Sports « Weekly Gravy

If you want to burn fat this winter, take your exercise outdoors, researchers say. A Canadian study suggests that vigorous exercise in cold weather may burn more fat than working out indoors. Regular physical activity speeds metabolism and helps regulate fat in the blood (“lipids”), and high-intensity training is better for burning fat than moderate-intensity exercise, the researchers said. Temperature also plays a role in metabolism during exercise. In the study, a group of moderately fit, overweight adults participated in two high-intensity exercise sessions. In both, they completed 10 one-minute cycling sprints at 90% effort. A 90-second recovery period of cycling at 30% effort followed each sprint. In one session, the temperature was about 70 degrees Fahrenheit (“thermoneutral”). In the other session, it was 32 degrees Fahrenheit. During both sessions, the researchers measured participants’ skin temperature, core body temperature, heart rate and the amount of oxygen delivered to the large thigh muscle. “The present study found that high-intensity exercise in the cold increased lipid oxidation by 358% during the exercise bout in comparison to high-intensity exercise in a thermoneutral environment,” according to the report published online recently in the Journal of Applied Physiology. Longer-term metabolic responses after eating a high-fat meal did not change substantially after the cold condition, the researchers noted in a news release from the American Physiological Society. The lead researcher was… read on > read on >

A culture of toughness and resilience is encouraged among elite college rowers, but it can keep them from reporting injuries, a new study finds. There’s an overall myth among athletes that admitting pain is a sign of weakness and failure, the researchers said. Irish and Australian rowers in this study felt compromised by lower back pain, which is common in the sport, the study authors said. But many felt that the sporting culture didn’t allow them to be open and honest about their pain for fear of exclusion. Also, many felt they had to keep competing and training even when in pain. This might have increased the risk of poor outcomes from their pain, and poor emotional and mental experiences they had, according to the report. Rowers who have lower back pain can feel isolated and it can affect their lives beyond sport, the researchers noted. “This study presents a powerful message that athletes fear being judged as weak when they have pain and injury. They feel isolated and excluded when injured. They feel that there is a culture within sport that values them only when they are physically healthy. This leads athletes to hide their pain and injury, which is likely to lead to poorer outcomes,” said researcher Dr. Fiona Wilson. She’s an associate professor of physiotherapy at the School of Medicine at Trinity… read on >

Active older adults — cancer survivors included — are in better physical and mental health than their sedentary peers, a new study finds. More regular moderate to vigorous physical activity and less sedentary time improve the mental and physical health of older cancer survivors and older people without a cancer diagnosis, say researchers from the American Cancer Society. “The findings reinforce the importance of moving more and sitting less for both physical and mental health, no matter your age or history of cancer,” study co-author Dr. Erika Rees-Punia said. “This is especially relevant now as so many of us, particularly cancer survivors, may be staying home to avoid COVID-19 exposure, and may be feeling a little isolated or down,” Rees-Punia added in a cancer society news release. For the study, the research team analyzed aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities, sitting time and mental and physical health of nearly 78,000 people who took part in the society’s Cancer Prevention Study II Nutrition Cohort. The researchers found clinically meaningful differences in mental and physical health between the most and least active, and the least and most sedentary. They say the findings support the importance of regular exercise and less sitting time as a way to improve quality of life for older men and women. The American Cancer Society physical activity guidelines recommend that adults get 150 to 300… read on >

Preventing falls in older age could be as fun as dancing them away, new research shows. Researchers found a 31% reduction in falls and a 37% reduction in fall risk for those aged 65 and older when reviewing clinical trials on “dance-based mind-motor activities” from around the world. “We were positively surprised by the consistency of our results,” said study author Michèle Mattle, a movement scientist and doctoral candidate at the University of Zurich, in Switzerland. “Although previous research in the field of falls prevention and exercise was suggesting that interventions, including multitasking activities, are promising falls-prevention strategies, it was unclear if dance-based mind-motor activities would lead to comparable results,” she said. Dance-based mind-motor activities are those that have upright movements that emphasize balance and use music or an inner rhythm, such as breathing, according to the study. They include instructions or choreography, as well as social interaction. Tai chi meets those criteria, in addition to a variety of dance-based activities, including ballroom and folk dancing. Though dance was often suggested as a good fall-prevention activity for older adults, there was not previously evidence for that, Mattle said. The review only found an association between dance and mobility, balance and lower body strength, not a cause-and-effect relationship. It also concluded there is a need for more high-quality trials on dance. Tai chi is an activity… read on >

Young athletes who’ve had moderate COVID-19 symptoms should be symptom-free for 14 days and get their doctor’s OK before returning to practices or games, according to a leading group of U.S. pediatricians. An electrocardiogram (EKG) is also recommended for those who’ve had moderate COVID-19 symptoms, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) said in updated guidance. “Exercise and sports offer so many health benefits to youth, and we know that many are eager to return to play,” Dr. Susannah Briskin, an author of the guidance, said in an AAP news release. “We have many suggestions on how to reduce the risks, and they require being candid and forthcoming about anyone who is feeling unwell. Parents, children and coaches need to make safety protocols a priority,” Briskin said. According to the recommendations: Children and teens who’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, regardless of whether they have symptoms, shouldn’t attend any practices or games for a minimum of 14 days. Parents and guardians must report if a young athlete or anyone in their household has any signs or symptoms of COVID-19 or tests positive for the virus, even if they have no symptoms. Children and teens who are diagnosed with COVID-19 or test positive for the virus shouldn’t participate in sports and should be asymptomatic for 14 days before beginning a gradual return to physical activity. If… read on >

Exercise is often recommended to combat stress and anxiety. But it might not be the solution to your pandemic-related worries, new research indicates. For the study, researchers analyzed data gathered from more than 900 pairs of identical and same-sex fraternal twins in Washington state during the early stages of the pandemic. While 42% said their physical activity levels fell, 27% said they rose. Another 31% reported no change. Those who said their physical activity levels had declined in the first two weeks after stay-at-home orders were issued reported higher levels of stress and anxiety, a finding that the researchers expected. But they were surprised that the same was true among many twins who boosted their physical activity levels, according to the study. “Certainly, people who don’t exercise know that there are associations with mental health outcomes, yet the ones that increased their exercise also reported increased anxiety and stress,” said study co-author Glen Duncan. He’s a professor at Washington State University College of Medicine, in Spokane. “It’s hard to know exactly what’s going on, but it could be that they are trying to use exercise as a means to counter that stress and anxiety they’re feeling because of COVID,” Duncan added in a university news release. The link between decreased physical activity and stress was confounded by genetic and environmental factors, the researchers noted. In… read on >

Want to fend off high blood pressure? New research adds to the pile of evidence showing that living healthy can help you avoid hypertension. The study included nearly 3,000 Black and white U.S. adults, aged 45 and older, who didn’t have high blood pressure at the start of the study. The participants’ heart health was assessed with the American Heart Association’s Life’s Simple 7 tool, which measures seven risk factors: body mass index, diet, smoking, physical activity, blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar levels. A score of 10 to 14 is ideal; 5 to 9 is average, and 0 to 4 is poor. The median score among the participants was 9. Over about nine years of follow-up, 42% of participants developed high blood pressure. The rates among Black adults were 52% in women and 50% in men. Among white adults the rates were 37% in women and 42% in men. Each 1-point higher score was associated with a 6% lower risk of high blood pressure, without significant difference by race or sex, according to the study published Sept. 15 in the Journal of the American Heart Association. “High blood pressure is among the most common conditions in the U.S., and it contributes to the greatest burden of disability and largest reduction in healthy life expectancy among any disease,” said lead author Dr. Timothy Plante, an… read on >

As some school sports return this fall, a number of measures should be followed to keep students safe from the new coronavirus, an expert says. “The best way to prevent risk is to remind students of frequent hand-washing or have hand sanitizers readily available, especially before, during and after practice,” said Dr. Irvin Sulapas, a primary care sports medicine physician and assistant professor of family and community medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. “It depends on the sport, but if you are touching surfaces or working with something like a football or basketball, just remember to use hand sanitizer after you’re done using it and clean the ball as well,” he said in a Baylor news release. Whenever school athletes go to a practice or game, they should practice good hygiene by: bringing their own water bottle; not borrowing other people’s athletic equipment; disinfecting equipment such as sports balls, helmets or gloves after they’re used; using hand sanitizer, and washing hands frequently. Athletes who feel sick should stay home. They or their parents should keep a daily symptom checklist as reference, Sulapas suggested. Maintaining distance is also important when practicing. Even if a practice traditionally takes place indoors, try to hold it outdoors. Limit the number of people in or around the practice area. Stagger the number of athletes who are on the… read on >

People with the heart-rhythm disorder known as atrial fibrillation, or a-fib, may ease their symptoms with the help of a slower-paced yoga, a preliminary study finds. Researchers from India found that over 16 weeks of yoga sessions, a-fib patients saw their symptom episodes drop by about half. Their mental well-being got a boost as well. The findings, which were presented this week at an online meeting of the European Society of Cardiology, should be considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal. But the report adds to evidence that yoga can help control a-fib symptoms, which include palpitations, dizziness and breathlessness. In 2013, Dr. Dhanunjaya Lakkireddy led a small study of a-fib patients that came to similar conclusions: Slower-paced yoga, with a focus on breathing and mindful physical poses, helped people reduce their symptoms. The benefits may stem from yoga’s calming effects on the nervous system, explained Lakkireddy, who is medical director of the Kansas City Heart Rhythm Institute, at HCA Midwest Health in Kansas. He was not involved with the new report. People with a-fib, Lakkireddy said, tend to have an exaggerated “sympathetic tone” — which refers to the arm of the nervous system that, among other jobs, revs up heart rate and blood pressure. Yoga may counter that, according to Lakkireddy. But in a world where yoga classes are often geared toward a… read on >

The odds are not good for college football conferences that have decided to press forward with their fall season despite the coronavirus pandemic, experts say. The Big 10 and PAC 12 have decided not to play sports in the fall, but the SEC, the Big 12 and the ACC say they will proceed with college football while still keeping players safe from the coronavirus. “I do predict, because we’ve already been seeing it in those sports that have been very diligent, that there will be transmission and they will have to stop their games,” said Dr. Colleen Kraft, an NCAA medical adviser and a professor of infectious diseases with Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta. She was one of several experts who recently briefed the media on navigating college sports during the pandemic. Ultimately, the nationwide debate over college football is occurring because the United States has failed to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic in an effective manner, said Dr. Brian Hainline, senior vice president and chief medical officer of the NCAA. “When we started talking about return to sport in April, we were envisioning there would be a continued downward trajectory of COVID-19 new infections and deaths, that there would be a national surveillance system, national testing and national contact tracing that would allow us to really navigate this pandemic,” Hainline said. “That hasn’t… read on >