School-Based Exercise Programs for Promoting Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Overweight and Obese Children Aged 6 to 10

The aim of this study was to conduct a systematic review of the school-based exercise programs for promoting cardiorespiratory fitness in overweight and obese children aged 6 to 10. Electronic databases (Web of Science and PubMed) were used as searching tools for collecting adequate studies published in the past 20 years. A total of 13 studies met the criteria for inclusion in this review, with a total of 2810 participants, both male and female. According to the results of this systematic review, overweight and obese children aged 6 to 10 who underwent certain interventions had their CRF improved. Furthermore, evidence suggested that interventions carried out during a longer period of time suggested led to greater improvement of cardiorespiratory fitness than a shorter one, but the level of cardiorespiratory fitness gradually decreases after the intervention.

Design and Validation of a New Tennis-Specific Reactive Agility Test-A Pilot Study

Agility is an important ability for tennis players, but there is an evident lack of studies focusing on the applicability of tennis-specific agility tests that capture a combination of the physical and cognitive agility performance. Therefore, the main aim of this study was to design and test measurement properties of the tennis-specific reactive agility test that would be feasible and practical for regular implementation. A total of 32 youth tennis players (21 males and 11 females; 10.85 ± 1.50 years) participated in this study. The measurement characteristics of the newly designed reactive agility tennis-specific (TS-RAN) test have been established by comparing it with two generic agility tests and with two tennis-specific pre-planned agility tests. The overall reliability of the new TS-RAN test can only be considered "moderate to good", as although the results of participants showed good internal consistency, the within-subject reliability of the test proved to be unsatisfactory, since the participants showed a lack of performance consistency. This is not unexpected considering the very young age of the participants who performed the test for the very first time. The new TS-RAN test was highly projected (0.91) on the same single latent dimension, with the variance predominately explained by the tennis-specific agility tests. The test's greatest strength is its high feasibility, since the test does not require any special set-up nor technical equipment, and that makes it practical for regular implementation in a practical setting. Further research studies are needed in order to confirm the test's potential to be widely accepted and used.

Psycho-Oncology and Spirituality

Psycho-oncology is a branch of medicine which, combining psychiatry and oncology, studies the biological and psychological factors related to the onset and treatment of carcinoma. The struggle with this life-threatening disease requires an adaptation to a new life situation characterized by changed routines of everyday life and dynamics of personal relationships. The psycho-oncological approach is a multidisciplinary one, as modern medicine recognizes more and more the role of spirituality in the treatment and recovery from various pathological conditions. Spirituality is the adaptive capability of intelligent beings to retain the will for life in spite of adversities and awareness of the imminence of death. Faced with a challenge of malignant disease people are nevertheless able to react with positive personality changes, which leads them to a more meaningful and substantial life. The so-called posttraumatic growth is a feature which enables an individual to assume control over his own reactions to disease, which in turn can have a positive influence on the treatment outcome. An essential role in this process is played by the spiritual growth of an individual. Malignant disease can represent an opportunity for spiritual growth, a dimension often neglected by contemporary lifestyles. Religion, as an important constituent part of spirituality, can offer the believer a meaning of suffering and thus turn the disease into an opportunity for self-knowledge and development of a more mature spirituality. Christian spirituality can represent a path which helps an individual to cope with malignant disease. Modern medicine should be based on a multidisciplinary approach to the patient and encompass all the human dimensions (rational, emotional and spiritual), whereas treatment itself must be both personalized and participatory.

Acute effects of prolonged intermittent low-intensity isometric warm-up schemes on jump, sprint, and agility performance in collegiate soccer players

The aim of the present study was to compare the effects of different warm-up interventions on jump, sprint and agility performance in collegiate soccer players. Twenty-one healthy male college soccer players (age: 20.14 ± 1.65 years; body height: 179.9 ± 8.34 cm; body mass: 74.4 ± 13.0 kg; % body fat: 9.45 ± 4.8) participated in the study. Subjects underwent four different randomized warm-up protocols separated by at least 48 hours. The warm-up schemes were: 1. no conditioning contraction protocol (NCC); 2. dynamic stretching (DS); 3. prolonged intermittent low-intensity isometric exercise (ST); and, 4. ST with an additional external load equal to 30% of body weight (ST + 30% BW). All interventions were preceded by a general warm-up. Results from one-way repeated measures ANOVA demonstrated a significant difference in countermovement jump (CMJ) at F(3,60) = 10.2, ηρ(2) = 0.337, p < 0.01. Post hoc analysis revealed a significant difference in CMJ performance in DS when compared to NCC and ST + 30% BW. No significant difference in CMJ was observed between DS and ST. CMJ scores in NCC, ST, and ST + 30% BW were non-significant. There was a significant difference in speed; F(3, 60) = 6.61, ηρ(2) = 0.248, p < 0.01. Post hoc analysis revealed significantly better time in DS than NCC and ST. However, no difference in speed was observed between DS and ST + 30% BW. Similarly, speed was similar in NCC, ST and ST + 30% BW. A significant difference in agility performance was also observed; F(3, 60) = 24.1, ηρ(2)= 0.546, p < 0.01. Post hoc analysis revealed significantly greater performance gains in DS than NCC. No significant difference in agility was observed in DS, ST and ST + 30% BW. In conclusion, a prolonged intermittent low-intensity isometric protocol using bodyweight only showed similar benefits with dynamic stretching in countermovement jump performance. When the same isometric condition with additional load equal to 30% of bodyweight was applied, effects in speed and agility were similar to dynamic stretching.

The influence of somatotype components and personality traits on the playing position and the quality of top Croatian female cadet handball players

The research was conducted with the aim to establish the structure and the differences of morphological features and personality traits between different age groups of female cadet handball players grouped by their playing quality and playing positions. Further on, the research was done on 70 handball players aged 15, 31 on average, who were grouped according to their positions on goalkeepers, outside players, wings and pivots. Furthermore, according to the quality of playing, they were divided in two quality groups of players, those from the wider cadet national team, thus characterised as top female players in Croatia, and those who had never been invited into the cadet national team and thus can be referred to as low-quality, i.e. average female handball players. The structure of predictor variables has indicated the existence of general morphological factor assessing the players' constitution and two personality features factors - neuroticism and extraversion. The variance analysis showed no statistically significant differences of somatotype variables with relation to quality and playing position. By observing basic personality traits, a statistically significant difference was confirmed only in introversion-extraversion with a lower score in goalkeepers than in other positions, which indicates a higher level of introversion in this playing position. Such result was expected since this particular position abounds in specific tasks and demands in the game in relation to all other playing positions. Further on, it has been concluded that the selection of players must not be based only on the stated physical and psychological characteristics, but on relevant anthropological complexes determining performance and sport achievement.