Applied Sports Science newsletter – December 29, 2015

James Harrison could sleep with a curl bar and it would surprise no one. the Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker lifts an obscene amount of weight, which he documents on social media (either a teammate or a trainer holds the camera).

But Harrison hasn’t reduced the workload with age. He’s going bigger, heavier.

More pounds equals more years.

The first lesson from The Larry Fitzgerald School of Being a Pro is simple: Show up. When you’re required to show up, show up. When you’re not required to show up, show up anyway. Put the extra work in. Always be working, always be getting better. Every rep counts.

I learned that before I even caught a ball in a Cardinals uniform.

Every summer, Larry holds a camp for NFL players up in Minnesota, where we’re both from. He’s been doing it forever, and players from around the league — not just from the Cardinals — go up there to get extra work in and learn from each other.

It bothers former Pro Bowl offensive lineman LeCharles Bentley to hear fans and media members labeling Cameron Erving a “bust.”

The Cleveland native believes the description is inaccurate and unfair. Bentley thinks the Browns rookie offensive lineman has a “high level of talent” and defends the organization’s decision to select him in the first round.

He’s also witnessed the season-long struggles and some embarrassing rookie moments, leading Bentley to observe: “Technically, he has no clue what he’s doing.”

This cross-government strategy will tackle head on the flatlining levels of sport participation and high levels of inactivity in this country. Through this strategy, government is redefining what success in sport means, with a new focus on five key outcomes: physical wellbeing, mental wellbeing, individual development, social and community development and economic development. In future, funding decisions will be made on the basis of the outcomes that sport and physical activity can deliver.

… I learned some critical lessons about how to handle adverse conditions that have shaped my life. Here are what I think are the three most important:

1. You Have To Take Responsibility And Channel Your Initial Emotions

The best way to understand Mauricio Pochettino is to observe him in action as a player, a coach at the training ground, or, better still, both. A few years ago, Southampton released a video in which he takes on Luke Shaw in game of two-touch football tennis. While Shaw is casual and light-hearted, Pochettino is engrossed, vocal, competitive. One ace merits clenched fists and cries of ‘Vamos! Vamos!’. A failed attempt at chesting the ball over the net triggers a despairing ‘Nooooo!’. When he wins the match, he sinks to his knees in celebration. This is the real Pochettino—a man of fervent ambition, discipline and dedication—whose temperament infuse teams that fight tooth and nail. His composed touchline persona can deceive. In one press conference, in which he admitted to having lost his rag with the players at half-time, it was put to him that such behaviour might seem out of character. “Really?” he replied. “I don’t really see myself in that way. I’ve kept up appearances quite well.”

On weekdays, Pochettino typically arrives at 7am and leaves at about 8pm. “My life is to go from the hotel to the training ground,” he once told the BBC. “In football there is not really a timetable; we just work all day long.” His players speak of a gruelling fitness regime that can feature up to three sessions a day. Pochettino has been known to organise drills of fifteen-minute intervals in which he pretends to forget the time, so that the players work harder and for longer than they think. Jack Cork said it felt like you needed two hearts to play for him. “He makes you suffer like a dog, and at the time you hate him for it,” Dani Osvaldo said. “But by the Sunday, you’re grateful, because it works.”

Sleep is fundamental to normal physiological and cognitive function. Sleep promotion strategies have been used extensively in clinical settings, as a treatment for various ailments (ie, insomnia). However, sleep problems are prevalent outside these realms, with 56% of American, 31% of Western European and 29% of Japanese people suffering from sleep problems the previous year. The global public health concern over sleep has increased the demand for sleep promotion interventions, but the efficacy of these strategies is unclear in otherwise healthy and athletic populations. One possibility is due to the presentation and analysis of grouped data, despite sleep naturally being a highly variable and inherent trait. We argue the case for (1) presenting sleep data at the individual level and (2) individualising sleep promotion interventions.

Nearly 40 million kids play organized team sports in the US. For many of them, that means practice multiple times a week (sometimes late into the night), weekend games, and stiff competition to win a coveted spot on the local travel team or private club.

It might mean driving hours to a single game or flying around the country for tournaments. Younger siblings, meanwhile, are left vying for their parents attention.

It can also extract an emotional and physical toll on the young athletes. Dr. William Meehan, director of The Micheli Center for Sports Injury Prevention in Waltham, Massachusetts, said in the last five years, the number of kids being treated there for overuse injuries has grown from zero to 52% of the entire practice.

Under Armour (NYSE:UA) made 2015 the year of its Connected Fitness growth. Under Armour’s 2015 acquisitions of MyFitnessPal and Endomondo (complementing MapMyFitness purchased in 2013), as well as the release of Under Armour’s own Record app early in the year, helped the user base of its digital fitness community skyrocket. … In terms of actual revenue, Connected Fitness brought in only $14.4 million in the latest quarter, accounting for about 1.4% of Under Amour’s total sales. Still, that was 221% more than the prior year, and Under Armour says Connected Fitness helped to support the amazing 23% sales growth in apparel sales and 61% sales growth in footwear as it built the Under Armour brand.

The NCAA continues its commitment to research that will make student-athletes safer

This month, Silverberry Mouhon, a University of Cincinnati senior, concludes his career in college football with impressive numbers as a defensive end, including 20 total sacks. But another piece of Mouhon data signals that UC research is leading the nation in one critical measure.

In his five years at UC, Mouhon, 22, of Norcross, Georgia, has had zero concussions. Zero.

“It’s been great,” he said. “When it’s third down and long, and I can see the ball in my peripheral vision, that puts me at more of an advantage.”

… NCAA chief medical officer Dr. Brian Hainline wants to end NCAA testing for recreational drugs. … Hainline discussed the issue in an interview with The Associated Press.

Although significant research supports the association between physical activity and mental wellbeing, current literature acknowledges that athletes are no less susceptible to mental illness than the general population. Despite welcomed initiatives aimed at improving mental health within elite sport, these programs often fail to target young athletes; an important concern given that the genesis of many mental illnesses are recognized to occur during this critical period. Given the importance of early intervention and effective treatment, and the potentially devastating consequences of clinical issues going undiagnosed, the implications for talent identification and development become obvious. With this in mind, this study sought to examine the range of mental health issues that may impact upon developing athletes and potential consequences for the development process, specific risk and protective factors associated with talent development, along with an examination of current practices concerning the identification of mental health issues in such environments. Qualitative interviews were conducted with purposively sampled clinicians (n = 8) experienced in working with adolescents and/or young athletes. Inductive content analysis was undertaken, identifying four main themes: key behavioral indicators; associated risk factors; associated protective factors; and issues around identification and diagnosis. Key behavioral indicators included behavioral change, along with behaviors associated with eating disorders, anxiety and depression. Risk factors centered on family background, the performance environment, and issues surrounding adolescence. Protective factors were primarily social in nature. Finally, a lack of awareness and understanding of clinical issues, multiple causes of symptoms, non-disclosure and the need for triangulation of assessment were identified. The need for improved identification and intervention strategies was apparent, with coaches identified as well placed to detect general ‘warning signs’ such as behavioral change. Short of integrating trained clinicians into talent development environments, as part of a triangulation process, ecologically validated assessment tools – coupled with appropriate training and signposting – could offer a practical way of flagging potential issues in developing athletes. The need for the development of such an instrument is therefore apparent. Finally, education around the influential role of family is also recommended in order to promote the protective elements and mitigate risk factors.

This study examined the effect of high- (HPBPT) and low-percentage ball possession (LPBPT) on physical and technical indicators during 2014 FIFA World Cup matches. This would enable a regression model to be constructed to further understand the impact of different ball possession (BP) strategies on match performance. Data were collected from 346 international soccer players using a multiple-camera computerised tracking system. Although players in HPBPT covered lower distances (P 0.05) at medium and high speeds. Players in LPBPT covered more distance without BP but less with BP than HPBPT (P < 0.01; ES large). All positions in LPBPT spent less time in the opposing half and attacking third than the players in HPBPT (P < 0.01; ES small–moderate), but all positions in HPBPT completed more short and medium passes than LPBPT (P < 0.01; ES moderate). Players in HPBPT produced more solo runs into the attacking third and penalty area than LPBPT (P < 0.05, ES small). The equation to predict BP from physical and technical indicators highlighted the importance of distances covered (total, with and without BP), time spent in the attacking third and successful short passes during matches. In practical terms, high or low BP does not influence the activity patterns of international matches although HPBPT spend more time in offensive areas of the pitch.

Objectives

There is a growing interest in monitoring the sleep of elite athletes. Polysomnography is considered the gold standard for measuring sleep, however this technique is impractical if the aim is to collect data simultaneously with multiple athletes over consecutive nights. Activity monitors may be a suitable alternative for monitoring sleep, but these devices have not been validated against polysomnography in a population of elite athletes.
Design

Participants (n?=?16) were endurance-trained cyclists participating in a 6-week training camp. Methods: A total of 122 nights of sleep were recorded with polysomnography and activity monitors simultaneously. Agreement, sensitivity, and specificity were calculated from epoch-by-epoch comparisons of polysomnography and activity monitor data. Sleep variables derived from polysomnography and activity monitors were compared using paired t-tests. Activity monitor data were analysed using low, medium, and high sleep-wake thresholds.
Results

Epoch-by-epoch comparisons showed good agreement between activity monitors and polysomnography for each sleep-wake threshold (81-90%). Activity monitors were sensitive to sleep (80-92%), but specificity differed depending on the threshold applied (67-83%). Activity monitors underestimated sleep duration (18-90?min) and overestimated wake duration (4-77?min) depending on the threshold applied.
Conclusions

Applying the correct sleep-wake threshold is important when using activity monitors to measure the sleep of elite athletes. For example, the default sleep-wake threshold (>40 activity counts?=?wake), underestimates sleep duration by ?50?min and overestimates wake duration by ?40?min. In contrast, sleep-wake thresholds that have a high sensitivity to sleep (>80 activity counts?=?wake) yield the best combination of agreement, sensitivity, and specificity.