[Motivation for physical exercise: the benefits of active transport in the fight against sedentary lifestyles]. / Motivation à la pratique physique : intérêts des transports actifs pour lutter contre la sédentarité.

Our contemporary lifestyles offer little incentive to be physically active, and give us far fewer opportunities to be active than in the past, with many of our tasks being sedentary and most of our transport being motorized. While it's easy to acknowledge a lack of physical activity, putting it into practice is eminently more complex, and many researchers are trying to answer the thorny question: how can we enable people to be more physically active in their daily lives? With this in mind, the aim of this article is to show that active transport is an effective way of getting sedentary people to engage in regular physical activity.

[Impact of adapted physical activities on the health and psychological factors involved in the learning of pupils and students]. / Impacts des APA sur les facteurs psychologiques impliqués dans les apprentissages des élèves et des étudiants.

The literature documenting the positive role of adapted physical activities (APA) in academic success is flourishing. It's widely accepted that practicing APA helps you succeed. However, the pathway linking the impact of physical activity on student health to academic success remains unclear, and there is still a great deal of ground to cover. With this in mind, the aim of this article is to review what is known about the health benefits of physical activity and the psychological factors involved in learning in the school and university context.

[Preventing and regulating psychoactive substance use among occasional and regular adolescents]. / Prévenir et réguler la consommation de substances psychoactives chez les adolescents.

The academic success and well-being of young people can be undermined by the use of psychoactive substances (PAS), which is particularly prevalent during adolescence, a period vulnerable to social influences. This article is aimed in particular at school and university preventive medicine nurses. It proposes intervention strategies for adolescents who regularly use such substances. Based on the scientific literature, the aim is to examine how psychological support, coupled with a program of adapted physical activity, could limit the use of APS, a factor in academic failure and health risks.

It's time to increase physical activity promotion among pregnant women in France.

BACKGROUND: The lockdown linked to COVID-19 was shown to have negative effects on healthy behaviors in the general population, prompting the implementation of adapted public health measures. However, more vulnerable populations, such as pregnant women, were not specifically taken into account. At the time of writing this study, we know little about how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the physical activity (PA) behavior of pregnant women in France. Given the many reports in the literature about women's low level of PA throughout pregnancy and the negative effects of the COVID-19 lockdown on behaviors in the general population; however, we might assume that their sedentary behaviors increased. The current study aimed to analyze the French recommendations and PA promotion among pregnant women. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A literature search was done using PubMed for the key terms "physical activity/physical activity promotion," "pregnant women/pregnancy,", and "French population/France." All the relevant studies were included to support the argument for this narrative review. RESULTS: Efforts to promote PA for pregnant women often seem ineffective and even unrealistic, and many women become overweight or obese during pregnancy. Health professionals need evidence-based guidelines and continuous training and skills development in order to convincingly encourage women to be more active during pregnancy and the postpartum period. CONCLUSION: Health policies should strengthen PA promotion among pregnant women with detailed evidence-based guidelines on PA during postpartum.

[Substance use among adolescents: Addiction or self-handicap strategy?] / Consommation de substances psychoactives chez les adolescents : addiction ou stratégie d'auto-handicap ?

Self-handicapping strategies consist of creating or declaring obstacles to oneself before a situation of accomplishment that threatens the self, as might be the case during an academic assessment or a sporting competition, in order to protect oneself from a possible failure or to valorise oneself in the event of success. It turns out that beyond the physiological effects sought and the dependence linked to the product, the consumption of psychoactive substances can serve as an excuse for users in the event of failure, thus protecting their sense of competence or enhancing it in the event of success, for having succeeded in spite of their consumption, which is known to have a negative impact on performance.

Physical Activity Counselling Received Throughout Pregnancy and Effect on Behaviours: A Quasi-Experimental Study.

OBJECTIVES: The objective was to examine the frequency of physical activity (PA) counselling for pregnant women over the course of their pregnancies and the effect on the women's PA behaviour. METHODS: A quasi-experimental study was conducted in the maternity unit of a hospital. In total, 72 pregnant women were randomized into a control or intervention group. Counselling about PA was dispensed to the women in the intervention group throughout pregnancy by health professionals who had been sensitized to its importance and the recommendations. The women in the control group received the usual consultation content. The PA behaviour of pregnant women in the intervention group who reported receiving PA counselling was evaluated. The counselling and PA levels were evaluated by chi-square tests and repeated measures analysis of variance, respectively. RESULTS: Overall, the women received little counselling in accordance with the recommendations, although the intervention group women received this counselling more frequently (P = 0.049). All women in the intervention group who reported receiving counselling throughout pregnancy limited their decline in PA compared with those in the control group. The decline in total PA among normal-weight and overweight pregnant women was reduced in the intervention group (respectively, P = 0.043 and P = 0.044). CONCLUSION: Our intervention showed the effectiveness of counselling on PA behaviour, although the effect was observed at the end of pregnancy. Training and sensitizing for professionals should be strengthened to ensure that counselling in line with the recommendations to maintain or increase PA levels throughout pregnancy is provided.

[Analysis of the psychological causes of early substance use among adolescents in school and university settings]. / Analyse des causes psychologiques des premières consommations de substances psychoactives chez les adolescents en contexte scolaire et universitaire.

Experimentation with psychoactive substances (PAS), such as alcohol, tobacco or cannabis, is common in adolescence, and continues to pose a public health issue that can lead to failure at school and university. Most of the work on these issues focuses on addiction-related aspects, and little on the underlying causes of addiction. This article sheds psycho-social theoretical light on the causes of first-time use of APS, and cannabis in particular. It is particularly aimed at school nurses and university preventive medicine nurses.

[Health care workers: the importance of adapted physical activities]. / Santé des personnels soignants : l'importance des activités physiques adaptées.

Adapted physical activities (APA) in the workplace improve workers' health. Paradoxically, APA remains marginal in the very places where improving health is the central objective of health care workers, namely clinics and hospitals. Promoting physical activity in the workplace is a twofold challenge. Not only does PA improve the health and well-being of caregivers, but it also allows them to be more effective in their daily work with patients.

[Interest of the adapted physical activities for the staff of the penitentiary administration]. / Intérêt des activités physiques adaptées pour les personnels de l'administration pénitentiaire.

The poor state of health of some prisoners, the tensions and violence that can exist in prisons lead the administration's staff to work in a sometimes difficult context. The regular practice of adapted physical activities appears to be a particularly opportune course of action for the agents concerned: it would bring them physical and psychological benefits in their professional exercise.

Association Between Maternal Body Mass and Physical Activity Counseling During Pregnancy.

Aims: The antenatal period provides an important opportunity for giving advice on healthy lifestyle choices. However, the prevalence of maternal obesity is increasing, and women report that they do not receive counseling. We investigated the information given to pregnant women on gestational weight gain, physical activity, and nutrition during pregnancy in relation with their initial weight status, current gestational weight gain and diagnoses of either pre-pregnancy overweight/obesity or excessive gestational weight gain. Methods: Cross-sectional survey using a questionnaire. Pregnant participants (n = 141) were recruited from a midwife center. They completed a structured questionnaire on the information they received during their pregnancy and we assessed its relationship with their weight. Results: We found that many pregnant women did not receive advice about physical activity, gestational weight gain and nutrition (37.5, 53.2, and 66.2%, respectively). Women with weight problems (pre-pregnancy overweight/obesity and excessive gestational weight gain) were less targeted for counseling, although more than 80% of the women viewed receiving information on these topics as positive. Also, being informed of a weight problem was associated with a greater chance of receiving information about physical activity, gestational weight gain and nutrition (all p < 0.05). However, verbalization of the weight problems was low (14.0% of women with pre-pregnancy overweight were informed of their status). Conclusion: Health professionals should dispense more information, especially on PA and particularly for women with weight problems. Verbalization of the weight problem seems associated with more frequent transmission of information.

Prenatal Counseling throughout Pregnancy: Effects on Physical Activity Level, Perceived Barriers, and Perinatal Health Outcomes: A Quasi-Experimental Study.

Physical activity during pregnancy has many health benefits. However, the physical activity level is insufficient throughout pregnancy and women report perceived barriers to physical activity. This study assessed the impact of a counseling intervention offered in addition to routine pregnancy care on physical activity patterns, perceived barriers, and perinatal health outcomes. A quasi-experimental trial was conducted in the Maternity Unit of a hospital in Guadeloupe (a French department). Ninety-six pregnant women were allocated to a control or intervention group. Regular physical activity counseling was dispensed to the women in the intervention group by trained healthcare providers. The physical activity level and the perceived barriers were assessed in each trimester. Outcomes for the perinatal health of the mother and child were measured throughout pregnancy and after delivery. The perceived barriers, such as a lack of information about the health benefits and risks over the two trimesters (all p < 0.05) and insecurity related to practice throughout pregnancy (all p < 0.05), were different in favor of the intervention group. There were no significant between-group differences for the major indices of physical activity, whether measured or reported. The intervention women reported significantly more sedentary activity compared with the control group in the third trimester, 64.7 (36.4-78.7) vs. 22.7 (9.4-49.8) MET-hours/week, respectively (p < 0.001). The perinatal health outcomes for the mother and child showed no significant differences. The intervention was unable to limit the decline in physical activity or improve health outcomes. However, it was associated with an improvement in the perception of barriers. Future research should focus on interventions that have a sufficient quantitative impact on perceived barriers in order to limit physical activity decline.

If Motivation Was a Key Factor in Aerobic Performance in Tropical Climate?

This mini review examines the impact of tropical climate (TC) on motivational factors during aerobic performance and proposes the tracks of an integrative theoretical model to better understand the direct and indirect motivational mechanisms that can operate on athletic performances. TC is detrimental for aerobic performance and, although it clearly induces physiological constraints, these do not seem to be the only factors that explain the performance decline. Indeed, TC performance researchers have developed a theory of anticipation, which suggests that the brain commands a reduction in effort to protect the body from probable harm and heatstroke risk. The objective of this mini review is thus to examine the possibility that motivation may be a key factor in TC performance. The main psychological impacts of TC on aerobic performance are reviewed and an integrative theoretical model is presented that may help to better understand the mechanisms of motivation.

Beneficial Influence of Mindfulness Training Promoted by Text Messages on Self-Reported Aerobic Physical Activity in Older Adults: A Randomized Controlled Study.

Inactivity is known to have harmful effects on the physical and mental health of older adults. This study used a randomized, parallel trial design to evaluate whether daily text prompts to practice mindfulness would have a positive impact on the time that adults aged 50 years or older spend in aerobic physical activity. The participants were recruited from a certified fitness center and divided into mindfulness and control groups. For 4 weeks, they were exposed to the experimental conditions, with or without the morning text message. In the morning message condition, the mindfulness groups received a text message with the instruction to practice audio-guided mindfulness for 10 min, and the control group received a placebo message. The participants practicing mindfulness reported significantly more weekly minutes of aerobic physical activity and higher intrinsic motivation than the control participants. Mindfulness training was effective at increasing aerobic physical activity duration and might complement physical activity programs.

Conventional and Alternative Strategies to Cope With the Subtropical Climate of Tokyo 2020: Impacts on Psychological Factors of Performance.

The thermal discomfort caused by a hot or hot-wet climate can have negative effects on human performance. The 2020 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games will take place in Tokyo's hot and humid summer period, possibly exposing athletes to severe environmental stressors. In addition to technical, tactical, physical and nutritional preparation, Olympians and Paralympians need an optimal psychological state to turn in their best performances, especially in terms of emotional control, concentration and motivation. Yet, the tropical climate can have many negative effects on these factors. Better understanding of the negative effects of this climate and the strategies to manage them might be crucial for competitors, coaches and their teams in Japan. At the psychological level, cooling interventions before, during and/or immediately after exercise were mainly studied on perceptual responses. However, the effects of these interventions on other psychological components such as cognitive abilities or psychological states and the use of psychological techniques have been little explored, especially in hot-wet climate. Thus, this article proposes to take stock of the knowledge on the conventional and alternative strategies that help athletes to psychologically cope with the subtropical climate of Tokyo.

Text Messages Promoting Mental Imagery Increase Self-Reported Physical Activity in Older Adults: A Randomized Controlled Study.

OBJECTIVE: This study tested whether text messages prompting adults 50 years of age and older to perform mental imagery would increase aerobic physical activity (APA) duration using a randomized parallel trial design. METHOD: Participants were assigned to an Imagery 1, Imagery 2, or placebo group. For 4 weeks, each group was exposed to two conditions (morning text message vs. no morning text message). In the morning message condition, the imagery groups received a text message with the instruction to mentally imagine performing an APA, and the placebo group received a placebo message. All participants received an evening text message of "Did you do your cardio today? If yes, what did you do?" for 3 days per week. RESULTS: Participants of the imagery groups reported significantly more weekly minutes of APA in the morning text message condition compared with the no morning message condition. CONCLUSION: Electronic messages were effective at increasing minutes of APA.

The Association of Body Fat and Leisure Time Physical Activity Called into Question for Asian Indians.

OBJECTIVE: Thrifty genotypes may predispose to type 2 diabetes and body fat (%BF) excess through a differentiated relationship between physical activity and body fat. We explored this hypothesis in Asian Indians, a population thought to be thrifty. METHODS: Three hundred and nine Guadeloupian adolescents responded to the modifiable activity questionnaire. Their body fat was assessed by bioimpedancemetry. We first studied the relationship between %BF and leisure time physical activity (LTPA). We then explored the associations of ethnicity with this relationship in a subgroup of 93 Asian Indians matched with 93 controls for age, sex, and LTPA class. The alpha risk retained was .05. RESULTS: The analyses showed that Asian Indians had higher %BF even when matched with controls for age, sex and LTPA quartile, and the relationship between LTPA and %BF observed in controls was not evidenced in Asian Indians. CONCLUSIONS: The higher %BF in Asian Indians remained significant even when they were matched with controls for age, sex and LTPA quartile, and their LTPA was not associated ‒ or was at least less robustly associated ‒ with %BF. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis of thriftiness in Asian Indians, with the weaker relationship of high LTPA and low %BF a possible path to thriftiness.

Momentum sequence and environmental climate influence levels of perceived psychological momentum within a sport competition.

The present study examined the influence of momentum sequence (positive vs. negative) and environmental climate (hot-wet vs. neutral) on supporters' (i.e. virtual observers') reported levels of perceived psychological momentum (PM) during a simulated cycling competition. Participants supported one of two competing cyclists involved in a race that was displayed on a screen in a lecture hall. The race scenario was manipulated so that the supported cyclist appeared to undergo either a positive or negative momentum sequence. In addition, participants were either exposed to a hot-wet environmental climate or to a neutral environmental climate while observing the race scenario. According to the results, reported levels of PM were higher in the positive momentum sequence condition than in the negative momentum sequence condition, consistent with the notion that supporters' PM is influenced by a positivity bias, and reported levels of PM were also found to be higher in the hot-wet climate condition than in the neutral climate condition, consistent with the notion that environmental climate is a contextual factor that influences PM through the operation of a causal augmenting mechanism.

Impaired oxygen uptake efficiency slope and off-transient kinetics of pulmonary oxygen uptake in sickle cell anemia are associated with hemorheological abnormalities.

Oxygen uptake efficiency slope (OUES) and excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) are markers of physical fitness in the general population but have never been characterized in sickle cell anemia (SCA) where hematological and hemorheological properties are severely altered. Eight SCA patients and eleven healthy subjects (CONT) performed a submaximal incremental exercise conducted until the first ventilatory threshold (VT1). OUES was calculated from the data collected during the incremental period and EPOC parameters (amplitude [A] and time constant [τ]) were calculated from the data measured during exercise recovery. We found that OUES (p = 0.007) and A (p = 0.010) were lower, and τ (p = 0.035) was higher, in SCA patients compared to CONT subjects. OUES and τ were significantly correlated with hematocrit, red blood cell (RBC) deformability and RBC aggregates strength. Our findings suggest that both the abilities to use oxygen during exercise and to recover after a physical activity are impaired in SCA patients. This poor physical fitness seems to depend on the degree of anemia and RBC rheological alterations.

Overweight explains the increased red blood cell aggregation in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

Sleep apnea patients and obese subjects are overexposed to cardiovascular diseases. These two health conditions may be associated with hemorheological alterations which could increase the cardiovascular risk. The present study investigated the hemorheological characteristics in patients with overweight and/or sleep apnea to identify the main predictor of red blood cell (RBC) abnormalities in sleep apnea patients. Ninety-seven patients were subjected to one night sleep polygraphy to determine their sleep apnea status. Body mass index (BMI) and the apnea/hypopnea index (AHI) were determined for categorization of obesity and sleep apnea status. Blood was sampled for hematocrit, blood viscosity, RBC deformability, aggregation and disaggregation threshold measurements. BMI and AHI were positively associated and were both positively associated with RBC aggregation. Analyses of covariance and multiple regression analyses revealed that BMI was more predictive of RBC aggregation than AHI. No association of BMI classes and AHI classes with RBC deformability or blood viscosity was observed. This study shows that increased RBC aggregation in sleep apnea patients is caused by overweight. Therapies to improve blood rheology in sleep apnea patients, and therefore reduce the risk for cardiovascular disorders, should focus on weight-loss.

Physical and perceptual cooling with beverages to increase cycle performance in a tropical climate.

PURPOSE: This study compares the effects of neutral temperature, cold and ice-slush beverages, with and without 0.5% menthol on cycling performance, core temperature (Tco) and stress responses in a tropical climate (hot and humid conditions). METHODS: Twelve trained male cyclists/triathletes completed six 20-km exercise trials against the clock in 30.7°C±0.8°C and 78%±0.03% relative humidity. Before and after warm-up, and before exercise and every 5 km during exercise, athletes drank 190 mL of either aromatized (i.e., with 0.5 mL of menthol (5 gr/L)) or a non-aromatized beverage (neutral temperature: 23°C±0.1°C, cold: 3°C±0.1°C, or ice-slush: -1°C±0.7°C). During the trials, heart rate (HR) was continuously monitored, whereas core temperature (Tco), thermal comfort (TC), thermal sensation (TS) and rate of perceived exertion (RPE) were measured before and after warm-up, every 5 km of exercise, and at the end of exercise and after recovery. RESULTS: Both the beverage aroma (P<0.02) and beverage temperature (P<0.02) had significant and positive effects on performance, which was considerably better with ice-slush than with a neutral temperature beverage, whatever the aroma (P<0.002), and with menthol vs non-menthol (P<0.02). The best performances were obtained with ice-slush/menthol and cold/menthol, as opposed to neutral/menthol. No differences were noted in HR and Tco between trials. CONCLUSION: Cold water or ice-slush with menthol aroma seems to be the most effective beverage for endurance exercise in a tropical climate. Further studies are needed to explore its effects in field competition.