Reproducibility of peak force for isometric and isokinetic multi-joint leg extension exercise.

Background: Isokinetic dynamometry is a common tool for evaluating muscle function and is used across various disciplines. Technical advancements have shifted focus towards multi-joint exercises such as the leg press, offering insights into practical human movement dynamics. However, previous reproducibility studies have focused predominantly on single-joint exercises, warranting investigations into the reliability of multi-joint exercises.

Concurrent validity of novel smartphone-based apps monitoring barbell velocity in powerlifting exercises.

The aim of this study was to determine the validity of three smartphone applications measuring barbell movement velocity in resistance training and comparing them to a commercially available linear transducer. Twenty competitive powerlifters (14 male and 6 female) completed a progressive loading protocol in the squat, bench press and deadlift (sumo or conventional) until reaching 90% of the highest load they had achieved in a recent competition. Mean velocity was concurrently recorded with three smartphone applications: Qwik VBT (QW), Metric VBT (MT), MyLift (ML), and one linear transducer: RepOne (RO).

Increased trial-to-trial similarity and reduced temporal overlap of muscle synergy activation coefficients manifest during learning and with increasing movement proficiency.

Muscle synergy analyses are used to enhance our understanding of motor control. Spatially fixed synergy weights coordinate multiple co-active muscles through activation commands, known as activation coefficients. To gain a more comprehensive understanding of motor learning, it is essential to understand how activation coefficients vary during a learning task and at different levels of movement proficiency.

ESMAC Best Paper Award 2023: Increased knee flexion in participants with cerebral palsy results in altered stresses at the distal femoral growth plate compared to a typically developing cohort.

Introduction: Femoral deformities are highly prevalent in children with cerebral palsy (CP) and can have a severe impact on patients' gait abilities. While the mechanical stress regime within the distal femoral growth plate remains underexplored, understanding it is crucial given bone's adaptive response to mechanical stimuli. We quantified stresses at the distal femoral growth plate to deepen our understanding of the relationship between healthy and pathological gait patterns, internal loading, and femoral growth patterns.

Muscle synergies are shared across fundamental subtasks in complex movements of skateboarding.

A common theory of motor control posits that movement is controlled by muscle synergies. However, the behavior of these synergies during highly complex movements remains largely unexplored. Skateboarding is a hardly researched sport that requires rapid motor control to perform tricks.

Event detection in football: Improving the reliability of match analysis.

With recent technological advancements, quantitative analysis has become an increasingly important area within professional sports. However, the manual process of collecting data on relevant match events like passes, goals and tacklings comes with considerable costs and limited consistency across providers, affecting both research and practice. In football, while automatic detection of events from positional data of the players and the ball could alleviate these issues, it is not entirely clear what accuracy current state-of-the-art methods realistically achieve because there is a lack of high-quality validations on realistic and diverse data sets.

Reduction in systemic muscle stress markers after exercise-induced muscle damage following concurrent training and supplementation with specific collagen peptides - a randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: Collagen peptide supplementation in conjunction with exercise has been shown to improve structural and functional adaptations of both muscles and the extracellular matrix. This study aimed to explore whether specific collagen peptide (SCP) supplementation combined with a concurrent training intervention can improve muscular stress after exercise-induced muscle damage, verified by reliable blood markers.

Methods: 55 sedentary to moderately active males participating in a concurrent training (CT) intervention (3x/week) for 12 weeks were administered either 15 g of SCP or placebo (PLA) daily.

Reproducibility of peak moment for isometric and isokinetic knee extension exercise.

Background: Accurate measurements of muscular performance are important for diagnostics, for example during rehabilitation after traumatic injuries but also in competitive sports. For these purposes, dynamometric devices are widely used and considered the gold standard for muscle strength testing. However, few previous studies have tested the reproducibility of peak moment (PM) at velocities close to the maximum device capability, and in general, reproducibility results cannot be transferred to other devices or test protocols.

Influence of specific collagen peptides and 12-week concurrent training on recovery-related biomechanical characteristics following exercise-induced muscle damage-A randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: It has been shown that short-term ingestion of collagen peptides improves markers related to muscular recovery following exercise-induced muscle damage. The objective of the present study was to investigate whether and to what extent a longer-term specific collagen peptide (SCP) supplementation combined with a training intervention influences recovery markers following eccentric exercise-induced muscle damage.

Methods: Fifty-five predominantly sedentary male participants were assigned to consume either 15 g SCP or placebo (PLA) and engage in a concurrent training (CT) intervention (30 min each of resistance and endurance training, 3x/week) for 12 weeks.

Neuromechanics of finger hangs with arm lock-offs: analyzing joint moments and muscle activations to improve practice guidelines for climbing.

Introduction: Climbing imposes substantial demands on the upper limbs and understanding the mechanical loads experienced by the joints during climbing movements is crucial for injury prevention and optimizing training protocols. This study aimed to quantify and compare upper limb joint loads and muscle activations during isometric finger hanging exercises with different arm lock-off positions.

Methods: Seventeen recreational climbers performed six finger dead hangs with arm lock-offs at 90° and 135° of elbow flexion, as well as arms fully extended.

The gait pattern and not the femoral morphology is the main contributor to asymmetric hip joint loading.

Gait asymmetry and skeletal deformities are common in many children with cerebral palsy (CP). Changes of the hip joint loading, i.e.

Robust deep learning-based gait event detection across various pathologies.

The correct estimation of gait events is essential for the interpretation and calculation of 3D gait analysis (3DGA) data. Depending on the severity of the underlying pathology and the availability of force plates, gait events can be set either manually by trained clinicians or detected by automated event detection algorithms. The downside of manually estimated events is the tedious and time-intensive work which leads to subjective assessments.

Do the Pelvic and Thorax Movements Differ between the Sexes and Influence Golf Club Velocity in Junior Golfers?

The aim of this study was to determine the differences in golf swing execution in terms of the parameters of the pelvis and thorax movement between the sexes in junior golfers and their relation to the golf club velocity. Elite female and male players (age: 15.4 ± 1.

Intra- and inter-subject variability of femoral growth plate stresses in typically developing children and children with cerebral palsy.

Little is known about the influence of mechanical loading on growth plate stresses and femoral growth. A multi-scale workflow based on musculoskeletal simulations and mechanobiological finite element (FE) analysis can be used to estimate growth plate loading and femoral growth trends. Personalizing the model in this workflow is time-consuming and therefore previous studies included small sample sizes (N < 4) or generic finite element models.

Modeling the formation of defensive gaps in basketball: Cutting on a teammate's drive.

Basketball is a game of simultaneous actions, and inter-player coordination is key for offensive success. One of the most challenging aspects in this regard is basket cutting on a teammate's drive. The ability to make these cuts is considered to be an artistic skill, mastered by only a handful of players.

Machine learning application in soccer: a systematic review.

Due to the chaotic nature of soccer, the predictive statistical models have become in a current challenge to decision-making based on scientific evidence. The aim of the present study was to systematically identify original studies that applied machine learning (ML) to soccer data, highlighting current possibilities in ML and future applications. A systematic review of PubMed, SPORTDiscus, and FECYT (Web of Sciences, CCC, DIIDW, KJD, MEDLINE, RSCI, and SCIELO) was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines.

Ubiquitous Computing in Sports and Physical Activity-Recent Trends and Developments.

The use of small, interconnected and intelligent tools within the broad framework of pervasive computing for analysis and assessments in sport and physical activity is not a trend in itself but defines a way for information to be handled, processed and utilised: everywhere, at any time. The demand for objective data to support decision making prompted the adoption of wearables that evolve to fulfil the aims of assessing athletes and practitioners as closely as possible with their performance environments. In the present paper, we mention and discuss the advancements in ubiquitous computing in sports and physical activity in the past 5 years.

Modelling the relationship between load and repetitions to failure in resistance training: A Bayesian analysis.

To identify the relationship between load and the number of repetitions performed to momentary failure in the pin press exercise, the present study compared different statistical model types and structures using a Bayesian approach. Thirty resistance-trained men and women were tested on two separate occasions. During the first visit, participants underwent assessment of their one-repetition maximum (1-RM) in the pin press exercise.

The Effects of Visual Feedback on Performance in Heart Rate- and Power-Based-Tasks during a Constant Load Cycling Test.

Performance feedback can be essential for cyclists to help with pacing their efforts during competitions and also during standardized performance tests. However, the choice of feedback options on modern bike computers is limited. Moreover, little research on the effectiveness of the currently used feedback methods is available.

Guardiola, Klopp, and Pochettino: The Purveyors of What? The Use of Passing Network Analysis to Identify and Compare Coaching Styles in Professional Football.

We applied social networks analysis to objectively discriminate and describe interpersonal interaction dynamics of players across different top-coaching styles. The aim was to compare metrics in the passing networks of Jürgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola, and Mauricio Pochettino across the UEFA Champions League seasons from 2017 to 2020. Data on completed passes from 92 games were gathered and average passing networks metrics were computed.

Preventive strategy of flatfoot deformity using fully automated procedure.

A non-invasive, no radiation, out-of-hospital automated system is proposed to identify low arch integrated in the design and manufacturing of personalized orthoses using parametric modelling. The aim of the design process is to integrate assistive technology with assessment and prevent low arch progressing to a more serious case - flatfoot. In the automated procedure, we developed an assessment method including reliable thresholds of foot type classification and test protocol to reduce interferences due to preceding activities, an automation to translate scanned data into parametric design for orthotic customization, finite element model evaluating effectiveness of the personalized design, and a personalized comparative test to evaluate the long-term improvement of foot arch shape.

The effect of stretch-shortening magnitude and muscle-tendon unit length on performance enhancement in a stretch-shortening cycle.

Stretch-induced residual force enhancement (rFE) is associated with increased performance in a stretch-shortening cycle (SSC). Although the influence of different range of motions and muscle-tendon unit lengths has been investigated in pure stretch-hold experiments in vivo, the contribution to a SSC movement in human muscles remains unclear. In two sessions, 25 healthy participants performed isometric reference (ISO), shortening hold (SHO) and SSC contractions on an isokinetic dynamometer.

Acute response on general and sport specific hip joint flexibility to training with novel sport device.

The study objective is to test general- and sport-specific adaption during a single training on the . The device is designed to trigger residual muscle tone decreases of the hip-joint muscles by providing (nearly) isokinetic resistance during a full range of motion strength training in adduction/abduction and flexion/extension direction. Static hip flexion and abduction as well as kinematics of double side kicks were analysed on 15 participants before and after training (or rest for controls) to assess general flexibility and sport-specific movement range.

Internal, external and repeated-sprint demands in small-sided games: A comparison between bouts and age groups in elite youth soccer players.

This study investigated the activity profile during small-sided games (SSG) in elite youth soccer players. Internal load (IL) including heart rate (HR) and external load (EL) such as distance covered in different speed-zones (SZ) were collected from forty-eight players of three different teams (U15, U16, U18). The investigation included a total of eighteen 5vs.

Impact of scaling errors of the thigh and shank segments on musculoskeletal simulation results.

Background: Musculoskeletal simulations are widely used in the research community. The locations of surface markers are mostly used to scale a generic model to the participant's anthropometry. Marker-based scaling approaches include errors due to inaccuracies in marker placements.