Background: Physically active lifestyles are important for health and quality of life across all stages of development. Exercise interventions have recently been incorporated as an effective strategy for adult cardiomyopathy patients, but have yet to be examined in children with cardiomyopathy. The overall goal of this pilot study was to provide preliminary data on whether there is a need to develop exercise interventions among children with cardiomyopathy. This study sought to characterize the moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) level, submaximal exercise capacity and physical activity barriers among children with cardiomyopathy. Methods: This study employed a mixed-methods approach. Children were eligible if they were between the ages of 5 to 17 years, had a medical diagnosis of cardiomyopathy (i.e. hypertrophic, dilated, or cancer induced), atrial septal defect, or had been identified as carrying a genetic risk for cardiomyopathy. Participants were excluded if they had physical activity contraindications, had a non-cardiac medical condition or disability known to influence physical activity, or if they underwent cardiac surgery within the preceding 6 months. MVPA was assessed using 7-day omnidirectional accelerometry. Submaximal exercise capacity was determined by intermittent treadmill protocol targeting 40% to 80% of predicted maximum heart rate. Physical activity barriers were identified through semi-structured interviews, which were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim for thematic analysis using Braun & Clark’s approach. Results: Pediatric cardiomyopathy patients (n=5) were compared to children who are genotypepositive but phenotype-negative for cardiomyopathy (n=5), children with simple congenital heart defects (CHD, n=8) and published data for Canadian children (n=1,300). Daily MVPA (48.2 ± 19.0 minutes) was variable but did not differ significantly between groups (η2=0.025, p=0.82) or from published data on Canadian children (t(17) = -1.52 p=0.15). Submaximal exercise testing revealed that children with cardiomyopathy may be able to participate in activities at moderate intensities (i.e. 4.5 ± 3.1 METs) at 150 beats per minute (bpm). Children with cardiomyopathy reported primarily disease-centred barriers to participation, including physical activity restriction and physical influences from the disease which were not reported by children who carry a genetic risk for cardiomyopathy. Conclusion: These novel data within this population group suggest that pediatric cardiomyopathy patients may have sufficient submaximal exercise capacity to participate in moderate physical activity, despite reporting disease centered barriers to physical activity. A diagnosis of cardiomyopathy may not preclude these children from achieving and healthy, active lifestyle, but their current level of participation is less than recommended for optimal health and cardiac function.

No description available.

Some behaviors in sport may be labeled: bad, unnecessary and distasteful. Sport psychologists have used concepts of aggression to understand and lessen these behaviors. To date, most research has conceptualized aggression as a product of individual cognition. Specifically, aggression is defined in the sport psychology literature as any behavior motivated by the intent to harm one's opponent (Baron, 1977; Bredemeier & Shields, 1986b; Husman & Silva, 1984; Kirker, Tenenbaum & Mattson, 2000). Consequently, sport psychology analyses of aggression tend to reproduce take-for-granted conceptions of aggression as male, physical and other-directed. To better understand sport aggression, it has been argued that symbolic interactionism has much to offer (Baird & McGannon, 2009). By utilizing symbolic interactionism we can reconceptualize aggression as a social construct given meaning in and through interaction with self and others. From this perspective, self notions and interactions with others are important "locations" of meaning making and are significant in the study of behavior. The present study used symbolic interactionism to explore female rugby players' experiences of aggression and how they interpret, define and structure experiences relative to self development. In conjunction with participant-observation, 12 semi-structured interviews with female rugby players ages 18-45 were conducted to explore: (1) how do women define themselves as ruggers/how do they (re)produce these identities in and out of rugby, (2) how do women define and experience aggression, and (3) how are these accounts used in the construction of self/identity? Data emerging from interviews and observations suggested that athletes defined and experienced behavior in ways challenging contemporary sport psychology conceptualizations of aggression. The participants often used the word aggression to describe forceful and physical play. In sport psychology literature, this is typically referred to as assertive behavior (Husman & Silva, 1984; Tenenbaum, Saks, Miller, Golden, & Doolin, 2000) and aggressive behavior is a label reserved for unacceptable behavior motivated by the intent to harm (Tenenbaum et al., 2000). According to the women in this study, unacceptable behavior was not defined by intent; rather, unacceptable behavior was a negotiated space that was constructed through notions of lack of control. That is, if a player was constructed as out of control, that player was seen as engaging in unacceptable behavior. In terms of self/identity construction, pain, contact and aggression emerged as important in the (re)production of self-related experiences within and outside of rugby. Within rugby these characteristics indicated a player's rugbyness. Outside of rugby these characteristics were often exhibited by non-rugby players as proof that rugby was a male sport. These participants both resisted and reinforced that notion. Rather than (re)define rugby by other female characteristics, these athletes used their rugby selves to say that pain, contact and aggression are not male only behaviors. The women used the bruises on their bodies to claim their rugby selves and prove, "I'm more than you think I am." This research offers a unique glimpse of female collision athletes' experiences of aggression and contributes a new conceptualization of "unacceptable" behavior to the existent sport psychology literature.

PURPOSE: To quantify squat jump and isometric mid-thigh pull performance characteristics of an international level male weightlifter relative to a group of male weightlifters at an Olympic training site. METHODS: An 85kg international level male weightlifter (22.0y, 81.63kg, 168.5cm) representing the USA was recruited for this study and compared to a group of male weightlifters (n=41, 24.2±4.6y, 93.14±21.10kg, 173.8±8.6cm). Data was collected as part of an on-going athlete monitoring program and athletes were familiar with all tests performed. Unloaded squat jumps and isometric mid-thigh pulls were performed on force plates sampling at 1000Hz and analyzed with LabView software. Variables analyzed included squat jump height (JH) and allometrically scaled peak power (PPa), isometric mid-thigh pull allometrically scaled peak force (IPFa) and rate of force development at 200ms (RFD200). Standardized (z) scores were calculated for the athlete on each testing variable. RESULTS: Testing results for the athlete and group were as follows: JH=47.0 vs. 33.9±6.1cm (z=2.13), PPa=309.14 vs 278.68±81.76W·kg0.67 (z=0.37), IPFa=263.78 vs 270.31±48.27N·kg0.67 (z= -0.14), RFD200=4701.93 vs 10241.4±5422.6N·s-1 (z= -1.02). CONCLUSION: Despite having the highest absolute (total=326kg) and relative (Sinclair=389.54) weightlifting total, the only variable that corresponded with the athlete’s competition success was JH. These findings suggest that coaches and sport scientists can use squat jumps to predict competition success and identify talent in male weightlifters.

Abstract available in the 9th Annual Coaches and Sport Science College.

No description available.

Abstract available in the The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.

The split jerk and power jerk are two commonly used lifts among strength and conditioning coaches, as well as lifts included in the sport of Olympic weightlifting. However, it is unknown which of these jerk techniques exhibit more advantageous barbell kinematics. PURPOSE: To compare the barbell kinematics between a power jerk and a split jerk at a constant load. METHODS: Twelve men were recruited for this study (height = 1.8 ± 0.1 m; mass = 85.3 ± 10.2 kg; age = 23.4 ± 2.4 years). All subjects had been completing the jerk for a minimum of six months, and reported their split jerk 1 repetition maximum (1-RM: 105.3 ± 19.1 kg). Subjects completed 3 repetitions of each jerk technique, at 85% of their split jerk 1-RM. The data were collected using 6 3D video cameras, with a sampling rate of 200Hz and were analyzed using Vicon software. A multivariate paired t-test was used to determine the effect of jerk technique on all kinematic variables. Paired samples t-tests were used as post hoc analyses when necessary. An alpha level of (p<0.05) was used for all inferential statistics. RESULTS: No significant differences were found between the two techniques for starting barbell position, lowest barbell position and maximum concentric velocity. Peak barbell height, range and displacement were all found to be significantly greater in the power jerk when compared to the split jerk (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that more work is done on the barbell, and greater range of motion, occur during the power jerk. The results suggest that more work may be done on the body during the split jerk due to the technique of dropping quickly under the bar for the catch. Less work done on the barbell could result in higher absolute loads, making the split jerk the superior technique for populations such as weightlifting athletes.

Abstract available in the 10th Annual Coaches and Sport Science College .

<div> <div> <div> <p>Skeletal muscle occupies approximately 40 to 50 percent of body mass and is responsible for respiration, postural control, and locomotion and plays a pivotal role in regulating glucose, lipid, and protein metabolism. Acute muscle trauma and chronic disease conditions such as muscular dystrophies are associated with structural abnormalities, enhanced fatigability and impaired metabolism and consequently lead to exercise intolerance and poor quality of life. Despite the clinical importance and a number of studies on the treatment of muscle damage, few modalities have shown to elicit beneficial effects. Heat treatment has been used for a long time to treat soft tissue injuries in the field of physical therapy and sports medicine. However, the underlying mechanisms by which heat treatment accelerates muscle recovery following injury are not clear. </p> <p>The primary aim of my dissertation studies was to determine the impact of heat therapy on skeletal muscle structure and function in humans and animals. In Chapter 2, we report that a single session of local heat treatment promotes the expression of angiogenic and myogeneic mediators including vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and angiopoietin 1(ANGPT1) in healthy human skeletal muscle. In Chapter 3, we report repeated exposure to heat therapy stimulates factors involved in muscle repair process and accelerates functional recovery from exercise-induced muscle damage. In Chapter 4, we show that 8 weeks of local heat therapy improves muscle strength of knee extensor and increases skeletal muscle capillarization in type II muscle fibers. In Chapter 5, we describe the effects of heat therapy in a mouse model of ischemia induced-muscle damage. Animals that were exposed to heat therapy at 39°C had improved maximal absolute force and relative muscle mass in the soleus muscle. These observations reveal that the beneficial effects of heat therapy are muscle fiber type specific and dependent on the treatment temperature. In Chapter 6, we review and summarize the outcomes described in Chapters 2-5 and provide a general conclusion as well the clinical implications of our findings. </p> </div> </div> </div>