A 4-Year Profile of Game Demands in Elite Women's Division I College Basketball.

Ransdell, LB, Murray, T, Gao, Y, Jones, P, and Bycura, D. A 4-year profile of game demands in elite women's Division I college basketball. J Strength Cond Res 34(3): 632-638, 2020-Workload for a Division I women's collegiate basketball team (0.817 win percentage) was examined by: (a) season, (b) player position, and (c) game outcome (wins vs. losses). Female athletes (n = 6, mean 19.7 ± 1.5 years, at beginning of study) wore Catapult S5 units during 91.8% of games over a 4-year period. Average PlayerLoad, PlayerLoad per minute (PL·min), high inertial movement analysis (high-IMA), and jumps were quantified using Catapult Openfield software (version 1.14.1+). Data were checked for normality and log- or square-root-transformed when they were non-normal. A series of linear mixed model analyses were conducted to detect differences in PlayerLoad, PL·min, high-IMA, and jumps by season, position, and game outcome. PL·min and jumps data were not normal, so they were transformed, analyses were run; because there were no differences in findings, data are reported in original units to allow for comparisons with other studies. Cohen's d and confidence intervals were provided as additional information about the strength of reported differences. The 3 most consistent findings were that across a 4-year period, jumps increased, PL·min was higher in guards compared with posts, and high-IMA was higher in losses compared with wins. Other workload patterns were inconsistent, and inappropriate for making conclusive statements. Therefore, comparing jumps across multiple seasons, PL·min by player position and high-IMA in losses are important; in addition, all data can be used to profile National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I women's basketball players and set game workload expectations.

Off-ice fitness of elite female ice hockey players by team success, age, and player position.

This study examined off-ice fitness profiles of 204 elite female ice hockey players from 13 countries who attended a high-performance camp organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) in Bratislava, Slovakia, in July of 2011. Athletes were tested using standardized protocols for vertical jump (centimeters), long jump (centimeters), 4-jump average (centimeters), elasticity ratio (4-vertical jump average/vertical jump), pull-up or inverted row (n), aerobic fitness (V[Combining Dot Above]O2max), body mass (kilograms), and body composition (% fat). These variables were examined relative to team success in major international hockey competition (group 1: Canada and USA, group 2: Sweden and Finland, group 3: All other participating countries), age group (Under 18 and Senior/Open Levels), and player position (forwards, defenders, and goalies). The athletes from countries with the best international records weighed more, yet had less body fat, had greater lower body muscular power and upper body strength, and higher aerobic capacity compared with their less successful counterparts. Compared with the younger athletes, athletes from the senior-level age group weighed more and had higher scores for lower body power, pull-ups, and aerobic capacity. There were no significant differences in anthropometric or fitness data based on player position. This study is the first to report the physical characteristics of a worldwide sample of elite female ice hockey players relative to team performance, age, and player position. Coaches should use these data to identify talent, test for strengths and weaknesses in conditioning programs, and design off-ice programs that will help athletes match the fitness profiles of the most successful teams in the world.

Lactate response to different volume patterns of power clean.

The ability to metabolize or tolerate lactate and produce power simultaneously can be an important determinant of performance. Current training practices for improving lactate use include high-intensity aerobic activities or a combination of aerobic and resistance training. Excessive aerobic training may have undesired physiological adaptations (e.g., muscle loss, change in fiber types). The role of explosive power training in lactate production and use needs further clarification. We hypothesized that high-volume explosive power movements such as Olympic lifts can increase lactate production and overload lactate clearance. Hence, the purpose of this study was to assess lactate accumulation after the completion of 3 different volume patterns of power cleans. Ten male recreational athletes (age 24.22 ± 1.39 years) volunteered. Volume patterns consisted of 3 sets × 3 repetition maximum (3RM) (low volume [LV]), 3 sets × 6 reps at 80-85% of 3RM (midvolume [MV]), and 3 sets × 9 reps at 70-75% of 3RM (high volume [HV]). Rest period was identical at 2 minutes. Blood samples were collected immediately before and after each volume pattern. The HV resulted in the greatest lactate accumulation (7.43 ± 2.94 mmol·L) vs. (5.27 ± 2.48 and 4.03 ± 1.78 mmol·L in MV and LV, respectively). Mean relative increase in lactate was the highest in HV (356.34%). The findings indicate that lactate production in power cleans is largely associated with volume, determined by number of repetitions, load, and rest interval. High-volume explosive training may impose greater metabolic demands than low-volume explosive training and may improve ability to produce power in the presence of lactate. The role of explosive power training in overloading the lactate clearance mechanism should be examined further, especially for athletes of intermittent sport.

Physiologic performance test differences in female volleyball athletes by competition level and player position.

The purpose of this study was to examine physiologic performance test differences by competition level (high school and Division-I collegiate athletes) and player position (hitter, setter, defensive specialist) in 4 volleyball-related tests. A secondary purpose was to establish whether a 150-yd shuttle could be used as a field test to assess anaerobic capacity. Female participants from 4 varsity high school volleyball teams (n = 27) and 2 Division-I collegiate volleyball teams (n = 26) were recruited for the study. Participants completed 4 performance-based field tests (vertical jump, agility T-test, and 150- and 300-yd shuttle runs) after completing a standardized dynamic warm-up. A 2-way multivariate analysis of variance with Bonferroni post hoc adjustments (when appropriate) and effect sizes were used for the analyses. The most important findings of this study were that (a) college volleyball athletes were older, heavier, and taller than high school athletes; (b) high school athletes had performance deficiencies in vertical jump/lower-body power, agility, and anaerobic fitness; (c) lower-body power was the only statistically significant difference in the performance test measures by player position; and (d) the correlation between the 150- and 300-yd shuttle was moderate (r = 0.488). Female high school volleyball players may enhance their ability to play collegiate volleyball by improving their vertical jump, lower-body power, agility, and anaerobic fitness. Furthermore, all player positions should emphasize lower-body power conditioning. These physical test scores provide baseline performance scores that should help strength and conditioning coaches create programs that will address deficits in female volleyball player performance, especially as they transition from high school to college.

Longitudinal monitoring of workloads in women's division I (DI) collegiate basketball across four training periods.

Women's collegiate basketball is a fast-growing, dynamic sport that spans 8 or more months, with athletes competing in 30 + games in a season. The aim of this study was to quantify and profile the external load of practices and games during a Power-5 DI Women's Collegiate Basketball season. Specifically, Average PlayerLoad (PL), PlayerLoad per minute (PL*min-1), High Inertial Movement Analysis (High-IMA), and Jumps were quantified using Catapult Openfield software during four distinct training periods of the year: 8-hour preseason, 20-hour preseason, non-conference, and conference game play. Weekly variations and acute to chronic workload ratios (ACWR) were also examined. Eleven subjects participated in daily external load monitoring during practice and games via Catapult's ClearSky T6 inertial measurement units (IMU). Averages, standard deviations, and confidence intervals were calculated for training period comparisons, and Cohen's d was calculated as a measure of effect size. Findings include normative values to provide context for the demands experienced across an entire season. PL was significantly higher during non-conference play than during any of the other three training periods (p < 0.05). Descriptive data enumerate percent change and ACRW variations throughout the season. These data can be used to describe the physical demands across a season and provide physical profile guidelines for coaches.

An examination of current practices and gender differences in strength and conditioning in a sample of varsity high school athletic programs.

Currently, little is known about strength and conditioning programs at the high school level. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to explore current practices in strength and conditioning for varsity high school athletes in selected sports. The following were specifically examined: who administers programs for these athletes, what kinds of training activities are done, and whether the responsible party or emphasis changes depending on the gender of the athletes. Coaches of varsity soccer, basketball, softball, and baseball in 3 large Idaho school districts were asked to complete an online survey. Sixty-seven percent (32/48) of the questionnaires were completed and used for the study. The majority of coaches (84%) provided strength and conditioning opportunities for their athletes, although only 37% required participation. Strength training programs were designed and implemented primarily by either physical education teachers or head coaches. Compared with coaches of male athletes, coaches of female athletes were less likely to know the credentials of their strength coaches, and they were less likely to use certified coaches to plan and implement their strength and conditioning programs. Most programs included dynamic warm-ups and cool-downs, plyometrics, agility training, speed training, and conditioning, and most programs were conducted 3 d·wk(-1) (76%) for sessions lasting between 30 and 59 minutes (63%). Compared with their female counterparts, male athletes were more likely to have required training, participate in strength training year round, and train using more sessions per week. This study provides additional information related to the practice of strength and conditioning in a sample of high school athletic teams.

A physical profile of elite female ice hockey players from the USA.

Despite impressive numbers of hockey participants, there is little research examining elite female ice hockey players. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to describe the physical characteristics of elite female ice hockey players who were trying out for the 2010 US Women's Ice Hockey team. Twenty-three women participated in the study and were evaluated for body mass (kilograms), height (centimeters), age (years) vertical jump (centimeters), standing long jump (centimeters), 1RM front squat (kilograms), front squat relative to body mass (percent), 1RM bench press (kilograms), bench press relative to body mass (percent), pull-ups, and body composition (percent body fat). The athletes in this sample were 24.7 years of age (SD = 3.1) and 169.7 cm tall (SD = 6.9); on average, they weighed 70.4 kg (SD = 7.1) and reported 15.8% body fat (SD = 1.9). Mean vertical jump height was 50.3 cm (SD = 5.7) and standing long jump was 214.8 cm (SD = 10.9). Mean 1RM for the upper body strength (bench press) was 65.3 kg (SD = 12.2) (95.1 ± 15.5% of body mass), and 1RM for lower body (front squat) was 88.6 kg (SD = 11.2) (127.7 ± 16.3% of body mass). This study is the first to report the physical characteristics of elite female ice hockey players from the USA. Data should assist strength and conditioning coaches in identifying talent, testing for strengths and weaknesses, comparing future teams to these indicators, and designing programs that will enhance the performance capabilities of female ice hockey athletes.

Motivation, goal orientation, coaching, and training habits of women ultrarunners.

Ultrarunners participate in running events that exceed the 26.2-mile marathon distance (e.g., 50k, 50-100 miles). Very little research exists on ultrarunners, especially women. This study is a descriptive study detailing the motivation, goal orientation, demographic characteristics (e.g., age, job demands, family structure), training habits (e.g., hours per week of training), and coach utilization of women ultrarunners. Participants (N = 344) were recruited via the Ultra List serve and 4 popular ultrarunning websites, and they completed a questionnaire on motivation, goal orientation, training, and coaching using Survey Monkey. General health orientation (mean ± SD) (4.71 ± 1.06) and psychological coping (4.71 ± 1.03) were the 2 strongest motivational factors. Participants were higher in task orientation (1.38 ± 0.68) (e.g., finishing the race or accomplishing various goals) than ego orientation (3.38 ± 1.01) (e.g., placing in the top 3 overall or beating an opponent). Women trained an average of 12.49 h·wk(-1) and spent 64% of their time training alone. Training information came from their own experience, blogs, websites, and the Ultra List Serve. Over three-fourths of the participants (80%) did not use a coach because of cost and a perceived lack of necessity. Women ultrarunners in this study were task oriented, internally motivated, health, and financially conscious individuals. With additional information about women ultrarunners, coaches will be better prepared to work with this population and ultrarunners can improve their performance by learning about current participants' practices.

Precision mentoring (PM): a proposed framework for increasing research capacity in health-related disciplines.

PROBLEM: Research productivity is expected of academic faculty, and mentoring can facilitate it. This paper presents a framework for using mentoring to develop researchers in health disciplines. APPROACH: We utilized recent literature reviews, and experience developing researchers at an emerging research institution within the Research Centers for Minority Institutions (RCMI) program, to propose a precision mentoring (PM) framework for research development. OUTCOMES: Although we cannot precisely determine how much improvement was due to the PM framework, over the 4 years of our program, the quality and quantity of pilot project proposals (PPP) has increased, the number of external proposals submitted and funded by PPP investigators has increased, and the number of faculty participating in our program has increased. Surveys distributed to our 2021-22 PPP applicants who did not receive funding (n = 5/6 or 86.7%) revealed that new investigators most frequently sought mentoring related to career guidance (e.g., institutional culture, pre-tenure survival strategies), grant proposal basics (e.g., working with funding agencies, reviewing aims, balancing priorities, and enhancing scientific rigor), and identifying funding opportunities. NEXT STEPS: We recommend shifting the mentoring paradigm such that: (a) mentees are pre-screened and re-screened for their current skill set and desired areas of growth; (b) mentoring occurs in teams vs. by individuals; (c) mentors are trained and rewarded, and (d) attention is paid to enhancing institutional culture.

Mentoring New and Early-Stage Investigators and Underrepresented Minority Faculty for Research Success in Health-Related Fields: An Integrative Literature Review (2010-2020).

Mentoring to develop research skills is an important strategy for facilitating faculty success. The purpose of this study was to conduct an integrative literature review to examine the barriers and facilitators to mentoring in health-related research, particularly for three categories: new investigators (NI), early-stage investigators (ESI) and underrepresented minority faculty (UMF). PsychINFO, CINAHL and PubMed were searched for papers published in English from 2010 to 2020, and 46 papers were reviewed. Most papers recommended having multiple mentors and many recommended assessing baseline research skills. Barriers and facilitators were both individual and institutional. Individual barriers mentioned most frequently were a lack of time and finding work-life balance. UMF mentioned barriers related to bias, discrimination and isolation. Institutional barriers included lack of mentors, lack of access to resources, and heavy teaching and service loads. UMF experienced institutional barriers such as devaluation of experience or expertise. Individual facilitators were subdivided and included writing and synthesis as technical skills, networking and collaborating as interpersonal skills, and accountability, leadership, time management, and resilience/grit as personal skills. Institutional facilitators included access to mentoring, professional development opportunities, and workload assigned to research. Advocacy for diversity and cultural humility were included as unique interpersonal and institutional facilitators for UMF. Several overlapping and unique barriers and facilitators to mentoring for research success for NI, ESI and UMF in the health-related disciplines are presented.

Best Practices for Building Interprofessional Telehealth: Report of a Conference.

The Arizona Biomedical Research Centre (ABRC) has funded a series of workshops and conferences since 2016 to build the capacity of local, tribal, and state agencies, healthcare delivery organizations, and non-governmental organizations to engage in meaningful research related to health disparities. With the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of telehealth has dramatically increased, particularly in nursing, occupational therapy (OT), physical therapy (PT), and speech-language pathology (SLP). The purpose of this paper is to summarize the presentations and discussion from the conference titled "Telerehabilitation and Telepractice: An Interprofessional Conference to Build Connections and Best Practices," held remotely on March 4-5, 2021. Terminology and concepts from the conference were debated, modified, and refined, based on an interprofessional audience. Presenters at the conference, all leaders in their field, discussed the current status of telehealth in their professions, including best practices, challenges, future trends, and research needs.

The impact of resistance training on body composition, muscle strength, and functional fitness in older women (45-80 years): A systematic review (2010-2020).

As women age, they typically experience a progressive decrease in skeletal muscle mass and strength, which can lead to a decline in functional fitness and quality of life. Resistance training (RT) has the potential to attenuate these losses. Although well established for men, evidence regarding the benefits of RT for women is sparse and inconsistent: prior reviews include too few studies with women and do not adequately examine the interactive or additive impacts of workload, modalities, and nutritional supplements on outcomes such as muscle mass (MM), body composition (BC), muscle strength (MS), and functional fitness (FF). The purpose of this review is to identify these gaps. Thirty-eight papers published between 2010 and 2020 (in English) represent 2519 subjects (mean age = 66.89 ± 4.91 years). Intervention averages include 2 to 3 × 50 min sessions across 15 weeks with 7 exercises per session and 11 repetitions per set. Twelve studies (32%) examined the impact of RT plus dietary manipulation. MM, MS, and FF showed positive changes after RT. Adding RT to fitness regimens for peri- to postmenopausal women is likely to have positive benefits.

A pilot study examining exercise self-efficacy as a mediator for walking behavior in college-age women.

This pilot study examined the possible mediation of walking behavior by exercise self-efficacy in an Internet-delivered intervention in a sample of college-age women. Exercise self-efficacy did not mediate walking behavior as determined using nonparametric bootstrapping methods.

No Significant Differences in Muscle Growth and Strength Development When Consuming Soy and Whey Protein Supplements Matched for Leucine Following a 12 Week Resistance Training Program in Men and Women: A Randomized Trial.

There are conflicting reports regarding the efficacy of plant versus animal-derived protein to support muscle and strength development with resistance training. The purpose of this study was to determine whether soy and whey protein supplements matched for leucine would comparably support strength increases and muscle growth following 12 weeks of resistance training. Sixty-one untrained young men (n = 19) and women (n = 42) (18-35 year) enrolled in this study, and 48 completed the trial (17 men, 31 women). All participants engaged in supervised resistance training 3×/week and consumed 19 grams of whey protein isolate or 26 grams of soy protein isolate, both containing 2 g (grams) of leucine. Multi-level modeling indicated that total body mass (0.68 kg; 95% CI: 0.08, 1.29 kg; p < 0.001), lean body mass (1.54 kg; 95% CI: 0.94, 2.15 kg; p < 0.001), and peak torque of leg extensors (40.27 Nm; 95% CI: 28.98, 51.57 Nm, p < 0.001) and flexors (20.44 Nm; 95% CI: 12.10, 28.79 Nm; p < 0.001) increased in both groups. Vastus lateralis muscle thickness tended to increase, but this did not reach statistical significance (0.12 cm; 95% CI: -0.01, 0.26 cm; p = 0.08). No differences between groups were observed (p > 0.05). These data indicate that increases in lean mass and strength in untrained participants are comparable when strength training and supplementing with soy or whey matched for leucine.

Evaluating a modified exercise self-efficacy scale for college-age women.

This pilot study examined test-retest and internal consistency reliabilities of original and modified formats of the Exercise Self-efficacy Scale in college-age women. 30 completed original and modified versions of the scale. Data from both tests, administered 1 wk. apart, were analyzed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) to assess test-retest reliability and Cronbach coefficient alpha for internal consistency. Scores for both versions correlated .96. Cronbach coefficients alpha for the original scale were .96 for Time 1 and .98 for Time 2. Cronbach coefficients alpha for the revised scale were .95 for Time 1 and .98 for Time 2. Test-retest reliability and internal consistency remained consistently high for both versions of the scales within this sample. Implications for use of this scale and recommendations for research are given.

A 6-month pilot study of effects of a physical activity intervention on life satisfaction with a sample of three generations of women.

This pilot study assessed possible changes in Life Satisfaction across three generations of women after a 6-mo. physical activity intervention. The primary purpose of the study was to test the study design and discover critical issues that should be controlled for or changed in a follow-up study. A quasi-experimental design was used to assign randomly a convenience sample of participant triads into two groups: a home-based group (n=27) and a control group (n=9). Daughters were pre-menarcheal (n=13, M=10.1 yr., SD=1.5), mothers were premenopausal (n=13, M=37.2 yr., SD=4.2), and grandmothers were postmenopausal (n=11, M=61.5 yr., SD=4.4). Life Satisfaction was measured using the Satisfaction with Life Scale. Participation in physical activity was measured using the Physical Best Physical Activity Questionnaire and a pedometer to count the number of steps taken per day. Compared with the control group, participants in the home-based group generally increased physical activity but their scores for Life Satisfaction did not increase. Recommendations concerning the study design, reducing limitations, and hypotheses for further study are given.

Daughters and mothers exercising together: effects of home- and community-based programs.

PURPOSE: This pilot study compares the effectiveness of home- and community-based physical activity interventions that target mothers and daughters to increase physical activity and improve health-related fitness. METHODS: Mothers (45.18 +/- 7.49 yr) and daughters (15.41 +/- 1.33 yr) were randomly assigned to a community-based (CB) (N = 20 participants) or home-based (HB) (N = 14 participants) program. CB participants attended three instructor-led sessions per week for 12 wk. HB participants were asked to participate in 3 sessions per week for 12 wk in a program similar to the CB program. The main difference between the programs was that CB activities were completed at a fitness facility within a university and HB activities were completed in or near the home. Before and after the intervention, changes in health-related fitness and physical activity were assessed. A series of 2 (group assignment) x 2 (time) ANOVAs were conducted to assess changes separately for mothers and daughters. RESULTS: CB participants attended 77% of the sessions, and none of the pairs dropped out. HB participants completed 70% of the recommended sessions, and three pairs dropped out. Mothers and daughters in both groups significantly increased their participation in aerobic, muscular strength, and flexibility activities (P = 0.02 to 0.000). Daughters in both groups significantly improved their muscular endurance (sit-ups,P = 0.000). Mothers in both groups improved their muscular strength (push-ups, P = 0.003), muscular endurance (sit-ups, P = 0.000), flexibility (sit-and-reach, P = 0.008), and aerobic capacity (1-mile walk, P = 0.002). Positive changes in diastolic blood pressure also occurred (P = 0.008). CONCLUSION: Mothers and daughters responded positively to CB and HB physical activity programs. Home-based physical activity programming is a cost-effective means to increase physical activity and improve health-related fitness in these groups.

Quantifying physical activity via pedometry in elementary physical education.

PURPOSE: The objective of this study was to determine a pedometer steps per minute standard for quantifying the lesson time that first- and second-grade physical education students spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA). METHODS: The sample was divided into validation (N = 246) and cross-validation (N = 123) samples using the holdout technique. Using the criterion test model, steps per minute cut points were empirically and judgmentally determined. C-SOFIT systematic observation was the criterion instrument and pedometry was the predictor instrument. Data were collected from 45 physical education lessons implemented in six schools. The three-step analytic procedure of computing mastery/nonmastery outcome probabilities, phi coefficients, and error proportions was used to determine the optimal steps per minute cut point for quantifying 33.33% of the physical education lesson time engaged in MVPA within a 30 class. RESULTS: Steps per minute was highly correlated with observation (r = 0.74-0.86, P < 0.0001). Five steps per minute scores that were accurate indicators of 33.33% of the class time engaged in MVPA in the validation sample were accurate indicators of steps per minute in the cross-validation sample. The optimal steps per minute cut point ranged from 60.00 to 63.00, which is equivalent to 1800-1890 steps in a 30-min physical education class. CONCLUSION: Data supports the use of pedometry steps per minute values as an accurate indicator of MVPA. Pedometry demonstrates promise as a viable large-scale surveillance instrument for measuring MVPA in physical education.

Teaching at the secondary level: wisdom from veteran health educators.

This qualitative study explored factors that helped veteran public school health educators sustain enthusiasm in the classroom throughout their careers. Twelve Caucasian participants, seven men and five women with 18 to 28 years of public school teaching experience (mean age = 49 years, mean experience = 24 years), were interviewed. Participants were selected from teachers with at least 18 years experience who lived within 60 minutes of Salt Lake City, Utah. Semi-structured, individual interviews addressed four questions: Why did participants enter teaching? What are some challenges of teaching? What factors contribute to successful teaching? What factors contributed to participants' longevity in teaching? A decision to teach was based primarily on having an influential teacher. The greatest challenges were discipline and diversity. Factors related to successful teaching also contributed to longevity in teaching. These factors included staying current with information and technology, supportive colleagues, and sharing oneself with students and colleagues. Those interested in a teaching career, and those already invested in teaching, can learn from these veterans in terms of skills and values.

Worksite intervention model for facilitating changes in physical activity, fitness, and psychological parameters.

The purpose was to examine the effectiveness of a physical activity intervention which combined behavior-change strategies with a variety of physical activities for 30 sedentary adults in a 12-wk. intervention that included behavior-change strategy sessions and supervised physical activity. Before and after the intervention, psychological and physiological variables were measured. Statistically significant changes right after the intervention included (1) an increase in physical activity participation, (2) an increase in muscular endurance, flexibility, and predicted VO2 max, and (3) a decrease in the number of barriers to physical activity. Changes in physical self-perception, a psychological variable often linked to increased physical activity, were not statistically significant, but effect sizes were large. The use of behavior-change strategies in conjunction with a variety of physical activities may be useful in improving physical and psychological well-being in previously sedentary adults. Stability of change requires study.