Tag Archives: athletes

UCLA Study First to Image Concussion-Related Abnormal Brain Proteins in Retired NFL Players

Technique may lead to earlier diagnosis, tracking of brain disorders in athletes

Sports-related concussions and mild traumatic brain injuries have grabbed headlines in recent months, as the long-term damage they can cause becomes increasingly evident among both current and former athletes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that millions of these injuries occur each year.

Despite the devastating consequences of traumatic brain injury and the large number of athletes playing contact sports who are at risk, no method has been developed for early detection or tracking of the brain pathology associated with these injuries. (more…)

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‘Weakest Links’ Show Greatest Gains in Relay Races

EAST LANSING, Mich. — The inferior members of swimming or running relay teams – those athletes who fared poorest in individual races – showed the greatest gains when performing as part of a team, and those gains were even greater during final races as opposed to preliminary races.

The new research from Michigan State University’s Deborah Feltz and Kaitlynn Osborn provides some of the first real-world support for the Köhler motivation effect, which describes how less capable individuals perform better when performing a task with others as opposed to individually. (more…)

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‘Runner’s High’ Played a Role in Human Evolution

Aerobic exercise triggers a reward system in the body of long-distance running creatures like humans and dogs, but not ferrets, a study led by UA anthropologist David Raichlen suggests.

In the last century, something unexpected happened: Humans became sedentary. We traded in our active lifestyles for a more immobile existence.

But these were not the conditions under which we evolved – our hunter-gatherer predecessors were long-distance endurance athletes. (more…)

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Research Reveals New Secret Weapon For Le Tour

Winning margins in the Tour de France can be tight. In 2010 just 39 seconds separated the top two after more than 90 hours in the saddle. When every second counts, riders do all they can to gain competitive advantage, from aerodynamic carbon fibre bikes to the latest sports nutrition.

Now there could be a new, completely legal and rather surprising weapon for riders aiming to shave vital seconds off their time – beetroot juice. (more…)

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