderately satisfied with their work. The lower degrees of job satisfaction were concerning salary, opportunities for promotion, and stability …

Water polo game-related statistics in women’s international championships as a function of final score differences

2016

The aims of this study were: (i) to compare water polo game-related statistics by context (winning and losing teams) and final score differences (using three categories – “close” games, “unbalanced...

2019

Ankle plantar flexor muscles are active in the stance phase of walking to propel the body forward. Increasing walking speed requires increased plantar flexor excitation, frequently assessed using surface electromyography (EMG). Despite its popularity, validity of surface EMG applied on shank muscles is mostly unclear. Thus, we examined the agreement between surface and intramuscular EMG at a range of walking speeds. Ten participants walked overground at slow, preferred, fast, and maximum walking speeds (1.01 ± 0.13, 1.43 ± 0.19, 1.84 ± 0.23, and 2.20 ± 0.38 m s-1, respectively) while surface and fine-wire EMG activities of flexor hallucis longus (FHL), soleus (SOL), medial gastrocnemius (MG…

Estimating Heart Rate, Energy Expenditure, and Physical Performance With a Wrist Photoplethysmographic Device During Running

2017

BackgroundWearable sensors enable long-term monitoring of health and wellbeing indicators. An objective evaluation of sensors’ accuracy is important, especially for their use in health care. ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to use a wrist-worn optical heart rate (OHR) device to estimate heart rate (HR), energy expenditure (EE), and maximal oxygen intake capacity (VO2Max) during running and to evaluate the accuracy of the estimated parameters (HR, EE, and VO2Max) against golden reference methods. MethodsA total of 24 healthy volunteers, of whom 11 were female, with a mean age of 36.2 years (SD 8.2 years) participated in a submaximal self-paced outdoor running test and maximal voluntary exe…

Effect of footwear on plantar flexor fine-wire electromyography activity in walking

2019

Compared to barefoot walking, walking in footwear seems to alter plantar flexor electromyography (EMG) activity, vertical and horizontal ground reaction forces (Sacco, Akashi, & Hennig, 2010), ankle kinematics and the time of peak activity (Sacco et al., 2010). However, study results are inconsistent regarding the magnitude and direction of these changes. Magnetic resonance imaging showed high inter-individual variability in muscle metabolic activity during walking, suggesting individual-specific activation patterns (Kolk et al., 2015). Additionally, little is known about the role of toe flexors such as flexor hallucis longus (FHL) in walking.

Clinical Applications

2020

The study of the diagnostic accuracy of Infrared Thermal Imaging in the diagnosis of orthopaedic injuries in childhood has been motivated by the high incidence of these injuries throughout the world, being one of the most common reasons for urgent medical consultation. Diagnosis of musculoskeletal injuries usually involves radiography, but this exposes children without fractures to unnecessary ionising radiation. This chapter assesses whether infrared thermography could provide a viable alternative in cases of trauma. To evaluate the accuracy of this technique new thermographic variables have been added to those commonly analysed, such as the extent of the injury and the difference in the s…

Effects of soluble milk protein or casein supplementation on muscle fatigue following resistance training program: a randomized, double-blind, and pl…

2014

International audience; Background: The effects of protein supplementation on muscle thickness, strength and fatigue seem largely dependent on its composition. The current study compared the effects of soluble milk protein, micellar casein, and a placebo on strength and fatigue during and after a resistance training program. Methods: Sixty-eight physically active men participated in this randomized controlled trial and underwent 10 weeks of lower-body resistance training. Participants were randomly assigned to the Placebo (PLA), Soluble Milk Protein (SMP, with fast digestion rate) or Micellar Casein (MC, with slow digestion rate) group. During the 10-week training period, participants were …