Background
Use of Global positioning system (GPS) technology in team sport permits measurement of player position, velocity, and movement patterns. GPS provides scope for better understanding of the specific and positional physiological demands of team sport and can be used to design training programs that adequately prepare athletes for competition with the aim of optimizing on-field performance.

Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and Microtechnology Sensors in Team Sports: A Systematic Review

Sleep and exercise: a reciprocal issue?

Global positioning system (GPS) technology was made possible after the invention of the atomic clock. The first suggestion that GPS could be used to assess the physical activity of humans followed some 40 y later. There was a rapid uptake of GPS technology, with the literature concentrating on validation studies and the measurement of steady-state movement. The first attempts were made to validate GPS for field sport applications in 2006. While GPS has been validated for applications for team sports, some doubts continue to exist on the appropriateness of GPS for measuring short high-velocity movements. Thus, GPS has been applied extensively in Australian football, cricket, hockey, rugby union and league, and soccer. There is extensive information on the activity profile of athletes from field sports in the literature stemming from GPS, and this includes total distance covered by players and distance in velocity bands. Global positioning systems have also been applied to detect fatigue in matches, identify periods of most intense play, different activity profiles by position, competition level, and sport. More recent research has integrated GPS data with the physical capacity or fitness test score of athletes, game-specific tasks, or tactical or strategic information. The future of GPS analysis will involve further miniaturization of devices, longer battery life, and integration of other inertial sensor data to more effectively quantify the effort of athletes.

Applications of GPS Technologies to Field Sports

It is widely accepted that warming-up prior to exercise is vital for the attainment of optimum performance. Both passive and active warm-up can evoke temperature, metabolic, neural and psychology-related effects, including increased anaerobic metabolism, elevated oxygen uptake kinetics and post-activation potentiation. Passive warm-up can increase body temperature without depleting energy substrate stores, as occurs during the physical activity associated with active warm-up. While the use of passive warm-up alone is not commonplace, the idea of utilizing passive warming techniques to maintain elevated core and muscle temperature throughout the transition phase (the period between completion of the warm-up and the start of the event) is gaining in popularity. Active warm-up induces greater metabolic changes, leading to increased preparedness for a subsequent exercise task. Until recently, only modest scientific evidence was available supporting the effectiveness of pre-competition warm-ups, with early studies often containing relatively few participants and focusing mostly on physiological rather than performance-related changes. External issues faced by athletes pre-competition, including access to equipment and the length of the transition/marshalling phase, have also frequently been overlooked. Consequently, warm-up strategies have continued to develop largely on a trial-and-error basis, utilizing coach and athlete experiences rather than scientific evidence. However, over the past decade or so, new research has emerged, providing greater insight into how and why warm-up influences subsequent performance. This review identifies potential physiological mechanisms underpinning warm-ups and how they can affect subsequent exercise performance, and provides recommendations for warm-up strategy design for specific individual and team sports.

Warm-Up Strategies for Sport and Exercise: Mechanisms and Applications.

Background/Aim - To investigate the role of eccentric knee flexor strength, between-limb imbalance and biceps femoris long head (BFlh) fascicle length on the risk of a future hamstring strain injury (HSI). Methods - Elite soccer players (n=152) from eight different teams participated. Eccentric knee flexor strength during the Nordic hamstring exercise and BFlh fascicle length were assessed at the beginning of pre-season. The occurrences of a HSI following this were recorded by the team medical staff. Relative risk (RR) was determined for univariate data, and logistic regression was employed for multivariate data. Results - Twenty-seven new HSIs were reported. Eccentric knee flexor strength below 337N (RR = 4.4; 95% CI = 1.1 to 17.5) and BFlh fascicles shorter than 10.56cm (RR = 4.1; 95% CI=1.9 to 8.7) significantly increased the risk of a subsequent HSI. Multivariate logistic regression revealed significant effects when combinations of age, previous history of HSI, eccentric knee flexor strength and BFlh fascicle length were explored. From these analyses the likelihood of a future HSI in older athletes or those with a previous HSI history was reduced if high levels of eccentric knee flexor strength and longer BFlh fascicles were present. Conclusions - The presence of short BFlh fascicles and low levels of eccentric strength in elite soccer players increase the risk of a future HSI. The greater risk of a future HSI in older players or those with a previous HSI is reduced when they possess longer BFlh fascicles and high levels of eccentric strength.

Short biceps femoris fascicles and eccentric knee flexor weakness increase the risk of hamstring injury in elite football (soccer): A prospective cohort study

Sleep quantity and quality during consecutive day heat training with the inclusion of cold-water immersion recovery

Purpose: To investigate the effects of an acute multinutrient supplement on game-based running performance, peak power output, anaerobic by-products, hormonal profiles, markers of muscle damage, and perceived muscular soreness before, immediately after, and 24 h following competitive rugby union games. Methods: Twelve male rugby union players ingested either a comprehensive multinutrient supplement (SUPP), [RE-ACTIVATE:01], or a placebo (PL) for 5 d. Participants then performed a competitive rugby union game (with global positioning system tracking), with associated blood draws and vertical jump assessments pre, immediately post and 24 h following competition. Results: SUPP ingestion resulted in moderate to large effects for augmented 1st half very high intensity running (VHIR) mean speed (5.9 ± 0.4 vs 4.8 ± 2.3 m·min−1; d = 0.93). Further, moderate increases in 2nd half VHIR distance (137 ± 119 vs 83 ± 89 m; d = 0.73) and VHIR mean speed (5.9 ± 0.6 v 5.3 ± 1.7 m·min−1; d = 0.56) in SUPP condition were al...

Effects of Acute Multinutrient Supplementation on Rugby Union Game Performance and Recovery

Injuries across a pre-professional ballet and contemporary dance tertiary training program: A retrospective cohort study

To determine the vastus lateralis muscle temperature kinetics during and after passive heating, to exam the effect of sex on thermoregulatory responses, and the thermal safety and tolerance of the 42 °C hot-water immersion protocol. Thirty participants (15 males, 15 females) underwent a 2 h 42 oC hot-water immersion to the waist level. Vastus lateralis, rectal and skin temperature, thermal sensation, heart rate and blood pressure (BP) were measured during the passive heating and recovery period. Participant recovery was monitored until muscle temperature returned to baseline. Vastus lateralis temperature increased to a maximal value of 39.0 ± 0.11 °C (P   0.05). No change was found in systolic BP (~ 117 mmHg; P = 0.061). Peak rectal temperature (38.8 ± 0.14 °C; P < 0.001), heart rate (~ 100 bpm; P < 0.001), and diastolic BP (↓ ~ 13 mmHg; P < 0.001) during the hot-water immersion indicated the safety of the protocol. While skin temperature (~ 35.4 °C; P < 0.001) and thermal sensation (~ 5.95 AU; P < 0.001) confirmed protocol tolerance. These data demonstrate lower-body 42 °C hot-water immersion to increase vastus lateralis temperature and plateau ~ 2.8 °C above baseline. This amplitude of muscle temperature change aligns with reported cellular adaptation and muscle growth. Thermal strain incurred from this protocol appears safe and tolerable, positioning it well for health-related prescription.

Muscle temperature kinetics and thermoregulatory responses to 42 °C hot-water immersion in healthy males and females

Despite extensive documentation directed specifically toward mitigating thermal strain of first responders, we wished to ascertain the degree to which first responders applied cooling strategies, and what opinions are held by the various agencies/departments within the United States An internet-based survey of first responders was distributed to the International Association of Fire Chiefs, International Association of Fire Firefighters, National Bomb Squad Advisory Board and the USA Interagency Board and their subsequent departments and branches Individual first responder departments were questioned regarding the use of pre-, concurrent, post-cooling, types of methods employed, and/or reasons why they had not incorporated various methods in first responder deployment Completed surveys were collected from 119 unique de-identified departments, including those working in law enforcement (29%), as firefighters (29%), EOD (28%) and HAZMAT technicians (15%) One-hundred and eighteen departments (99%) reported heat strain/illness to be a risk to employee safety during occupational duties The percentage of departments with at least one case of heat illness in the previous year were as follows: fire (39%) HAZMAT (23%), EOD (20%) and law enforcement (18%) Post-cooling was the scheduled cooling method implemented the most (63%) Fire departments were significantly more likely to use post-cooling, as well as combine two types of scheduled cooling compared to other departments Importantly, 25% of all departments surveyed provided no cooling whatsoever The greatest barriers to personnel cooling were as follows – availability, cost, logistics, and knowledge Our findings could aid in a better understanding of current practices and perceptions of heat illness and injury prevention in United States first responders

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/23328940.2018.1493907

Geoffrey M. Minett

Papers

Sleep quantity and quality during consecutive day heat training with the inclusion of cold-water immersion recovery

Effects of Acute Multinutrient Supplementation on Rugby Union Game Performance and Recovery

Injuries across a pre-professional ballet and contemporary dance tertiary training program: A retrospective cohort study

Muscle temperature kinetics and thermoregulatory responses to 42 °C hot-water immersion in healthy males and females

Occupational cooling practices of emergency first responders in the United States: A survey