Sports

This cross-sectional study examined the correspondence between objective and self-rated sports nutrition knowledge and its associations with information practices and supplement use. Seven hundred adult gym users residing in Croatia completed an online survey including a study-specific 14-item knowledge index. The median score was 11 of 14 (interquartile range, 9–12). Internal consistency was moderate (KR-20 = 0.703), but scalability was limited (Loevinger’s H = 0.231). Self-rated knowledge was weakly correlated with the score (Spearman’s ρ = 0.129; p < 0.001), and adjusted scores were similar between respondents reporting good and partial knowledge. Selecting scientific articles or PubMed as a main information source was associated with a 0.83-point higher score (95% confidence interval, 0.32–1.35). Among 628 current or previous supplement users, sometimes and always reading labels were associated with 1.86- and 2.05-point higher scores than never reading labels. These associations persisted in bounded-outcome and alternative-adjustment analyses. The overall association with four-level supplement-use status in the full sample was inconclusive (p = 0.095), although regular users scored higher than never-users in an individual nominal comparison. Information practices were associated with performance on the sampled questions, whereas self-ratings provided limited information about tested performance. The study-specific index and cross-sectional design limit conclusions about individual competence and causal relationships.

Background/Objectives: Sex- and category-specific body-composition references are scarce for Latin American and female football players. We used dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), which quantifies lean soft tissue, fat, and bone mineral content (BMC) regionally in one low-dose scan, to describe body composition across Mexican national squads and to explore associations with playing position. Methods: We analyzed 272 DXA records acquired in 2026 under one standardized protocol (females: n = 133, under-15 [U15] to senior; males: n = 139, under-14 [U14] to senior) using 95% confidence intervals and height-adjusted, sex-stratified linear models with heteroscedasticity-consistent (HC3) standard errors and Holm correction. Results: Senior squads had 8.83 kg (females) and 13.23 kg (males) more total lean mass than the youngest category (Hedges’ g > 2) and 6.32 and 2.59 percentage points less body fat. Male fat mass was similar across categories (10.4–11.7 kg), suggesting that the lower body-fat percentage of older male squads reflected greater lean mass; in females, it reflected both greater lean mass and lower fat mass. Category remained associated with lean mass and BMC after height adjustment (Holm-adjusted p < 0.001) but was not significantly associated with male body-fat percentage (p = 0.118). No association between position and body composition was observed in females; male forwards had more lean mass and less fat than goalkeepers. Conclusions: These preliminary cross-sectional references allow staff to benchmark players against their own squad and to flag atypical lean or bone values for multidisciplinary review; they are not developmental trajectories or body-composition targets.

We examined the direct and indirect associations among positive self-perception of Ramadan (PSPR), intrinsic and extrinsic religious motivation (IRM, ERM), positive and negative mood (PMood, NMood), and perceived performance (PP) in 470 male Tunisian footballers observing Ramadan fasting (RF). Data were collected through an online questionnaire and analyzed via structural equation modeling with bias-corrected bootstrapping. PSPR was the strongest correlate of PP (β = 0.38, p < 0.001) and was associated with higher PMood (β = 0.55, p = 0.001) and lower NMood (β = −0.45, p < 0.001). PSPR was also indirectly associated with PP through both PMood (β = 0.17, p < 0.001) and NMood (β = 0.11, p < 0.001). In contrast, religious motivation played a limited role: ERM showed a small negative association with PP (β = −0.15, p = 0.034), whereas IRM was unrelated to mood and PP; neither motive showed significant indirect associations through mood. Although the cross-sectional design precludes causal inference, our findings suggest that how athletes appraise fasting is more closely related to their mood and performance perceptions than their general religious motivation. This highlights the appraisal of RF as a relevant target for sport psychology research and practice.