The findings of this study suggest sport-specific cardiac adaptations.
- Prolonged QT dispersion derived from electrocardiograms has been used as an indicator of abnormal ventricular repolarization for several cardiac diseases.
- An increased QT dispersion has been documented in patients with arterial hypertension and left ventricular hypertrophy.
- In addition to clinical environments, left ventricular hypertrophy is observed in athletes completing regular training.
- This left ventricular hypertrophic cardiac response serves as a reactive mechanism to compensate for volume overload experienced during endurance training or pressure overload experienced during resistance training.
- Although athletes develop impressive left ventricular tissue growth, it is unknown whether this exercise-induced left ventricular hypertrophy is associated with increased QT dispersion as observed in patients with hypertensive myocardial hypertrophy.
- Despite evidence suggesting that cardiac remodeling varies in response to pressure overload (concentric hypertrophy) or volume overload (eccentric hypertrophy)...
...there is limited research on comparing QT dispersion and echocardiographic parameters across athletes competing in different sports varying in terms of the predominant type of overload imposed.
- In this way, sports may be classified according to the mechanical demands they elicit based on the peak static components (expressed as relative intensity of voluntary muscular contraction across three levels [A, B, C])...
...and the peak dynamic components (expressed as percentage of maximal oxygen uptake across three levels [I, II, III]) undertaken by athletes.
- This study aimed to compare QT dispersion and echocardiographic parameters between athletes competing in different sports and sedentary controls and assess the associations between QT dispersion and echocardiographic parameters among them.
- Advanced left ventricular hypertrophy, predominantly concentric in nature, induced by pressure overload, accompanied with an increased QT dispersion was observed in athletes predominantly completing static exercise (powerlifters and bodybuilders).
"These structural parameters we observed in powerlifters and bodybuilders represent remodeling adaptations in response to training that fall within a 'grey zone'...
"...where extreme expressions of athlete’s heart and mild morphological forms of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy may overlap...
"...Although these likely remodeling adaptations in powerlifters and bodybuilders mimic pathological hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, their LV end-diastolic diameters (~ 52–53 mm) were within clinically accepted partition values for the general population (45–55 mm)...
"...which is a useful and sensitive marker in distinguishing an athletic heart from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy diagnosis."
- On the other hand, mild left ventricular hypertrophy (toward the upper threshold of the normal reference range) induced by volume overload that was accompanied with a reduced QT dispersion was observed in long-distance runners, volleyball athletes, and football athletes.
"In addition to LV structural parameters, LV systolic indicators were also within clinically accepted reference ranges for the general population...
"...further supporting adaptive (rather than maladaptive) physiological cardiac remodeling in athlete groups predominantly undertaking dynamic (long-distance runners, football athletes, and volleyball athletes) or static exercise (powerlifters and bodybuilders)."
Sport-related differences in QT dispersion and echocardiographic parameters in male athletes (open access)
In this one, a “weekend warrior” pattern of physical activity (i.e. concentrated within 1 to 2 days) was associated with a reduced dementia risk, regardless of sedentary behaviour duration.
- This prospective study used data from the UK Biobank cohort, which provided accelerometer-based physical activity data for a full week from February 2013 to December 2015.
- Participants were categorized into “weekend warriors” group, engaged in more than 50% moderate to vigorous physical activity (≥ 150 min/week) on 1 to 2 days, inactive group (total moderate to vigorous physical activity < 150 min/week)...
Here, 8 weeks of assisted-versus regular Nordic Hamstring training led to similar strength gains, but with lower hamstring muscle soreness and perceived exertion.
- The Nordic Hamstring exercise increases hamstring strength, but muscle soreness and excessive fatigue may hinder adoption.
- The assisted Nordic Hamstring exercise, with an elastic band around the chest lowering the force in the eccentric lowering phase, may be a less demanding alternative.
Once again supporting the existence of the physical activity paradox, this one found leisure-time physical activity to lower the risk of type 2 diabetes, whereas no beneficial effects were found for occupational physical activity level.
More about the physical activity paradox can be found in my previous posts:
- The physical activity paradox states that even though leisure-time (particularly moderate-to-vigorous) physical activity promotes health, more relative time spent on (particularly moderate-to-vigorous) physical activity during work seems to impair health.
This systematic review and meta-analysis finds that adding omega-3 supplementation to exercise training is likely to augment some effects of exercise training on body composition and cardiometabolic health in adults, although such effects appear to be modest.
- This was a systematic review and meta-analysis that aimed to investigate the effects of combining omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs) supplementation with exercise training...
...as compared to exercise training alone, on body composition measures including body weight, body mass index (BMI), fat mass, body fat percentage, and lean body mass.
In this one, performing muscle-strengthening activity ≤2 times/week jointly with ≥150 minutes/week of moderate-to-vigorous aerobic physical activity was associated with the lowest all-cause and cardiovascular disease risks in adults with diabetes.
- This study aimed to evaluate associations of muscle-strengthening activity with all-cause, cardiovascular disease, and cancer mortality in adults with diabetes, independent of and jointly with moderate-to-vigorous aerobic physical activity.
- This prospective cohort study included 29,609 adults with diabetes free of cardiovascular disease and cancer with a mean age of 55.7 years from the U.S. National Health Interview Survey 1997-2018.
This systematic review and meta-analysis finds that although supersets can provide a time-efficient alternative to traditional resistance training, they generally induce higher internal loads, more severe muscle damage, and increased perceived exertion.
- The primary aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to compare the acute and chronic effects of superset and traditional set prescriptions on mechanical, metabolic, and perceptual variables.
- The study also aimed to conduct subgroup analyses to determine the effect of different types of supersets (agonist–antagonist, similar biomechanical, and alternate peripheral supersets).