Thesis (Ph. D.)--Oregon State University, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 81-89). Also available online (PDF file) by a subscription to the set or by purchasing the individual file.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of an aerobic training program on the aerobic fitness and blood lipid profiles of 24 premenarcheal (PREM) and 41 postmenarcheal (POSTM) volunteers. A second intent was to test for differences in the responsiveness of the two maturity groups to the program. Subjects in each maturity level were assigned to a control (C) or training (T) group. Training consisted of 30 min continous cycling at 75% max heart rate, three times per week for 12 weeks. All subjects were tested before the training, at week 6 and at the end of week 12. Anthropometric measurements, ventilatory threshold (VT), VO2 max and anaerobic capacity (AC), measured as total work performed during a 30 s Wingate test, were determined for all subjects at each test period. Serum total triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), low density (LDL-C), very low density (VLDL-C), and high density (HDL-C) lipoprotein cholesterols as well as subfractions HDL2 and HDL3 were measured pre and post training. Analysis of variance with repeated measures revealed that both PREM groups increased their VO2 max (p $<$.001), however the increase in PREM-T exceeded that of PREM-C (p $<$.01). A training effect for VO$\sb2$ max was also observed in the POSTM-T compared to POSTM-C subjects (p $<$.001) and this increase was similar to that of PREM-T. No changes in serum TG, TC, LDL, VLDL, or HDL were reported for any group. HDL2 values decreased in all groups (p $<$.001), with larger change occurring in the PREM subjects (p $<$.001). Although an increase in HDL3 was observed for all groups (p $<$.001), the increase in PREM was greater than in POSTM (p $<$.01). No training effect was found in either HDL subfraction. It was concluded that VO2 max was equally sensitive to the endurance training in both PREM and POSTM subjects. It was also suggested that, in young females, VT and AC may not be as responsive to endurance training as VO2 max. The lack of a training effect on the blood lipids and lipoproteins may be attributed to the normal concentrations in the subjects prior to the study. It is also possible that 12 weeks were insufficient to produce changes in the blood lipid profiles of the subjects. / Graduate

Community exercise can offer many benefits for children, including the opportunity to engage in physical activity and interact with peers in a social setting. Children with autism do not engage in as many community activities as their typical peers. This study examines conditions to teach young children to complete yoga poses to mastery. The effects of prompting, programmed reinforcers, and a chaining criteria were evaluated using a comparison design with two baselines and one intervention condition, replicated across two children with autism. Both children mastered performance of all four targeted yoga poses. The findings are discussed in the context of previous research on the benefits of yoga.

This study tested the hypothesis that daily physical activity improves the executive function and academic achievement of 9- to 11-year-old children. The quasi-experimental, pretest–posttest design included 60 eligible fourth and fifth grade students (51.7% female, 98% Hispanic; 10.26 years of age). Twenty-five students elected to participate in school day, zero-hour (1 hour before school starts) physical activity program for 8 weeks. The 35 students who did not sign up for the program served as the control group as masked data provided by the school. Standardized measures, Adele Diamond flanker task and the Wide Range Achievement Test 4, assessed executive function and academic achievement, respectively. Repeated-measures analysis of variance was used to determine differences between groups on executive function and academic achievement. There were no observable benefits from daily physical activity on executive function and academic achievement. Convenience sampling and voluntary attendance potentially limited the effect of exercise on performance.

Beginning as young as five or six years of age, children participate in organised sports and there are an estimated 25-35 million children under the age of eighteen who participate in organised youth sports. Whether success records, statistics, motivational factors or personal reasons are the motivators behind participation in sports, athletes are often studied by the population. Despite a large contingency of children who participate in sports, professional or adult athletes’ thoughts and motivations are often studied. However, one thing is known: The reason children play sports is because they have fun. This study explored the viewpoints of teachers/trainers from Schools in Paarl region from a qualitative perspective on why children choose to participate in sports. The participants were selected via non-probability sampling method with the utilisation of purposive sampling techniques. Data were collected with semi structured interviews with teachers/trainers at Paarl schools. Data were analysed according to Tesch’s (in Creswell, 2009:186) framework for the analysing of qualitative data and data were verified according to Guba’s (in Krefting, 1991:214-222) framework for data verification of qualitative data. The verified data were described in specific teams and sub-themes as well as supplemented by literature control. The researcher concludes this study by drawing certain conclusions and recommendations from the research findings / Practical Theology / M.A. (Daiconiology)

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

Beginning as young as five or six years of age, children participate in organised sports and there are an estimated 25-35 million children under the age of eighteen who participate in organised youth sports. Whether success records, statistics, motivational factors or personal reasons are the motivators behind participation in sports, athletes are often studied by the population. Despite a large contingency of children who participate in sports, professional or adult athletes’ thoughts and motivations are often studied. However, one thing is known: The reason children play sports is because they have fun. This study explored the viewpoints of teachers/trainers from Schools in Paarl region from a qualitative perspective on why children choose to participate in sports. The participants were selected via non-probability sampling method with the utilisation of purposive sampling techniques. Data were collected with semi structured interviews with teachers/trainers at Paarl schools. Data were analysed according to Tesch’s (in Creswell, 2009:186) framework for the analysing of qualitative data and data were verified according to Guba’s (in Krefting, 1991:214-222) framework for data verification of qualitative data. The verified data were described in specific teams and sub-themes as well as supplemented by literature control. The researcher concludes this study by drawing certain conclusions and recommendations from the research findings / Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology / M.A. (Daiconiology)

Cardiovascular drift can occur during prolonged exercise and is characterized by a gradual decrease in stroke volume (SV) and a corresponding increase in heart rate (HR) over time, despite the maintenance of a constant level of work; cardiac output (CO) usually is unchanged. A number of factors may cause cardiovascular drift to occur, including increases in peripheral blood flow, decreases in plasma volume, increases in circulating catecholamines, and metabolic acidosis. These physiological events may be influenced by the relationship of the exercise intensity to ventilatory threshold (VT). Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the cardiovascular responses during prolonged exercise in boys and men at an intensity set relative to VT. Eight boys (10-13 yrs.) and 10 men (18-25 yrs.) completed an orientation trial, a graded maximal exercise test, and a 40 minute submaximal exercise bout at an intensity equal to the V02 at VT. During the 40 minute exercise bout, V02 increased significantly over time (P_<0.05),although the magnitude of change was similar in boys and men (P>0.05). Heart rate was higher and SV was lower in the boys compared to the men (P<_0.05), and the changes in HR and SV were significant over time. Although there was a trend for the HR increase and SV decrease to be greater in the men, the group-by-time interaction was not significant. Cardiac output and arteriovenous oxygen difference were higher in the men compared to the boys (P<0.05), but remained constant over time. Mean arterial blood pressure (MABP) was higher in the men than the boys (P<_0.05). In the men, MABP decreased significantly from 10 to 40 minutes, while in the boys, MABP decreased (P<_0.05) from 10 to 30 minutes and then increased to a value similar to that at 10 minutes. This differential response in MABP over time resulted in a significant groupby-time interaction. Total peripheral resistance was significantly higher in the boys than the men, but remained constant over time (P>0.05). Men exhibited a greater decrease in plasma volume from 0 to 40 minutes. There was no group difference in perceived exertion (RPE) between the boys and the men, although the boys exhibited a greater increase in RPE over time than the men (P<0.05). In conclusion, the cardiovascular responses during prolonged exercise are similar in boys and men, although there is a tendency for the magnitude of cardiovascular drift to be greater in the men. In addition, due to the fact that these results are similar to previous studies not accounting for individual differences in VT, it would seem that these differences in VT should not be of concern when studying the cardiovascular responses during prolonged exercise. / School of Physical Education

The purpose of this study was to examine VT and LT in boys and men. Eight boys (10-11 years) and nine men (18-30 years) completed a graded exercise test on a cycle ergometer. A two-way (group x threshold) ANOVA compared physiological responses (V02 1/min and ml/kg/min, percentage of V02max, and HR) at VT and LT. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. No significant interaction was observed. Significant main effects for group included a higher V02 (1/min) in the men, and a higher percentage of VO2max in the boys. Significant main effects for threshold showed all variables were greater at VT than LT. Within each group, all variables were significantly higher at VT than LT. For the boys and all subjects together, significant correlations between thresholds were observed for V02 (1/min and ml/kg/min) and HR, but not percentage of VO2max. For the men alone, no significant correlations were found. Together, these results suggest that physiological changes associated with LT may contribute to the onset of VT, and the occurrence of the thresholds (expressed as a percentage of VO2max) declines with maturation. / School of Physical Education

Thesis (M.A.)--University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 35-38). Also available online (PDF file) by a subscription to the set or by purchasing the individual file.