Effects of Resistance Training With Machines and Elastic Tubes on Functional Capacity and Muscle Strength in Community-Living Older Women: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

The aim of the present study is to compare the effects of 12 weeks of resistance training with machines and elastic tubes on functional capacity and muscular strength in older women aged 60 years or over. The participants were randomized into two groups: a machine group (n = 23) and an elastic group (n = 20). They performed 12 weeks of progressive resistance training, twice a week, with similar exercises. Outcomes were assessed at three time points: baseline, postintervention, and 8 weeks after the end of the training. A significant intragroup effect was demonstrated for both groups at postintervention on functional tests and muscle strength. For the functional reach test and elbow flexion strength (180°/s), only the machine group demonstrated significant intragroup differences. No differences were observed between groups for any outcome. At the 8-week follow-up, functional capacity outcome values were maintained. The muscle strength outcome values decreased to baseline scores, without differences between groups.

The effects of one session of roller massage on recovery from exercise-induced muscle damage: A randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: Roller massage has become a popular intervention in sports settings in order to treat muscle soreness and stiffness, as well as improving post-exercise recovery, although there is limited evidence for these assumptions. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a single session of roller massage, applied with a controlled force after an exercise-induced muscle damage protocol, on muscle recovery. METHODS: A randomized controlled study was performed using a repeated-measures design. Thirty-six young men completed four sets of six eccentric actions of elbow flexors at 90°/s with a 90s rest interval between sets. Participants were randomly assigned into one of three groups: 1) Roller massage (n = 12), 2) Sham (n = 12), and 3) Control (n = 12). Maximal isometric voluntary contraction (MIVC), delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS), range of motion (ROM), and muscle thickness were measured at baseline, and at 24, 48, and 72 h post exercise. RESULTS: There was no significant group by time interaction for MIVC (p = 0.090) and ROM (p = 0.416). Also, although there was a significant group by time interaction for muscle thickness (p = 0.028), post hoc test did not find significant difference between groups (p > 0.05). DOMS was recovered at 72 h for roller massage (p < 0.001) and control (p < 0.001) groups, while the Sham group did not recover from DOMS across 72 h (p < 0.001). There was also no significant difference between groups in DOMS at any time (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: A single session of roller massage applied on elbow flexors had no effect on recovery of MIVC, muscle swelling, ROM and DOMS.

Body Composition is Strongly Associated With Cardiorespiratory Fitness in a Large Brazilian Military Firefighter Cohort: The Brazilian Firefighters Study.

Firefighting is associated with high-level physical demands and requires appropriate physical fitness. Considering that obesity has been correlated with decreased cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and that the prevalence of obesity may also be elevated within firefighters (FF), we analyzed the association between CRF and body composition (BC) in Brazilian military FF. We assessed 4,237 male FF (18-49 years) who performed a physical fitness test that included BC and CRF. Body composition was assessed by body mass index (BMI), body adiposity index (BAI), body fat percentage (BF%), and waist circumference (WC). CRF was assessed by the 12-minute Cooper test. Comparisons of VO2max between the BC categories were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney test, and the analysis was adjusted for age using the General Linear Model. The Spearman test was used for correlation analysis and the odds ratio (OR) was calculated to assess the odds of the unfit group (≤ 12 metabolic equivalents [METs]) for poor BC. Statistically significant differences were considered when p ≤ 0.05. Considering the BMI categories, 8 volunteers (0.2%) were underweight, 1,306 (30.8%) were normal weight, 2,301 (54.3%) were overweight, and 622 (14.7%) were obese. The VO2max was negatively correlated with age (rs = -0.21), BMI (rs = -0.45), WC (rs = -0.50), and BAI (rs = -0.35) (p < 0.001). Cardiorespiratory fitness was lower in the obese compared with the nonobese for all age categories (-3.8 ml · kg(-1) · min(-1); p < 0.001) and for all BC indices (-4.5 ml · kg(-1) · min(-1); p < 0.001). The OR of the unfit group having poor BC in all indices varied from 2.9 to 8.1 (p < 0.001). Despite the metabolically healthy obesity phenomenon, we found a strong association between CRF and BC irrespective of age and the BC method (BMI, BAI, WC, or BF%). These findings may aid in improving FF training programs with a focus on health and performance.

Effects of lower-limb extensors' neuromuscular fatigue on the regularity of running movements: a crossover study.

Neuromuscular fatigue (NMF) reduces the musculoskeletal system's ability to produce force during activities like running. Analysis of motor behaviour's regularity may identify motor system deficits caused by fatigue. The present study investigated whether the NMF of lower limb extensors alters the regularity of running movement and whether this possible effect remains over time. Crossover study with two randomised conditions: NMF and control. Twelve healthy young males participated in this study. Hip, knee, and ankle angles (sagittal plane) and centre of mass (CoM) linear accelerations were assessed during treadmill running at self-selected speed in four assessment conditions: Baseline (pre-NMF), and after NMF (NMF condition) or after rest (control), at the 1st (Time_1), 10th (Time_10) and 20th (Time_20) minutes. Kinematics regularity was measured as Sample Entropy. Repeated measures ANOVAs were used (α = 0.05). NMF reduced regularity of lower limb joints during running, and these effects remained up to 20 minutes. No changes were observed in the CoM accelerations' regularity. The regularity reductions may be an adaptive solution for the motor system to maintain the task performance. The measure of regularity of the lower limb joints' motion is sensitive to NMF and can identify states with deficits in muscles' force production capacity in running.

Effectiveness of multimodal circuit exercises for chronic musculoskeletal pain in older adults: A randomized controlled trial protocol.

Studies have shown that musculoskeletal pain is one of the most prevalent health conditions that affects many individuals worldwide. In older adults, persistent pain is a widely prevalent and a disabling condition of multiple contributing factors: physical, mental, and social. Consequently, their quality of life is hampered. We aimed to analyze the effectiveness of a multimodal circuit exercise program on chronic musculoskeletal pain and disabling in older adults. This is a randomized parallel study (two arms) with blinded outcome assessments. The participants' recruitment will be done by a non-probabilistic sampling resulting from invitations to Basic Health Units (BHU). The sample size estimation indicated 164 participants. Participants will be allocated, by means of a randomization process, to one of two groups (82 for each group): Experimental Group (multimodal circuit exercise) or Control Group (cycle of multidisciplinary lectures on pain and stretching exercise). All analyses will be processed using the RStudio software, with significance when a p-value of 2 tails is less than 5% (p<0.05). Statistical analysis will follow the intention to treat. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04719130, January 20, 2021.