Nuria Garatachea

Introduction: Cardiorespiratory fitness and body composition are central components of physical health in adolescents, and those with higher cardiorespiratory fitness tend to have better body composition, suggesting a relationship between these variables. Objective: To analyze the magnitude of the correlation between cardiorespiratory fitness and body composition in adolescents in northern Mozambique. Methodology: This is an observational, cross-sectional, and correlational study, whose sample consisted of 919 adolescents aged 13 to 17 years. Cardiorespiratory fitness was estimated by maximum oxygen consumption using the 20-meter shuttle run test; body composition was assessed using the body mass index, and the magnitude of correlation was calculated using Pearson's correlation test. Results: A statistically significant negative correlation (P < 0.05) was found in female adolescents, varying with age (r = -0.189 to -0.355) and with body mass index classification (r = -0.230 to -0.544). Discussion: Similar results have been found in other studies, but in both sexes, although with a smaller sample size in this age group. In a study conducted on overweight and obese adolescents, the magnitude of the correlation was greater than that of the present study. Conclusion: Cardiorespiratory fitness shows a significant, moderately weak negative correlation with body composition in female adolescents in northern Mozambique. The strength of this relationship tends to form an inverted U-shaped pattern with advancing age, being more pronounced in underweight adolescents.

Purpose: Physical fitness (PF) is a key marker of health in adolescents, yet data from underrepresented regions such as northern Mozambique remain scarce. The present study examined PF levels in adolescents from northern Mozambique and explore the influence of sex, age, and environmental factors, including area of residence and province. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 919 adolescents (13–17 years) from Nampula, Cabo Delgado, and Niassa provinces. PF was assessed using selected tests from the ALPHA-Fitness battery, covering body composition, musculoskeletal fitness, motor fitness, and cardiorespiratory fitness. Multivariate general linear models were used to analyze the effects of sex, age, area of residence, and province. Results: Male adolescents outperformed females in most PF components, whereas females had higher weight, body mass index, and waist circumference. Age influenced PF more strongly in boys than girls. Province significantly affected PF, particularly musculoskeletal and motor fitness, while rural–urban residence had minimal impact. Adolescents from Cabo Delgado exhibited the lowest PF levels, reflecting socioeconomic disadvantages and conflict exposure. Conclusion: Sex, age, and province are key determinants of PF among northern Mozambican adolescents. The findings underscore the need for targeted interventions to support adolescent health and context-specific reference standards in underrepresented regions.

Background: Centenarians comprise an age group characterized by exceptional longevity and low age‐associated pathologies. However, they still experience physiological decline, and different studies have linked frailty to this population. Exercise interventions reverse frailty and improve functional capacity, but no studies have addressed the effect of an intervention in centenarians. In this study, we assessed the impact of a 12‐week resistance exercise intervention in a group of centenarians and characterized their functional capacity as well as the expression of several molecular biomarkers associated with frailty. Methods: A total of 19 centenarians were enrolled, but 7 of them did not complete the study. The remaining 12 centenarians were randomly assigned to the control or intervention group, which was a 12‐week resistance exercise intervention. Molecular biomarkers were measured by qRT‐PCR and ELISA. Results: The intervention group improved their functional capacity measured by Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB) (post 5.0 vs 2.3 in pre) and Physical Performance and Mobility Examination (PPME) (6.5 vs 3.8), as well as in frailty status studied by Fried Frailty Phenotype (3.0 vs 3.8) and Frailty Trait Scale 5 (FTS5) (post 30.7 vs 34.0 in pre) scales. ANCOVA revealed that the resistance training led to significant improvements in functional capacity scales SPPB ( p = 0.01) and PPME ( p < 0.001), as well as Fried Frailty Phenotype ( p = 0.001) and FTS5 ( p = 0.05). Biomarkers related to frailty (EGR1 , miR194‐5p, miR125b‐5p and miR454‐3p) and inflammation ( IL‐ 6 and IL‐1β) showed different expression patterns in centenarians ( n = 19) compared to both old ( n = 44, average of 79 years old) and young adults ( n = 34, average of 29 years old) groups. Notably, the intervention was associated with improvements in frailty and inflammation biomarkers expression. Finally, correlation analyses showed significant associations between all functional and frailty variables, with SPPB correlating with miR454‐3p (ρ = 0.73) and FTS5 correlating with miR454‐3p (ρ = −0.83), IL‐6 (ρ = 0.60) and miR125b‐5p (ρ = −0.55) . Conclusions: Our results revealed that resistance exercise intervention enhances functional status and reduces frailty in centenarians, and this is associated with improvements in frailty and inflammation biomarkers.

Regular physical activity has profound and multifaceted benefits for individuals as they age. This review highlights the role of exercise in promoting healthy and successful aging, emphasizing its effectiveness in the prevention and treatment of frailty and disability. Exercise is a primary intervention to attenuate the age‐related biological and functional decline by targeting mainly the cardiorespiratory, vascular, nervous, and skeletal muscle systems. From a biological perspective, we review the evidence on the role of exercise in mitigating the three categories of the biological hallmarks of aging: primary, antagonistic, and integrative. Different types of exercise may elicit different benefits for older adults. Thus, our review also emphasizes the importance of incorporating tailored and personalized exercise programs that align with individual health profiles and conditions, ranging from geriatric care to senior athletes. We also review the benefits that multicomponent exercise interventions, that combine power‐oriented resistance training with high‐intensity interval training, have for improving health outcomes in older adults. Overcoming the barriers that deter older adults from exercising requires a comprehensive approach that addresses psychological, economic, social, environmental, and gender perspective factors to increase participation. Governments play a key role by applying evidence‐based strategies, offering accessible exercise programs, creating supportive environments, and promoting policies that strengthen older adults' motivation and autonomy. These measures should ensure that all older adults have the same opportunities to engage in exercise, ultimately fostering healthier societies.

The need to monitor the aging process as a risk factor for disease and mortality beyond chronological age (CA) has led to numerous investigations into the estimation of the biological age (BA) of individuals. However, the accuracy of BA estimation tools is often judged by their ability to approximate CA, questioning their value in capturing the variance in health status and thus correctly estimating BA. Their biological relevance is often assessed in relation to health outcomes or mortality, underexploiting their potential for real-time monitoring of BA. Furthermore, their complexity may limit their clinical translation to large populations. Here, we describe the gene expression-based age monitoring Clock (GamC), a simple biomarker of aging (BOA), and characterize its biological relevance with synchronous cardiovascular (CV) health-related functional data. GamC is calculated from the expression levels of three genes consistently dysregulated with age in blood ( ABLIM1 , CCR7 , and LEF1 ). GamC shows moderate but reliable association with CA in three independent cohorts, supported by transcriptome-wide changes. It demonstrates specialized biological meaning, as it specifically describes current physical activity levels, but poorly correlates with autonomic nervous system function, both age-related factors associated with CV health. Finally, it expresses BA monitoring capacity by modestly responding to an effective exercise-based intervention in centenarians. In conclusion, GamC is proposed as a simple and affordable candidate BOA for reporting the individuals’ current CV health-related BA, thus promoting its broad translation and application into measures aimed at promoting healthy aging in relation to CV health, the leading cause of death worldwide.

This study aimed to evaluate the intra- and inter-instrument variability and reliability of the Axivity AX6 accelerometer under controlled technical conditions and human motion scenarios. In the first experiment, 12 accelerometers were affixed to a vibration platform and tested at four frequencies (2.2, 3.2, 6.5, and 9.4 Hz) along three axes to assess frequency- and axis-dependent variability. In the second experiment, four AX6 accelerometers were simultaneously placed on a subject’s wrist and tested under four human motion conditions (walking at 4 km·h⁻¹ and 6 km·h⁻¹ and running at 8 km·h⁻¹ and 10 km·h⁻¹). Results demonstrated low intra- and inter-instrument variability (CVintra: 3.3–4.5%; CVinter: 6.3–7.7%) with high reliability (ICC = 0.98). Similar results were observed in human motion conditions (CVintra: 5.3–8.8%; CVinter: 7.1–10.4%), with ICC values of 0.98 for combined devices, and 0.99 for each device individually. Despite statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) between devices in human motion all conditions, the variations remained below the minimal clinically significant difference threshold. These findings indicate that under technical conditions on a vibrating platform, and within the range of typical human accelerations, the Axivity AX6 is a reliable tool for measuring accelerations representative of physical activity. However, further research is necessary to validate its performance under free-living conditions.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of bilateral and unilateral plyometric-training (PT) programs on jumping, sprinting, and change-of-direction (COD) ability in male postpubertal basketball players. Methods: Forty-three young male basketball players (14.2 [1.2] y), from 4 squads belonging to an elite basketball club, were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 groups: (1) bilateral PT group (BG), (2) unilateral PT group (UG), and (3) control group (CG). The experimental groups followed a PT program twice weekly for 6 weeks, with BG and UG performing 2- and 1-legged jumps, respectively. Both groups completed the same number of vertical, horizontal, cyclic, and acyclic jumps. Pretraining and posttraining measurements included (1) countermovement jump (CMJ), (2) unilateral CMJ (CMJ_L and CMJ_R), (3) horizontal jump (HJ), (4) unilateral HJ (HJ_L and HJ_R), (5) straight-line sprint in 20 m (T20), and (6) V-Cut COD test (V-Cut). Results: CMJ, CMJ_L, and CMJ_R were significantly improved by BG and UG (P < .001), while CG did not change. Both the BG and the UG improved their performance significantly (P < .01) in HJ_L and HJ_R, but only BG significantly increased (P < .05) HJ and showed significantly greater improvements than CG. Furthermore, only BG improved V-Cut performance (P = .03). Neither group increased T20. CG did not improve in any tests. Conclusions: BG enhances single-leg and double-leg jump performance in vertical and horizontal directions, as well as COD ability. In contrast, an equivalent volume of unilateral PT only improves vertical jumps and unilateral HJs.

Este informe técnico es un documento crucial que se enmarca dentro de los trabajos de la Cátedra de Montaña de la Universidad de Zaragoza. En él se aborda una problemática de salud crítica —que también se alinea con los objetivos principales de la cátedra— que busca fomentar el desarrollo social, cultural y económico de la provincia de Huesca a través de la investigación y la formación en temas relacionados con la montaña. La muerte súbita es un fenómeno que, aunque infrecuente, tiene un impacto devastador tanto en el ámbito deportivo como en la comunidad en general. En los deportes de montaña, y especialmente en las carreras por montaña, las personas que lo practican están expuestas a condiciones extremas que pueden desencadenar eventos de muerte súbita. Especialmente y dadas las características de exigencia física de las carreras por montaña —habitualmente competitivas—, podrían hacer de esta disciplina una de las más propensas en el espectro de disciplinas que se practican en entornos naturales. Creemos en la relevancia de este informe porque proporciona un análisis detallado sobre las causas e incidencia de la muerte súbita en estos deportes, ofreciendo así una base científica y técnica para entender mejor el problema. Una parte importante del documento incluye una serie de recomendaciones de buenas prácticas que son esenciales para la prevención de estos eventos. Estas recomendaciones están diseñadas para ser prácticas y aplicables, contribuyendo así a la seguridad y bienestar de las personas deportistas. Al mejorar la seguridad en los deportes de montaña se promueve la práctica de estas actividades, lo cual tiene un impacto positivo en la salud pública y en el desarrollo del turismo de montaña, un sector clave para la economía de la provincia de Huesca. Garatachea-Vallejo, Nuria; Gómez-Bruton, Alejandro; Lozano-Berges, Gabriel; Muñiz-Pardos, Borja; Vicente-Rodríguez, Germán

Recent studies suggest that only 27.6% of cancer survivors meet PA guidelines. This could partially be attributed to the limited knowledge reported by healthcare professionals (HCP) regarding the appropriate timing, methodology, and suitability of referring cancer survivors to exercise programs or professionals. In this commentary, we aim to acknowledge the challenges that HCP may face in prescribing exercise and propose potential solutions to facilitate their efforts in this regard.