Cristina Cortis

Stress-related hormonal and psychological changes to official youth Taekwondo competitions

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of an official Taekwondo competition on the heart rate (HR), salivary α‐amylase (sA‐A), salivary free cortisol (sC), and Profile of Mood States (POMS) in 10 young male (14±0 years) and six female (13±1 years) athletes. POMS and hormones were measured 15 min before and directly after the competition. During the recovery phase (30 and 90 min), sA‐A and sC were also measured. HR measured during the competition was expressed as a percentage of individuals maximal heart rate (%HRmax) to evaluate the intensity of exercise. During the competition, athletes spent 65% of the time working at HR>90% of individuals HRmax. A significant increase (P<0.0001) in sA‐A (115%) was observed at the end of the match. At 30 min of recovery, sA‐A returned to the pre‐competition level. The peak sC values were observed at 30 min of recovery (P<0.001), returning to the pre‐competition level at 90 min of recovery. A gender difference (P=0.01) emerged only for sC, although a similar trend was observed for female and male athletes. Significantly higher post‐match scores emerged for Anger‐hostility (pre: 6.1±1.1, post: 11.2±1.9; P=0.03) and Depression‐dejection (pre: 4.5±0.5, post: 10.2±1.9; P=0.006), whereas the reverse picture was observed for Vigour‐activity (pre: 23.2±1.2, post: 16.3±1.7; P=0.0006). Taekwondo competition results in temporary changes in the stress‐related parameters measured in this study. The present findings suggest that this experimental paradigm can represent a useful model for further research on the effects of various stressors (i.e., training and competition) in Taekwondo athletes of different levels (i.e., novice, international).

Effects of official Taekwondo competitions on all-out performances of elite athletes.

Chiodo, S, Tessitore, A, Cortis, C, Lupo, C, Ammendolia, A, Iona, T, and Capranica, L. Effects of official Taekwondo competitions on all-out performances of elite athletes. J Strength Cond Res 25(x): 000-000, 2011-This study investigated physiological and performance aspects of 15 (4 women and 11 men) elite Taekwondo athletes (24.0 ± 5.7 years) during their National Championship. The load of the competition was evaluated by means of heart rate (HR) and blood lactate (La). Pre and postmatch countermovement jump (CMJ), and handgrip performances were compared (p < 0.05). The match imposed a high load (HR > 85% of individual HRmax = 92 ± 12%; La = 6.7 ± 2.5 mmol·L−1) on athletes. After the match, better (p < 0.0001) CMJ (men: 43.9 ± 5.2 cm; women: 30.8 ± 2.3 cm) and worst (p = 0.006) handgrip performances (men: 459 ± 87 N; women: 337 ± 70 N) were found with respect to prematch ones (CMJ: men = 40.8 ± 4.9 cm, women = 28.2 ± 2.5 cm; handgrip: men = 486 ± 88 N, women: 337 ± 70 N). Results indicate that the intermittent activity of the Taekwondo competition elicits a high neuromuscular activation of the lower limbs. Instead, the decreases in grip strength could be because of the repeated concussions on the upper limbs used to protect from the opponents kicks and punches directed toward the scoring area of the torso. Practically, these results urge coaches to structure training sessions that enable athletes to maintain their upper limb strength during their match.

Aerobic and anaerobic profiles, heart rate and match analysis in older soccer players.

The aim of the present study was to provide aerobic (maximal oxygen consumption – VO2max) and anaerobic [jump tests: counter-movement jump (CMJ) and bounce jump (BJ); and running tests: 10 m sprint and 10 m dribbling the ball (10 mDB)] profiles of older soccer players (n = 12), and heart rate (HR), blood lactate accumulation (La) and match analysis (individual motor activity and team behaviour) aspects of a soccer match. The maximal aerobic test values were: HRmax, 154 ± 14 beat min−1; maximal power, 160 ± 24 W; VO2peak, 36.3 ± 11.3 ml kg−1 min−1; peak La, 8.2 ± 1.8 mM. Jump test values were: CMJ, 21.2 ± 4.5 cm; BJ, 17.3 ± 4.8 cm. Running performances were: 10 m sprint, 2.06 ± 0.36 s; 10 mDB, 2.17 ± 0.21 s. Running showed similar values in the two halves (first half, 82%; second half, 88%), while walking lasted longer during the second half. Regarding the technical aspects of the match, 42% of the consecutive passes made in possession of the ball exceeded three passes, indicating that their play was structured in a cooperative manner. Older soccer players succeeded in maintaining good aerobic and anaerobic physical capability.

A physiological, time–motion, and technical comparison of youth water polo and Acquagoal

Abstract The aims of this study were to provide a profile of young water polo players and to compare technical and tactical aspects, movement patterns, and cardiac loads of youth water polo and Acquagoal codes. Ten young (age 12.3 years, s = 0.6) male water polo players underwent anthropometric (stature, body mass, body mass index, chest circumference, hand breadth, and length), strength, and [Vdot]O2max evaluations. Friendly youth water polo and Acquagoal matches were arranged to evaluate heart rates and swimming patterns (horizontal and vertical, with and without the ball) of players, and technical and tactical aspects of matches (number of actions, passes, player involved in an action, lost possessions, shots, goals, and the origin and types of shot). Independent of code, matches imposed a high cardiac load on players. Vertical swimming occurred more frequently (P < 0.05) in Acquagoal (71%) than youth water polo (45%). Technical and tactical measures also differed (P < 0.05), with players performing more passes and shots inside the penalty area and showing a higher goal-to-shot ratio during youth water polo than during Acquagoal. These results indicate that youth water polo better resembles the swimming patterns of adult water polo and facilitates the technical and tactical aspects of play better than Acquagoal.

Technical and Tactical Analysis of Youth Taekwondo Performance

Abstract Casolino, E, Lupo, C, Cortis, C, Chiodo, S, Minganti, C, Capranica, L, and Tessitore, A. Technical and tactical analysis of youth taekwondo performance. J Strength Cond Res 26(6): 1489–1495, 2012—This study aimed to analyze the technical and tactical aspects of young athletes during official taekwondo competitions. Fifty-nine youth taekwondo athletes (43 boys and 16 girls; age range: 10–12 years; weight category range: <24 to >59 kg) with at least 2 years of taekwondo training consisting of three 90-minute training sessions for 3 d·wk−1 participated in this study. Thirty-seven matches (three 1-minute rounds, with 1-minute rest in between) were analyzed to verify the differences (p ⩽ 0.05) in offensive and defensive actions in relation to gender (male, female), match outcome (winners, nonwinners), kicking leg (front, rear), and round (first, second, third). No difference emerged for gender and match outcome. With respect to defensive actions (8.4 ± 12.0%), youth athletes engaged more frequently (p < 0.0001) in offensive actions (91.6 ± 12.0%), which showed a significant decrease (p < 0.016) from the first round (42.3 ± 21.8%) to the second (33.1 ± 14.8%) and third (24.5 ± 16.0%) ones. Kicks performed with the rear leg (94.4 ± 7.8%) occurred more frequently (p < 0.0001) than those performed with the front leg (5.6 ± 7.8%). In considering that a high level of coordination is required to perform front-leg kicks and defensive actions necessitate a high level of tactical skills, these findings might indicate a not-yet complete attainment of fundamental coordinative capabilities in 10- to 12-year-old athletes, independently of match outcome. To enhance coordination capabilities in youth athletes, coaches are recommended to structure their training including skill-ability and sport-ability drills.

Inter-limb coordination, strength, jump, and sprint performances following a youth men's basketball game.

Cortis, C, Tessitore, A, Lupo, C, Pesce, C, Fossile, E, Figura, F, and Capranica, L. Inter-limb coordination and strength, jump, and sprint performances following a youth mens basketball game. J Strength Cond Res 25(1): 135-142, 2011-This study aimed to verify whether basketball players are able to maintain strength (handgrip), jump (countermovement jump [CMJ]), sprint (10 m and 10 m bouncing the ball [10mBB]), and interlimb coordination (i.e., synchronized hand and foot flexions and extensions at 80, 120, and 180 bpm) performances at the end of their game. Ten young (age 15.7 ± 0.2 years) male basketball players volunteered for this study. During the friendly game, heart rate (HR), rate of perceived exertion (RPE), and rate of muscle pain (RMP) were assessed to evaluate the exercise intensity. Overall, players spent 80% of the time playing at intensities higher than 85% HRmax. Main effects (p < 0.05) for game periods emerged for HR and the number of players involved in a single action, with lower occurrence of maximal efforts and higher involvement of teammates after the first 2 periods. At the end of the game, players reported high (p < 0.05) RPE (15.7 ± 2.4) and RMP (5.2 ± 2.3) values; decreased (p < 0.05) sprint capabilities (10 m: pre = 1.79 ± 0.09 seconds, post = 1.84 ± 0.08 seconds; 10mBB: pre = 1.81 ± 0.11 seconds, post = 1.96 ± 0.08 seconds); increased (p < 0.05) interlimb coordination at 180 bpm (pre = 33.3 ± 20.2 seconds, post = 43.9 ± 19.8 seconds); and maintained jump (pre = 35.2 ± 5.2 cm, post = 35.7 ± 5.2 cm), handgrip (pre = 437 ± 73 N, post = 427 ± 55 N), and coordinative performances at lower frequencies of executions (80 bpm: pre = 59.7 ± 1.3 seconds, post = 60.0 ± 0.0 seconds; 120 bpm: pre = 54.7 ± 12.3 seconds, post = 57.3 ± 6.7 seconds). These findings indicate that the heavy load of the game exerts beneficial effects on the efficiency of executive and attentive control functions involved in complex motor behaviors. Coaches should structure training sessions that couple intense physical exercises with complex coordination tasks to improve the attentional capabilities of the players.

Effects of simulated firefighting on the responses of salivary cortisol, alpha-amylase and psychological variables

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a simulated firefighting intervention on salivary alpha-amylase (sA-A), free cortisol (sC), anxiety (STAI), and profile of mood states (POMS) in 20 male firefighters (age 32 ± 1 years, [Vdot]O 2peak: 43 ± 5 ml/kg per min). During the 12-min firefighting intervention (ambient temperature: 13 ± 1°C; relative humidity: 63 ± 1%), individuals spent 63 ± 28% of the time working at heart rate (HR) >85% of individual HRmax, [La] peak 9.2 ± 2.9 mM and ratings of perceived exertion 16 ± 2. At 30 min post-intervention significant (p < 0.001) increases in sA-A (174%) and sC (109%) were found with regard to values recorded before and after 90 min of the firefighting intervention. Since no differences emerged between pre-intervention and post intervention for STAI and POMS values, the hormonal changes were attributable to the intense physical stress of the simulated intervention. Further research is needed during real firefighting activities, where high emotional stress may also be present.

Interlimb coordination, strength, and power in soccer players across the lifespan.

Cortis, C, Tessitore, A, Perroni, F, Lupo, C, Pesce, C, Ammendolia, A, and Capranica, L. Interlimb coordination, strength, and power in soccer players across the lifespan. J Strength Cond Res 23(9): 2458-2466, 2009-This study aimed at verifying whether chronic participation in soccer training has a beneficial effect (p < 0.05) on the improvement and the maintenance of interlimb coordination performance across the lifespan and whether coordination is moderated by strength and power performances. Forty young (12 ± 1 yr), 42 adult (26 ±5 yr), and 32 older (59 ± 11 yr) male soccer players and sedentary individuals were administered in-phase (IP) and antiphase (AP) synchronized (80, 120, and 180 bpm) hand and foot flexions and extensions, handgrip and countermovement jump (CMJ) tests. Regardless of age, soccer players always showed better performances (handgrip: 383 ± 140 N; CMJ: 28.3 ± 8.7 cm; IP: 55.2 ± 12.9 s; and AP: 31.8 ± 25.0 s) than sedentary individuals (handgrip: 313 ± 124 N; CMJ: 21.0 ± 9.4 cm; IP: 46.7 ± 20.2 s, and AP: 21.1 ± 23.9 s). With respect to IP and AP performances, a hierarchical model (p < 0.0001) emerged for CMJ, explaining 30% and 26% of the variance for IP and AP, respectively. In contrast, handgrip did not provide increments in the explained variance. Results indicate that chronic soccer training is beneficial to develop strength, CMJ, and interlimb synchronization capabilities in children, to reach higher levels of proficiency in adults, and to maintain performance in older individuals. The predicted role of CMJ on interlimb coordination indicates that a fine neuromuscular activation timing is central for both jump and coordinative performances. In practice, to induce higher attentional control and executive function in open skill sport athletes and to better prepare players to cope with the demands of their match, coaches should modulate complex motor behaviors with increasing velocity of execution and are strongly recommended to make use of technical and tactical drills that focus on the players agility under time pressure to induce higher attentional control and executive function.

A life course examination of the physical environmental determinants of physical activity behaviour: A “Determinants of Diet and Physical Activity” (DEDIPAC) umbrella systematic literature review

Background Participation in regular physical activity is associated with a multitude of health benefits across the life course. However, many people fail to meet PA recommendations. Despite a plethora of studies, the evidence regarding the environmental (physical) determinants of physical activity remains inconclusive. Objective To identify the physical environmental determinants that influence PA across the life course. Methods An online systematic literature search was conducted using MEDLINE, ISI Web of Science, Scopus and SPORTDiscus. The search was limited to studies published in English (January 2004 to April 2016). Only systematic literature reviews (SLRs) and meta-analyses (MAs) of observational studies, that investigated the association between physical determinants and physical activity outcomes, were eligible for inclusion. The extracted data were assessed on the importance of determinants, strength of evidence and methodological quality. Results The literature search identified 28 SLRs and 3 MAs on 67 physical environmental characteristics potentially related to physical activity that were eligible for inclusion. Among preschool children, a positive association was reported between availability of backyard space and outdoor toys/equipment in the home and overall physical activity. The availability of physical activity programs and equipment within schools, and neighbourhood features such as pedestrian and cyclist safety structure were positively associated with physical activity in children and adolescents. Negative street characteristics, for example, lack of sidewalks and streetlights, were negatively associated with physical activity in adults. Inconsistent associations were reported for the majority of reviewed determinants in adults. Conclusion This umbrella SLR provided a comprehensive overview of the physical environment determinants of physical activity across the life course and has highlighted, particularly amongst youth, a number of key determinants that may be associated with overall physical activity. Given the limited evidence drawn mostly from cross-sectional studies, longitudinal studies are needed to further explore these associations. Registration PROSPERO CRD42015010616

Effects of post-exercise recovery interventions on physiological, psychological, and performance parameters.

At present, there is no consensus on the effectiveness of post-exercise recovery interventions on subsequent daily performances. The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of 20 min low-intensity water exercises, supine electrostimulation, and passive (sitting rest) recovery modalities on physiological (oxygen consumption, blood lactate concentration, and percentage of hemoglobin saturation in the muscles), psychological (subjective ratings of perceived exertion, muscle pain, and feeling of recovery), and performance (countermovement, bouncing jumping) parameters. During three experimental sessions, 8 men (age: 21.9+/-1.3 yrs; height: 175.8+/-10.7 cm; body mass: 71.2+/-9.8 kg; VO(2max): 57.9+/-5.1 ml x kg x min(-1)) performed a morning and an afternoon submaximal running test. The recovery interventions were randomly administered after the first morning tests. Activity and dietary intake were replicated on each occasion. ANOVA for repeated measures (p<0.05) showed no difference between the morning and afternoon physiological (ratios: range 0.90-1.18) and performance parameters (ratios: range 0.80-1.24), demonstrating that post-exercise recovery interventions do not provide significant beneficial effects over a limited time period. Conversely, subjects perceived water exercises (60%) and electrostimulation (40%) as the most effective interventions, indicating that these recovery strategies might improve the subjective feelings of wellbeing of the individual.