Motricidade

Significant bivariate correlations: to be or not to be?

Gyms and Health Clubs in Portugal: Are we facing a Banana Republic?

A prática profissional dos agentes relacionados com os ginásios e health clubs nacionais tem vindo a evidenciar várias fraquezas, limitações, e preocupações que carecem de ações concretas de reflexão e ação. O presente artigo visa evidenciar algumas problemáticas identificadas no decurso profissional dos autores, relevando pontos fulcrais de premente reflexão, apontando lacunas concretas, destacando problemas de cariz moral e deontológico, e tentando deixar linhas de reflexão sobre futuros passos na procura da elevação da qualidade profissional nestes espaços de prática, assim como a dignificação de toda uma área profissional que é cada vez mais necessária à sociedade portuguesa. Expõem-se ao longo do trabalho situações de reflexão concretas associadas à necessidade de definição de um perfil profissional adequado a essas práticas, à desregulação da qualidade do produto apresentado à sociedade, às inconsistências comportamentais do diretor técnico e técnico de exercício físico face ao postulado e aceite do ponto de vista moral, deontológico e legislativo, e por fim na necessidade premente de regulamentação adicional nas ações certificadas promovidas por entidades de formação nacionais.

The professional practice of agents related to national gyms and health clubs has been showing several weaknesses, limitations, and concerns that lack concrete actions for reflection and action. This letter aims to highlight some of the problems identified by the authors during their professional course and practice. An attempt to underline points of reflection, to indicate concrete gaps, to emphasize problems of moral and deontological nature will be stated. Moreover, some of the mentioned arguments intend to reflect on structured steps searching for the elevation of professional quality in these practices, as well as the dignification of an entire professional class that is increasingly necessary for Portuguese society. Throughout this work, concrete situations of reflection are exposed, associated with the need to define an appropriate professional profile to these practices, the deregulation of the quality of the product presented to society, the behavioral inconsistencies of the exercise professional and technical director in the face of the postulate and accepted from a moral, deontological and legislative point of view. Finally, current study will address the pressing need for additional regulation in certified actions promoted by national training entities.

A review of the effects of static stretching in human mobility and strength training as a more powerful alternative: Towards a different paradigm

Flexibility is a measurable physical capacity considered as a key component of physical fitness. Poor flexibility is usually attributed to excessive tension exerted by the antagonist muscles of the movement and, supported by weak scientific evidence, passive stretching is considered as the most effective intervention in the promotion of the muscle extensibility, in attempting to improve mobility. The proposal of this paper is a review of the effects of static stretching in human movement and a presentation of strength training as a more robust alternative based on scientific evidence. First, we try to define which factors influence the ability of the human body to move into their functional safety range of motion. Second, we present a critical scientific literature review of the effects of static stretching in the promotion of range of motion, injury prevention, and sports performance. Third, we propose alternatives to static stretching such as proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation, dynamic stretching, and especially strength/resistance training, in the promotion of a better range of motion. Finally, we conclude that perhaps problems of flexibility/mobility should not be addressed with static processes, but with movement.

Comparison between anthropometry and multi-frequency bioimpedance for body composition evaluation in Brazilian elite U-20 soccer athletes

Young soccer players undertake anthropometric measurements for directing the effectiveness of training programs. However, the use of the eight-electrode electrical bioimpedance method is increasingly being used for the body composition evaluation. The purpose of this study was to compare and correlate body composition, using anthropometric predictive equations, with the use of electrical bioimpedance. Thirty Brazilian high-performance men, players of the U-20 category, participated in the study, while their position in the field was recorded. Anthropometrics were assessed using the predictive equations of Faulkner, Yuhasz, Carter, and Slaughter and electrical bioimpedance. There were no significant differences between methods for anthropometric evaluation, while traditional body composition analysis and bioimpedance showed moderate correlations with respect to the anthropometric protocols, Faulkner (r = 0.63, p<0.01), Yuhasz (r = 0.64, p<0.01), Carter (r = 0.64, p<0.01) and Slaughter (r = 0.53, p<0.01). According to the present investigation, bioimpedance with eight electrodes can be a reliable tool for the assessment of body composition in young soccer players.

Differences in perception of burnout syndrome among young athletes from individual and team sports

The purpose of this study was to compare the perception of the burnout syndrome related to the variables gender, sport, and age in young swimmers and volleyball players. A total of 194 athletes of both genders, aged 14 to 17 years, completed the Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (ABQ). The data analysis consisted of descriptive statistics and a comparison of the studied variables using the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests. The results showed that the athletes did not have high burnout syndrome indicators. We found no effect of the gender variable on the perception of burnout dimensions. Swimmers had greater physical and emotional exhaustion than their volleyball peers. Conversely, volleyball players perceived more sport devaluation than their swimming peers.

Does the level of physical fitness influence the stress and recovery levels in male athletes of water polo?

Objetivou-se analisar-se o nível de condição física apresenta influência sobre o stress e a recuperação de atletas masculinos de polo aquático. No presente estudo participaram 12 atletas com 2 anos de experiência na modalidade. Utilizou-se o Teste T30, 15 dias antes da competição, e após 24h do último jogo dos atletas, realizou-se o preenchimento do questionário RestQ-76 Sports. A correlação de Pearson foi utilizada, no qual o T30 apresentou relações significativas e positivas com os componentes stress social, sono, exaustão emocional, realização pessoal e motivação do treinador. Conclui-se que os atletas melhores condicionados necessitam de menos horas de sono e se estressam menos, apresentam uma melhor relação com o treinador, além de estarem realizados com suas funções.

The objective of this study was to analyze whether the level of physical conditioning influences the stress and recovery of male athletes of water polo. Twelve athletes with two years of experience in the sport participated. The T30 Test was used 15 days before the competition, and after 24hrs of the last match, the athletes completed the questionnaire RestQ-76 Sports. Pearson's correlation was used, where the T30 presented significant relationships with the components of social stress, sleep, emotional exhaustion, personal fulfillment, and motivation of the trainer. It is concluded that better-conditioned athletes sleep and stress less, have a better relationship with the trainer, and are fulfilled with their functions.

The Beneficial Effect of Combining Feedback, Observational Learning and Motor Imagery on Football Pass Performance

The aim of this original research was to investigate the effect of a combination of feedback, action observation of a model, and motor imagery on passes accuracy in non-expert football players. All the participants performed a pre-test, 5 week-intervention sessions, and a post-test similar to the pre-test. The task consisted of passing toward a target located at 20-meters in an outdoor football field. During each session, the participants, divided into Control (i.e., physical practice only), Feedback, Model, Imagery, and Feedback plus Model plus Imagery (FMI) groups, performed 3 blocks of 4 trials. After each block, they received or not feedback by the coach, watched a clip or a video of a skilled peer model touching the target, and finally realized a mental task or motor imagery. The main results of this study revealed that the FMI group increased the performance from the preto the post-test, whereas the performance of all the other groups remained stable across the experimental conditions. The current study showed the beneficial effect of combining the observation of a model, the motor imagery, and expert feedback after physical practice, especially in the case of a short learning session in non-expert football players.

Learning-doing of the elderly caregiver at home

This study aimed to know how elderly caregivers learn to care for family members at home. A qualitative study was carried out with six elderly caregivers of dependent relatives in the Brazilian northeast. Data collection took place from March to June 2017 through a semi-structured interview, and we employed content analysis in order to organize and systematize the data. The research showed that the learning of elderly caregivers develops through the observation of professional practice through professional guidance and experience in care. The findings point to management that emphasizes strategies in education and health that contribute to the learning of caregivers.

Comparison of predictive equations for resting metabolic rate in Portuguese women

Obesity represents a public health challenge, and dietary interventions to prevent or treat Obesity rely on the ability to accurately determine daily energy requirements - which are based on measures of total energy expenditure. Several prediction equations to estimate resting metabolic rate (RMR) have been developed, however, the validity of these equations is uncertain. The present study aims to determine the accuracy of four commonly used RMR prediction equations in normal weight, overweight and obese Portuguese women aged 18 to 64 years. RMR was measured in 156 women (age: 40.3 ± 10.2 years; Body Mass Index (BMI): 20.6 ± 6.8 kg/m²) using indirect calorimetry. The resulting values were compared with the predictive values from the Harris-Benedict, FAO/WHO/UNU, Schofield and Mifflin-St. Jeor equations across BMI categories. At an individual level, the equations with the highest percentage of accurate predictions were the Mifflin-St. Jeor equation in normal-weight women (41.9%) and the Harris-Benedict equation in overweight (55.4%) and obese (50.9%) women. The accuracy of the RMR prediction equations studied varied by weight status, and due to the low levels of accuracy reported, the present equations might have limited applicability for Portuguese women at an individual level.

The effect of three different training programs in elderly women's isokinetic strength

This study aimed was to assess the effects of three different training protocols in quadriceps and hamstrings isokinetic muscle strength of independent elderly women. Eighty women were recruited for this study and divided into four groups of twenty subjects: the control group, the multi-component group, the muscle power group, and the muscular resistance strength group. The isokinetic strength was measured in both lower limbs with a dynamometer at 60°/s and 180º/s. The multivariate analysis (ANOVA) and the Bonferroni test assessed the group and time effect. Significant and positive effects were observed in the time and group interaction in the power group at 180°/s and 60°/s knee flexion in the dominant (p = 0.004, respectively) and non-dominant (p = 0.046 and p = 0.041, respectively) lower limbs. The Control group had significant and negative effect on the time x group interaction at 180°/s and 60°/s on the extension of the dominant knee (p = 0.008 and p = 0.001, respectively) and non-dominant (p = 0.003 and p< 0.001, respectively). The muscle power training seems to be the most effective to increase the isokinetic strength in older independent women. All the training programs appear to contribute to decreasing the age-related loss on isokinetic strength.

Expression, expressivity, and performance in the poetic-musical intersection a multi-faceted perspective of contemporary artistic aesthetics

A poesia e a música sempre foram expressões artísticas que se entrelaçam desde a antiguidade utilizando técnicas semelhantes para se realizarem formalmente. Na contemporaneidade, a arte musical deu origem a uma teoria romântica da música, espelho da evolução do movimento romântico nos seus pontos essenciais, pois as palavras sendo insuficientes, não podiam dizer o inefável, mas apenas sugeri-lo de forma aproximada, então cabendo à música instrumental, música sem palavras, transmitir sentimentos e estados de alma. Compreender o entrelaçamento entre poesia e música por intermédio dos estudos melopoéticos permite identificar tanto os pontos de convergências quanto as divergências entre as duas artes e desta forma o estudo objetiva analisar o entrelaçamento da estética artística na poesia musical e na música poética.

Poetry and music have always been artistic expressions that intertwine since ancient times, using similar techniques to be held formally. In contemporary times, the art of music has created a romantic theory of music, mirrors the evolution of the romantic movement in its essential points, because the words are insufficient, they could not tell the ineffable, but only suggest it approximately. It is for instrumental music, music without words, convey feelings, and moods. Understanding the links between poetry and music through the melopoéticos study identifies both the points of convergences and divergences between the two arts and, thus, the study to analyze the intertwining of artistic aesthetics in musical poetry and poetic music.