The objective of this research was to investigate
the physiological effects of body posture on cycling.
The familiar positions of bicycle riding have been the
touring posture (hands stretched on top handlebar) and
the racing posture (hands bent at the elbow, with the
back horizontal). However, a relatively new stance...
The presence of an increased accumulation of intraabdominal fat (IAF) has been linked to dyslipidemia, hyperinsulinemia, and hyperglycemia, which precede the development of type 2 diabetes and coronary artery disease (CAD). It has been shown that IAF begins depostition during childhood. Human studies suggest that regular endurance exercise, that does...
Several behavioral studies have suggested that rarity is critical for enabling irrelevant, salient objects to capture attention. We tested this hypothesis using the event-related potential (ERP) component, N2pc, thought to reflect attentional allocation. A cue display was followed by a target display in which participants identified the letter in a...
The purpose of this study was to determine the
effect of immediate prior meditation (transcendental
meditation) and relaxation upon the pattern of physiological
response and performance of a fine motor and
gross motor task. A second purpose of this study was
to determine whether the long term regular practice of...
This study was designed to determine cardiorespiratory and energy expenditure responses elicited by recreational divers while finning at a submaximal intensity (35% max) in cold (18°C) and warm (29°C) water with and without wet suits. Male divers (15) volunteered to participate in five experimental procedures. A maximal graded exercise tethered...
Experienced runners naturally optimize stride rate in a manner that minimizes oxygen uptake at given running speeds. However, as runners become fatigued, preferred stride rate often decreases. Whether such changes with fatigue occur in parallel with changes in optimal stride rate is unknown. This study's focus was on determining whether...
The purposes of the research presented in this thesis were
to: (l) assess the nutritional status of vegetarian and nonvegetarian
Seventh-day Adventists (SDA), non-SDA non-vegetarians,
and non-vegetarian hormone dependent cancer subjects; (2) determine
the relationship of various blood and urinary biochemical
parameters to dietary intake; (3) determine hormonal status in...
Few studies have examined the acute effects of
resistive-type exercise on lipid-lipoprotein profiles. This
study examined the acute effects of a single session of
circuit weight training (CWT) on plasma lipid-lipoprotein
profiles: triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high
density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low density
lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and the ratio...
High impact loading activities such as jumping, performed during childhood is advocated as one preventive method for increasing peak bone mass. Thus, we conducted a randomized intervention to examine the effect of high impact loading on bone mass in 34 pre-pubescent boys and girl over a seven month period. Participants...
The purpose of this study was to measure plasma B-6 vitamers, and other factors which may affect the plasma concentrations of these vitamers under extreme physical conditions. Blood samples were drawn from 8 men and 3 women (43.7 ± 8.6 years) 30 minutes prior to the start of a 50-km...
Exercise increases B-vitamin (B6, B12, folate) dependent metabolic reactions, especially those related to energy production and the rebuilding and repairing of muscle tissue. These same B-vitamins are also important in maintaining low blood levels of homocysteine (Hcy), a cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factor. Hcy levels rise when the metabolism of...
The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of power weight training and conventional weight training on forced vital capacity and forced expiratory volume in one second in college males. Sixteen college males were employed as the two experimental groups: seven subjects for a power weight training experimental...
The investigation of force attenuation and performance strategies to respond to changing mechanical constraints helps prevent injury as well as facilitates beneficial insight to provide appropriate instruction to athletes and students. The primary purpose of the study was to assess within subject variability of landing strategies when responding to additional...
Four young trained men were studied during 50 min of continuous
bicycle ergometer exercise [30 min at 60%, 15 min at 80%,
and 5 min at 90% maximal heart rate (MHR)] to elucidate changes
in fuel metabolism resulting from a glycogen depletion-repletion
regimen, and to determine the effect of supplemental...
Previous studies suggest that vitamin B-6 supplementation can alter fuel metabolism during
exercise and plasma amino acid levels at rest. To examine the effect of vitamin B-6
supplementation on plasma fuel substrates and amino acid levels during exercise, five trained
males (age: 29±7; V0₂ max: 54.7±6.2 ml/kg/min) performed two separate...
The effects of an 11-week jogging program on the plasma lipid
fractions and clotting time of 19 late adolescent males (18 to 19
years) were investigated. Total lipids, triglycerides, total and free
cholesterol, phospholipids, non-esterified fatty acids, and clotting
time of plasma were determined. Statistical analysis was applied
to the...
We evaluated anthropometric and performance measures which best predict bone
mineral density (BMD) in 54 adolescent girls (14.6±0.5y; 22.7±14.0 months past
menarche). BMD for the whole body, femoral neck, greater trochanter, lumbar spine (L2-L4), and mid-femoral shaft was assessed using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA)
(Hologic QDR 1000/W). Whole body lean...
Glutathione (GSH) is the predominant low molecular weight thiol antioxidant
in liver tissue. GSH plays an important role in maintaining the intracellular thiol redox
ratio as well as detoxification of electrophiles and xenobiotics. Aging leads to a significant decline (35%; P ≤ 0.05) in hepatocellular GSH levels. Using young (2-4...
The purpose of this study was to identify significant differences
in body composition, body cathexis, and attitudes toward obesity
of women in various age groups involved in different levels of physical
exercise.
A total of 216 women, ranging in age from 17 to 64, took part in
this study. They...
Under certain conditions, a neural network may be trained to perform a
specific task by altering the weights of only a portion of the synapses.
Specifically, it has been noted that certain three layer feed-forward networks may
be trained to certain tasks by adjusting only the synapses to the output...
The back thrust kick is a karate technique used primarily in a
defensive setting. This research described the kinematic
variables involved in the skilled execution of the kick. Variables
examined included movement sequencing, angular position of
the trunk, thigh and leg, angular velocity of the thigh and leg,
linear velocity...
Metabolic syndrome (MetS) and abdominal obesity (AbOb) increase the risk of
developing cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Energy restriction (ER), highprotein
(PRO) intake and high-intensity interval training (HIT) can independently
improve MetS and AbOb. However, ER reduces metabolically active lean body
mass (LBM) in addition to body fat (BF). Purpose: To...
Despite dramatic changes in tennis equipment and technique, more than 30% of
recreational tennis players suffer from lateral elbow pain ("tennis elbow"). Certain
kinematic and electromyographic characteristics in backhand strokes have been
implicated as major factors responsible for lateral elbow pain. From a local tennis club,
22 recreational players who...
The treatment of certain types of cancers brings with it serious physiological and
psychological side effects in cancer survivors, including: decreased aerobic capacity,
muscle wasting, body composition changes, fatigue, and a diminished overall quality of
life. Exercise may directly influence the physiological side effects of cancer and cancer
treatment, and...
To examine the potential for exercise to build bone mass during growth, objectives of this dissertation included: 1) determine the effects of 7 months of jumping followed by 7 months of detraining on hip and spine bone mass in the prepubertal children; 2) determine variables that best predict bone mineral...
Resistance training is widely prescribed for rehabilitation of injuries and as a method to improve athletic performance. It is accepted that resistance training increases the maximal force production of whole muscle and it has been suggested that the velocity of shortening can increase as well. However, little is known about...
The purpose of this research was to examine some of
the factors which may affect body composition of
postmenopausal women. The effect of estrogen, physical
activity, diet and lifestyle were examined in 9 women
receiving estrogen replacement therapy and 11 women not
using this drug. For 3 consecutive days, the...
Eight adolescent males (14 to 18 years old) were evaluated
before and after 50 minutes of exercise on a bicycle ergometer
at 60 percent of their maximal heart rate to investigate the
relationship between blood magnesium status and the derangement
of other serum electrolytes in the etiology of "sports anemia."...
In order to develop a stimulating yet effective school-based program which elicits
a positive bone growth response, we need to understand the forces acting on the bones of
children during various high-impact activities. One activity found to promote bone
growth is drop landings from a height. We determined whether there...
Zinc is an essential mineral that is integral to many proteins and transcription factors that regulate key cellular functions. The normal prostate accumulates high concentrations of zinc; however, malignant tissues have significantly lower zinc levels. This unique relationship between zinc and the prostate has sparked interest in the role of...
Research shows that Exercise-Associated Menstrual Dysfunction (ExMD) ranges from 6-79% of active women, depending on the sport. The primary contributor to ExMD is hypothesized to be low energy availability or relative energy deficiency in sport, due to insufficient energy intake to match exercise energy expenditure. Because many active women are...
To determine if 6 weeks prior supplementation with vitamins E and C
could alleviate exercise-induced DNA damage, prevent lipid peroxidation and
inflammation, slow the rate of vitamin E utilization and/or attenuate muscle
damage, 22 subjects (11 females: 11 males) were studied during a 50 km (32
mile) ultramarathon. Subjects were...
The purpose of this study was to compare the muscular
strength and endurance of thirty-two men 51 to 79 years of age who
engage in weight training (WT), aerobic training (AT), cross training
(CT), or no training (S). The design employed in the study was a 2x2
between subjects factorial...