Prolonged exercise, such as marathon running, has been associated with an increase in respiratory mucosal inflammation. The aim of this pilot study was to examine the effects of Montmorency cherry juice on markers of stress, immunity and inflammation following a Marathon. Twenty recreational Marathon runners consumed either cherry juice (CJ) or placebo (PL) before and after a Marathon race. Markers of mucosal immunity secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA), immunoglobulin G (IgG), salivary cortisol, inflammation (CRP) and self-reported incidence and severity of upper respiratory tract symptoms (URTS) were measured before and following the race. All variables except secretory IgA and IgG concentrations in saliva showed a significant time effect (P <0.01). Serum CRP showed a significant interaction and treatment effect (P < 0.01). The CRP increase at 24 and 48 h post-Marathon was lower (P < 0.01) in the CJ group compared to PL group. Mucosal immunity and salivary cortisol showed no interaction effect or treatment effect. The incidence and severity of URTS was significantly greater than baseline at 24 h and 48 h following the race in the PL group and was also greater than the CJ group (P < 0.05). No URTS were reported in the CJ group whereas 50 % of runners in the PL group reported URTS at 24 h and 48 h post-Marathon. This is the first study that provides encouraging evidence of the potential role of Montmorency cherries in reducing the development of URTS post-Marathon possibly caused by exercise-induced hyperventilation trauma, and/or other infectious and non-infectious factors.

Dark chocolate (DC) is abundant in flavanols which have been reported to increase the bioavailability and bioactivity of nitric oxide (NO). Increasing NO bioavailability has often demonstrated reduced oxygen cost and performance enhancement during submaximal exercise. Nine moderately-trained male participants volunteered to undertake baseline (BL) measurements that comprised a cycle $$ \overset{.}{V}{O}_{2 max} $$ test followed by cycling at 80 % of their established gas exchange threshold (GET) for 20-min and then immediately followed by a two-minute time-trial (TT). Using a randomised crossover design participants performed two further trials, two weeks apart, with either 40 g of DC or white chocolate (WC) being consumed daily. Oxygen consumption, RER, heart rate and blood lactate (BLa) were measured during each trial. DC consumption increased GET and TT performance compared to both BL and WC (P < 0.05). DC consumption increased $$ \overset{.}{V}{O}_{2 max} $$ by 6 % compared to BL (P < 0.05), but did not reach statistical significance compared to WC. There were no differences in the moderate-intensity cycling for $$ \overset{.}{V}{O}_2 $$ , RER, BLa and heart rate between conditions, although, $$ \overset{.}{V}{O}_2 $$ and RER exhibited consistently lower trends following DC consumption compared to BL and WC, these did not reach statistical significance. Chronic supplementation with DC resulted in a higher GET and enhanced TT performance. Consequently, ingestion of DC reduced the oxygen cost of moderate intensity exercise and may be an effective ergogenic aid for short-duration moderate intensity exercise.

Ketogenic diets (KDs) induce significant metabolic adaptations related to exercise performance and alter the glycaemic response to carbohydrates. Research examining the efficacy of KDs on endurance performance is mixed, with sub-elite athletes showing no impairment in endurance performance following a KD intervention. Despite the increased volume of KD research, no one has explored the metabolic and performance impacts of carbohydrate re-introduction before exercise in chronically ketogenic (≥12 months) individuals. This study aimed to investigate the effects of varying carbohydrate feeding timings and dosages on performance and physiological responses in 13 recreational athletes who followed a KD for 25 ± 12 months. Participants visited the lab six times. The first visit determined their V˙ O_2max. The second accustomed them to test procedures. In a single-blinded crossover design, visits 3-6 tested four conditions using a Latin square design. Each condition involved two days of consuming 2.27L of either 200g of CHO or a placebo, followed by a 750 ml bolus of either 60g of CHO or a placebo 30 min before exercise. Conditions involving a pre-exercise carbohydrate bolus significantly improved 16.1 km time trial performance compared to placebo (P < 0.05). Carbohydrate consumed in the 48 h before exercise had no impact on performance compared to placebo (P > 0.05). Our results indicate that carbohydrate ingestion enhances performance only when consumed immediately prior to exercise. This suggests that the ergogenic effects are likely mediated through central nervous system mechanisms or via the prevention of hypoglycaemia, rather than through delayed metabolic pathways. Furthermore, these findings imply that muscle and liver glycogen stores may influence performance through distinct mechanisms, warranting further investigation into their independent roles.

Introduction: There is currently little research relating specifically to the muscular strength and endurance requirements of the upper body such as lifts at varying heights, ground floor contact with the hands and inversions such as handstands. Enhanced understanding of muscular demands can inform training program design to build physical tolerance to meet the demand of the activity. The aim of this study was to ascertain the frequency of upper body muscular skills in contemporary and ballet dance performance. Methods: Analysis of 46 individual ballet performers (F = 23, M = 23) from 12 performances (duration 63.5 ± 44.5 minutes) and 44 individual contemporary performers (F = 21, M = 23) from 12 performances (duration 35.7 ± 4.3 minutes) was carried out. Frequency of upper body skills was recorded using Dartfish Easytag-Note and converted to mean frequency per minute of total performance and per performance by genre and by sex. Differences in frequency between genre were analyzed via Mann–Whitney U . Phase two analyzed differences between sex via Mann–Whitney U . Finally, analysis of differences between sex within dance genre was carried out via Wilcoxon signed rank test. Significance was accepted at P < .05. Results: A significant difference was apparent between ballet and contemporary dance for holding own weight ( P < .05) with a greater total mean frequency within contemporary performances of 8.50 ± 9.03 compared to a total mean frequency of 1.51 ± 3.13 within ballet performances. Additionally, there was a significant difference for above shoulder assisted lift ( P < .05) when comparing male dancers, with male contemporary dancers carrying out significantly more (9.82 ± 8.56) per performance than male ballet dancers (2.33 ± 4.66). A higher mean frequency of below shoulder lifts than above shoulder lifts was also noted, with the majority of above shoulder lifts remaining at eye level. Conclusion: Training programs must prepare dancers for upper body movements that consider differing biomechanical demands of a variety of lifts and inversions.