Information about behavior of energy intake in ultra-endurance cyclists during a 24-hour team relay race is scarce. The nutritional strategy during such an event is an important factor which athletes should plan carefully before the race. The purpose of this study was to examine and compare the nutritional intake of ultra-endurance cyclists during a 24-hour team relay race with the current nutritional guidelines for endurance events. Additionally, we analyzed the relationship among the nutritional and performance variables. Using a observational design, nutritional intake of eight males (mean ± SD: 36.7 ± 4.7 years; 71.6 ± 4.9 kg; 174.6 ± 7.3 cm; BMI 23.5 ± 0.5 kg/m²) participating in a 24-hour team relay cycling race was assessed. All food and fluid intake by athletes were weighed and recorded. Additionally, distance and speed performed by each rider were also recorded. Furthermore, before to the race, all subjects carried out an incremental exercise test to determine two heart rate-VO₂ regression equations which were used to estimate the energy expenditure. The mean ingestion of macronutrients during the event was 943 ± 245 g (13.1 ± 4.0 g/kg) of carbohydrates, 174 ± 146 g (2.4 ± 1.9 g/kg) of proteins and 107 ± 56 g (1.5 ± 0.7 g/kg) of lipids, respectively. This amount of nutrients reported an average nutrient intake of 22.8 ± 8.9 MJ which were significantly lower compared with energy expenditure 42.9 ± 6.8 MJ (P = 0.012). Average fluid consumption corresponded to 10497 ± 2654 mL. Mean caffeine ingestion was 142 ± 76 mg. Additionally, there was no relationship between the main nutritional variables (i.e. energy intake, carbohydrates, proteins, fluids and caffeine ingestion) and the main performance variables (i.e. distance and speed). A 24-hour hours cycling competition in a team relay format elicited high energy demands which were not compensated by energy intake of the athletes despite that dietary consumption of macronutrients did not differ to the nutritional guidelines for longer events.

(2012). High Energy Deficit in an Ultraendurance Athlete in a 24-Hour Ultracycling Race. Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings: Vol. 25, No. 2, pp. 124-128.

The objective of this study was to confirm whether gymnastics practice from a young age can induce greater vertical jump reliability. Fifty young female gymnasts (8.84 ± 0.62 years) and 42 females in the control group (8.58 ± 0.92 years) performed the following jump tests on a contact mat: squat jump, countermovement jump, countermovement jump with arm swing and drop jump from heights of 40 and 60 cm. The two testing sessions had three trials each and were separated by one week. A 2 (groups) × 2 (sessions) × 3 (trials) repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) and a test-retest correlation analysis were used to study the reliability. There was no systematic source of error in either group for non-plyometric jumps such as squat jump, countermovement jump, and countermovement jump with arm swing. A significant group per trial interaction revealed a learning effect in gymnasts' drop jumps from 40 cm height. Additionally, the test-retest correlation analysis and the higher minimum detectable error suggest that the quick drop jump technique was not fully consolidated in either group. At an introductory level of gymnastics and between the ages of 8–10 years, the condition of being a gymnast did not lead to conclusively higher reliability, aside from better overall vertical jump performance.

Highly repetitive submaximal intermittent contractions of the forearm muscles during periods of 30–50 min partially explain why motorcycle races are so demanding for the neuromuscular system. This study investigated the contribution of central and peripheral mechanisms of fatigue on the exerted and contralateral extensor digitorum communis following an intermittent fatigue protocol (IFP) designed for motorcycle riders. 12 riders performed an IFP, which simulates the braking and throttle handle gesture. We examined the time course of recovery of maximal voluntary contraction (MVC), M-wave, motor evoked potential (MEP) to transcranial magnetic stimuli in relaxed and facilitated condition, and the cortical silent period (CSP) at time windows of 1, 3, 5, 10 and 20 min after the IFP. Whereas MVC, M-wave and MEP decreased, CSP lengthened significantly in the fatigued limb after completion of the IFP. Nevertheless, no differences were observed in the contralateral limb. All neurophysiological parameters reverted to baseline values in less than 20 min, while MVC remained lower in the exercised limb. No cross-over effects were observed in the contralateral non-exercised limb. Our results suggest that local factors are those mainly responsible for the incomplete MVC recovery after an intermittent muscle contraction protocol.