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The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of daily administration of a supplement that contained caffeine in conjunction with 8 weeks of aerobic training on VO(2)peak, time to running exhaustion at 90% VO(2)peak, body weight, and body composition. Thirty-six college students (14 men and 22 women; mean +/- SD, age 22.4 +/- 2.9 years) volunteered for this investigation and were randomized into either a placebo (n = 18) or supplement group (n = 18). The subjects ingested 1 dose (3 pills = 201 mg of caffeine) of the placebo or supplement per day during the study period. In addition, the subjects performed treadmill running for 45 minutes at 75% of the heart rate at VO(2)peak, three times per week for 8 weeks. All subjects were tested pretraining and posttraining for VO(2)peak, time to running exhaustion (TRE) at 90% VO(2)peak, body weight (BW), percentage body fat (%FAT), fat weight (FW), and fat-free weight (FFW). The results indicated that there were equivalent training-induced increases (p < 0.05) in VO(2)peak and TRE for the supplement and placebo groups, but no changes (p > 0.05) in BW, %FAT, FW, or FFW for either group. These findings indicated that chronic use of the caffeine-containing supplement in the present study, in conjunction with aerobic training, provided no ergogenic effects as measured by VO(2)peak and TRE, and the supplement was of no benefit for altering body weight or body composition.

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the accuracy of near-infrared interactance (NIR) instruments and population-specific NIR equations for estimating percent body fat (% fat) in young wrestlers. Forty-four white male youth wrestlers (mean age +/- SD = 11.0 +/- 2.1 years) volunteered for this study. Thirteen NIR % fat estimates were cross-validated against the criterion % fat from underwater weighing. The results of this study indicated that the total error (TE) values associated with the NIR instrument generated % fat estimates as well as % fat estimates from population-specific NIR equations developed for high school wrestlers or adult men were too large (TE = 5.7-27.3% fat) to be used with young wrestlers. Based on the present findings, it is recommended that new NIR equations be developed and validated specifically for use in young male athletes.

The article presents a study which aims to determine the relative contributions of isokinetic forearm flexion (FLX) and extension (EXT) peak torque (PT), and fat-free mass (FFM) to the prediction of estimated propulsive force (EPF) in young male swimmers. These swimmers were measured for FLX and EXT PT. The results suggest that age-related increases in HT and FFM as well as training for increases in FLX and EXT strength may improve propulsive force and swimming performance.

The article discusses research which was conducted to investigate the age related patterns of differences in height, body mass, per cent body fat, body mass index and skin folds in 11 to 18 year old wrestlers. Researchers evaluated 130 wrestlers. They found that most wrestlers were similar in height but had smaller upper body skin folds when compared to National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) samples and that wrestling had favorable effects on measures of adiposity.

The article discusses research which was conducted to investigate the effects of 28 days of polyethylene glycosylated creatine (PEG-creatine) supplementation (1.25 and 2.50 grams daily) on anaerobic performance measures and body composition. Researchers evaluated the supplementation with 77 adult men. They found that the supplementation at 1.25 or 2.50 grams per day had an ergogenic effect on lower-body vertical power, agility, change-of-direction ability, upper-body muscular endurance and body mass.

This study examined the age-related growth patterns for body build and anthropometric characteristics of wrestlers between 7 and 18 yrs of age. Three hundred and thirty-one male wrestlers (age = 13.5 ± 3.2 yrs; height (HT) = 157.2 ± 17.3 cm; and body mass (BM) = 51.2 ± 16.3 kg) participated in this study. The relationships for age versus body build (somatotype ratings) and anthropometric characteristics (HT, BM, diameters, circumferences, and ratios) were analyzed. Across age, the wrestlers exhibited increases in HT, BM, and body mass index (BMI), maintained a mesomorphic body build, and demonstrated greater rates of increases in upper than lower body anthropometric ratios associated with frame size and fat-free mass. Thus, the findings indicate that the young wrestlers had a unique physique characterized by pronounced muscularity, a triangular upper body frame, and greater rates of development in the upper body segments than in the lower body segments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the results of a study which investigated the age-related changes in the anthropometric measurements of female high school gymnasts. An overview of related previous research is provided, along with details of the experimental protocol, which involved body mass index ratings and skinfold measurements of body fat.

The article presents the results of a study which compared young male and female sprint swimmers in terms of anthropometric sex differences. An overview of related previous research is provided, along with details of the experimental protocol, which involved measurements of body composition and anthropometric variables.

Physical and anthropometric characteristics have been associated with differences between levels of swimming performance, swimming events, training status, gender, and age. It has been suggested that the greater body fatness observed in girl swimmers than boy swimmers could explain the gender differences in performance. Few studies, however, have examined gender differences in the physical and anthropometric characteristics of young swimmers. The purpose of this study was to compare the body composition, body build, and anthropometric characteristics of boy and girl sprint swimmers. Two groups (boys, n = 38 and girls, n = 31) of sprint swimmers (mean age ± SD = 11.03 ± 2.29 and 10.45 ± 2.29, years, respectively) volunteered for this study. The subjects were members of local swimming clubs who competed in sprint swimming events (≤ 200 m). Gender comparisons were made for age, body weight (BW), height (HT), fat-free weight (FFW), percent body fat (%fat), endomorphic rating, mesomorphic rating, ectomorphic rating, sum of 12 diameters, sum of 11circumferences, biacromial diameter/biiliac diameter, and FFW/HT. The results of the independent t-tests indicated that the only mean differences between the boy and girl sprint swimmers were for % fat (boys = 9.40 ± 5.35 % fat; girls = 12.73 ± 6.19 % fat) and endomorphic rating (boys = 2.87 ± 0.96; girls = 4.29 ± 1.22). For the current age group of sprint swimmers, the only gender differences were for measures associated with body fatness and there were no differences for body build measures associated with musculoskeletal size, muscularity, skeletal size, total body mass, or body breadth dimensions. Further studies are needed to examine gender differences in the body composition and body build of distance swimmers, older sprint and distance swimmers, and athletes in sports other than swimming. These findings suggest that gender differences in sprint swimming performance may be reduced through training programs for girls designed to reduce body fatness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]