Applied Sports Science newsletter, February 24, 2015


Applied Sports Science news articles, blog posts and research papers for February 24, 2015

 

Revealed: The science behind Liverpool FC – This Is Anfield

This Is Anfield blog from

The scientific research carried out behind the scenes at Liverpool FC, which supports the players to perform to their maximum, has been explained in a series of recently published papers.
 

Effects of fast-velocity eccentric resistance training on early and late rate of force development

European Journal of Sport Science from

This study examined whether short-term maximal resistance training employing fast-velocity eccentric knee extensor actions would induce improvements in maximal isometric torque and rate of force development (RFD) at early (<100 ms) and late phases (>100 ms) of rising torque. Twenty healthy men were assigned to two experimental groups: eccentric resistance training (TG) or control (CG). Participants on the TG trained three days a week for a total of eight weeks. Training consisted of maximal unilateral eccentric knee extensors actions performed at 180°s-1. Maximal isometric knee extensor torque (MVC) and incremental RFD in successive 50 ms time-windows from the onset contraction were analysed in absolute terms (RFDINC) or when normalised relative to MVC (RFDREL). After eight weeks, TG demonstrated increases in MVC (28%), RFDINC (0–50 ms: 30%; 50–100 ms: 31%) and RFDREL (0–50 ms: 29%; 50–100 ms: 32%). Moreover, no changes in the late phase of incremental RFD were observed in TG. No changes were found in the CG. In summary, we have demonstrated, in active individuals, that a short period of resistance training performed with eccentric fast-velocity isokinetic muscle contractions is able to enhance RFDINC and RFDREL obtained at the early phase of rising joint torque.
 

Why Workplace Accidents Tend to Happen Late in a Project

Harvard Business Review, Neil Swidey from

The more people do something without suffering a bad outcome, the harder it becomes for them to remain aware of the risks associated with that behavior.
 

When Failure Is Not an Option: Creating Excellence in Sport Through Insights From Special Forces

International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance from

Sport presents elite athletes with numerous physical and psychological challenges. According to Professor Vincent Walsh,1 only a soldier in combat is presented with a more challenging activity for the human brain. Both sport and combat require physical preparation, mental focus, and emotional control. While success in sport can result in social recognition, financial gain, and a sense of selfachievement, success for elite soldiers is linked to achieving mission objectives while at the same time remaining functional and avoiding casualties. Given the demands placed on elite soldiers, the high-stress environment in which they perform, the intense training and selection processes they endure, and ultimately the consequences of failure, it is highly likely that the elite sport community can benefit from understanding different aspects of selecting and preparing Special Forces soldiers. At the very least, a comparison of these 2 elite groups may help us understand characteristics that may exemplify excellence.
 

USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program | NBC Sports

NBC Sports from

Take a look at USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program, which was created to develop elite American hockey players. Notable NTDP alumni include NHL stars, Phil Kessel, Ryan Suter and Patrick Kane.
 

How To Improve Attention and Ability to Focus – PsyBlog

PsyBlog from

Learning to periodically self-check can improve attention and help people focus better on tasks, a new study finds.

Researchers have found that neurofeedback can be a useful tool in the quest to improve attention.

 

Deeper Look Through BSXinsight – Muscle Oxygenation

BSXinsight from

We’ve had a number of requests asking to see the raw data captured by BSXinsight during a lactate threshold assessment test. At the heart of these inquiries is a desire to understand how the data correlates with one’s lactate threshold. Below is a graph with an athlete’s muscle oxygenation (SmO2) recorded by BSXinsight during a cycling assessment test. We’ve overlaid that with the blood lactate (BLa) results from the same test.
 

Frontiers | Biomaterials and bioactive molecules to drive differentiation in striated muscle tissue engineering | Striated Muscle Physiology

Frontiers in Physiology from

The generation of engineered tissues and organs has entered into the clinical practice in response to the chronic lack of organ donors. In particular, for the skeletal and cardiac muscles the translational potential of tissue engineering approaches has clearly been shown, even though the construction of these tissues lags behind others given the hierarchical, highly organized architecture of striated muscles. Failure of the cardiac tissue leads to cardiovascular diseases, which are the leading cause of death in the developed world (Di Felice et al., 2014). On the other hand, there are many clinical cases where the loss of skeletal muscle due to a traumatic injury, an aggressive tumor, or prolonged denervation may be cured by the regeneration of the muscle tissue (Perniconi and Coletti, 2014).

In this volume, we have included articles from renowned researchers in the fields of skeletal and cardiac muscle engineering who have contributed with methods, original research, and review articles covering various aspects of native and synthetic biomaterials or three-dimensional (3D) structures able to induce stem cell differentiation and which may be used in pre-clinical and clinical studies.

 

New football boot designed with help from Loughborough University scientists

Leicester Mercury from

Sports scientists at Loughborough University have helped design one of the lightest pairs of football boots ever made.

The Velocita Pro boots, designed for sports equipment giant Umbro, weight just 165 grams – less than six ounces.

 

A Technology Intro for Coaches; How to Navigate this New World

Sparta Point blog from

Technology is influencing the world of sports performance in a big way these days. This will be a multi-part series discussing technology in general, penned by the Chief Technology Officer at Sparta, Richard Heal. It won’t discuss specific applications to avoid bias. The idea is to educate, as like nutrition there are many myths and a lot of misinformation. We will try to dispel those myths and provide useful information.

Lets start with some basic software terminology and observations.

 

New training device catapults into Vanderbilt

The Tennessean from

Vanderbilt defensive end Caleb Azubike admits some skepticism when a GPS device was inserted into his shoulder pads during a recent football practice.

“I had no clue what it was or how it worked, but I knew it was GPS that our strength coaches put in there to help the team,” Azubike said. “I actually didn’t know it was in my pads the first day until they told me after practice. Now I’m curious to see the results of how hard I worked because they know.”

 

The Five Nutrition Rules Every Athlete Must Know

Outside Online, Performance Plate from

… According to Matt Fitzgerald, a top sports nutritionist, this boundless dietary experimentation is unnecessary at best and detrimental to health and performance at worst. “I’ve kind of developed a cottage industry of saving athletes that go on some sort of extreme diet and see their results and health suffer,” says Fitzgerald.
 

Brentford’s brave new world is already working in Denmark | Sean Ingle | Football | The Guardian

The Guardian, Sean Ingle from

Critics of Brentford chairman Matthew Benham should take note: his continental structure and mathematical approach is already working at FC Midtjylland, the club he rescued in Denmark.
 

NFL teams amassing scientific data, but what does it mean?

USA Today from

NFL teams left the scouting combine Monday with more information than ever on each prospect as football’s sports science revolution continues to accelerate.

Now comes the tricky part: figuring out what exactly all the numbers mean.

 


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