Vinícius Ribeiro dos Anjos Souza

Purpose: Generally, triathletes participating in short events should aim to finish the swim stage with the leading group to improve their chances in the subsequent cycling and running stages. However, the fatigue associated with very intense swimming can impair subsequent split times. This study aimed to investigate the impact of swimming bout intensity on performance in subsequent cycling, running, and overall racing among well-trained male and female amateur triathletes. Methods: Twenty athletes (12 men and 8 women) participated in this study. Critical velocity (CV) was estimated for swimming using a simple linear model. Body composition and maximal oxygen uptake were measured. Participants visited the laboratory three times to swim 750 m at intensities below CV, at CV, and above CV (in randomized order), before they cycled 20 km and ran 5 km as fast as they could to simulate a sprint triathlon. Heart rate, blood lactate level, perceived exertion, muscle pain, and dyspnea levels were measured at the end of each modality. Results: For women, on the day on which swimming intensity was below the CV, the overall race time was higher than on the day on which swimming intensity was at the CV ( p = 0.041) or faster than the CV ( p = 0.002). For men, there was no significant difference in the overall race time among the three intensities ( p > 0.05). Conclusion: The results showed that, for men, swimming at higher intensity did not significantly change total time, whereas for women, lower intensity was associated with poorer performance. Clinical trial number: The study was registered in ReBEC - Registro Brasileiro de Ensaios Clinicos: Rio de Janeiro (RJ): Instituto de Informação Científica e Tecnológica em Saúde (Brazil); 2010 - Identifier RBR-73vcyff. Available from http://ensaiosclinicos.gov.br/rg/RBR-73vcyff .

Background/Objectives: Sarcopenia is a muscular disease characterized by loss of muscular strength and function, affecting mainly women, and associated with increased mortality risk. The aim of this study was to compare active women with inactive women of different age groups regarding muscle mass, strength, and muscle quality. Methods: This study included 147 women (85 runners and 62 inactive), divided into p < 0.001) on absolute PT (Nm); an age group effect (F(2.146) = 44.1; p < 0.001) and a physical activity group effect (F(2.146) = 113.0; p < 0.001) on PT adjusted by body mass (Nm/kg); and an age group effect (F(2.146) = 36.9; p < 0.001) and a physical activity group effect (F(2.146) = 6.1; p = 0.014) on PT adjusted by lean mass (Nm/kgLM). There was no interaction effect. Conclusion: In both age groups, active women had greater strength and higher muscle quality than inactive women, but the difference in strength, muscle mass, and muscle quality between younger and older women were the same among runners and inactive women.