elite endurance athlete

BACKGROUND: A typical training plan is a mix of many training sessions with different intensities and durations to achieve a specific goal, like running a marathon in a certain time. Scientific publications provide little specific information to aid in writing a comprehensive training plan. This review aims to systematically and quantitatively analyse the last 12 weeks before a marathon as recommended in 92 sub-elite training plans. METHODS: We retrieved 92 marathon training plans and linked their running training sessions to five intensity zones...

Previous studies have shown that variations in the CD36 gene may affect phenotypes associated with fat metabolism as the CD36 protein facilitates the transport of fatty acids to the mitochondria for oxidation. However, no previous study has tested whether variations in the CD36 gene are associated with sports performance. We investigated the genotypic and allelic distribution of the single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs1761667 in the CD36 gene in elite Moroccan athletes (cyclists and hockey players) in comparison with healthy non-athletes of the same ethnic origin...

OBJECTIVE: Anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (a-tDCS) has been used to improve athletic performance in various populations; however, its role in improving performance in elite athletes is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effects of a-tDCS on athletic performance in elite athletes. METHODS: We used a single-blind, randomized controlled experimental design and recruited 24 national-level freestyle swimmers from China. All athletes were randomly divided into two groups; the experimental group underwent a-tDCS (current 2 mA for 20 min) combined with physical training, and the control group underwent a-tDCS sham stimulation combined with physical training...

BACKGROUND: For professional road cyclists, most overload injuries affect the lower limbs. They are mostly represented by contractures or muscle shortening, characterised by a variation of muscular tone, stiffness, and elasticity. This real-life study aimed to assess specific mechanical parameters in top-class female cyclists who participated in 3 races a week. Hypothesis . Muscle tone, stiffness, and elasticity will be affected immediately after competition and at the end of the week due to accumulated fatigue...

BACKGROUND: Monitoring elite athletes' body composition (BC) is vital for health and optimizing performance in sports emphasizing leanness, such as athletics. This study aims to investigate and compare sex- and event-specific off-to in-season BC changes in endurance and power event athletics competitors. METHODS: Elite male and female endurance athletes (> 800 m runners; n = 21) and power event athletes (sprinters, jumpers; n = 32) underwent dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scans for whole and regional lean mass (LM), fat mass (FM), bone mineral content (BMC), and density (BMD) during off-season (September-October) and in-season (April-May)...

PURPOSE: Endurance elite athletes are expected to present a cardiac remodelling, characterized by eccentric hypertrophy (EH), may be associated with higher sportive performances. However, not all can present a cardiac remodelling. The study aimed to identify endurance athletes without cardiac remodelling characterizing their physiologic and clinical features. METHODS: We studied 309 endurance athletes (cycling, rowing, canoeing, triathlon, athletics, long-distance swimming, cross-country skiing, mid-long distance track, pentathlon, biathlon, long-distance skating and Nordic-combined) examined during period of training, by clinical evaluation, ECG, echocardiogram and exercise-stress test...

INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to explore the potential impact of incorporating blood-flow restriction (BFR) training within a training block characterized by minimal high-intensity work on 2000-m rowing ergometer time-trial (TT) performance in elite/world-class rowers. Physiological markers often associated with endurance performance (maximal aerobic capacity - VO2max, blood lactate thresholds and hemoglobin mass - Hbmass) were measured to determine whether changes are related to an improvement in performance...

BACKGROUND: Previous studies reported differences in genotype frequency of the ACTN3 R577X polymorphisms (rs1815739; RR, RX and XX) in athletes and non-athletic populations. This systematic review with meta-analysis assessed ACTN3 R577X genotype frequencies in power versus endurance athletes and non-athletes. METHODS: Five electronic databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Science Direct, SPORTDiscus) were searched for research articles published until December 31st, 2022...

The usage of the oral contraceptive pill is widespread among athletes of various levels. However, there is limited knowledge on how the intake of the pill alters the submaximal and maximal endurance parameters between the oral contraceptive phases. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine potential differences between the pill intake and withdrawal phase on endurance-related parameters in first-division handball players. In total, 15 female team handball players performed two graded exercise tests until volitional exhaustion on a motorized treadmill...

Elite individual sports in which success depends on power, speed or endurance are conventionally divided into male and female events using traditional binary definitions of sex. Male puberty creates durable physical advantages due to the 20-30-fold increase in circulating testosterone producing a sustained uplift in men's muscle, bone, hemoglobin, and cardiorespiratory function resulting from male puberty and sustained during men's lives. These male physical advantages provide strong justification for separate protected category of female events allowing women to achieve the fame and fortune from success they would be denied if competing against men...

INTRODUCTION: Gymnastics consists of several different disciplines, whereof TeamGym is one. TeamGym is a young discipline with sparse research. The aim of the study is to investigate the injury characteristics in Swedish elite gymnasts competing in TeamGym including training load and other physical and psychological factors associated with injury. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The Swedish TeamGym Injury Cohort is a longitudinal prospective cohort study for 52 weeks that includes the junior (15-17 years) and senior (≥18 years) Swedish female and male national teams in TeamGym...

BACKGROUND: Sweat and thermal responses in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) are impaired depending on lesion characteristics. This is particularly problematic for athletes and may ultimately lead to reduced performance. This exploratory study investigated the feasibility of field-usable methods to objectively collect data relevant to sweat response in elite athletes with SCI. Differences in sweat response were also evaluated for different athlete characteristics. METHODS: Measurements were performed during exercise and included core temperature (Tc), heart rate, urine specific gravity, fluid intake, sweat rate, and sweat electrolyte concentration...

We considered in this study the possibility of developing an indirect procedure for detecting myostatin inhibition/suppression, a practice that is prohibited as doping in sport. We have specifically considered the potential diagnostic utility of human serum myokines as indirect markers of myostatin inhibition. Myostatin, its main antagonist follistatin, and other myokines (follistatin-like 1, musclin, oncostatin, osteonectin, irisin, brain derived neurotrophic factor, and insulin-like growth factor-1) were selected as a panel of potential biomarkers whose levels may be altered following myostatine suppression...

OBJECTIVE: To compare clinical assessment findings between elite athletic populations with and without a clinical diagnosis of posterior ankle impingement syndrome (PAIS). DESIGN: Cross-sectional case-control study. SETTING: Elite ballet and sport. PARTICIPANTS: Ten male and female professional ballet dancers and athletes with a clinical diagnosis of PAIS and were matched for age, sex, and activity to 10 professional ballet dancers and athletes without PAIS...

INTRODUCTION: Left ventricular trabeculations (LVTs) are common findings in athletes. Limited information exists regarding clinical significance, management, and outcome. OBJECTIVES: To study the prevalence and morphologic characteristics of LVTs in elite athletes, with a focus on clinical correlates and prognostic significance. METHODS: We enrolled 1.492 Olympic elite athletes of different sports disciplines with ECG, echocardiogram, and exercise stress test...

OBJECTIVE: To assess the prevalence of menstrual disorders and the perceived effect of menstrual cycles upon performance in elite athletes. METHODOLOGY: A longitudinal survey in the form of a questionnaire was sent to female track and field athletes at British Athletics every 6 months, over a five-year period between 1st October 2014 and 1st October 2019 in the United Kingdom (UK). RESULTS: 128 athletes completed an average of 4.2 ± 2...

Clinical differentiation between athletes' hearts and those with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) can be challenging. We aimed to explore the role of speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) in the differentiation between athletes' hearts and those with mild HCM. We compared 30 competitive endurance elite athletes (7% female, age 41 ± 9 years) and 20 mild phenotypic mutation-positive HCM carriers (15% female, age 51 ± 12 years) with left ventricular wall thickness 13 ± 1 mm...

(1) Background: There is a lack of data on the long-term training characteristics and performance markers of elite young female endurance athletes. The aim of this study was to present the training load (ECOs), as well as the evolution of the anthropometric values and performance of three elite U23 female triathletes over a season. (2) Methods: General training data and performance data relating to the swimming, cycling, and running legs of the 2021 season were described. The training intensity distribution (TID) was presented using the triphasic model, while the training load was based on the ECO model...

The influence of human gut microbiota on health and disease is now commonly appreciated. Therefore, it is not surprising that microbiome research has found interest in the sports community, hoping to improve health and optimize performance. Comparative studies found new species or pathways that were more enriched in elites than sedentary controls. In addition, sport-specific and performance-level-specific microbiome features have been identified. However, the results remain inconclusive and indicate the need for further assessment...

BACKGROUND: The influence of genetic polymorphisms on athletic performance has been widely explored. This study investigated the interactions between the polymorphisms ACTN3 (R577X), ACE (I/D), BDKRB2 (-9/+9), and AGT (M/T) and their association with endurance and strength phenotypes in Brazilian swimmers. METHODS: 123 athletes (aged 20-30 years) and 718 controls participated in the study. The athletes were divided into elite and sub-elite (N = 19 and 104, respectively) and strength and endurance experts (N = 98 and 25, respectively)...