Whole body vibration training improves vibration perception threshold in healthy young adults: A randomized clinical trial pilot study.

OBJECTIVES: Loss of foot sensitivity is a relevant parameter to assess and prevent in several diseases. It is crucial to determine the vibro-tactile sensitivity threshold response to acute conditions to explore innovative monitor tools and interventions to prevent and treat this challenge. The aims were: 1) to analyze the acute effects of a single whole body vibration session (4min-18Hz-4mm) on vibro-tactile perception threshold in healthy young adults. 2) to analyze the 48 hours effects of 3 whole body vibration sessions on vibro-tactile perception threshold in healthy young adults. METHODS: A randomized controlled clinical trial over 3 sessions of whole body vibration intervention or 3 sessions of placebo intervention. Twenty-eight healthy young adults were included: 11 experimental group and 12 placebo group. The experimental group performed 3 sessions of WBV while the placebo group performed 3 sessions of placebo intervention. RESULTS: The vibro-tactile threshold increased right after a single WBV session in comparison with placebo. Nevertheless, after 3 whole body vibration sessions and 48 hours, the threshold decreased to values lower than the initial. CONCLUSIONS: The acute response of the vibro-tactile threshold to one whole body vibration session increased, but the 48 hours short-term response of this threshold decreased in healthy young adults.

Technical player profiles related to the physical fitness of young female volleyball players predict team performance.

AIM: This study is divided into three sequential stages: identification of fitness and game performance profiles (individual player performance), an assessment of the relationship between these profiles, and an assessment of the relationship between individual player profiles and team performance during play (in championship performance). METHODS: The overall study sample comprised 525 (19 teams) female volleyball players aged 12-16 years and a subsample (N.=43) used to examine study aims one and two was selected from overall sample. Anthropometric, fitness and individual player performance (actual game) data were collected in the subsample. These data were analyzed through clustering methods, ANOVA and independence chi-square test. Then, we investigated whether the proportion of players with the highest individual player performance profile might predict a team's results in the championship. Cluster analysis identified three volleyball fitness profiles (high, medium, and low) and two individual player performance profiles (high and low). RESULTS: The results showed a relationship between both types of profile (fitness and individual player performance). Then, linear regression revealed a moderate relationship between the number of players with a high volleyball fitness profile and a team's results in the championship (R2=0.23). CONCLUSION: The current study findings may enable coaches and trainers to manage training programs more efficiently in order to obtain tailor-made training, identify volleyball-specific physical fitness training requirements and reach better results during competitions.

Prediction of correlates of daily physical activity in Spanish children aged 8-9 years.

The aims of the study were (a) to examine the associations between the daily physical activity (PA) of 8- to 9-year-old children and their parents, and (b) to examine what effect the child's daily PA has on its cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), body mass index (BMI), and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The sample consisted of 1021 persons [351 children (8.73 ± 0.69 years in age) and 670 parents]. Pedometers were used to evaluate PA in parents and their children over the course of 4 days (Thursday-Sunday), with the instructions on how to wear the pedometers for 24 h a day. Also evaluated were height, weight, BMI, CRF (via the maximal multistage 20-m shuttle run test), and HRQoL (via the EQ-5D-Y questionnaire). Associations between these variables were studied using path model techniques. The father's PA predicts his child's daily PA. This in turn predicts the child's lower BMI, CRF, and perceived quality of life. The findings suggest that the role model of a physically active father positively influences the child's PA habits, and hence that the family environment can have an important part to play in promoting health.