Most studies that have shown the positive effects of caffeine supplementation on sports performance have been carried out on men. However, the differences between sexes are evident in terms of body size, body composition, and hormonal functioning, which might cause different outcomes on performance for the same dosage of caffeine intake in men vs. women. The main aim of this systematic review was to analyze and compare the effects of caffeine intake between men and women on sports performance to provide a source of knowledge to sports practitioners and coaches, especially for those working with women athletes, on the use of caffeine as an ergogenic aid. A structured search was carried out following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines in the Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Scopus databases until 28 July 2019. The search included studies in which the effects of caffeine supplementation on athletic performance were compared between sexes and to an identical placebo situation (dose, duration and timing). No filters were applied for participants’ physical fitness level or age. A total of 254 articles were obtained in the initial search. When applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria, the final sample was 10 articles. The systematic review concluded that four investigations (100% of the number of investigations on this topic) had not found differences between sexes in terms of caffeine supplementation on aerobic performance and 3/3 (100%) on the fatigue index. However, four out of seven articles (57.1%) showed that the ergogenicity of caffeine for anaerobic performance was higher in men than women. In particular, it seems that men are able to produce more power, greater total weight lifted and more speed with the same dose of caffeine than women. In summary, caffeine supplementation produced a similar ergogenic benefit for aerobic performance and the fatigue index in men and women athletes. Nevertheless, the effects of caffeine to produce more power, total weight lifted and to improve sprint performance with respect to a placebo was higher in men than women athletes despite the same dose of caffeine being administered. Thus, the ergogenic effect of acute caffeine intake on anaerobic performance might be higher in men than in women.

Purpose.: The aim of the present study was to examine the influence of a program of moderate physical exercise throughout pregnancy on maternal and fetal parameters. Design.: The study design was a randomized controlled trial. Setting.: The study took place at the Hospital of Fuenlabrada in Madrid, Spain. Sample.: Analyzed were 200 pregnant women (31.54 ± 3.86 years), all of whom had uncomplicated and singleton gestation. Of these subjects, 107 were allocated to the exercise group (EG) and 93 to the control group (CG). Intervention.: Women from EG participated in a physical conditioning program throughout pregnancy, which included a total of 55- to 60-minute weekly sessions, 3 days per week. Measures.: Pregnancy outcomes. Maternal: gestational age, weight gain, type of delivery, blood pressure during pregnancy, gestational diabetes (n/%). Fetal: birth weight, birth size, head circumference, Apgar score, pH of umbilical cord. Analysis.: Student's unpaired t-test and χ ² test were used; p values of ≤ .05 indicated statistical significance. Cohen's d was used to determine the effect size. Results.: There were significantly more pregnant women in the CG who gained excessive weight during their pregnancies than in the EG group (CG: N = 31, 35.6% versus N = 22, 21.2%; χ ² = 4.95; p =.02). The effect size was small (Phi value =.16). Other pregnancy outcome showed no differences between groups. Conclusion.: A regular and moderate physical exercise program throughout pregnancy is not a risk to maternal and fetal well-being, and it helps to control excessive weight gain.

The spread of COVID-19 has altered sport in Spain, forcing athletes to train at home. The objectives of the study were: (i) to compare training and recovery conditions before and during the isolation period in handball players according to gender and competitive level, and (ii) to analyse the impact of psychological factors during the isolation period. A total of 187 participants (66 women and 121 men) answered a Google Forms questionnaire about demographics, training, moods, emotional intelligence, and resilience sent using the snowball sampling technique. T-test and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to compare sport level and gender differences. Linear regressions were used to analyse the psychological influence on training. Handball players reduced training intensity (in the whole sample; p = 0.44), training volume (especially in professional female handball players; p < 0.001), and sleep quality (especially in professional male handball players; p = 0.21) and increased sleep hours (especially in non-professional female players; p = 0.006) during the isolation period. Furthermore, psychological factors affected all evaluated training and recovery conditions during the quarantine, except for sleep quantity. Mood, emotional intelligence, and resilience have an influence on physical activity levels and recovery conditions. In addition, training components were modified under isolation conditions at p < 0.001. We conclude that the COVID-19 isolation period caused reductions in training volume and intensity and decreased sleep quality. Furthermore, psychological components have a significant impact on training and recovery conditions.

Background: In spite of an extensive knowledge of the physiologic features of exercise during pregnancy, we still lack a comprehensive understanding of the effects of different types, intensities and duration of exercise throughout pregnancy on maternal and fetal well being. The aim of the current study was to examine the influence of an aerobic exercise program throughout pregnancy on gestational age at the moment of delivery.Methods: This study was a randomized controlled trial. Three hundred and twenty Caucasian (Spanish) healthy pregnant women with singleton gestation were randomly assigned to either an exercise (n = 160) or a control (n = 160) group. Gestational age (weeks) and other outcomes were measured. The exercise program included 85 sessions (general fitness class, 3 times/week, 55–60 min/session from weeks 8–10 to weeks 38–39 of pregnancy).Results: Two hundred and ninety women were analyzed (exercise group EG, n = 138, control group CG, n = 152). The mean gestational age did not differ between groups (EG= 39.7± 1.3 vs CG= 39.6 ± 1.1 weeks, P = .81). Relative to preterm deliveries in EG we found 6 (4.3%) and 11 (7.2%) in CG, (P = .73).Conclusions: A supervised program of moderate exercise performed throughout pregnancy is not a risk of preterm delivery for healthy pregnant women.

The aim of this study was to examine the level of physical activity during pregnancy in different populations worldwide. An intensive search was carried out from February until May 2021. The inclusion criteria were original studies of healthy pregnant women, and the main study variable was the assessment of physical activity. A total of 110 out of 1451 studies were assessed for inclusion, using the Newcastle–Ottawa Scale for quality, and for the risk of bias. The 44 analyzed articles were divided into 5 tables according to the characteristics of the intervention and the validated instrument used to measure physical activity (PA). A total of 59.09% of the studies indicated that participants had a low level of physical activity during pregnancy. In addition, the median quality score of the studies was 7.12, and 77.27% of the studies were cataloged as having a high-quality score. Although international guidelines recommend that women without a contraindication engage in prenatal physical activity, the results of the present study show that the level of PA is too low for women to achieve scientifically proven maternal-fetal benefits. Failure to achieve the recommended levels of weekly physical activity could pose significant risks to maternal well-being.

Psychological aspects like anxiety, injuries’ effects, professional psychological support (PPS), psychological training (PT), or athlete-coach relationships could influence shooters’ performance. This study tried to determine which aspects were critical from the shooters’ perspective. Eight elite shooters were interviewed. After using qualitative methods, the following categories were obtained: importance of PT; anxiety and competition relationship; mental preparation; PPS; stress during training; injuries’ psychological effects and coach’s influence. PT is important for shooter’s performance, being PPS a key aspect. Moreover, anxiety levels are critical, raising during the pre-competitive period and oscillating during competition. Furthermore, shooters considered more effective the stress placed on training by the coach than by themselves. Accordingly, the coach plays a key role. Surprisingly, injuries did not affect shooters psychologically, nor in their competitive performance. We conclude that the combination of PPS, shooter competitive experience and the optimal coach’s work can promote a greater performance in Olympic shooting.