This study provides the first comparison of weight selection attempt strategies used by powerlifters competing at the international level. We observed attempts selected by elite male and female classic powerlifters and compared weight selection attempts between sexes. Male (n = 66) and female (n = 43) powerlifters who completed all lifts successfully at an International Powerlifting Federation Classic World Championship between 2012-2019 were included in the analysis. We calculated the percentage weight increase from first attempts (A1) to second attempts (A2) and from A2 to third attempts (A3). For purposes of comparison, A1 values were expressed as a percentage of A3 values. We calculated non-parametric statistics with effect sizes for between and within-group comparisons. Relative to A3, males selected greater A1s compared to females for bench press (η2 = 0.16; p = 0.004) and deadlift (η2 = 0.06; p = 0.036) for each lift. Alternatively, females selected greater A1 to A2 and A2 to A3 progressions for bench press (η2 = 0.06; p = 0.026; η2 = 0.21; p = 0.005, respectively), and A2 to A3 for deadlift (η2 = 0.04; p = 0.035) compared to males. Within-group comparisons showed that males selected greater A1s on bench press compared to deadlift (η2 = 0.06; p = 0.046), whereas females selected greater A1s on squat compared to deadlift (η2 = 0.13; p = 0.038) relative to A3. Males also selected greater A2 to A3 progressions on deadlift compared to bench press (η2 = 0.10; p = 0.044), whereas females selected greater A2 to A3 progressions for bench press (η2 = 0.15; p = 0.039) and deadlift compared to squat (η2 = 0.10; p = 0.041). In conclusion, selecting an opener of ∼91% of the expected A3 weight, followed by ∼5% increase from A1 to A2, and ∼3% increase from A2 to A3 represent the typical weight selection attempts used across lifts by elite classic powerlifters competing in the World Championships. The results of this study provide novel insight into the weight selection attempts of elite classic powerlifters.

The purpose of this investigation was to quantify the magnitude of change in maximal strength and jumping abilities over approximately 1, 2, and 3 years of supervised sport and resistance training in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) division I women's volleyball athletes. This was an exploratory study on a cohort of women's volleyball athletes (n = 29) split into 3 groups based on the length of the time spent in a supervised resistance training program: Group 1 (n = 11): 0.7 ± 0.3 years, group 2 (n = 9): 1.6 ± 0.2 years, and group 3 (n = 9): 2.4 ± 0.6 years. Monitoring tests consisted of standing height (cm), body mass (kg), body fat (%), static jump height (SJH) and countermovement JH (CMJH) with 0-, 11-, and 20-kg loads (cm), and midthigh clean pull isometric peak force (IPF) and allometrically scaled IPF (IPFa) (Nkg 20.67). Increasing trends were observed for all variables from groups 1 to 2 to 3. Statistically greater improvements (p ≤ 0.05) with moderate to large effect sizes were found between groups 1 and 3 for SJH 0 (19.7%, d = 1.35), SJH 11 (23.8%, d = 1.23), SJH 20 (30.6%, d = 1.20), CMJH 11 (22.6%, d = 1.18), IPF (44.4%, d = 1.22), and IPFa (41.2%, d = 1.32). A combination of traditional resistance training exercises and weightlifting variations at various loads, in addition to volleyball practice, seem to be effective at increasing maximal strength by 44% and vertical JH by 20-30% in NCAA division I women's volleyball athletes after about 2.5 years of training. Furthermore, these characteristics can be improved in the absence of additional plyometric training outside normal volleyball-specific practice.

The purpose of this study is to investigate which motivational factors cause teenagers to remain in competitive taekwondo. Some teenagers, especially during high school seem to experience serious difficulties maintaining motivation towards sport. The reason for this may be caused by inhibitory factors such as such as burnout, degenerated motivation, counteracting hobbies associated with adolescence and lack of support from peers, coaches and parents as well as early specialization. Using a qualitative thematic analysis and semi-structured interviews, this study analyzed the motivation factors and its relation to the coach within three Swedish taekwondo organizations located in southern and northern part of the country within the framework of Self-determination theory. The current findings indicate motives such as interest/enjoyment, individual development, positive feedback, challenge/competition and a sense of competence as well as autonomy support as highest motivators for sports participation within taekwondo. In contrast, lack of psychological needs such as sense of competence and autonomy were determining reasons for dropout. In parallel, motives such as encouragement, “break from reality”, group cohesion, security and a sense of relatedness also seem to play a critical role, although not essential for the actual participation. Nonetheless, according to the participants, highly important in order to thrive. In that regard, the coach has great influence upon the well-being and satisfaction of the psychological needs associated with Self-determination theory. Which is based upon the environment and specific coach behavior which directly or indirectly facilitates the participants’ sense of autonomy, competence and relatedness. According to the participants, an environment and coach behavior such as democracy, discipline, high social interaction, equity, and person-oriented verbal reinforcement, encouragement, competence, and empathy as well as strong coach-athlete relationship facilitates and regulates how they perceive the psychological needs autonomy, competence and relatedness.

High School Student Athletes and Nonathletes' Disciplinary Referrals and Grade Point Averages by Jack Calhoun MEd, Georgia Southwestern State University, 1998 BS, Georgia Southwestern State University, 1997 Doctoral Study Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Education Walden University December 2014 This quantitative study investigated how athletic participation in public high schools influenced students' academic achievement and positive social behavior. Disciplinary referrals are on the rise in American schools and are a cause of concern for teachers, administrators, parents, and community members. School personnel currently implement programs designed to curb discipline problems in the classroom and foster productive behavior among adolescents. There is some debate and conflicting literature on whether sports participation has a beneficial influence on students. The writings of Virgina Chomitz, who hypothesized a positive relationship between academic achievement and physical fitness, guided this research. This study analyzed grade point average (GPA) and discipline referral data for 4,433 students in a suburban American high school over a 3-year time period. The GPA and referral data for athletes and nonathletes were compared using multiple t tests, and it was found that athletes had significantly higher GPAs and lower discipline referrals when compared to nonathletes. These results, which match the original hypotheses, provide greater insight into how participating in athletics may improve a student's behavior and academic achievement. With this knowledge, educators may place greater emphasis on athletics as a method to promote achievement and positive experiences among high school students. These positive effects will contribute to social change for students at an individual level and for entire school environments.

High school coaches play a huge role in establishing a healthy environment for their athletes and often students. The coach-°©‐athlete relationship has proven to be a strong and useful bond in prevention of adverse behaviors of athletes or in prevention of health problems such as concussions. The female athlete triad (triad) is a common health problem among female athletes. Many high school coaches are unaware of the triad or the serious health and performance consequences for their athletes. The triad is a syndrome marked by 3 interrelated adverse effects: decreased energy availability, menstrual dysfunction, and decreased bone mineral density. The Purpose of this study was to develop an online educational resource aimed at educating coaches about the triad. After the online education materials were created and reviewed by small panel groups, the materials were launched online and available to the public with the aim to target high school coaches. We collected online surveys from 90 participants including coaches and parents of high school female athletes and found a lack of knowledge, attitudes, and confidence in preventing the triad. By educating coaches and providing the tools for prevention, we hypothesize that coaches can play a large role in the prevention of the triad among high school athletes and help to keep our student athletes healthy and performing well in school and sports.

Critics of youth sports in the United States have lamented a system that creates issues of access and could be detrimental to the physical and mental health of its young participants. In response to these concerns, USA Hockey, using Long Term Athlete Development Theory (LTAD) as a key theoretical framework, created the American Development Model (ADM) to improve the delivery of youth hockey in the US. While USA Hockey has invested greatly in bringing ADM to scale across its constituents, it is not known to what extent the model is being implemented in its member organizations. Implementation fidelity of a prescribed treatment or curriculum is tied to better outcomes. This study leverages key concepts of program evaluation theory and survey development to produce a valid and reliable survey instrument that can be used to assess the implementation fidelity of ADM at the 12U age group across the nation. A survey instrument was developed through three waves of development. The first wave included local pilot testing and cognitive interviews. The second wave including a regional sample and utilized factor analysis coupled with item analysis to improve the instrument and to create composite scores of key constructs. The third and final wave included a national sample of 214 parents of 12U hockey players. The results of the survey produce psychometric properties indicating good reliability and validity of the instrument including face and content validity, internal reliability, and factor analysis. Analysis of composite scores for each construct of the model identified strong implementation of much of the on-ice components but was lacking in other areas such as physical development and mental skill development. The final ADM scale demonstrated statistically significant positive associations with two subscales of the Athlete Engagement Questionnaire, further validating the study and demonstrating an important association with the delivery model to key outcomes. The study concludes with a discussion of ADM’s implementation fidelity and policy recommendations regarding how the ADM curriculum may be improved given key findings.

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RED-S is a syndrome that stems from low energy availability (LEA) in athletes. It can impact numerous physiological and psychological functions, as well as negatively affect performance. Because RED-S is a relatively new syndrome, there are few studies showing the impact of RED-S on performance and physiological factors. The aim of this systematic review was to examine the consequences of induced LEA in relation to RED-S in male athletes. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, Five studies were deemed eligible based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. Studies measured risk of RED-S through body composition, bone mineral density, clinical biomarkers, and performance. Studies ranged in duration from 2- 8 weeks with a decrease in energy availability of 50% or 25%. Of the five studies investigated, data showed significant changes lactate metabolism and IGF-1,non-significant changes in body composition, and inconclusive changes in performance.

The unprecedented growth in participation in collegiate athletics has been accompanied by an increase in injury burden. The complex and multifactorial nature of sports injuries highlights the importance of monitoring athletes prospectively using a novel and holistic biopsychosocial approach, as opposed to contemporary practices that silo these facets of health. Data collected over two competitive, basketball seasons were used in a principal component analysis (PCA) model with the following objectives: i) Determine if on-court, sensor-derived and force-plate-derived countermovement jump (CMJ) biomechanics were correlated, ii) determine the reliability of the biomechanical principal components (PCs) and psychological state metrics (e.g., self-reported pain, etc.) across five preseason weeks, iii) investigate whether biomechanical PCs were correlated with psychological state across a season, and iv) explore whether subject-specific meaningful fluctuations could be detected using minimum detectable change statistics. Weekly CMJ (force plates) and on-court data (inertial measurement units), as well as psychological state (questionnaire) data were collected on the women’s basketball team at McMaster University for two seasons. It was found that on-court and CMJ biomechanics were correlated both between and within systems (r = |0.10, 0.94|; p < 0.05), suggesting that PCA would be an effective method to summarize data. The derived PCs displayed excellent reliability (ICC > 0.9), while psychological state metrics displayed moderate-to-good reliability (ICC = 0.71 – 0.89). While many relationships (n = 27) were identified between biomechanical PCs and psychological state metrics, no overarching associations were identified at the group level. However, subject-specific relationships were identified in case-studies, highlighting the potential utility of “red-flagging” meaningful fluctuations from normative biomechanical and psychological patterns. Overall, this work demonstrates the potential of advanced analytical modeling to characterize components of student-athlete performance, health, and well-being, and the need for more tailored and patient-centered athletic monitoring practices. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)