Testing and Prescription Considerations for Special Populations Flashcards
Terminology
- Childhood: Period of life before the development of secondary sex characteristics
- Adolescence (10-19 years): Period b/w childhood + adulthood
- Youth or Young Athlete: Both children + adolescents
- Older + Senior: Include men + women over 65 yrs
Children
- Substantial inter-individual diffs in physical development at any given chronological age
- Maturation is better assessed by biological age (i.e. skeletal age, physique maturity, or sexual maturation)
- Gold standard for determining biological maturation = skeletal age assessment (ossification of left wrist)
- More feasible + less expensive method for determining biological maturation is the prediction of biological age from peak height velocity
When prescribing resistance training you need to consider age- and sex-related differences in:
- Body composition
- Muscular performance
- Trainability
Muscular strength is expressed:
Muscular strength is expressed:
- Absolute terms (i.e., total force measured in pounds or kgs).
- Relative terms (i.e., ratio of absolute strength to total body mass, fat-free mass, or muscle cross-sectional area)
Need to consider effects of both age and sex on MBCT and VJ performances
- changes in chronological age of 12 months coincide w/ meaningful physiological development in males for improving MBCT + VJ perfs whereas ≥ 24 months is needed for females
- Greatest dif b/w sexes in perfs occurred at the oldest age group (16-17 yrs).
- List the risks of injury in children and adolescents participating in an exercise program and ways these can be minimised. (RISKS OF INJURY CARD)
Children + Injuries
- Increased risk of injury around time of peak height velocity (~12 y females + 14 y males).
- Changes in balance (i.e. center of mass)
- Muscle imbalances
- Tightening of musculotendon units due to rapidly growing bones
- Child’s training age can also influence adaptations to resistance training
- Growth cartilage is located at the epiphyseal plate, the joint surface, + the apophyseal insertions (i.e. attachment sites of tendons)
- Damage to the growth cartilage may impair the growth + development of the affected bone
Describe how pre-adolescent + pubescent athletes most likely increase muscle strength following a resistance training intervention
Following resistance training increases in strength are due to:
- Neural factors (e.g. motor unit recruitment, firing rate) for preadolescents.
- Muscle hypertrophy during + after puberty
- List the risks of injury in children and adolescents participating in an exercise program and ways these can be minimised. (MINIMISED CARD)
- inform the child of benefits + risks associated w/ resistance training
- supervision of training sessions by qualified trainers
- safe + free of hazards = appropriate equip
- dynamic warm-up + static stretching cool down
- one to three sets of 6-15 reps
- increase resistance gradually (e.g. 5 to 10%) as technique + strength improve
- 2 or 3 non-consecutive training sessions per week
- Explain sex-related differences in terms of muscle function and mass
- Absolute strength: male generally have more muscle mass than females = increased strength
- Relative to muscle cross-sectional area (an indicator of muscle quality): Differences in strength reduced b/w the sexes
- So muscle quality is not sex-specific.
- Describe the injury risk that is higher in females compared to males and ways this can be reduced
- Female athletes 6 times more likely to incur an ACL tear than male athletes
- May be due to anatomical + hormonal factors
- Most likely the result of neuromuscular deficiency (increased dynamic knee valgus upon ground contact)
- Enhancing neuromuscular control of the knee joint through S&C may minimise injury risk
- Name the physiological changes that occur through aging and their effects on athletic performance for the older adult.
Older Adults
- Advancing age associated w/ physiological changes that ↓ functional capacity + alter body comp
- Changes occur to:
i. Muscular function
ii. Cardiovascular function
iii. Pulmonary function
iv. Physical functional capacities
v. Body composition/metabolism
- Name the physiological changes that occur through aging and their effects on athletic performance for the older adult. (IN DEPTH)
Muscle strength + power
- Typical changes: decrease in concentric, isometric + eccentric strength from ~40yr + accelerates after 65-70yr
- Functional significance: deficits in S/P = predict disability in older age + mortality risk
Balance and mobility
- Typical changes: sensory, motor + cognitive changes alter biomechanics, changing balance + mobility
- Functional significance: increases fear + risk of falling + can reduce daily activity
Cardiac function
- Typical changes: MaxHr + SV + CO decrease
- Functional significance: major determinant of reduced ex capacity w/ aging
Height
- Typical changes: decrease ~1cm/decade during 40-60 yrs + accelerates after 60yrs
- Functional significance: can impair mobility + other daily tasks
Bone Density
- Typical changes: decrease 0.5%/yr after 40yr
- Functional significance: osteopenia elevates fracture risk
- Define sarcopenia and osteoporosis
Muscle mass + size
- ↓ from ~40 yr
- Accelerated ↓ from 65-70 yr
- ↓ in fibre number + size (Type II > I)
- Sarcopenia: age-related ↓ in muscle mass + strength
Bone Health:
- Osteoporosis (OP) is a disease that causes bones to become more porous, gradually making them weaker + more brittle
- Bone fragility + an increased susceptibility to fractures mainly of the hip, vertebrae or wrist
Diagnosis of Osteoporosis
- Determined by DEXA bone density.
- T score >2.5 standard deviation (SD) below the mean value for young adults
- Site – based on central sites + forearm
- Lifetime risk of an OP fracture increases 1.5 to 3 times w/ each SD decrease in bone density
- List the steps required to begin training an older adult
- should be pre-screened, since many older people suffer from a variety of age-related medical conditions
- warm-up for 5-10mins before each session
- should perform static stretching exercises either before or after (or both) each resistance training
- should avoid performing the Valsalva maneuver during resistance training
- should allow 48-72hrs of recovery b/w sessions
- exercises should be performed within a ROM that is pain-free
