ORCID Profile
0000-0003-4982-2841
Current Organisations
Nottingham Trent University
,
Newcastle University
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Publisher: Human Kinetics
Date: 03-2015
Abstract: To quantify the effects of a 12-wk isolated core-training program on 50-m front-crawl swim time and measures of core musculature functionally relevant to swimming. Twenty national-level junior swimmers (10 male and 10 female, 16 ± 1 y, 171 ± 5 cm, 63 ± 4 kg) participated in the study. Group allocation (intervention [n = 10], control [n = 10]) was based on 2 preexisting swim-training groups who were part of the same swimming club but trained in different groups. The intervention group completed the core training, incorporating exercises targeting the lumbopelvic complex and upper region extending to the scapula, 3 times/wk for 12 wk. While the training was performed in addition to the normal pool-based swimming program, the control group maintained their usual pool-based swimming program. The authors made probabilistic magnitude-based inferences about the effect of the core training on 50-m swim time and functionally relevant measures of core function. Compared with the control group, the core-training intervention group had a possibly large beneficial effect on 50-m swim time (–2.0% 90% confidence interval –3.8 to –0.2%). Moreover, it showed small to moderate improvements on a timed prone-bridge test (9.0% 2.1–16.4%) and asymmetric straight-arm pull-down test (23.1% 13.7–33.4%), and there were moderate to large increases in peak EMG activity of core musculature during isolated tests of maximal voluntary contraction. This is the first study to demonstrate a clear beneficial effect of isolated core training on 50-m front-crawl swim performance.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 29-12-2018
DOI: 10.1007/S40279-017-0830-Z
Abstract: The associations between internal and external measures of training load and intensity are important in understanding the training process and the validity of specific internal measures. We aimed to provide meta-analytic estimates of the relationships, as determined by a correlation coefficient, between internal and external measures of load and intensity during team-sport training and competition. A further aim was to examine the moderating effects of training mode on these relationships. We searched six electronic databases (Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, MEDLINE, SPORTDiscus, CINAHL) for original research articles published up to September 2017. A Boolean search phrase was created to include search terms relevant to team-sport athletes (population 37 keywords), internal load (dependent variable 35 keywords), and external load (independent variable 81 keywords). Articles were considered for meta-analysis when a correlation coefficient describing the association between at least one internal and one external measure of session load or intensity, measured in the time or frequency domain, was obtained from team-sport athletes during normal training or match-play (i.e., unstructured observational study). The final data s le included 122 estimates from 13 independent studies describing 15 unique relationships between three internal and nine external measures of load and intensity. This s le included 295 athletes and 10,418 in idual session observations. Internal measures were session ratings of perceived exertion (sRPE), sRPE training load (sRPE-TL), and heart-rate-derived training impulse (TRIMP). External measures were total distance (TD), the distance covered at high and very high speeds (HSRD ≥ 13.1-15.0 km h During all training modes combined, the external load relationships for sRPE-TL were possibly very large with TD [r = 0.79 90% confidence interval (CI) 0.74 to 0.83], possibly large with AL (r = 0.63 90% CI 0.54 to 0.70) and Impacts (r = 0.57 90% CI 0.47 to 0.64), and likely moderate with HSRD (r = 0.47 90% CI 0.32 to 0.59). The relationship between TRIMP and AL was possibly large (r = 0.54 90% CI 0.40 to 0.66). All other relationships were unclear or not possible to infer (r range 0.17-0.74, n = 10 datasets). Between-estimate heterogeneity [standard deviations (SDs) representing unexplained variation τ] in the pooled internal-external relationships were trivial to extremely large for sRPE (τ range = 0.00-0.47), small to large for sRPE-TL (τ range = 0.07-0.31), and trivial to moderate for TRIMP (τ range= 0.00-0.17). The internal-external load relationships during mixed training were possibly very large for sRPE-TL with TD (r = 0.82 90% CI 0.75 to 0.87) and AL (r = 0.81 90% CI 0.74 to 0.86), and TRIMP with AL (r = 0.72 90% CI 0.55 to 0.84), and possibly large for sRPE-TL with HSRD (r = 0.65 90% CI 0.44 to 0.80). A reduction in these correlation magnitudes was evident for all other training modes (range of the change in r when compared with mixed training - 0.08 to - 0.58), with these differences being unclear to possibly large. Training mode explained 24-100% of the between-estimate variance in the internal-external load relationships. Measures of internal load derived from perceived exertion and heart rate show consistently positive associations with running- and accelerometer-derived external loads and intensity during team-sport training and competition, but the magnitude and uncertainty of these relationships are measure and training mode dependent.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2011
DOI: 10.1016/J.JELEKIN.2010.06.001
Abstract: Core strengthening and stability exercises are fundamental for any conditioning training program. Although surface electromyography (sEMG) is used to quantify muscle activity there is a lack of research using this method to investigate the core musculature and core stability. Two types of data reduction are commonly used for sEMG peak and average rectified EMG methods. Peak EMG has been infrequently reported in the literature with regard to the assessment of core training while even fewer studies have incorporated average rectified EMG data (ARV). The aim of the study was to establish the repeatability of peak and average rectified EMG data during core training exercises and their interrelationship. Ten male highly trained athletes (inter-subject repeatability group age, 18 ± 1.2 years height, 176.5 ± 3.2 cm body mass, 71 ± 4.5 kg) and one female highly trained athlete (intra-subject repeatability group age 27 years old height 180 cm weight 53 kg) performed five maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVIC) and five core exercises, chosen to represent a range of movement and muscle recruitment patterns. Peak EMG and ARV EMG were calculated for eight core muscles (rectus abdominis, RA external oblique, EO internal oblique, IO multifidis, MF latissimus dorsi, LD longissimus, LG gluteus maximus, GM rectus femoris, RF) using sEMG. Average coefficient of variation (CV%) for peak EMG across all the exercises and muscles was 45%. This is in comparison to 35% for the ARV method, which was found to be a significant difference (P 0.70 RA, EO, MF, GM, LG) between peak and ARV EMG suggesting, that for these core muscles, the two methods provide a similar evaluation of muscle activity. However, for other muscles (IO, RF, LD) the relationship was found to range from poor to moderate (R=0.10-0.70). The relationship between peak and ARV EMG was also affected by exercise type. Dynamic low and high-threshold exercises and asymmetrical low-threshold exercises had a moderate correlation between the variables (R=0.74-0.81), while the static exercise showed a poor correlation (R=0.46). It can be concluded that there are similarities between the two EMG variables, however due to the effect of type of exercise and muscle on the EMG data, both methods should be included in any future EMG study on the core musculature and core stability exercises.
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
No related grants have been discovered for Iain Spears.