Search Results (36)

Background: Body composition and hydration status, particularly the balance between intracellular (ICW) and extracellular (ECW) water compartments, are critical factors influencing performance and aesthetics in competitive bodybuilding. Despite their significance, limited research has explored sex-based differences in hydration strategies and their impact on competitive outcomes. Objectives: This study aimed to characterize and compare ICW and ECW distribution, as well as their relationship with key physiological parameters, between male and female elite bodybuilders during an international competition. Methods: A total of 34 elite bodybuilders (18 males and 16 females) participated in this cross-sectional study. Body composition was assessed using multifrequency bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). The parameters evaluated included total body water, ICW, ECW, and phase angle (PhA). Differences between sexes were analyzed using Student’s t-tests, with statistical significance set at p < 0.05. Results: Significant sex-based differences were observed in water compartment distribution. Male bodybuilders exhibited higher ICW values (33.1 ± 2.8 L vs. 25.7 ± 2.5 L; p < 0.001) and PhA (8.2 ± 0.7 vs. 7.0 ± 0.9; p < 0.05), indicating greater muscle mass and cell integrity. In contrast, females had a higher ECW-to-total body water ratio (42.7% vs. 39.5%; p < 0.05), likely influenced by hormonal and metabolic factors. These findings suggest that sex-specific physiological characteristics should be considered when developing hydration and competition strategies. Conclusions: The study highlights the importance of sex-specific approaches to hydration and body composition management in bodybuilding. The observed differences in ICW and ECW distributions underscore the need for individualized training, nutrition, and hydration strategies to optimize competitive performance while maintaining athlete health. Future research should focus on longitudinal assessments to better understand hydration dynamics across different stages of competition preparation. Full article

Athletic individuals may intentionally aim to gain weight, primarily as lean body mass, to improve athletic performance or to better match opponents’ size. This study aimed to investigate the self-reported nutrition- and exercise-related behaviors of athletic individuals aiming to gain weight. Cross-sectional data were drawn from an online survey of athletic adults recruited locally, nationally, and internationally. In total, 168 athletic participants (24 ± 5 years; 29% female, 71% male) completed the survey and were actively attempting or had attempted weight gain in the last 12 months to gain muscle mass (87.5%), for aesthetic reasons (66.1%), or to improve athletic performance (63.7%). The most prevalent dietary strategies reported to increase weight gain were consuming more energy than usual (88.0%) from mainly protein foods (83.9%) and using protein powders (67.3%). In total, 9.6% of participants reported using anabolic hormones. The main exercise change was increased resistance training (81.5%). Our results confirm that both male and female athletic individuals intentionally attempt to gain weight. Nutrition and exercise professionals may use the findings to be aware of these common dietary and exercise strategies and to better educate their athletic clients on appropriate methods that are evidence-based and not detrimental to health. Full article

Background: disordered eating (DE) and eating disorders (ED) can negatively impact athletes’ health, wellbeing, and athletic performance. Objective: this cross-sectional study aims to assess DE risk, body composition, and nutrition knowledge among elite Hungarian athletes. Methods: DE risk was assessed using DESA-6H and EAT-26 scales, nutrition knowledge through the Abridged Nutrition for Sport Knowledge Questionnaire (A-NSKQ), and body composition with the OMRON BF511 device. The data were analyzed using Kendall’s tau correlations, Mann–Whitney U tests, and ROC analysis. Results: a total of 71 athletes participated (39.4% males, mean age = 24.8 years, SD = 4.8 years and 60.6% females, mean age = 24.3 years, SD = 4.3 years). At-risk scores on the DESA-6H scale were recorded for nine athletes (12.7%), while 32.4% scored in the risk zone on the EAT-26, with female athletes in aesthetic, endurance and weight-dependent sports being most affected. Low BF was observed in four males and four females. Nutrition knowledge (49.1%) was below the acceptable threshold. DESA-6H significantly correlated with EAT-26 scores, BMI, sports nutrition knowledge, and A-NSKQ total scores. A statistically significant difference by gender was found in the EAT-26 total score (p = 0.019, d = 0.65). Risk groups significantly differed in A-NSKQ scores (p = 0.026, d = 0.511) and sport nutrition knowledge, specifically (p = 0.016, d = 0.491). Using EAT-26 to identify at-risk athletes and the DESA-6H recommended cut-off, the ROC analysis showed a sensitivity of 29.1% and a specificity of 95.7%. Conclusions: insufficient nutrition knowledge plays a role in being at-risk for DE and ED. These results underscore the need for early detection, early sport nutrition education across all elite athletes, with particular attention to female athletes in aesthetic, endurance and weight-dependent sports, and for monitoring these athletes to prevent DE. Further work is warranted to optimize screening tools such as EAT-26 and DESA-6H for elite athletes. Full article

While moderate exercise supports regular menstrual cycle (MC) function, many female athletes experience MC symptoms that negatively influence their training and performance. Hereby, knowledge and communication about this topic are important to promote an athlete’s health and wellbeing. Hence, this study aimed to assess the knowledge and communication surrounding the MC among Norwegian rhythmic gymnasts, ballerinas, and dancers. In total, 116 rhythmic gymnasts, ballerinas, and dancers aged ≥ 16 years training ≥ 3 days per week completed an electronic questionnaire. Of these, 63% (n = 73) reported a lack of knowledge about the MC’s influence on physical fitness and performance, and 39% (n = 45) rated their coaches’ or pedagogues’ knowledge as low. With only 32% of participants discussing the MC with their coaches/pedagogues, communication was found to be limited. Seventy-three percent felt uncomfortable during training or competition due to their attire and recommended darker colors and more options in size and layering. The study highlights a significant gap in knowledge and communication about the MC among female athletes and coaches/pedagogues in aesthetic sports. It also recommends improving athletes’ choice of attire for greater comfort and confidence. Full article

Much has been written about the presumed interaction between moral and aesthetic properties in art, about whether moral flaws in a work or its artist can compromise the work’s aesthetic value. In the philosophy of sport, similarly, the beauty of an athlete’s performance may be undermined by moral flaws in the performance itself (e.g., in a case of cheating). Yet to be addressed, however, is a potential analogy between artists and athletes where personal moral flaws failing to register in the work or performance may nonetheless compromise aesthetic response. Along with tracing the conceptual terrain in these debates and drawing on earlier work endorsing pluralism in such matters, I will argue that an athlete’s moral flaws may indeed compromise the aesthetic appeal of their performances, even where such flaws stand apart from those performances. In contrast to creative artists whose presence is immaterial to accessing their work, in the case of performing artists and athletes—since they themselves are the vehicles of their work—it is, and ought to be, harder to avoid having one’s moral response to the person diminish one’s aesthetic response to the work. We want athletes to be moral exemplars, I propose, less because they serve as role models and more because we want to preserve unspoiled the aesthetic rewards they provide. Full article

Height is an important health parameter employed across domains, including healthcare, aesthetics, and athletics. Numerous non-contact methods for height measurement exist; however, most are limited to assessing height in an upright posture. This study presents a non-contact approach for measuring human height in 2D space across different postures. The proposed method utilizes computer vision techniques, specifically the MediaPipe library and the YOLOv8 model, to analyze images captured with a smartphone camera. The MediaPipe library identifies and marks joint points on the human body, while the YOLOv8 model facilitates the localization of these points. To determine the actual height of an individual, a multivariate linear regression model was trained using the ratios of distances between the identified joint points. Data from 166 subjects across four distinct postures: standing upright, rotated 45 degrees, rotated 90 degrees, and kneeling were used to train and validate the model. Results indicate that the proposed method yields height measurements with a minimal error margin of approximately 1.2%. Future research will extend this approach to accommodate additional positions, such as lying down, cross-legged, and bent-legged. Furthermore, the method will be improved to account for various distances and angles of capture, thereby enhancing the flexibility and accuracy of height measurement in diverse contexts. Full article

Background/Objectives: Eating disorders (EDs) pose a significant health issue affecting athletes, with risk factors varying by sport level, sex, and social media use. This study assesses the risk of EDs among professional and amateur football players, considering these factors, and compares findings with a control group of non-athletes. Methods: The study involved 170 participants, including non-athletes as a control group, categorized by sex and sport level. The mean age of participants was 24.3 ± 4.20, with an age range of 18–36. The Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26) and body mass index (BMI) assessments were used to determine ED risk. Results: Results showed a higher prevalence of ED risk among professional athletes, especially women, compared to amateurs and non-athletes. Social media use and body comparisons were linked to increased ED risk, with professional athletes exhibiting higher vulnerability due to performance pressures. Women, particularly those in professional sports, showed a higher risk of EDs than men, influenced by social and aesthetic pressures. Conclusions: The findings highlight the need for targeted interventions, promoting healthier body image perceptions and addressing social media’s role in shaping body dissatisfaction. Psychological support and sex-specific strategies should be integrated into athlete care programs to mitigate these risks. Full article

The significance of aesthetic education is increasingly acknowledged for its role in enhancing students’ motivation for creativity, aesthetic sensibility, critical thinking, and imagination. This enhancement enriches the practice of art education, providing students with expansive learning experiences. Focusing on the use of clay and composite materials in aesthetic education, we analyzed how the curriculum and creative courses can increase the attractiveness of learning. The incorporation of clay and composite materials into the presentation of athletic figures affected students’ artistic endeavors. The diversity of the course content and artistic skills are important factors in augmenting creative activities. Hence, educators need to consider such attributes in the development and execution of curricula in aesthetic education and stimulate students’ artistic innovation and potential. The results of this study suggest a way to improve aesthetic education and composite material creation courses to elevate students’ creativity and artistic competencies. Full article

Breaking is a performative art that has recently undergone a process of sportification, developing into an aesthetic sport included in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Despite its growing worldwide popularity, there is a lack of research on Breaking. Accordingly, this pilot study’s aim was twofold: (a) to provide an initial understanding of the anthropometric measures, body composition data, somatotype profiles, and strength performance of male (B-boys) and female (B-girls) Italian Breakers divided into elite (international) and sub-elite (national) levels and (b) to guide further research on the area, providing the methodological approach for future investigations. A total of 24 B-boys (elite n = 5; sub-elite n = 19) and 9 B-girls (elite n = 3; sub-elite n = 6) were included in this study. Descriptive analyses revealed that B-boys and B-girls displayed low height and weight (1.70 m (63.8 kg) and 1.58 m (54.2 kg), respectively), low levels of body fat percentages (10.3% and 17.6%, respectively), and a balanced mesomorph somatotype (2.28–4.64–2.69 and 2.34–5.16–2.38, respectively), revealing a marked development of muscular mass. Due to the small sample size, Welch’s test and correlation analyses did not report any elite vs. sub-elite difference. It was hypothesized that Breakers’ morphological profiles result from the selection procedures and training regimens related to Breaking aesthetic, athletic, and physiological demands. Full article

Numerous advanced industrial countries emphasize green environmental protection alongside athletic healthcare. Many world-renowned sports brands are actively developing highly functional, environmentally friendly, and aesthetically pleasing products. For example, in the production of sports shoes, the eco-friendly yarn process is one of the important processes. This process involves multiple crucial larger-the-better quality characteristics closely tied to the functionality of sports shoes. Facing green environmental regulations and external competitors, it is evidently an imperative issue for enterprises to consider how to improve the quality of newly developed products, increase product value, and lower rates of both rework and scrap to accomplish the goals of saving energy and minimizing waste. Aiming to solve this problem, this study proposed a fuzzy evaluation model for products with multifunctional quality characteristics to assist the sporting goods manufacturing industry in evaluating whether all functional quality characteristics of its products meet the required quality level. This study first utilized the larger-the-better Six Sigma quality index concerning environmental protection for evaluation and then proposed product evaluation indicators for the eco-friendly yarn. Since the parameters of these indicators have not yet been determined, sample data need to be used for estimation. Enterprises require rapid response, so that the sample size is relatively small. Sampling error will increase the risk of misjudgment. Therefore, taking suggestions from previous studies, this study constructed the fuzzy evaluation model based on confidence intervals of quality indicators for the eco-friendly yarn. This method incorporated previous experience with data, thereby enhancing assessment accuracy. Full article

Dancers are considered aesthetic athletes due to the great emphasis directed towards maintaining svelte figures with the aim of enhancing the aesthetic of performance. Ballerinas are consistently found 10–12% below their ideal body weight and are susceptible to the female athlete triad. Still, while the dietary intake of several sports populations has been extensively studied worldwide, in the dance arts data are limited. The aim of this study was to assess the dietary intake of adult female dancers on a small Mediterranean island. All dance schools in Gozo (n = 7) were invited to participate via email. A 4 day food and beverage diary recorded between Thursday and Sunday was used to assess the dietary intake of eligible students and teachers of dance schools. A self-reported questionnaire was used to assess demographic data and exercise energy expenditure, adapted from the ‘International Physical Activity Questionnaire’. Participants’ energy and macronutrient intakes were compared to the recommended dietary allowances (RDA) using the one sample t-test. The paired samples t-test was used to determine any significant differences in dietary intake between weekdays and the weekend. Of a potential 25 eligible participants, 14 engaged in the study yielding a 56% response rate. The majority of participants were recreational dancers (n = 11). The mean energy intake was 1306 kcal/day with 34.7% derived from fat. The mean carbohydrate and protein intakes were 2.4 g/kg bodyweight and 1.1 g/kg bodyweight, respectively. The mean total energy expenditure was 2034 kcal/day. The daily mean energy, carbohydrate and protein intakes were lower than the RDA, while mean fat intake was higher. There was no evidence of a significant difference in dietary intake between weekdays and the weekend (p = 0.309 carbohydrates, p = 0.596 fat, p = 0.956 protein). Professional dancers failed to meet energy, carbohydrates and protein recommendations for athletic populations, whereas, recreational dancers were likely to consume sufficient energy, carbohydrate and protein intakes. Dietary fat recommendations were met by half of the participants and exceeded by the rest. This study was the first to assess the dietary intake of a dance population in the Maltese Islands. Further research in a larger cohort of local dancers is merited. Full article

The subcutaneous implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (S-ICD) is a new technology for the management of ICD patients. But what is the patients’ perspective? Previous studies on the transvenous ICD (TV-ICD) showed that device implantation is related not only to anxiety and depression because of the fear of ICD shocks, but also to many biopsychosocial factors like body image changes, perceived reduction of socialization and limitation in professional and sports activities. Anxiety and distress are more evident in younger women because of aesthetic reasons. The scar size and the position of the S-ICD can help these patients and positively influence their social relationships. Moreover, the position of the S-ICD reduces possible complications from catheters due to stress injury and can improve patients’ professional life by avoiding some work activity limitations. An S-ICD can be also a good option for athletes in avoiding subclavian crash and reducing inappropriate shocks. However, some questions remain unsolved because an S-ICD is not suitable for patients with indications for pacing, cardiac resynchronization therapy or anti-tachycardia pacing. In conclusion, the use of an S-ICD can assist physicians in reducing the negative impact of implantation on the well-being of some groups of patients by helping them to avoid depression and anxiety as well as improving their noncompliance with their medical treatment. Full article

Eating disorders (ED) have frequently been described among athletes. However, their specific features and therapy responses are lacking in the literature. The aims of this article were to compare clinical, psychopathological and personality traits between ED patients who were professional athletes (ED-A) with those who were not (ED-NA) and to explore differences in response to treatment. The sample comprised n = 104 patients with ED (n = 52 ED-A and n = 52 matched ED-NA) diagnosed according to DSM-5 criteria. Evaluation consisted of a semi-structured face-to-face clinical interview conducted by expert clinicians and a psychometric battery. Treatment outcome was evaluated when the treatment program ended. ED-A patients showed less body dissatisfaction and psychological distress. No differences were found in treatment outcome among the groups. Within the ED-A group, those participants who performed individual sport activities and aesthetic sports presented higher eating psychopathology, more general psychopathology, differential personality traits and poor therapy outcome. Individual and aesthetic sports presented more severity and worse prognosis. Although usual treatment for ED might be similarly effective in ED-A and ED-NA, it might be important to develop preventive and early detection programs involving sports physicians and psychologists, coaches and family throughout the entire athletic career and afterwards. Full article

The aim of the present study was to compare disordered eating (DE), body image, and sociocultural and coach-related pressures between athletes of different age groups (adolescents and adults) and between athletes participating in weight-sensitive (WS) and less WS groups. A total of 1003 athletes participated in this study. The age range of the sample was 15 to 44 years, and the mean age was 18.9 ± 5.8 years (51.3% were female). Athletes who voluntarily agreed to participate in the study were provided with the study measures on DE, body image and sociocultural attitudes towards appearance. Vomiting, laxative misuse and excessive exercise were more prevalent in adolescent female athletes than adults, while dietary restraint was more common in adult male athletes than adolescents. Adolescent female athletes experienced higher sociocultural (family, peers) and sport-related (coach) pressures and a less positive body image compared with adult female athletes. Adult male athletes experienced higher overweight preoccupation, more DE and unhealthy eating habits, and engaged in more frequent self-weighing behaviour compared with adolescent males. When the effect of weight sensitivity in sports was tested, a higher prevalence of DE and overweight preoccupation, more frequent self-weighing, and higher body-image-related pressure from coaches were observed in female athletes participating in aesthetic weight-sensitive (WS) sports as compared with those participating in less WS sports. No differences in positive body image were observed in female WS and less WS sports. Special DE prevention and positive body image promotion programs are necessary for female competitive athletes and parents of adolescent female athletes, especially those participating in aesthetic ones. For adult male athletes, special programs aiming to promote healthy eating should be implemented to prevent DE and body image concerns. Special education about DE prevention is compulsory for coaches who train female athletes. Full article

Bodybuilders are athletes characterized by high muscle mass. During competitions, the evaluation is performed based on aesthetic parameters. The study aims to provide normative references of body composition with the vector bioimpedance methodology (BIVA). A second aim is to compare BIVA assessments performed on both sides and the upper and lower body. A group of 68 elite bodybuilders (41 males aged 30.1 ± 9.2 years and 27 females aged 32.1 ± 8.0 years) was enrolled. A BIVA assessment was performed the day before the 2021 World Natural Bodybuilding Federation Italian Championships. As a result, male and female bodybuilders ranked to the left in the BIVA ellipse relative to the general population. Furthermore, unlike females, males also ranked lower than the general athletic population. In addition, in the symmetry assessment, males show a significantly greater upper body than the lower, right, and left parts, while in women, this is observed for the lower part of the body. The differences in the results obtained between males and females can be attributed to the different patterns of endocrine production between the sexes and the different criteria used by the juries to attribute the final score during the competitions. Therefore, BIVA references in bodybuilders could help adjust the training and nutritional program during the peak week before a competition. Full article