One of the key figures behind Andy Murray’s remarkable comeback this year has admitted there can be no guarantees about his fitness in 2020.
Matt Little, who has worked as the Scot’s physical trainer for 12 years, concedes that Team Murray will be entering uncharted territory when the season restarts in Australia in January.
However, he believes that, in the event of Murray enjoying full health, there is a realistic chance that he could win another Grand Slam title.
… The connections between Hasay and Radcliffe make the partnership logical in some ways. Both are affiliated with Nike. Gary Lough, Radcliffe’s husband, is coaching quadruple Olympic gold medalist Mo Farah, another former Oregon Project and Salazar-coached athlete. And in the aftermath of Salazar’s ban, Radcliffe defended the athletes who worked with him and remained publicly supportive of them after the sanction was announced.
Radcliffe’s role, she says, will involve mentoring Hasay from afar.
“At this stage, I see it more that she needs someone to chat things through with, ask advice from, and give an external perspective on things,” Radcliffe said.
… There are long term and sometimes irreversible consequences to pushing your body too far. But when sportswomen are told that the reason for a bad performance is because they are overweight, how are they to respond? We spoke to sports experts about this change in direction and where the line should be drawn.
At elite level endurance sports, many athletes will carefully monitor their nutrition and their weight in order to optimise their performance at specific times of the year, because it can be compromised says lecturer in psychology within the context of sport, exercise and health Dr Carolyn Plateau.
“There’s an intricate relationship between weight and performance, particularly in sports where ‘leanness’ may be considered advantageous (such as endurance running). However, being lighter doesn’t always lead to being faster, and sustaining a low body weight for extended periods of time can significantly and negatively impact an athletes health and performance.”
Research question Does the Nordic hamstring exercise (NHE) prevent hamstring injuries when included as part of an injury prevention intervention?
Design Systematic review and meta-analysis.
Eligibility criteria for selecting studies We considered the population to be any athletes participating in any sporting activity, the intervention to be the NHE, the comparison to be usual training or other prevention programmes, which did not include the NHE, and the outcome to be the incidence or rate of hamstring injuries.
Analysis The effect of including the NHE in injury prevention programmes compared with controls on hamstring injuries was assessed in 15 studies that reported the incidence across different sports and age groups in both women and men.
Data sources MEDLINE via PubMed, CINAHL via Ebsco, and OpenGrey.
Results There is a reduction in the overall injury risk ratio of 0.49 (95% CI 0.32 to 0.74, p=0.0008) in favour of programmes including the NHE. Secondary analyses when pooling the eight randomised control studies demonstrated a small increase in the overall injury risk ratio 0.52 (95% CI 0.32 to 0.85, p=0.0008), still in favour of the NHE. Additionally, when studies with a high risk of bias were removed (n=8), there is an increase of 0.06 in the risk ratio to 0.55 (95% CI 0.34 to 0.89, p=0.006).
Conclusions Programmes that include the NHE reduce hamstring injuries by up to 51%. The NHE essentially halves the rate of hamstring injuries across multiple sports in different athletes. [full text]
Neuromuscular fatigue (NMF) is usually assessed non-invasively in healthy, athletic or clinical populations with the combination of voluntary and evoked contractions. Although it might appear relatively straightforward to magnetically or electrically stimulate at different levels (cortical/spinal/muscle) and to measure mechanical and electromyographic responses to quantify neuromuscular adjustments due to sustained/repeated muscle contractions, there are drawbacks that researchers and clinicians need to bear in mind. The aim of this opinion paper is to highlight the pitfalls inevitably faced when NMF is quantified. The first problem might arise from the definition of fatigue itself and the parameter(s) used to measure it; for instance, measuring power vs. isometric torque may lead to different conclusions. Another potential limitation is the delay between exercise termination and the evaluation of neuromuscular function; the possible underestimation of exercise-induced neural and contractile impairment and misinterpretation of fatigue etiology will be discussed, as well as solutions recently proposed to overcome this problem. Quantification of NMF can also be biased (or not feasible) because of the techniques themselves (e.g. results may depend on stimulation intensity for transcranial magnetic stimulation) or the way data are analyzed (e.g. M wave peak-to-peak vs first phase amplitude). When available, alternatives recently suggested in the literature to overcome these pitfalls are considered and recommendations about the best practices to assess NMF (e.g. paying attention to the delay between exercise and testing, adapting the method to the characteristics of the population to be tested and considering the limitations associated with the techniques) are proposed.
The aims of the study were to investigate 1) the effect of 8 weeks of PSP training on anthropometrics, salivary hormones and fitness parameters in youth soccer players, 2) the correlations between fitness and hormonal parameters, and 3) the impact of the experience of the coach and his methodology of training on these parameters. Weight, height, BMI, pubertal development (PDS), salivary Cortisol (sC), salivary Testosterone (sT), salivary sDHEAS, intermittent tests (VO2max), and countermovement jump test (CMJ) modifications of 35 youth soccer players (age: 14±0 yrs; BMI: 20.8±1.8 k/m2) from two Italian clubs (“Lupa Frascati” -LF-; “Albalonga” -AL) were analysed. A significant (p<0.05) time by club effect was observed in sC (F(1,31) = 9.7, ES = 1.13), sT (F(1,31) = 4.2, ES = 0.74), CMJ (F(1,28) = 26.5, ES = 1.94), and VO2max (F(1,28) = 8.5, ES = 1.10). Statistical differences (p<0.05) in weight (F(1,32) = 25.5, ES = 0.11), sC (F(1,31) = 32.1, ES = 1.43), sT/sC ratio (F(1,31) = 10.1, ES = 0.97), sDHEAS/sC ratio (F(1,31) = 6.3, ES = 0.70), and VO2max (F(1,28) = 64.3, ES = 1.74) were found within time factor. Between clubs, differences (p<0.05) in sC (F(1,32) = 8.5, ES = 1.17), sT (F(1,31) = 4.2, ES = 0.74), CMJ (F(1,28) = 26.5, ES = 1.50), and VO2max (F(1,28) = 8.5, ES = 1.10) were found. CMJ was inversely correlated with sDHEAS (r = -0.38) before PSP, while Δ of CMJ showed significant correlations with Δ of sC (r = 0.43) and ΔVO2max was inversely correlated with ΔBMI (r = -0.54) and ΔsC (r = -0.37) in all subjects. Considering each single club, ΔVO2max showed correlations with ΔBMI (r = -0.45) in AL, while ΔCMJ showed correlations with ΔPDS (r = 0.72) in LF club. Since the PSP is often limited training time to simultaneously develop physical, technical and tactical qualities, an efficient method to distribute the training load is important in youth soccer players to increase the performance and to avoid injuries.
Acute fatigue is hypothesized to alter lower extremity injury risk profiles by affecting intrinsic risk factors (i.e. single leg postural control, hamstring strength). However, no systematic overview exists that merges the insights into prospective lower extremity injury risk profiling with the effect of acute fatigue on functional test performance. Objective
The objective of this review is to identify the influence of acute fatigue on prospectively determined modifiable intrinsic risk factors for lower extremity injuries. Design
Systematic review. Methods
PubMed (MEDLINE), Web of Science, PEDro, and Cochrane Library were searched until 29 May 2019. Studies were eligible when the study outcomes encompassed intrinsic modifiable risk factors for lower extremity injury, an acute fatigue intervention, and included healthy athletes or physically active people. Intrinsic modifiable risk factors were identified through recent systematic reviews and meta-analyses, and the referenced original research papers were used to determine outcome measures associated with increased injury risk. Results
Forty-three studies reported acute fatigue effects on modifiable risk factors, with eight studies matching all criteria for data-extraction. Acute fatigue can decrease single leg postural control, decrease ankle joint position sense, decrease isokinetic strength of hamstring and quadriceps muscles and can affect isokinetic hamstring:quadriceps ratios. Conclusion
Acute fatigue affects prospective intrinsic modifiable risk factors for lower extremity injury, indicating an altered injury risk profile for lateral ankle sprain, patellofemoral pain syndrome and hamstring injuries. Future research should allow for individual fatiguability as a relevant outcome, and merge insights from athlete-centred injury risk profiling and fatigue.
Leading a team back to prominence often requires tearing that roster down, only to build it back up again. The Toronto Blue Jays are amid year two of their roster rebuild this winter, hoping to return to those recent postseason glory days of 2015 and 2016.
The Blue Jays’ rebuild isn’t solely focused on the players on the 40-man roster. This winter, it’s also focused on two prominent pieces of land in Dunedin, Florida. The club is putting the finishing touches on their spring training stadium and player development complex renovation project.
Clarius Mobile Health recently revealed its second generation lineup, reducing the size of the devices by almost half and improving the image quality to that of a much more expensive traditional system.
Dr. James Andrews is not giving up in his campaign for parents to keep young athletes healthy by keeping them from playing year-round and specializing.
He spoke to Dennis Manoloff back in 2013 in what is still one of the most-read stories on cleveland.com, now approaching a million page views.
Six years later, not much has changed in Andrews’ opinion when it comes to the parents.
Early functional rehabilitation is frequently discussed in treating Achilles tendon rupture. A consistent definition of what constitutes early functional rehabilitation has not been established across the literature, despite studies supporting its efficacy. A standardized definition would be helpful to pool data across studies, allow for between-study comparisons, and ultimately work toward developing clinical guidelines. Purpose:
To define early functional rehabilitation (including when it is initiated and what it entails) when used to treat Achilles tendon rupture and to identify outcome measures for evaluating the effect of treatment. Study Design:
Systematic review; Level of evidence, 4. Methods:
Ovid MEDLINE, EMBASE, PEDro, CINAHL, and Cochrane databases were searched for relevant studies. Eligibility criteria for selecting studies consisted of randomized controlled trials, cohort studies, and case series (≥10 participants) including weightbearing or exercise-based interventions within 8 weeks after Achilles tendon rupture. Results:
A total of 174 studies published between 1979 and 2018 were included. Studies were rated a median (interquartile range [IQR]) of 17 (15-20) on the Downs & Black checklist and included 9098 participants. Early functional rehabilitation incorporated weightbearing (95%), range of motion (73%), and isometric/strengthening exercises (50%). Weightbearing was initiated within the first week, whereas exercise (eg, ankle range of motion, strengthening, whole-body conditioning) was initiated in the second week. Initiation of exercises varied based on whether treatment was nonsurgical (mean, 3.0 weeks; IQR, 2.0-4.0 weeks) or simple (mean, 2.0 weeks; IQR, 0.0-2.3 weeks) or augmented surgical repair (mean, 0.5 weeks; IQR, 0.0-2.8 weeks) (P = .017). Functional outcomes including ankle range of motion (n = 84) and strength (n = 76) were reported in 130 studies. Other outcome domains included patient-reported outcomes (n = 89), survey-based functional outcomes (n = 50), and tendon properties (n = 53). Conclusion:
Early functional rehabilitation includes weightbearing and a variety of exercise-based interventions initiated within the first 2 weeks after acute Achilles tendon rupture/repair. Because early functional rehabilitation has lacked a standardized definition, interventions and outcome measures are highly variable, and pooling data across studies should be done with attention paid to what was included in the intervention and how treatment was assessed. [full text]
If Farhan Zaidi wouldn’t have accepted the job last November, the Giants very likely would have turned to Chaim Bloom, then the vice president of baseball operations for the Tampa Bay Rays. A year later, Gabe Kapler was chosen over two other finalists for the manager job, including Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro.
It’s no accident that the front office keeps looking to Tampa Bay in a quest to find a new and better approach, and their new leadership team has Rays connections, too. Zaidi was hired in Los Angeles by Andrew Friedman, who came over from the Rays. Kapler played his final two big league seasons in Tampa Bay.
Asked earlier this month if there are specific strategies he wants to implement with a younger Giants team in 2020, Kapler brought up his former team.
“Farhan has a tendency to be experimental. I know the guys in Los Angeles have a tendency to be experimental, as well,” Kapler said. “I think an organization that we all think pretty highly of that’s doing great things in the industry is the Tampa Bay Rays. I think Tampa is a really good model for being creative around strategic decisions. Things like you mentioned, like the opener, how to use relievers maybe in more high-leverage situations relative to having very set, specific roles.”
Nature Communications journal, Charles J. Gomez & David M. J. Lazer from
Diversity tends to generate more and better ideas in social settings, ranging in scale from small-deliberative groups to tech-clusters and cities. Implicit in this research is that there are knowledge-generating benefits from diversity that comes from mixing different individuals, ideas, and perspectives. Here, we utilize agent-based modeling to examine the emergent outcomes resulting from the manipulation of how diversity is distributed and how knowledge is generated within communicative social structures. In the context of problem solving, we focus on cognitive diversity and its two forms: ability and knowledge. For diversity of ability, we find that local diversity (intermixing of different agents) performs best at all time scales. However, for diversity of knowledge, we find that local homogeneity performs best in the long-run, because it maintains global diversity, and thus the knowledge-generating ability of the group, for a longer period. [full text]
