Applied Sports Science newsletter – July 21, 2017

Applied Sports Science news articles, blog posts and research papers for July 21, 2017

 

Colts want Andrew Luck to have single-digit interceptions

ESPN NFL, Mike Wells from

… Indianapolis wants his interception total to be in single digits.

“We say this all the time, ‘Andrew should not be a double-digit interception guy,'” Colts quarterback coach Brian Schottenheimer said during the team’s offseason workouts. “Like that’s the phrase that we use. He’s just too good of a player. So again, if he can eliminate some of those decision interceptions — I think there are five or six of them — those numbers drop significantly. You’re going to throw interceptions. It just happens.”

 

Brook Lopez Is Still Developing

The Ringer, Paolo Uggetti from

By adding a 3-point shot to his arsenal, the center has avoided basketball obsolescence and become the perfect player for this year’s Lakers squad

 

Tracking Brain Health And Improving Performance — Lessons From Major League Soccer

Huffington Post, Armin Rosen from

Insights from neuroscience and brain health are transforming medicine, psychology, and a range of other fields—including professional sports. Professional sports teams are increasingly identifying brain health as a key variable in athletic performance. At the Global Brain Health and Performance Summit presented by The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center’s Ross Center for Brain Health and Performance, Peter Edwards, M.D. the team doctor for Major League Soccer’s Columbus Crew, explained that “the brain-body continuum or interface is something that affects all performance. And if we can modify that continuum, we’re able to improve performance.”

According to Steve Tashjian, MPT, CSCS, the Crew’s high-performance director, brain health “permeates every aspect of what we do.”

“You can’t possibly work on performance enhancement without having mind-body connection at the very tip of what you’re working on,” he added. “You have to be training the brain constantly. “

 

Seek First to Understand

Elite FTS, Bryan Mann from

… The cross country coach piped up that he didn’t need a translator; I was just a shit strength-coach and needed to be fired. The throws coach then stepped in and said, “You asked him for a speed-strength workout, correct?”

“Yes, that’s correct. But he…” the cross country coach said.

“He gave you an outstanding program for the development of speed-strength. I think what you are actually wanting is…” Then the throws coach went into a long and technical way to say that what he actually wanted was speed endurance. The cross country coach agreed. The throws coach then said, “You two are to not have a conversation without me there again. I know exactly what you mean and what you wanted. Coach Mann gave you exactly what you said. There’s a language barrier here, and since I speak both languages, I will be your translator.” While the cross country coach was dejected and I was somewhat happy, I knew that I had been a part of the shortcoming and was a causative factor in the issue.

We didn’t have the same language, and with my assumption that I knew what he wanted based on what he had said, I got what he wanted completely wrong.

 

The Real First Family of Hoops

Bleacher Report, Mirin Fader from

Stacked with four DI players, including the reigning WNBA MVP, two aspiring doctors and a broadcaster-in-the-making, the Ogwumike sisters are ready to take on anything and anyone—even the Ball family.

 

In a pivotal season, Texas A&M’s Kevin Sumlin will rely on a former UGA head strength coach to get Aggies ‘tougher’

SavannahNow, Athens Banner-Herald, Marc Weiszer from

… Athletic director Scott Woodward hasn’t been shy about putting out publicly what he wants to see from a team that has gone 8-5 three years in a row after 11-2 and 9-4 seasons in the first two years in Sumlin’s first two years in College Station.

Sumlin brought aboard Hocke after the Aggies lost four of the last five games of last season.

“We made some tough decisions about last year,” Sumlin said Wednesday at SEC Media Days. “One of our emphasis has been, to finish and be a tougher football team. Going out and hiring Mark Hocke as our head of strength and conditioning I think has made great strides to that. And that didn’t start in the season. That started in January along with the 15 practices that we had in the spring.”

 

Nanomesh technology results in inflammation-free, on-skin health monitoring electronics

MobiHealthNews, Jeff Lagasse from

On-skin sensors that monitor vital signs can often cause inflammation, but that may be about to change. According to a new study in Nature Nanotechnology, a new approach to this technology using a nanomesh structure could have positive implications for long-term health monitoring.

The new sensors are inflammation-free, are very gas permeable, and they’re thin and lightweight, without the use of any pesky substrates that can contribute to skin discomfort. That means they can be directly laminated onto human skin for longer periods of time.

 

The Military Is Altering the Limits of Human Performance

The Atlantic, Patrick Tucker from

Breakthroughs in biometric science mean future troops will fight with weapons that understand them—inside and out.

 

Mental health in professional football: compromised care and strategies for change

BMJ Blogs: BJSM blog, Andrea Scott-Bell from

Aaron Lennon’s Sectioning under the Mental Health Act on May 2nd is the latest addition to the list of professional footballers experiencing mental health difficulties.

The day after news broke of Lennon’s detention, the PFA claimed that mental health issues among footballers were on the rise, with 160 reported cases in the previous year. Unlike broader contexts where we have seen a decline in mental health services (1), professional football can afford the best healthcare resources, and yet, mental health concerns continue to increase. Why is the reporting of mental health on the increase within this sport and how are doctors and healthcare professionals able to respond to this?

 

When winners need help

The British Psychological Society, The Psychologist, Derek Larkin et al. from

… Elite athletes are perceived to be highly mentally functioning individuals, known for positive mental attributes such as resilience, focus, confidence and composure (Holland et al., 2010; MacNamara et al., 2010). However, there are an increasing number of anecdotal reports suggesting elite athletes, like the rest of us, are vulnerable to an array of mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety, eating disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorders, addictions and substance misuse. But why?

To discuss this question, it’s important to consider the environmental and social contexts in which elite sport operates. Specifically, in elite sport, both competition and training environments are highly controlled and pressurised. Elite athletes often experience a loss of personal autonomy, disempowerment and unique pressures in the form of competitive achievement, the need to stay physically healthy, remain injury-free, retain or win a new contract, or be selected regularly by their coach. The elite sporting environment can facilitate identity foreclosure, whereby people shape and influence their view of self merely within the parameters of an athletic identity.

 

Can Omega-3 Fatty Acid Supplementation Improve Athletic Performance?

SIRC Sport Information Resource Center, Lily Dong from

Omega-3 fatty acids are associated with various health benefits, affecting heart and brain health, learning, and cholesterol levels. Its anti-inflammatory properties have led researchers to explore how omega-3 supplementation could mediate the effects of exercise-induced muscle damage. What implications does omega-3 fatty acid supplementation have for athletes and their performance?

Exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD) often occurs after engaging in eccentric exercise or in exercise we are not used to. What we may notice the most is how sore our muscles feel 24-72 hours after the workout. There are usually also localized inflammation and decrements in the strength and function of those muscles. For athletes preparing for or participating in competition, recovery is of utmost importance in order to get back to peak performance.

 

Innovation Is as Much About Finding Partners as Building Products

Harvard Business Review, Chandra Gnanasambandam and Michael Uhl from

… Previously unthinkable opportunities to reinvent complex, established industries are now being made possible by the convergence of cloud computing, new analytical tools, and the data flowing from a host of new sensors in the physical world. Improbable advances are now real possibilities.

Yet the requirements for innovation today are entirely different from those of the last 30 years. The technology-driven disruption model that brought us computing, the internet, and mobile apps is no longer sufficient. Transforming our oldest industries calls for more than new technology; sophisticated knowledge of regulations, testing protocols, and traditional physical assets are now essential.

 

Women’s Euro 2017: How has women’s football progressed across Europe?

BBC Sport, Tom Garry from

… “When Chelsea, Manchester City, Barcelona, PSG and Lyon took the decision to put effort into the women’s game, that was a huge decision for women’s sport,” Iceland Women head coach Freyr Alexandersson told BBC Sport.

“Just marketing-wise, it’s very, very important, but also sports-wise, bringing their facilities and knowledge to the women’s game is just vital. The game has grown hugely in the past five years.

“In the Women’s Champions League, and also in the biggest leagues – in France, Germany and England – the best teams are getting better every year.”

 

Tab Ramos on 2017 Development Academy finals and Mexican-American tug of war

SoccerAmerica, Mike Woitalla from

The U.S. Soccer Development Academy concluded its 10th season last weekend, with the Texans SC Houston winning the U-17/18 title and Atlanta United the U-15/16 crown. U.S. Soccer Youth Technical Director Tab Ramos, also the USA’s U-20 national team coach, liked what he saw.

“I think every year the Development Academy is getting better and better,” Ramos said. “I think this year both finals could have been won by either team and they were both great games down to the last second. It was very exciting and very competitive, which is something we’ve been looking for — trying to make games more and more competitive.”

 

New York Yankees changing baseball with new approach to pitching

SI.com, Tom Verducci from

By having its pitchers throw fewer fastballs and rely more on breaking pitches, New York is trying something that might seem radical but could become the future of the sport.

 

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