In 2015, 120 central primary schools in Croatia failed to meet the minimum requirements, and could not carry through the full-time compulsory Physical Education class. To ensure daily habits for physical exercise in all children and help teachers, Croatian Institute of Public Health has designed a Set of kinesiological aids and implemented the project “Polygon for Physical Activity of School-Aged Children”

It has been well established that plyometric and speed training have positive impacts on fitness parameters in soccer players. The aim of this study was to compare short-term effects of combined plyometric and speed training implemented in the same or separate weekly days on change of direction (COD), maximal sprinting speed (MSS), and repeated sprint ability (RSA) in young soccer players. Twenty-four

This study aimed to determine the relationships between internal training load (session-RPE) and wellness status (DOMS, stress, fatigue, and sleep quality) on both daily and weekly bases over a professional basketball season. Fifteen professional basketball players provided their wellness status and perceived training load for all training sessions and matches over a season. Daily correlations were

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the precision of verbal feedback affected the accuracy of standing long jump performance. Sixty-eight female participants (M age = 21.44 ± 1.01) were randomly assigned to two experimental groups. In total, each subject performed 9 jumps at three distances, i.e. 50 cm (3 trials), 75 cm (3 trials) and 100 cm (3 trials). Each group performed jumps in

O objetivo do estudo foi identificar o efeito de um protocolo de treinamento de resistencia neuromuscular (NRTP) no desempenho de 5 km de distância. Este estudo incluiu 18 corredores masculinos (idade = 29,3 ± 3,2 anos, porcentagem de gordura = 11,3 ± 2,6%, altura = 1,77 ± 0,04 m, massa corporal = 73,4 ± 4,4 kg, tempo em 5 km = 20,6 ± 2,4 min, anos de treinamento = 4,3 ± 0,7 anos). Em primeiro lugar

The aim of this study was to examine the acute physiological responses, physical fitness parameters and time-motion characteristics associated with a 4-a-side small-sided game in amateur level players.Sixteen male football players (age, 23.9±4.2 years) completed one 4-a-side small-sided game with the aim of maintain ball possession as long as possible, with. The participants were monitored for external

The aim of the study was to analyze positional differences in anthropometric characteristics of 48 Croatian selected female handball juniors (average age 18.43 years) who played in three positions: backs (B; n=19), wings (W; n=7) and pivots (P; n=6). Twenty-four anthropometric measures, defining the four latent morphological dimensions, were used. Globally, significant differences were revealed by

This investigation determined differences in lower body strength and power between elite junior (17-20 years) and elite senior (open-aged) rugby league athletes. Twenty junior and 25 senior athletes performed an isometric mid-thigh pull, countermovement jump, repeated jump, and broad jump tests during a National Rugby League pre-season. The effects of age (junior vs. senior) and position (adjustables

The purpose of this study was to compare the combined effects of creatine monohydrate (Cr) and beta-alanine (BA) with their isolated use on performance and physiological parameters during repeated sprint sequences (RSS). Forty-four male (n=34) and female (n=10) amateur team- and racket sport players (25.1±3.1 years; 175.2±9.8 cm; 76.0±10.3 kg; 15.2±6.8% body fat) performed ten repetitions of 6-s sprints

This study, through a systematic review, analyzed scientific production concerning sport psychology in mixed martial arts. The review was conducted in accordance with the PRISMA statement, and the search was performed using the SciELO, ScienceDirect, PsycInfo, and Web of Science databases. Of the 79 studies screened, eight satisfied the eligibility criteria, with explicit addressal of the themes of

The aim of this study was to identify game variables that discriminate winning from losing teams and to understand how these variables contribute to victory by observing differences of goals in matches of women's handball world championships. The sample comprised 471 games between 2007 to 2017. The games were grouped into three clusters (balanced games - difference of 1 to 8 goals; unbalanced games

The aims were to assess differentiated perceived match exertion and its variability according to playing position for professional soccer players. Nineteen Spanish players declared their respiratory and muscular perceived exertions after official matches during an entire season. Players were classified according to their playing position. In order to assess differentiated perceived match exertion,

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the relation between salivary concentrations of Cortisol (C), Testosterone (T), the ratio T:C and the individual performance of top-level female soccer athletes, during official matches. Method: Eighteen female athletes from a national soccer team (23.06 ± 4.33 years old) participated in the study. Four official matches were analyzed and the match time of each

This study aimed to verify the validity of session-RPE method to monitor the internal training load (ITL)in beach volleyball players by considering sessions related to different genders, competition levels (elite oramateur), and types of session (conditioning, technical, or tactical/game). Session-RPE and Edwards’ methodswere applied to quantify the ITLs of 12 elite (18 players; 197 individual sessions)

Cognition is a major subject to be addressed nowadays due to the increasing number of cognitively affected people in most societies. Because of a lack of pharmaceutical therapies treating cognitive decline, its indicators should be diagnosed before it becomes prevalent. Scientific evidence indicates a relationship between cognition and the nervous system, especially its autonomic part. Heart rate variability

This study examined the effects of a 6-week repeated sprint training program on redox-based homeostasis and its association with muscle damage. Fifteen male physical education students (aged 20.0 ± 1.0 years; body weight 77.7 ± 6.0 kg; height 181.0 ± 4.4 cm; % body fat 8.7 ± 3.0 %) familiar with intermittent activities volunteered to participate in the study. Experimental training program consisted

Although maximal incremental exercise tests (GXT) are the gold standard for outcome assessment and exercise proscription, they are not widely available in either fitness or clinical exercise programs. This study compared the prediction of VO2max in healthy, sedentary volunteers using a non-exercise prediction (Matthews, Heil, Freedson & Pastides, 1999), RPE extrapolation to 19 & 20 (Eston, Lambrick

Morphological configuration of the human body is influenced by many factors. In addition to genetic, they are also environmental factors and cultural differences. The aim of this study is to compare the morphological configuration of men´s body of Slovak and Saudi Arabian soccer players and find out the differences between soccer players, depending on the playing positions. The study sample consisted

Evidence suggests that postural control could act as a secondary task, leading to a negative effect on sensorimotor skill learning. To investigate this issue, twenty older adults (average age = 70.5 years, SD=5.6) were distributed into two groups, according to the body position maintained during the acquisition (AQ) of a temporal estimation task: performing the task standing with feet together (STA)

The aim of the present study was to identify and describe different players’ performance profiles in National Basketball Association regular season and playoff games using new combined tracking and notational-based variables. The sample was composed by 535 balanced games (score differences below or equal to eight points) from the regular season (n=502) and the playoffs (n=33), for a total of 472 players

Main purpose of this paper was to find differences in motor skill level between selected and non-selected group of children in artistic gymnastics. Artistic gymnastics is one of the sports that is frequently put into a negative context because of early specialization of children, while at the same time it is considered to be basic, fundamental sport. Thirty-one child (age 5.59 ± 0.77) participated

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare muscle oxygenation of the vastus lateralis during a high volume, isokinetic resistance exercise protocol (HVP) between young adult (YA) and middle-aged adult (MA) men.Methods: Twenty recreationally trained men were assigned to either the YA (21.8±2.0 y, 90.7±11.6 kg, 179±4.7 cm) or MA (47.0±4.4 y, 96.1±21.6 kg, 177±7.7 cm) group. The HVP consisted of

In soccer different tactical functions are necessary to perform individual well, as a team. The demands of players from different positional roles can be manipulated on training through small-sided and conditioned games and tactical behaviours might be stimulated. The aim of this study is to assess the effects of positional role in tactical behaviour of U-17 youth soccer players based on core tactical

Studies have shown that obese individuals may require more attentional resources to perform postural control compared to non-obese individuals. However, it is unclear if this difference in the allocation of attention can only be observed in body positions that lead to a higher level of instability. The objective of this study was to investigate if obesity affects the allocation of attention for maintaining

Knowledge of the current status of motor abilities allows valid evaluation of the objective situation and forecast further development of rhythmic gymnasts. The main objective of this research was to determine the difference and connection between the motor abilities of rhythmic gymnasts depending on the program level, biological age and achieved national ranking. Research results stemming from using

Objective: 2D:4D ratio is determined by the balance between androgens to estrogens. Low level estrogen reduces bone mineral density (BMD) and incurs negative changes to bone microarchitecture, increasing the risk of osteoporosis and, as a consequence, fracture risk in women. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between 2D:4D, muscle strength and body composition to BMD in young

Custom-made mouthguards are used to prevent orofacial injuries arising from falls and knocks. It has been observed that thicker custom-made mouthguards transmit less force to the mouth owing to their higher energy absorption capacity. However, it is believed that thicker custom-made mouthguards can alter ventilation during exercise because of the higher resistance or restriction of oral airflow. The

The objectives of the present study were: (i) to analyse anthropometric parameters, physical fitness, and throwing speed in men elite youth handball players of different ages; and (ii) to develop a multivariate model that explains the throwing speed. Fifty-three men handball players (17.99±1.68 years in age), components of the [deleted for blinding purposes] national teams, participated in the study

Taekwondo is striking Olympic combat sport where scoring actions are powerful and short-duration techniques, especially kicks. However, there are no many taekwondo-specific physical tests. Recently the frequency speed of kick test (FSKT10s) and its intermittent version (5 x 10s/10s intervals, FSKTmult) has been used to assess physical fitness of taekwondo and athletes, but no classificatory normative

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the functionality, accuracy, and usability of a novel smart exercise application (SEA). The functionality such as counting lunges, providing task-related auditory feedback, and testing short-term memory was examined while thirteen young adults (6 men, age 25.4 ± 8.3 years) performed the lunge exercise with the SEA. The accuracy of logged motion data including

The purpose of this research was to investigate the effects of a physical training program and semester break periods on chosen physical abilities and basic body composition indicators among police trainees. Body weight (BW), waist circumference (WC), push-ups (PU), sit-ups (SU) and 2.4 km run (RUN) times of 420 male trainees attending the Abu Dhabi Police College were collected. The testing was conducted

We evaluated the effects of 7-day rapid weight loss (RWL) intervention on body composition and biomarkers of creatine metabolism in eight elite judokas during a pre-competition period. RWL induced a significant drop in weight (81.7 ± 10.7 kg at baseline vs. 76.8 ± 10.3 kg at follow-up; P < 0.001), fat mass (12.6 ± 5.6 kg vs. 9.2 ± 4.0 kg; P = 0.003) and fat-free mass (69.1 ± 7.3 kg vs. 67.6 ± 7.7 kg;

The aim of this study was to identify relationships between the variation of match variables and football team’s match performance. Data from all 768 matches played at the group stage of UEFA Champions League from 2009-2010 to 2016-2017 seasons were analyzed. The correlations between the coefficient of variation of twenty match variables and the points of group stage were calculated. Autocorrelation

This study examined energy expenditure, dietary behavior, and energy balance of female tennis and soccer student-athletes during a competitive season. A sample of 18 (Mage = 19.86±1.35) Division I female collegiate student-athletes (5 tennis and 13 soccer players) were followed for four days. Physical activity was assessed with accelerometers and dietary behavior with daily food logs. Daily energy

The aim of the study was to compare the effects of an in-season 5-week high-intensity training (HIT) with a concurrent HIT plus eccentric overload training (CT) program on male amateur team-sports players’ fitness performance. Twenty-two athletes were randomly assigned to HIT (n=10) or CT (n=12). Both groups completed a HIT program. The CT group also completed 2-3 sets × 6 repetitions of eccentric

The objective of the current study was to examine the effect of pregnancy during the 2nd and 3rd trimesters on ground reaction forces (GRFs). Twenty-four non-pregnant women and forty-eight pregnant women in the second and third trimesters participated in this cross-sectional study. Qualysis Gait Analysis System was used to analyze peaks and time parameters of GRFs in vertical (Fz), antero-posterior

The purpose of the present study was to examine the validity and reliability of the handheld Nova Max Plus blood glucose monitor during an oral glucose tolerance test and 60-minute bout of exercise. Thirty subjects (mean age±SD=22.3±1.9 years; body mass=77.6±14.2 kg) volunteered for an oral glucose tolerance test or 60-minute treadmill test. Blood glucose concentrations were measured from the fingertip

The goal was to assess the connections between vigorous physical activity (VPA), approach-avoidance temperament and depressive symptoms. Two studies were conducted. Study 1, correlational, the hypothesis was that METs-VPA will be linked to depressive symptoms via its impact on both dimensions of temperament (approach and avoidance). 335 college students completed the International Physical Activity

Most existing game analysis attempts do not consider situational context information sufficiently for the assessments of tactical behaviour. The purpose of this study was to apply a new analysis approach, so far only used for 1-versus-1 analyses in soccer, to small-sided games and to identify and analyse therewith the efficiency of tactical patterns in 3-versus-2 game play. Therefore, 279 games, performed

This investigation examined the interactive effect of body-weight (BW) exercises and vibration on cardiometabolic responses. Fourteen subjects performed a BW exercise protocol with (BW+V) and without (BW‒V) vibration in a randomized order. The BW exercise protocol consisted of three circuits of eight calisthenics-based exercises including prisoner squat, push-up, isometric squat, reverse dip, lunge

Although it is well established that velocity is an important factor in the success in ball sports and the presence of opposition influences it, there has been no research done to date on the ball velocity in padel shots. The overhead smash is one of the most successful shots in this sport, and the present study aimed to study the effect of opposition on smash performance in semi-professional and amateur

A decline in adolescents’ moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and the increase in theirsedentary behavior (SB) have been registered all over the world. In order to increase the MVPA and reducethe SB of adolescents, their day has been analyzed by segments of time, verifying the contribution of each tothe daily recommendation of 60 minutes/day. Previous studies have been centered only in physical

Grounded in the trans-contextual model, the purpose of the present study was to examine the role of self-determined motivation in Physical Education (PE) on self-determined motivation in Physical Activity (PA), PA intention, and accelerometer-measured habitual PA behavior among high-school aged adolescents. A sample of 394 Spanish high-school students (211 males and 183 females; aged 12-16 years) participated

The aim of this study was to verify whether the Nintendo Wii-Balance-Board was valid and reliable for assessing sit-to-stand and return-to-sit tasks by comparing it with a gold-standard force plate. Ten elderly (age = 78.21±14.82 years; males=4; females=6) and eleven young (age =24.25±12.43 years; males=6; females=5) participants of both genders performed five sit-to-stand and return-to-sit tasks consecutively

The purpose of the study was to describe pacing patterns of the finishers of the World Marathon Majors series and the effect of sex and age on the pacing pattern. The finishers of the World Marathon Majors series, a total of 69 814 male runners and 46 856 female runners with finishing time ≤ 6 hours were included in the analysis. Difference in pacing (dev%) was calculated as a difference between the

The purpose of the present study was to explore the prevalence of muscle dysmorphia (MD) symptomatology and further to examine the association between MD symptomatology, body mass index (BMI), and weekly training duration (WTD) in gym-going men. Subjects included 156 gym-going men (Mage = 25.3, SD = 6.9 years, MWTD= 6.9, SD = 3.5 hours, and MBMI = 25.3, SD = 3.4). According to BMI, 90 subjects were

The aim of the study was to determine whether maintaining the standing balance position is influenced by athlete’s symmetric morphological characteristics. Thirty-two healthy sports students participated in this study (age 19.8±1.4 years, body height 182.9±6.8 cm, body weight 79.1±8.1 kg). Morphological characteristicsare represented with differences between the left and the right body side of: forearm

The aim of the current investigation was to examine the effects of orthoses with a 5° medial and lateral wedge on knee and ankle joint kinetics in female runners. Twelve healthy female runners ran at 3.5m/s over a force platform in three conditions (medial, lateral and no-orthotic). Lower extremity kinematics were measured using an 8 camera motion capture system which allowed knee and ankle loading

The Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) is an important measure of exercise intensity, which is useful both as a primary and adjunctive method of exercise prescription. However, there are multiple variants of the Borg RPE scale, primarily the BORG-RPE (6-20) and the BORG-CR (0-10) scales. There are inadequate data available to address the comparability and interchangeability of these two widely used

Based on previous research on certain differences among play positions in basketball, differences in aerobic and anaerobic fitness capacity values among basketballers in different playing positions were analyzed. The total sample of 70 adult basketball players (age 24.37±4.05) from the Croatian Division 1 league were classified as point guards (n=20), shooting guards and small forwards (n=26), and

The aim of this study was to compare the physiological, mechanical and perceptual responses to two sprint interval training (SIT) sessions with very short vs. long sprints, and to verify if those differences could be reflected in measures of acute fatigue. Eleven physically active men performed, after the maximum oxygen consumption (VO(2)max) determination, SIT5s (16x5s with 24s of recovery) and SIT20s

The purpose of this study is to compare the athletes’ scores, penalties and efficiency between of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Rio 2016, and identify which variable determines the winner of the matches. A total of 608 matches in the Olympic and Paralympic Games were analysed. Total relative scores (ippon, wazari and yuko), penalties (shido per match) and efficiency were identified in the categories

The aims of this study were to: 1) compare the effects of speed-based versus heart-rate-based high-intensity interval training (HIT) on changes in high-intensity intermittent running performance, and 2) examine between-group differences in heart rate (HR) and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) responses during the training sessions. Sixteen female students were divided into the HR-based (n=8, M±SD

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of small-sided game training (SSGT) versus conventional aerobic interval training (CAIT) on soccer-specific endurance performance, lactate threshold levels (mmol·L-1), short-passing ability and defensive and offensive skills of a soccer match. Before and after a 6-week training intervention period, eighteen amateur soccer players (age 21.8±4.8 years)

During a soccer match players perform a substantial number of explosive activities such as jumps, duels, shots and dribblings, accelerations, decelerations, changes of direction and sprints. Precisely such repetitive eccentric contractions are related to muscle damage (exercise-induced muscle damage) that is, two or three days after the match, clinically presented as muscle soreness. The aim of this

Active video games (AVG) increase energy expenditure (EE) with respect to sedentary video games. Although several AVG consoles allow playing in single-player (SP) or multiplayer (MP) mode, few studies investigated differences in relation to game modality in men and women. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate gender-related psycho-physiological responses during Zumba Fitness Rush (ZFR) played

Factors related to physical behaviour of children are important in understanding the characteristics of their physical activity. Apart from the factors of physical environment, social and demographical factors are also related to physical activity levels. Randomly selected 669 children (9.9±0.8 years; 48.8% boys) from randomly selected Slovenian elementary schools participated in this study. All data

The purpose of the present study was to compare block periodization (BP) and daily undulating periodization (DUP) in eliciting changes in strength, jumping performance and throwing velocity in young male handball players. Fifteen players, of the same competitive level, were assigned to one of the periodization groups (DUP=9; BP=6). Pre- and post-tests included a one repetition maximum (1 RM) back squat

High altitude tourism is becoming increasingly popular among non-athletic population but its potential impact on health is often neglected. This study investigated the changes in male sex hormones after the trek in altitudes between 1400m- and 6476m. 17 recreational lowland men (age 48±11) participated in 26 day Himalaya trek, with the highest point reached being Mera Peak. The initial measurements

The aim of this study was to determine the influence of the schoolbag carriage on pattern changes in plantar pressure during walking among schoolchildren in the first grade. The sample consisted of 127 schoolchildren, 48.8% male (N = 62) and 51.2% female (N = 65), with a mean age of 6.7 (± 0.5) years. The mean schoolbag weight was 4.2 kg (± 0.7), which represented a 16.9% (± 3.9) of the body weight