Analysis of Dietary Intake and Body Composition of Collegiate Runners / Análisis de la Ingesta Dietética y Composición Corporal de Corredores Universitarios

SUMMARY: The aim of this cross-sectional study was to compare dietary intake to published recommendations and to analyze the potential relationship between body composition and dietary intake in collegiate athletes. Eighteen healthy male middle- and long- distance runners (age 20.11 ± 2.72 y; height, 174.7 ± 6.1 cm; body mass, 64.0 ± 7.7 kg), were recruited from a Mexican university track and field team at the beginning of the general preparation phase for national competitions. Participants completed three 24-hour dietary recalls, which were used to estimate dietary intake. Body composition was measured by Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Athletes displayed high body fat values. Protein intake was significantly higher than published recommendations. Iron, zinc, sodium, and vitamin C intake were significantly higher than recommended values, while potassium and calcium intake were below established recommendations. No significant correlations between body composition variables (i.e body fat, lean body mass, bone mineral content) and dietary intake (i.e energy, macronutrients and selected vitamins and minerals) could be found. These findings suggest that coaches and practitioners should pay close attention to dietary intake and body composition of endurance athletes starting general preparation for competition. Future studies on changes of dietary intake and body composition during off-season and competitive phase, which also track physical activity, are warranted.

El objetivo de este estudio transversal fue comparar la ingesta dietética con las recomendaciones publicadas y analizar la relación potencial entre la composición corporal y la ingesta dietética en corredores universitarios. Dieciocho atletas masculinos sanos de media y larga distancia (edad 20,11 ± 2,72 años; altura, 174,7 ± 6,1 cm; masa corporal, 64,0 ± 7,7 kg), fueron reclutados de un equipo de atletismo de una universidad mexicana al comienzo de la fase de preparación general de competiciones nacionales. Los participantes completaron tres recordatorios dietéticos de 24 horas, que se utilizaron para estimar la ingesta dietética. La composición corporal se midió mediante absorciometría de rayos X de energía dual (DXA). Los atletas mostraron altos valores de grasa corporal. La ingesta de proteínas fue significativamente mayor que las recomendaciones publicadas. La ingesta de hierro, zinc, sodio y vitamina C fue significativamente superior a los valores recomendados, mientras que la ingesta de potasio y calcio estuvo por debajo de las recomendaciones establecidas. No se encontraron correlaciones significativas entre las variables de composición corporal (es decir, grasa corporal, masa corporal magra, contenido mineral óseo) y la ingesta dietética (es decir, energía, macronutrientes y vitaminas y minerales seleccionados). Estos hallazgos sugieren que los entrenadores y los practicantes deberían prestar mucha atención a la ingesta dietética y la composición corporal de los atletas de resistencia que comienzan la preparación general para la competencia. Se justifican estudios futuros sobre los cambios en la ingesta dietética y la composición corporal durante la fase fuera de temporada y competitiva, como también un seguimiento de la actividad física.

Effects of home confinement on physical activity, nutrition, and sleep quality during the COVID-19 outbreak in amateur and elite athletes.

Introduction: Despite the progress in the management of the pandemic caused by COVID-19, it is necessary to continue exploring and explaining how this situation affected the athlete population around the world to improve their circumstances and reduce the negative impact of changes in their lifestyle conditions that were necessitated due to the pandemic. The aim of this study was to analyze the moderating influence of physical activity (PA) and dietary habits on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic experience on sleep quality in elite and amateur athletes. Materials and methods: A total of 1,420 elite (40.1%) and amateur (59.9%) athletes (41% women; 59% men) from 14 different countries participated in a cross-sectional design study. Data were collected using a battery of questionnaires that identified sociodemographic data, sleep quality index, PA levels, dietary habits, and the athletes' perception of their experience during the COVID-19 pandemic. Means and standard deviations were calculated for each variable. The analysis of variances and the correlation between variables were carried out with non-parametric statistics. A simple moderation effect was calculated to analyze the interaction between PA or dietary habits on the perception of the COVID-19 experience effect on sleep quality in elite and amateur athletes. Results: The PA level of elite athletes was higher than amateur athletes during COVID-19 (p < 0.001). However, the PA level of both categories of athletes was lower during COVID-19 than pre-COVID-19 (p < 0.01). In addition, amateurs had a higher diet quality than elite athletes during the pandemic (p = 0.014). The perception of the COVID-19 experience as controllable was significantly higher (p = 0.020) among elite athletes. In addition, two moderating effects had significant interactions. For amateur athletes, the PA level moderated the effect of controllable COVID-19 experience on sleep quality [F (3,777) = 3.05; p = 0.028], while for elite athletes, the same effect was moderated by dietary habits [F (3,506) = 4.47, p = 0.004]. Conclusion: Elite athletes had different lifestyle behaviors compared to amateurs during the COVID-19 lockdown. Furthermore, the relevance of maintaining high levels of PA for amateurs and good quality dietary habits by elite athletes was noted by the moderating effect that both variables had on the influence of the controllable experience during the COVID-19 pandemic on sleep quality.

Análisis cienciométrico de la producción científica sobre la hipoxantina y xantina en el ejercicio, publicada en la base de datos Scopus (2016-2021) / Scientometric Analysis of the Scientific Production on Hypoxanthine and Xanthine in Exercise, Published in Scopus Database (2016-2021)

La hipoxantina y la xantina son biomarcadores metabólicos que resultan de la degradación de las proteínas purinas. Los análisis cienciométricos constituyen una herramienta para estudiar las publicaciones científicas en torno a un determinado tema con la finalidad de determinar tendencias en la literatura. Se realizó un análisis cienciométrico de la producción científica reciente sobre la hipoxantina y xantina en el ejercicio, publicada en la base de datos Scopus durante el período 2016 - 2021. Para la búsqueda en Scopus se utilizaron las palabras clave en idioma inglés: exercise, hypoxanthine y xanthine. Se realizó un análisis cuantitativo, tomando en cuenta los artículos encontrados, así como la información proporcionada por el software VOSviewer. Se identificaron 64 artículos, de estos, 56 fueron de investigación aplicada y ocho de revisión. La categoría de efecto del ejercicio tuvo una mayor cantidad de estudios con 23; dentro de esta se encuentra la subcategoría de metabolismo que presentó 21 artículos. Tanto Estados Unidos como Polonia son los países con mayor número de publicaciones. Existen distintos enfoques y protocolos de ejercicio utilizados para cuantificar la respuesta de la hipoxantina y xantina, así como los perfiles de los sujetos de estudio utilizados como muestra para las investigaciones. La cuantificación de hipoxantina y xantina en el cuerpo es importante para la investigación en el campo de las ciencias del ejercicio(AU)

Hypoxanthine and xanthine are metabolic biomarkers that result from the degradation of purine proteins. Scientometric analyzes constitute a tool to study scientific publications around a certain topic in order to determine trends in the literature. A scientometric analysis was carried out of the recent scientific production on hypoxanthine and xanthine in exercise, published in Scopus database during the period 2016-2021. For the search in Scopus, we used the English keywords exercise, hypoxanthine and xanthine. A quantitative analysis was carried out, taking into account the articles found, as well as the information provided by VOSviewer software. Sixty-four articles were identified, 56 of them were applied research and eight were review. The exercise effect category had a larger number of studies (23). Here there is a subcategory of metabolism that had 21 articles. The United States and Poland are both the countries with the highest number of publications. There are different approaches and exercise protocols used to quantify the response of hypoxanthine and xanthine, as well as the profiles of the study subjects used as a sample for the investigations. The quantification of hypoxanthine and xanthine in the body is important for research in the field of exercise science(AU)

Ultrashort Versus Criterion Heart Rate Variability Among International-Level Girls' Field Hockey Players.

PURPOSE: To assess heart rate (HR) variability responses to various markers of training load, quantify associations between HR variability and fitness, and compare responses and associations between 1-minute ultrashort and 5-minute criterion measures among a girls' field hockey team. METHODS: A total of 11 players (16.8 [1.1] y) recorded the logarithm of the root mean square of successive differences (LnRMSSD) daily throughout a 4-week training camp. The weekly mean (LnRMSSDM) and coefficient of variation (LnRMSSDCV) were analyzed. The internal training load (ITL) and external training load (ETL) were acquired with session HR and accelerometry, respectively. Speed, agility, repeated sprint ability, and intermittent fitness were assessed precamp and postcamp. RESULTS: Similar increases in the ultrashort and criterion LnRMSSDM were observed in week 3 versus week 1 (P < .05-.06, effect size [ES] = 0.28 to 0.36). The ultrashort and criterion LnRMSSDCV showed small ES reductions in week 2 (ES = -0.40 to -0.50), moderate reductions in week 3 (ES = -0.61 to -0.72), and small reductions in week 4 (ES = -0.42 to -0.51) versus week 1 (P > .05). Strong agreement was observed between the ultrashort and criterion values (intraclass correlation coefficient = .979). The ITL:ETL ratio peaked in week 1 (P < .05 vs weeks 2-4), displaying a weekly pattern similar to LnRMSSDCV, and inversely similar to LnRMSSDM. Changes in the ultrashort and criterion LnRMSSDCV from week 1 to 4 were associated with ITL (P < .01). The ultrashort and criterion LnRMSSDCV in week 4 were associated (P < .05) with postcamp fitness. CONCLUSIONS: The ultrashort HR variability parameters paralleled the criterion responses, and the associations with ITL and fitness were similar in magnitude.

Does A Multiple-Sport Intervention Based on the TGfU Pedagogical Model for Physical Education Increase Physical Fitness in Primary School Children?

Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU) is one of the pedagogical models used for increasing health through physical education (PE), being associated with several psychological benefits. However, only few studies have studied the effect of TGfU on physical fitness. This study aims at assessing the changes in students' physical fitness after a six-month TGfU-based program with primary school children. A total of eight schools from the state of Sonora (Mexico) were randomly distributed into experimental (EG) and control group (CG). The final sample consisted of 188 pupils (100 boys, 88 girls; age = 10.22 ± 0.76 years) from the 5th and 6th grade. Employing a quasi-experimental design, physical fitness was assessed by means of the Eurofit test battery. At post-test, EG obtained significantly higher scores than CG in flexibility, abdominals, speed (p < 0.001), handgrip (p = 0.002), low-limb power (p = 0.032), and cardiorespiratory fitness (p = 0.048). Our findings suggest that TGfU can be a valid alternative to traditional methodologies not only when the aim of a PE unit is to stimulate the cognitive domain, but also for the development of physical fitness attributes that may help pupils develop in a comprehensive manner.

Competitive Recovery-Stress and Mood States in Mexican Youth Athletes.

BACKGROUND: Monitoring recovery-stress balance in sport is becoming more relevant to prevent training maladaptation and reach the optimal performance for each athlete. The use of questionnaires that identify the athlete's recovery-stress state have much acceptance in sports due to reliability and useful, furthermore for its low cost. Identifying possible differences between sport modalities and sex is important to determine specific needs and possible intervention ways to keep a recovery-stress balance. The aim was to analyze the differences in the recovery-stress state and mood states by sex and sport type during the competitive phase in young Mexican athletes. As a secondary objective, the psychometric properties of the Mexican version of the Recovery-Stress Questionnaire for Athletes (RESTQ-Sport) were analyzed. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried on with 461 athletes (61% women and 39% men), 17.95 (±1.2) years old, from six sports disciplines. The RESTQ-Sport and Profile of Mood States (POMS) were applied in a single moment. Differences by sex and sports modality were analyzed. RESTQ-Sport's confirmatory factor analysis was performed after the stress and recovery theoretical structure of two stress (general and sport) and two recovery (general and sport) dimensions, and last, the concurrent validation with the POMS was carried on. RESULTS: Significant differences by sex were found in the General Recovery and Sport Stress dimensions of the RESTQ-Sport as well as Vigor factor of the POMS, being higher for men; furthermore, both the Sport Recovery dimension of RESTQ-Sport and Cholera and the Fatigue and Depression factors from POMS also had differences by sport type, showing a less recovery and high stress for individual sport athletes. Goodness-of-fit indexes of the model for the RESTQ-Sport were acceptable. Pearson's correlation between questionnaires was moderate (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The recovery-stress state shows differences in the function of sex and sport modality. More special attention is suggested for women and individual sport athletes. The higher punctuation for men compared with women in sport stress dimension did not negatively affect the recovery-stress balance for male athletes. Finally, the Mexican context adaptation of the RESTQ-Sport provides a psychometric instrument suitable to assess the recovery-stress balance in Mexican athletes.