Scaling-up an efficacious school-based physical activity intervention: Study protocol for the 'Internet-based Professional Learning to help teachers support Activity in Youth' (iPLAY) cluster randomized controlled trial and scale-up implementation evaluation.

BACKGROUND: Despite the health benefits of regular physical activity, most children are insufficiently active. Schools are ideally placed to promote physical activity; however, many do not provide children with sufficient in-school activity or ensure they have the skills and motivation to be active beyond the school setting. The aim of this project is to modify, scale up and evaluate the effectiveness of an intervention previously shown to be efficacious in improving children's physical activity, fundamental movement skills and cardiorespiratory fitness. The 'Internet-based Professional Learning to help teachers support Activity in Youth' (iPLAY) study will focus largely on online delivery to enhance translational capacity. METHODS/DESIGN: The intervention will be implemented at school and teacher levels, and will include six components: (i) quality physical education and school sport, (ii) classroom movement breaks, (iii) physically active homework, (iv) active playgrounds, (v) community physical activity links and (vi) parent/caregiver engagement. Experienced physical education teachers will deliver professional learning workshops and follow-up, individualized mentoring to primary teachers (i.e., Kindergarten - Year 6). These activities will be supported by online learning and resources. Teachers will then deliver the iPLAY intervention components in their schools. We will evaluate iPLAY in two complementary studies in primary schools across New South Wales (NSW), Australia. A cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT), involving a representative sample of 20 schools within NSW (1:1 allocation at the school level to intervention and attention control conditions), will assess effectiveness and cost-effectiveness at 12 and 24 months. Students' cardiorespiratory fitness will be the primary outcome in this trial. Key secondary outcomes will include students' moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (via accelerometers), fundamental movement skill proficiency, enjoyment of physical education and sport, cognitive control, performance on standardized tests of numeracy and literacy, and cost-effectiveness. A scale-up implementation study guided by the RE-AIM framework will evaluate the reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, and maintenance of the intervention when delivered in 160 primary schools in urban and regional areas of NSW. DISCUSSION: This project will provide the evidence and a framework for government to guide physical activity promotion throughout NSW primary schools and a potential model for adoption in other states and countries. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Australia and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ( ACTRN12616000731493 ). Date of registration: June 3, 2016.

Developmental Training Model for the Sport Specialized Youth Athlete: A Dynamic Strategy for Individualizing Load-Response During Maturation.

CONTEXT: Most available data on athletic development training models focus on adult or professional athletes, where increasing workload capacity and performance is a primary goal. Development pathways in youth athletes generally emphasize multisport participation rather than sport specialization to optimize motor skill acquisition and to minimize injury risk. Other models emphasize the need for accumulation of sport- and skill-specific hours to develop elite-level status. Despite recommendations against sport specialization, many youth athletes still specialize and need guidance on training and competition. Medical and sport professionals also recommend progressive, gradual increases in workloads to enhance resilience to the demands of high-level competition. There is no accepted model of risk stratification and return to play for training a specialized youth athlete through periods of injury and maturation. In this review, we present individualized training models for specialized youth athletes that (1) prioritize performance for healthy, resilient youth athletes and (2) are adaptable through vulnerable maturational periods and injury. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: Nonsystematic review with critical appraisal of existing literature. STUDY DESIGN: Clinical review. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 4. RESULTS: A number of factors must be considered when developing training programs for young athletes: (1) the effect of sport specialization on athlete development and injury, (2) biological maturation, (3) motor and coordination deficits in specialized youth athletes, and (4) workload progressions and response to load. CONCLUSION: Load-sensitive athletes with multiple risk factors may need medical evaluation, frequent monitoring, and a program designed to restore local tissue and sport-specific capacity. Load-naive athletes, who are often skeletally immature, will likely benefit from serial monitoring and should train and compete with caution, while load-tolerant athletes may only need occasional monitoring and progress to optimum loads. STRENGTH OF RECOMMENDATION TAXONOMY (SORT): B.

Understanding mismatches in body size, speed and power among adolescent rugby union players.

OBJECTIVES: With adolescent sport increasingly challenged by mismatches in size, new strategies are important to maximize participation. The objectives were to (1) improve the understanding of mismatches in physical size, speed and power in adolescent rugby union players, (2) explore associations between size and performance with demographic, playing-history, and injury profiles, and (3) explore the applicability of existing criteria for age/body mass-based dispensation (playing-down) strategies. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. METHODS: Four hundred and eighty-five male community rugby union players were recruited from three Australian states selected to represent community-based U12, U13, U14 and U15 players. Body mass, stature, speed (10, 30, and 40 m sprints) and lower-leg power (relative peak power and relative peak force) were measured. Independent student t-tests, linear regressions and Chi square analyses were undertaken. RESULTS: Mean values in age groups for size, speed and power masked considerable overlap in the ranges within specific age groups of adolescent rugby players. Only a small proportion of players (approximately 5%) shared the highest and lowest tertiles for speed, relative peak power and body mass. Physical size was not related to injury. The mean body mass of current community rugby union players was above the 75th percentile on normative growth-charts. CONCLUSION: The notion that bigger, faster, and more powerful characteristics occur simultaneously in adolescent rugby players was not supported in the present study. Current practices in body mass-based criteria for playing down an age group lack a sufficient evidence for decision-making. Dispensation solely based on body mass may not address mismatch in junior rugby union.