Abstract
e present study aimed to review the physiological aspects of adolescent track-and-field (TAF) athletes. A search of Scopus on 27/12/2022 using the syntax ABS (track-and-field) AND ABS (children) OR ABS (adolescent) showed 121 documents, and 45 were considered for further analysis. In addition, handsearching was conducted to identify Russian literature missing in Scopus. Differences were shown in performance characteristics among disciplines, especially between throwers and the other athletes. The sex difference in performance (ie, a better performance in boys than in girls) started in early adolescence. A relative age effect was more pronounced in athletes under 13 years old. Despite the wide use of nutritional supplements, an insufficient intake of vitamins has been found. The age of training onset and body weight were identified as risk factors for problems with menarche. The inclusion of track- and-field training programs in physical education was beneficial for health and physical fitness. The need to collaborate closely with parents and coaches was identified, especially, regarding education in topics such as the age of training onset, relative age effect, and doping. In conclusion, the existence of many disciplines with different anthropometric and physiological characteristics highlighted the need for a discipline-specific approach. Keywords: running, jumping, throwing, speed, strength, endurance, age, maturation Ontogenetic Foundations of Track and Field Training The physical qualities underlying the biomechanics and physiology of track and field (TAF) exercises develop unevenly in ontogenesis. 1,2 The well-known sports pediatrician Bar-Or 3 called children-athletes “metabolic non-specialists”, emphasizing the versatility of their abilities and the weak focus on one or another specialization of sports movements. This is largely due to the uneven development of skeletal muscle tissue, 4 muscle contraction control systems, 5 as well as mechanisms for providing working muscles with oxygen and substrates. 6 Although studies of physiological mechanisms in children
called children-athletes “metabolic non-specialists”, emphasizing the versatility of their abilities and the weak focus on one or another specialization of sports movements. This is largely due to the uneven development of skeletal muscle tissue, 4 muscle contraction control systems, 5 as well as mechanisms for providing working muscles with oxygen and substrates. 6 Although studies of physiological mechanisms in children and adolescents are extremely complex and encounter several barriers, including in the field of bioethics, a certain amount of research has taken place. For example, the well-known study by Astrand 7 made it possible to compare the maximum oxygen consumption during treadmill running in children and adults aged 6 to 60 years. In this study, it was shown for the first time that the value of the relative (per kilogram of body weight) maximal oxygen uptake (VO 2max) reaches its highest value already at the age of 9–11 years, and in the future, it can only decrease if a person does not train. In recent studies, VO2max was measured in children 4–5 years old, 8 and it was also quite high. The explanation for this phenomenon may lie in the peculiarities of the fiber structure of the skeletal muscles of children and adolescents. In the works of Kornienko et al 9 showed a non-linear ∩-shaped change in the proportion of type 1 oxidative fibers in the structure of large muscles, such as biceps, triceps, and quadriceps femoris, with a maximum at the age of 8–14 years. Jansson 10 also comes to similar conclusions. Electron microscopy data show an approximately twofold excess in the number of mitochondria and their cross-sectional area in the biceps of an 11-year-old boy compared to a 35-year-old man. 4 All this evidence indicates a relatively early development of the aerobic capacity of the child. Slower at the initial stages of ontogenesis, anaerobic capabilities develop, which underlie the manifestation of strength and speed. In addition, the data of biomechanical studies have shown that in the process of development of a child’s locomotion, the support Open Access Journal of Sports Medicine 2023:14 59–68 59 © 2023 Nikolaidis and
development of the aerobic capacity of the child. Slower at the initial stages of ontogenesis, anaerobic capabilities develop, which underlie the manifestation of strength and speed. In addition, the data of biomechanical studies have shown that in the process of development of a child’s locomotion, the support Open Access Journal of Sports Medicine 2023:14 59–68 59 © 2023 Nikolaidis and Son’kin. This work is published and licensed by Dove Medical Press Limited. The full terms of this license are available at https://www.dovepress. com/terms.php and incorporate the Creative Commons Attribution – Non Commercial (unported, v3.0) License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/). By accessing the work you hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. For permission for commercial use of this work, please see paragraphs 4.2 and 5 of our Terms (https://www.dovepress.com/terms.php). Open Access Journal of Sports Medicine Dovepress open access to scientific and medical research Open Access Full Text ArticleReceived: 4 May 2023 Accepted: 27 June 2023 Published: 29 June 2023 Open Access Journal of Sports Medicine downloaded from https://www.dovepress.com/ For personal use only.
phase in running prevails for up to 4–5 years, and the non-support phase (“flight phase”) begins to prevail by 5–6 years – only at this age, the child learns to run and do not go at high speed. 11 At the age of 12–14 years, there is an approximately twofold increase in the activity in the muscles of phosphofructokinase, the nodal enzyme of anaerobic glycolysis. 12 The anaerobic capabilities of the body, which determine the results in jumping and throwing, as well as in sprinting, are formed later, and reach their maximum development after puberty. 13 The influence of sex hormones on performance characteristics of the youthful organism is well known. 14 In this context, the present research aimed to review the physiological aspects of adolescent TAF athletes. A search of Scopus on 27/12/2022 using the syntax ABS (track-and- field) AND ABS (children) OR ABS (adolescent) showed 121 documents, and 45 were considered for further analysis. In addition, handsearching was conducted to identify Russian literature missing in Scopus. Physiology By definition, the inclusion of events relying on strength, speed, and endurance performance implies that the athletes participating in different TAF events would vary in their physiological characteristics. For instance, Housh et al 15 examined the knee flexors and extensors’ strength (isokinetic, dominant leg, 180°/sec) in elite female TAF athletes (age 16.4 years). They observed that in absolute knee strength, throwers were stronger than middle-distance runners, and sprinters, whereas jumpers had greater relative strength in knee extension than middle-distance runners, and throwers were stronger had greater strength in this movement than middle-distance runners. 15 An interpretation of the different outcomes of the between-events comparisons in absolute and relative to body mass values is the difference in body mass among athletes. Also, de Freitas et al 16 examined female TAF athletes (age 14 years) and showed that throwers were the heaviest, with the most skinfold thickness, the strongest in the shot put and slowest in 60m sprint and 800m run, whereas distance runners had the highest cardiorespiratory fitness. Moreover, Knight et al 17 studied the influence of event specialty (sprinters, distance runners,
de Freitas et al 16 examined female TAF athletes (age 14 years) and showed that throwers were the heaviest, with the most skinfold thickness, the strongest in the shot put and slowest in 60m sprint and 800m run, whereas distance runners had the highest cardiorespiratory fitness. Moreover, Knight et al 17 studied the influence of event specialty (sprinters, distance runners, and throwers), gender, and leg dominance on single-leg static balance (under two conditions: one with eyes open and one with eyes closed) among adolescent TAF athletes. They observed that the displacement of the center of pressure in the lateral-medial direction for both conditions differed between legs, with the non-dominant leg showing larger displacement than the dominant leg; however, no difference was shown among events. In summary, the few studies on the variation of physiological characteristics by event highlighted a distinguished profile for each event, especially between throwers and the rest athletes. In addition to the existence of physiological differences among disciplines, TAF athletes differed from other sports as well as from non-athletes. 18,19 According to Valimaki et al, children 11–13 years, who participated in TAF training, had superior performance in ergometric tests on cycle ergometer than non-trained children. 18 Ballester et al 20 examined the association of externally paced (TAF) and self-paced sports (soccer) with vigilance performance in children (age 11 years) by evaluating the cardiovascular fitness (measured by Leger Multi-stage fitness test) level of athletes and non- athletes. Both TAF and soccer players had better cardiovascular fitness than non-athletes. Soccer players exhibited higher performance in vigilance than TAF athletes and controls. Huang et al 19 compared the physical fitness of TAF, wushu athletes, basketball players and non-athletes aged 12–15 years. They showed that TAF and the other athletes had better fitness than non-athletes. TAF athletes had better cardiorespiratory fitness than the other groups, worst flexibility and balance than wushu athletes, and less agility than basketball players. The jumping ability was a popular topic of research in TAF. 21–23 Moresi et al 21 investigated the reliability of two long jump tasks (standing broad jump – SBJ – and reactive jump)
better fitness than non-athletes. TAF athletes had better cardiorespiratory fitness than the other groups, worst flexibility and balance than wushu athletes, and less agility than basketball players. The jumping ability was a popular topic of research in TAF. 21–23 Moresi et al 21 investigated the reliability of two long jump tasks (standing broad jump – SBJ – and reactive jump) and the possibility to predict 10m sprint time in elite TAF girls. They observed that these tests had good reliability and SBJ was a good predictor of 10m sprint time. Furthermore, Çakir-Atabek 22 examined the relationship between anaerobic power (30s Wingate anaerobic test – WanT – on cycle ergometer) and vertical jump performance in adolescent TAF athletes (age 15.8 years). He observed that SJ and CMJ related with power indices of the WAnT, and the magnitude of these relationships was larger when values were in absolute rather than in relative to body mass. With regard to the trainability of jumping ability, Focke et al 23 studied whether contralateral transfer resulting from a bilateral exercise program may be observed in adolescent TAF athletes. The jumping ability of the dominant leg was evaluated throughout a 12-week exercise program in two experimental groups: group performing long jump exercises with both legs, and a group performing exercises of this sport only with the dominant leg. The authors of that study observed a better result of jumping ability of the dominant leg in bilateral https://doi.org/10.2147/OAJSM.S417612 DovePress Open Access Journal of Sports Medicine 2023:14 60 Nikolaidis and Son’kin DovepressPowered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org) Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)
compared to unilateral exercise program. Consequently, bilateral exercise programs may be adopted in the early training of TAF athletes to enhance jumping ability of the dominant take-off leg. The abovementioned studies 21–23 highlighted the importance of jumping ability in TAF and considered validity and reliability aspects of exercise testing. The type of exercise has been shown as a major determinant of bone parameters, 24 and accordingly, several studies 24–26 focused on the skeletal system of TAF athletes. Greene et al 25 reported that TAF athletes displayed 34% and 15% larger bone strength at the distal and proximal tibia, respectively, compared with non-active controls. Moreover, Agostinete et al 26 compared different sports for bone density in adolescents (age 10–17 years) showed that TAF had lower bone density than gymnastics and soccer, but higher than swimming. Kopiczko et al 24 tested boys aged 14–17 years (TAF, swimmers and non-athletes). They found that independent of birth weight, TAF athletes presented better values in bone parameters, whereas swimmers with normal or low birth weight had less favorable values than non-athletes. The quality and quantity of sleep have been shown to relate with physical and cognitive performance of TAF athletes. Suppiah et al 27 studied the effect of a brief afternoon nap on 20m sprint time in competitive male TAF athletes (age 14.8 years) who were habitually short sleepers. They observed an increase of sprint time from 3.385s to 3.411s suggesting a negative effect of napping due to sleep inertia. Patel et al 28 studied sleep and cognition in TAF athletes (age 15.9 years) and found a total sleep time of 6:18 h:min and total time in bed 8:21 h:min. They noted an association of sleep loss with larger cognitive impairments and decreased academic abilities in the classroom. Steidten et al 29 evaluated overnight immune regulation during three nights in adolescent TAF athletes of both sexes (age 16.4 years). They observed that sleep duration was inversely related to changes in white blood cells and lymphocytes, and concluded that overnight sleep duration was a significant aspect of immunological overnight adjustment for TAF athletes of this age.
in the classroom. Steidten et al 29 evaluated overnight immune regulation during three nights in adolescent TAF athletes of both sexes (age 16.4 years). They observed that sleep duration was inversely related to changes in white blood cells and lymphocytes, and concluded that overnight sleep duration was a significant aspect of immunological overnight adjustment for TAF athletes of this age. Kachenkova et al 30 examined the effect of TAF training on functional system of external respiration in a study where participants (young men) were categorized into three experimental groups (two, four and six training units per week) and a control group consisting of physically inactive men. They observed that the health-improving development of the lung tissue and respiratory muscles such as lung volumes and speed characteristics of breathing was related to training frequency. As the frequency of training sessions increased, the level of respiratory changes increased, so the best scores of all parameters were found in young men exercising six times a week. 30 Nevertheless, regular sport training often affects the functional characteristics of human body not necessarily in a positive way. In the study of Epishev et al 31 on male junior athletes practicing five different sports, including TAF (6–10 years of sports experience), it was shown that during physical activity (performing the physical working capacity at 170 bpm test) and in the recovery period, 50% of participants had alterations in heart rhythm and conduction in the form of incomplete blockade of the right leg of the bundle of His, extrasystole, early repolarization, grade I sinoatrial block, and pacemaker migration. Their analysis of stabilometric data, carried out taking into account the division by sports disciplines, indicated differences between disciplines. Between the data of stabilometry and ECG, correlations of medium strength were revealed. 31 Gudimov et al 32 assessed the functional state of female students of sports science department involved in TAF training compared to non-athletes and observed a similar anthropometric profile. However, functional tests showed differences between TAF athletes and non-athletes, where the Harvard Step Test Index in TAF athletes was higher, breath hold while inhaling was longer and
strength were revealed. 31 Gudimov et al 32 assessed the functional state of female students of sports science department involved in TAF training compared to non-athletes and observed a similar anthropometric profile. However, functional tests showed differences between TAF athletes and non-athletes, where the Harvard Step Test Index in TAF athletes was higher, breath hold while inhaling was longer and heart rate recovery time after 20 squats was shorter in TAF athletes than in non- athletes. These findings highlighted a positive impact of TAF on the functional state of female students. 32 Anthropometry In agreement with research on physiological characteristics that showed a distinguished profile of throwers, studies on anthropometric characteristics also highlighted a similar trend. Thorland et al 33 examined anthropometry in elite young athletes (TAF, gymnastics, diving and wrestling), and noted that the most striking differences in this sample considered throwers, who had taller height, heavier body mass, were fatter, and of unique somatotype compared to other disciplines. With regards, to the variation between TAF events, Housh et al 34 investigated whether anthropometry discriminated elite adolescent male athletes (age 17.7 years) by event (middle distance runners, sprinters/hurdlers, jumpers and throwers). They found that most of the variance between groups was accounted for by differences in anthropometry and body build (somatotype and frame size) between middle distance running and throwing. The anthropometric characteristics were related to physiological characteristics. For instance, Cumming et al 35 investigated calf radiographs provide Open Access Journal of Sports Medicine 2023:14 https://doi.org/10.2147/OAJSM.S417612 DovePress 61 Dovepress Nikolaidis and Son’kinPowered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org) Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)
measurements of bone, muscle, and fat widths in TAF athletes (age 13–16 years) and found that these measurements were correlated with ergometric tests and with performance in some TAF events. Based on a study involving young TAF athletes, it is proposed to take into account the results of anthropometry and psychomotor testing when choosing a narrow specialization in athletics. 36 In particular, young athletes of muscular body type, who have a high reaction rate, can be oriented to sprinting. Athletes with an asthenic body type who have shown high performance in testing the sense of time can be oriented in middle-distance running or stayer and marathon running. The ability to accurately assess and differentiate the spatial and power parameters of movement is a significant indicator when choosing jumping types of athletics and throwing, for which thoracic and digestive somatotypes are most characteristic. 36 The study by Shatunov and Bekmansurov 37 presented an attempt to consider the anthropometric characteristics of young TAF athletes (long jump) when choosing training methods. In terms of the length of body parts, young athletes aged 15–16 were similarly categorized into two groups: one with low indicators of the longitudinal dimensions of the body, jump due to muscle strength (G1), and one with higher indicators of body size, jump due to technical readiness (G2). The control group (G3) trained according to the standard method. G1 adopted mainly training loads of strength and speed-strength character, whereas G2 had loads aiming at improving the jump technique. At the same time, the total amount of training load in all groups was the same. At the end of the 4-month experiment, in G1 and G2, the indices of special physical fitness in the tests “Long jumps from a full run” and “Long jumps from 10 running steps” increased by 5–7%, whereas no change was shown in G3. 37 The study of the formation of gender differences in young athletes at the age of 7–8 years is the subject of the work of Zotova et al 38 37 boys and 20 girls from the Olympic reserve school in Kazan were examined. The
“Long jumps from 10 running steps” increased by 5–7%, whereas no change was shown in G3. 37 The study of the formation of gender differences in young athletes at the age of 7–8 years is the subject of the work of Zotova et al 38 37 boys and 20 girls from the Olympic reserve school in Kazan were examined. The results obtained were compared with population standards, and also between groups of boys and girls. Indices of physical development and performance of the examined children correspond to age norms. The following differences were revealed by sex: boys are ahead of girls in terms of body length and systolic pressure, as well as dexterity, while girls have higher flexibility. Thus, already at such an early age in young athletes, gender features of their physical and functional development are revealed. 38 The body composition of students involved in volleyball and TAF athletics was compared based on the results of anthropometric measurements and bioimpedancemetry. 39 The survey involved boys and girls volleyball players, girls TAF athletes, as well as boys and girls not involved in sports. Volleyball players showed higher indicators of total body water, intra- and extracellular fluid, fat-free, fatty and active cell mass in relation to athletes and the control group. Differences in anthropometric measurements were established depending on the sports specialization of female students. Volleyball players have higher mass, length, mass index and body area, pelvic, hip and wrist circumferences in relation to the results obtained in athletes. Significantly lower values of body mass index, chest and pelvis circumference were recorded in female athletes in comparison with female students from the control group. In young men, there were no differences in anthropometric characteristics. 39 Maturation With regard to maturation aspects, the scientific interest has been focused on sex differences in patterns of development, 40,41 the relative age effect, 42 differences between TAF athletes and non-athletes, 43 comparison between countries 44 and training content. 45,46 Handelsman 40 highlighted the different patterns of development between sexes, since the performance of boys in TAF disciplines starts to outscore that of age-matched girls in
the scientific interest has been focused on sex differences in patterns of development, 40,41 the relative age effect, 42 differences between TAF athletes and non-athletes, 43 comparison between countries 44 and training content. 45,46 Handelsman 40 highlighted the different patterns of development between sexes, since the performance of boys in TAF disciplines starts to outscore that of age-matched girls in the early adolescence. He noticed that the beginning and rate of sex divergence did not differ for TAF (running and jumping) and swimming, and they were related to the increase in circulating testosterone in boys. Furthermore, he concluded that the sex divergence in sport performance starts at the age of 12–13 years and achieves adult plateau in the late teenage years with the timing and tempo closely parallel to the rise in circulating testosterone in boys during puberty. Elsewhere, Malina et al 41 evaluated sex differences in functional performances of youth TAF athletes. They found that boys in both 11–13- and 14–15-years age groups scored higher than girls in four performance tests (grip strength, standing long jump, 2 kg medicine ball throw and 20 m sprint) but differences between girls and boys were larger in age 14–15 years. They interpreted this finding largely to the male adolescent spurt in body dimensions and composition, muscle strength and power. https://doi.org/10.2147/OAJSM.S417612 DovePress Open Access Journal of Sports Medicine 2023:14 62 Nikolaidis and Son’kin DovepressPowered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org) Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)
Description
This review discusses physiological characteristics and training considerations for adolescent TAF athletes.