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Sports Medicine, Exercise, and Health: Latest Advances and Prospects: 2nd Edition

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Applied Biosciences and Bioengineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 May 2026 | Viewed by 4019

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Moon-Hyon Hwang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Division of Health & Kinesiology, Incheon National University, Incheon 22012, Republic of Korea
Interests: exercise science; exercise physiology; exercise performance; sports science; physical fitness strength; conditioning
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Jupil Ko

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Division of Health & Kinesiology, Incheon National University, Incheon, Republic of Korea
Interests: athletic training; biomechanics; lower extremity musculoskeletal injury preventioan & rehabilitation; functional performance
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Regular exercise and physical conditioning are effective behavioral strategies to prevent musculoskeletal degeneration and chronic diseases and promote individuals’ overall health. Public health institutes in almost every country around the world have established and provided its own physical activity guidelines for disease prevention and health promotion, but the guidelines are somewhat generic. In this Special Issue, we aim to explore safe and effective exercise interventions to improve the function of human systems, including the musculoskeletal and cardiovascular systems, to ameliorate-related diseases, and to rehabilitate functional impairments. Experimental studies, reviews and meta-analyses that examine the effectiveness of various exercise interventions in the prevention and management of disease, rehabilitation and improvement of human function; research studies on the development of strategies to promote physical activity using mobile platforms and virtual reality technology; and innovative measurement technologies and biomarker exploration studies related to sports medicine and rehabilitation are welcome in this Special Issue. When preparing to submit a structured review, please follow the PRISMA guidelines. 

Dr. Moon-Hyon Hwang
Dr. Jupil Ko
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • exercise
  • sport medicine
  • physical activity
  • health
  • rehabilitation
  • conditioning
  • cardiovascular disease
  • injury
  • cancer

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Related Special Issue

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 1843 KB  
Article
Vibration-Based Recovery Interventions Improve Perceived Fatigue, Blood Lactate Clearance, and Isokinetic Muscle Function Following Exercise-Induced Fatigue in Amateur Swimmers
by Young Sam Kim, Jae-Jun Kwak, Hee-Geun Park, Wang-Lok Lee and Kwang-Jin Lee
Appl. Sci. 2026, 16(9), 4245; https://doi.org/10.3390/app16094245 - 27 Apr 2026
Viewed by 401
Abstract
High-intensity or repetitive exercise induces metabolic stress and neuromuscular fatigue in skeletal muscle. Using a within-subjects repeated-measures crossover design, eight male amateur swimmers completed five experimental sessions at one-week intervals. Following an isokinetic fatigue protocol, five recovery interventions were applied in a randomized [...] Read more.
High-intensity or repetitive exercise induces metabolic stress and neuromuscular fatigue in skeletal muscle. Using a within-subjects repeated-measures crossover design, eight male amateur swimmers completed five experimental sessions at one-week intervals. Following an isokinetic fatigue protocol, five recovery interventions were applied in a randomized order: control (NT), foam roller (FR), vibration foam roller (VFR), and whole-body vibration at 12 Hz (WBV-12) and 20 Hz (WBV-20). The isokinetic fatigue protocol produced a significant reduction in bilateral extensor peak torque (229.2 ± 37.8%BW to 189.8 ± 27.5%BW; t(7) = 4.19, p = 0.004, d = 1.48), confirming successful fatigue induction. Outcome measures included visual analog scale (VAS) scores, blood lactate concentration, and knee extensor/flexor peak torque (%BW) assessed at three time points. A two-way repeated-measures ANOVA (intervention × time) revealed significant main effects of recovery methods at the post-recovery time point for VAS scores (F(4,28) = 5.98, p = 0.001, η2g = 0.248), blood lactate (F(4,28) = 5.12, p = 0.003, η2g = 0.226), and isokinetic peak torque (F(4,28) = 10.75, p < 0.001, η2g = 0.226). Post hoc Bonferroni analysis indicated that VFR and WBV-20 produced significantly higher lactate recovery rates than NT. Active recovery interventions produced lower perceived fatigue scores and greater lactate reductions than passive rest; however, individual Bonferroni pairwise comparisons for VAS and blood lactate did not reach adjusted significance, and these findings should be considered preliminary. WBV-20 demonstrated statistically confirmed superiority in isokinetic muscle function recovery (Bonferroni p < 0.05 vs. NT, FR, and VFR), suggesting its potential as an effective post-exercise recovery strategy for neuromuscular restoration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sports Medicine, Exercise, and Health: Latest Advances and Prospects: 2nd Edition)
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16 pages, 2060 KB  
Article
Comparison of Absolute and Individualized Physical Activity Intensity Thresholds Using Non-Dominant Wrist-Worn Accelerometry in Military Office Workers
by Maaike Polspoel, Tara Reilly, Damien Van Tiggelen and Patrick Calders
Appl. Sci. 2026, 16(8), 3931; https://doi.org/10.3390/app16083931 - 17 Apr 2026
Viewed by 534
Abstract
Accurate classification of physical activity (PA) intensity is essential for exercise prescription, rehabilitation monitoring, and evaluation of guideline adherence. However, widely used wrist-worn accelerometer cut-points may substantially misclassify physiological intensity. This study evaluated absolute accelerometer thresholds during a maximal 2400 m run in [...] Read more.
Accurate classification of physical activity (PA) intensity is essential for exercise prescription, rehabilitation monitoring, and evaluation of guideline adherence. However, widely used wrist-worn accelerometer cut-points may substantially misclassify physiological intensity. This study evaluated absolute accelerometer thresholds during a maximal 2400 m run in military office workers and examined whether individualized cut-points improve agreement with physiological intensity. Seventy-four military office workers completed the test while wearing a wrist-worn ActiGraph GT9X Link and a chest-worn Zephyr BioHarness. Participants achieved near-maximal physiological effort, with peak heart rate averaging 187 ± 11 bpm (95 ± 4.2% age-predicted HRmax). Despite this high intensity, absolute wrist-worn cut-points classified only 34.5% of participants as performing vigorous activity for most of the test. Individualized cut-points, derived from each participant’s individual reference intensity, calculated as the three highest consecutive one-minute epochs during the 2400 m test, substantially improved agreement between accelerometer-derived classifications and physiological intensity. Agreement with %HRmax increased from fair (κ = 0.31), using absolute thresholds, to good (κ = 0.74), using individualized thresholds, and intraclass correlation increased from 0.52 to 0.81. These findings demonstrate that absolute cut-points markedly underestimate high-intensity activity, potentially leading to inaccurate exercise load monitoring and misinterpretation of training intensity. Individualized calibration during a standardized maximal running test provides a feasible strategy to improve the validity of intensity assessment using wearables. Although the study population consisted of military office workers, the approach may be applicable to other active populations. However, further validation in independent samples is needed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sports Medicine, Exercise, and Health: Latest Advances and Prospects: 2nd Edition)
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19 pages, 1369 KB  
Article
Differential Inflammatory Response to Exhaustive Exercise in Trained and Untrained Individuals: Potential Biomarkers of Training Adaptation
by Paulina Małkowska, Patrycja Tomasiak, Marta Tkacz, Katarzyna Zgutka, Anna Lubkowska, Rafał Buryta, Łukasz Rosiński, Agnieszka Maciejewska-Skrendo, Patrizia Proia, Maciej Tarnowski and Marek Sawczuk
Appl. Sci. 2026, 16(6), 2643; https://doi.org/10.3390/app16062643 - 10 Mar 2026
Viewed by 495
Abstract
Background: Acute exercise induces measurable inflammatory and hematological responses, which may differ according to training status. Methods: Trained soccer players and sedentary controls completed a progressive exercise test until exhaustion. Blood samples were collected at six time points (up to 48 h post-exercise). [...] Read more.
Background: Acute exercise induces measurable inflammatory and hematological responses, which may differ according to training status. Methods: Trained soccer players and sedentary controls completed a progressive exercise test until exhaustion. Blood samples were collected at six time points (up to 48 h post-exercise). Gene expression was assessed using real-time PCR, protein concentration via ELISA, and leukocyte, lymphocyte and neutrophil counts through routine hematology. Analyses included between-group comparisons, within-group time effects, and gene–protein correlations. Results: Sedentary individuals showed delayed increases in TNF-α mRNA (p < 0.05), whereas athletes maintained stable levels. Athletes exhibited consistently higher TNFR-1 expression (p < 0.05), while TNFR-2 showed no differences between groups. IL-4 expression was higher in athletes 30 min (p = 0.038) and 24 h after test (p = 0.002), whereas IL-4 protein decreased in sedentary subjects after 6 h (p = 0.009) and 24 h (p = 0.019). IL-4Rα was transiently elevated post-exercise in sedentary individuals and briefly suppressed in athletes (p = 0.041). Hematological responses showed stronger leukocytosis and neutrophilia in sedentary individuals. Conclusions: The temporal inflammatory patterns differed substantially between groups, indicating more efficient resolution dynamics in trained individuals. These findings highlight practical value for monitoring adaptation and recovery. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sports Medicine, Exercise, and Health: Latest Advances and Prospects: 2nd Edition)
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13 pages, 1121 KB  
Article
Association Between ‘Weekend Warrior’ and Other Leisure-Time Physical Activity Patterns and Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: A Cross-Sectional Study Using Data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2014–2023)
by Yun Sung Kim, Seo Yeong An, Justin Y. Jeon and Dong Hoon Lee
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(24), 13172; https://doi.org/10.3390/app152413172 - 16 Dec 2025
Viewed by 702
Abstract
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a major public health concern with a global prevalence of approximately 32%. This study examined the association between the “weekend warrior”, other leisure-time physical activity patterns, and NAFLD in Korean adults. We included 44,264 individuals from the [...] Read more.
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a major public health concern with a global prevalence of approximately 32%. This study examined the association between the “weekend warrior”, other leisure-time physical activity patterns, and NAFLD in Korean adults. We included 44,264 individuals from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2014–2023). Physical activity was measured using the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ), a self-reported instrument, and physical activity patterns were classified as inactive, weekend warrior (≥150 min/week of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity [MVPA] performed in 1–2 days), and regularly active. NAFLD was identified using the Hepatic Steatosis Index with a cutoff of >36. Weighted logistic regression was used to examine the association between physical activity patterns and NAFLD. The prevalence of NAFLD was 24%. After adjustment for sociodemographic and metabolic factors, both the weekend warrior (odds ratio [OR] = 0.80, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.64–0.99) and regularly active (OR = 0.83, 95% CI: 0.77–0.89) groups had significantly lower odds of NAFLD compared to the inactive group. When stratified by total MVPA level, both the weekend warrior and regularly active patterns with >300 min/week of MVPA showed even lower odds of NAFLD, compared to those with 150–300 min/week of MVPA. Both regularly active and weekend warrior patterns were associated with a lower prevalence of NAFLD, suggesting that the weekend warrior pattern may represent a feasible behavioral pattern associated with lower NAFLD prevalence for individuals with time constraints. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sports Medicine, Exercise, and Health: Latest Advances and Prospects: 2nd Edition)
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15 pages, 1744 KB  
Article
Acute Effects of Polyphenol-Rich Fruit Juice on Exercise Capacity and Vessels Dilatation in Healthy Humans: A Randomized, Controlled, Crossover Study
by Olivier Rouyer, Anne-Laure Charles, Cyril Auger, Samy Talha, Emmanuel Andres, Anne Charloux, Valerie Schini-Kerth and Bernard Geny
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(21), 11553; https://doi.org/10.3390/app152111553 - 29 Oct 2025
Viewed by 1248
Abstract
This study examined the acute effects of polyphenol (PP)-rich fruit juice supplementation on the exercise capacity of healthy humans. Thirty-five healthy, sedentary volunteers participated in this randomized, controlled, crossover study. They performed a 6 min walk test two hours after consuming 200 mL [...] Read more.
This study examined the acute effects of polyphenol (PP)-rich fruit juice supplementation on the exercise capacity of healthy humans. Thirty-five healthy, sedentary volunteers participated in this randomized, controlled, crossover study. They performed a 6 min walk test two hours after consuming 200 mL of a PP-rich fruit juice (fruit juice) or a PP-poor control juice (apple), separated by a one-week washout. In addition to monitoring the heart rate during exercise, we determined the reactive hyperemia index (RHI), an indicator of vascular dilatation that contributes to exercise capacity. The distance walked during the 6 min test tended to be greater after the consumption of the PP-rich juice, compared to the PP-poor juice (588 ± 15 vs. 561 ± 14 m, respectively). The increase in heart rate was similar in both situations. The RHI increases were similar after both juices’ intake at 1 h, but after 2 h, the RHI increase was significant only after the PP-rich juice intake (from 6.78 ± 0.46 to 8.47 ± 0.47, p < 0.001). In conclusion, acute consumption of PP-rich juice increases vessel dilatation and tends to improve exercise capacity. These data support further studies to determine whether greater consumption of PP-rich fruit juices could improve exercise capacity in healthy subjects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sports Medicine, Exercise, and Health: Latest Advances and Prospects: 2nd Edition)
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