Claire Tourny

Nutritional status and physical fitness of elderly sportsmen

Abstract The nutritional status of elderly sportsmen has not been reported on, neither has the nutritional balance nor the precise relationship between nutritional status and physical fitness been detailed for this population. Thus, group of 18 sportsmen [age 63 (SD 4.5) years] was monitored by weighing their food during a 6-day period. Macro nutrient, mineral and vitamin content was derived from tables. Daily energy expenditure (DEE) and sport activity (DSA) were quantified over a 7-day period using a questionnaire. Physical fitness was assessed by maximal oxygen uptake (V˙O2max) measurements. The DEE was 11 429 (SD 1890) kJ · day−1. The DSA corresponded to 38% of DEE and V˙O2max to 35.9 (SD 6.1) ml · min−1 · kg−1. When compared with French recommended dietary allowances (RDA) intakes were higher for energy (+24%), macro nutrients, and most minerals and vitamins. Despite high energy intakes, some subjects had mineral and vitamin deficits. Energy intakes were significantly related to intakes of magnesium, phosphorus, iron, vitamins B2, B6, C and to V˙O2max, but not to age. Stepwise regressions indicated that vitamin C intake was the only determinant to have a relationship with V˙O2max. Thus, most elderly sportsmen had higher nutritional status than RDA, although some had mineral and vitamin deficits. It is therefore suggested that elderly sportsmen should be encouraged to consume food with higher mineral and vitamin contents.

Time-motion, tactical and technical analysis in top-level karatekas according to gender, match outcome and weight categories

Abstract The aim of this study was to define the time-motion (i.e., fighting, preparatory and breaking activity), technical (i.e., attack, timed-attack, counterattack, blocking and grasps) and tactical (i.e., upper limb, lower-limb, combination and throwing) profiles of the senior top-level karate competition played under the most recent rules of the International Karate Federation in relation to gender, match outcome and weight categories. Time-motion, tactical actions and technical executions were investigated of senior karatekas (n = 60) during the Karate World Championship. The referee’s decisions caused an overall activity-to-break ratio of ~1:1.5 with a significant difference (P = 0.025) between karateka’s weight categories (light = 1:1.5; middle = 1:2 and heavy = 1:1). High-intensity actions (i.e., attack and defensive actions performed quickly and powerfully) were higher in male compared to female athletes. Top-level karatekas used upper limb techniques more than lower limb ones, with both applied in the head more than in the body. For the high-intensity-actions to pause ratio and the percentage of combined techniques, light weight category was significantly higher than middle weight category. These findings suggest that training programs may need to be specific to the requirements of the gender and weight categories.

THE INFLUENCE OF KARATE PRACTICE LEVEL AND SEX ON PHYSIOLOGICAL AND PERCEPTUAL RESPONSES IN THREE MODERN KARATE TRAINING MODALITIES

Objective The aim of the present study was to examine the influence of karate practice level (national vs international level) and sex (women vs men) on physiological and perceptual responses in three modern karate training modalities (tactical-technical (TT), technical-development (TD), and randori). Method The study included 18 karatekas participating in an eight-session training camp of four TT, two TD, and two randori. During each session, the percentage of maximal heart rate (HR), blood lactate concentration [La-], and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) were assessed. Results The main results showed that the percentage of maximal HR was significantly higher in women than in men regardless of practice level or training modality (70.3 ± 4.1 vs 66.2 ± 6.3, respectively). Moreover, [La-] and RPE were significantly lower in international-level karatekas compared with their national-level counterparts whatever the sex or training modality ([La-] = 11.4 ± 2.6 vs 8.3 ± 2.4 mmol · L-1 and RPE = 3.6 ± 1.2 vs 4.3 ± 1.5, respectively). Last, physiological and perceptual responses were significantly higher during randori in comparison with TT and TD for both sexes. Conclusion The combination of [La-] and RPE thus seems to be a good indicator for discriminating between national- and international-level karatekas, and randori seems to be an effective means to reproduce official karate sparring.

Human Energy Expenditure and Postural Coordination on the Mechanical Horse

ABSTRACT The authors investigated and compared the energy expenditure and postural coordination of two groups of healthy subjects on a mechanical horse at 4 increasing oscillation frequencies. Energy expenditure was assessed from the oxygen consumption, respiratory quotient, and heart rate values, and postural coordination was characterized by relative phase computations between subjects (elbow, head, trunk) and horse. The results showed that the postural coordination of the riders was better adapted (i.e., maintenance of in-phase and antiphase) than that of the nonriders, but the energy expenditure remains the same. Likewise, we observed an energy system shifting only for nonriders (from aerobic to lactic anaerobic mode). Finally, cross-correlations showed a link between energy expenditure and postural coordination in the riders (i.e., effectiveness).

Pathological knee laxity in elite women team handball players: a pilotstudy

To identify the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) laxity thresholds and to evaluate the utility of this measure in case of onset of knee injury for elite women handball players. Anterior laxity was measured by an arthrometer. Data on 29 elite women handball players and 20 sedentary women were collected. Among the handball group, 9 participants suffered from full-thickness ACL tears. The recorded variables were the anterior knee laxities at pressure load (PL) of 134 N (PL134N) and 250 N (PL250N) on the upper calf, which allowed assessment of the inter-leg comparison by calculating the differential laxity thresholds and the differential slope coefficients. Considering the healthy knee as a reference within the injured players, the laxity thresholds were identified, and the diagnostic value of the tests was assessed. The handball players without a full-thickness tear presented lower knee laxity than the sedentary women, and 75% were diagnosed with pathologic laxity in at least one of the knee joints, compared to 10% of sedentary women. The differential laxity threshold was identified between the handball players without a full-thickness tear and those with a full-thickness tear at 1.5 mm with PL134N and 2.2 mm with PL250N. The best diagnostic result was obtained using PL250N (area under the curve = 0.95). Handball practice is associated with specific laxities that are rarely seen in the general population. The ACL laxity thresholds may be useful measures to check the state of the ACL and to suggest full-thickness tears, as joint laxity appears to be a factor contributing to ACL tears in female handball players.

Author’s Reply to Will G. Hopkins: “Submaximal, Perceptually Regulated Exercise Testing Predicts Maximal Oxygen Uptake: A Meta-Analysis Study”

Will Hopkins [1] asserts that there are two significant errors in our study [2] and several potential omissions. In essence, all the assertions revolve around one concern which he seems not to have understood: we used the limits of agreement (LoA) in our meta-analysis and not confidence limits (CL). It is important to note that almost all of the studies used the LoA procedure. The reason for this is simple: most of the authors found the use of LoA to be the most appropriate to discuss the accuracy of their results. It therefore seems there is consensus towards the use of this method, at least in light of articles published in the last 15 years. Regarding the two errors indicated by Hopkins, a misunderstanding arises from his assertion that we ‘‘performed separate meta-analyses of the bias in the predicted maximal oxygen uptake ( _ VO2max)... and the random error in the predicted _ VO2max... and...then converted the metaanalysed mean bias and mean random error into mean LoA, which are given by the mean bias ±1.96 times the mean random error.’’ As detailed, our methods followed the procedures of Williamson et al. [3], and applied a single meta-analysis by calculating the pooled mean difference and a pooled standard deviation of this difference, and used these to calculate a combined LoA for all the studies. We based our statistical analysis on their methods paper [3] as it was written especially for meta-analyses and lead-authored by a highly respected biostatistician in a journal which specializes in statistical methodology (Statistics in Medicine). The second error according to Hopkins [1] was that we failed to account for repeated measurements. This is also incorrect. Please note that the meta-analysis was based on the mean differences. We were looking for the mean differences between the methods using an approach which has also been applied recently [4, 5]. We separated the metaanalysis effects in the subgroups because the individuals in the four subgroups were not the same in the selected studies. To clarify further, we point out that studying the validity of the prediction of the _ VO2max from the rating of perceived exertion (RPE) is based on the differences in means between the actual and predicted values. Some studies focused only on the predictions based on RPE19, and others studied the prediction from RPE20. We also found some articles that studied four methods at the same time (i.e. test and retest for both RPE19 and RPE20) or only two methods (e.g. test and retest for RPE19), but these studies have discussed and presented the results of each method separately. Hopkins [1] indicates that an alternative correct approach for the criticized meta-analysis should include meta-analysing change scores from studies. In fact, this is exactly what we have done. Hopkins [1] comments on how we treated studies that contain predictions at RPEs of both 19 and 20, compared J. B. Coquart and M. Tabben contributed equally to this work. K. Chamari and R. G. Eston contributed equally to this work.

Physical and physiological characteristics of high-level combat sport athletes

Combat sports take a significant place in sport today, being part of many international multi-sport events (e.g., Olympic Games and Continental Games), as well as having their exclusive event, the World Combat Games and each sport’s world championships. Combat sports arguably contain unique characteristics in comparison to other sports: one must directly attack the opponent’s body and the attack can be conducted simultaneously [1]. Most combat sports require a high level of technique, tactical excellence and physical fitness, especially strength, aerobic fitness, muscle power, and speed [2-4]. In general, combat sports have been classified as grappling (e.g, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, judo, wrestling), striking (e.g., boxing, karate, taekwondo) or mixed (e.g., hapkido, jujutsu) sports, depending on their technical actions and rules [2,3,5]. As the technical actions and rules vary according to the sport, it is probable that physical fitness requirements to achieve high-level in each combat sport are also different. Judo is today the grappling combat sport with more practitioners around the world and with highest television interest, while karate and taekwondo are the two most practiced striking combat sports worldwide, where both kicks and punches are allowed. Additionally, judo and taekwondo are Olympic sports [6]. Despite their popularity and the determination of physical and physiological profiles of judo [3], karate [2] and taekwondo [7-9] athletes, to our knowledge, no direct comparison was conducted between combat sport athletes of the same competitive level. This information could be useful for athletes’ detection programs for the different combat sports. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine and compare the physical and the physiological characteristics of high-level judo, karate and taekwondo athletes.