Purpose: This study examined the effect of whey protein consumption following high-intensity interval swimming (HIIS) on muscle damage, inflammatory cytokines and performance in adolescent swimmers. Methods: Fifty-four swimmers (11–17 years-old) were stratified by age, sex and body mass to a whey protein (PRO), isoenergetic carbohydrate (CHO) or a water/placebo (H2O) group. Following baseline blood samples (06:00 h) and a standardised breakfast, participants performed a maximal 200 m swim, followed by HIIS. A total of two post-exercise boluses were consumed following HIIS and ~5 h post-baseline. Blood and 200 m performance measurements were repeated at 5 h, 8 h and 24 h from baseline. Muscle soreness was assessed at 24 h. Creatine kinase (CK), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-10 (IL-10) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) were measured in plasma. Results: No difference in 200 m swim performance was observed between groups. CK activity was elevated at 5 h compared to baseline and 24 h and at 8 h compared to all other timepoints, with no differences between groups. Muscle soreness was lower in PRO compared to H2O (p = 0.04). Anti-inflammatory IL-10 increased at 8 h in PRO, while it decreased in CHO and H2O. Conclusions: Post-exercise consumption of whey protein appears to have no additional benefit on recovery indices following HIIS compared to isoenergetic amounts of carbohydrate in adolescent swimmers. However, it may assist with the acute-inflammatory response.

This study compared salivary and serum concentrations of testosterone and cortisol at rest and in response to intense multitask exercise in boys and men. Early morning saliva and venous blood samples were obtained before and 15 minutes after exercise from 30 competitive swimmers (15 boys, age 14.3 [1.9] y; 15 men, age 21.7 [3.1] y). Exercise included a swim-bench maximal strength task and an all-out 200-m swim, followed by a high-intensity interval swimming protocol (5 × 100 m, 5 × 50 m, and 5 × 25 m). At baseline, fasting testosterone (but not cortisol) concentration was higher in men than boys in serum and saliva (P < .05). Salivary and serum cortisol increased postexercise, with a greater increase in men compared with boys (men: 226% and 242%; boys: 78% and 64%, respectively; group by time interaction, P < .05). Testosterone was reduced postexercise in serum but not in saliva (men: −14.7% and 0.1%; boys: −33.9% and −4.5%, respectively, fluid by time interaction, P < .01). Serum and salivary cortisol (but not testosterone), preexercise and postexercise values were strongly correlated in both men and boys (r = .79 and .82, respectively; P < .01). In summary, early morning high-intensity exercise results in a decrease in testosterone in serum, but not saliva, and an increase in cortisol irrespective of the fluid used, in both boys and men. When examining immediate postexercise changes, the lack of correlation in testosterone between saliva and serum suggests that saliva may not be an appropriate fluid to examine changes in testosterone. The high correlation observed between serum and saliva for cortisol indicates that, in both boys and men, saliva may be used to monitor the immediate cortisol response to exercise.

Objective Fear of falling (FOF) contributes to activity restriction and institutionalization among older adults, and exercise interventions are linked to reduction in FOF. Adhering to exercise principles and adapting optimal exercise parameters are fundamental to optimizing the effectiveness of exercise interventions. The purpose of this review was to describe FOF exercise interventions in community-dwelling older adults, evaluate the extent to which these interventions followed the exercise principles and reported exercise parameters, and quantify the effect of these interventions on reducing FOF. Methods Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of FOF exercise interventions in older adults (≥65 years) were identified from 4 databases. The methodological quality of RCTs was assessed using the PEDro scale. A random-effect model was used in the meta-analysis. Results Seventy-five RCTs were included in this review. With regard to reporting exercise principles, specificity was reported in 92% of trials, progression in 72%, reversibility in 32%, overload in 31%, diminished return in 21%, and initial value in 8%. For exercise parameters, 97% of RCTs reported exercise type; 89%, frequency; and 85%, time. Only 25% reported the intensity. The pooled effect of exercise interventions on FOF among all included studies was a standard mean difference of −0.34 (95% CI = 0.44 to 0.23). Conclusions This study showed a significant small-to-moderate effect size of exercise interventions in reducing FOF among community-dwelling older adults. Most exercise principles and intensity of exercises were not adequately reported in included trials. Impact These inadequate reports could undermine efforts to examine the optimal dosage for exercise prescription. More attention must be given to designing and reporting components of therapeutic exercise programs to facilitate evidence-based practice.

Background Research has demonstrated an increased risk of falls after total hip arthroplasty (THA). Yet, people’s knowledge on falls risk factors and how falls prevention strategies are being used after THA have not been examined. If a person’s knowledge of falls and self-efficacy about falls prevention strategies is low this would indicate a pressing need for interventions to lessen risk. The study objectives were: 1) to determine the falls knowledge and what fall prevention strategies people used after (THA) and 2) to determine the outcomes of a falls risk assessment at 12-months after unilateral THA. Methods Overall, 108 people completed the Falls Risk for Older People – Community Setting (FROP-Com) scale, a falls questionnaire (covered occurrence of falls, knowledge on falls risk factors, falls prevention strategies implemented after THA surgery), 6-m Walk Test (6mWT), 30-Second Chair Stand Test (30CST), Timed-up and Go (TUG) Test, and Activities-specific Balance Confidence Scale (ABC). Results Twenty-five (23.2%) people fell at least once in the 12 months after THA. Scores on the FROP-Com ranged from 2–20 with an average of 8.2 ± 3.6 indicating a mild falls risk. The importance of falling compared to other health concerns was rated as moderate to high (6.8 ± 2.9) and the majority of participants (n = 98, 90.7%) believed falls can be prevented after THA. Total scores on the ABC scale ranged from 30.6% to 100.0% with an average score of 84.4 ± 15.5%, indicating high function. Only 47 people (43.5%) reported receiving falls prevention education. A total of 101 falls prevention strategies were completed by 67 people (62%), the most common strategy was environmental modifications (e.g., installation of grab bars) at 37.4%, while exercise was mentioned by only 2%. The majority of people had functional deficits in 30CST (62%) and TUG (76.9%) at 12-months after unilateral THA. Conclusions Almost a quarter of the sample had experienced a fall in the 12-months after THA and functional deficits were common. The majority of the sample had proactively implemented falls prevention strategies after the surgery. Yet importantly, people after THA had limited exposure to falls prevention education and implemented a limited range of prevention strategies.

The authors of “Effects of Post-Exercise Whey Protein Consumption on Recovery Indices in Adolescent Swimmers” report an error in Table 1 of their article [...]