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This study examined the effects of the Nirvana Fitness (NF) program on state body appreciation (BA) and its correlates, as well as the mechanisms that could explain these changes. The study participants were allocated to NF (n = 21) and functional training (control, n = 22) groups and participated in an 8-week exercise intervention. The mean age was 24.4 ± 6.7. The participants filled out online questionnaires on state measures of BA, body surveillance (BS), functionality appreciation, body–mind connection, mindfulness in physical activity (SMS-PA), intrinsic exercise motivation (IM), satisfaction of basic psychological needs, and perceived physical fitness (PPF) immediately after the first and last sessions. The results revealed a significant improvement in state BA and its correlates in both groups, with no changes in PPF in the NF group or IM in either group. An interaction between group and time effects was revealed in a change of relatedness, indicating a stronger effect in the NF group. Positive changes in SMS-PA, BS, and satisfaction of the need for relatedness significantly predicted improvement in state BA. These findings highlight the importance of targeting mindfulness, body surveillance, and relatedness during physical activity in interventions aimed at promoting positive body image in university-aged women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Exercise is an important intervention used to improve body image. The present non-randomized controlled trial aimed to examine the effects of Nirvana Fitness (NF) and functional training (FT) on body appreciation and its correlates in young women. Methods: Twenty-two students participated in FT, 21 in NF, and 47 in the control (CN) group. The mean age of the study participants was 22.79 ± 6.14 years. The FT and NF groups participated in sessions 2 days per week for 8 weeks, and the CN group did not participate in any sessions. All the participants were evaluated at pre- and post-intervention, filling in the Body Appreciation Scale 2 (BAS-2), Mind-Body Connection from the Physical Activity Body Experiences Questionnaire (PABEQ), Body Surveillance from the Objectified Body Consciousness Scale (OBCS), the Functionality Appreciation Scale (FAS), intrinsic exercise motivation from Behavioral Regulation in Exercise Questionnaire 2 (BREQ-2), and perceived physical fitness. Results: Significant improvements were found in terms of all outcome measures in the FT group, and improvements of body and mind connection and body surveillance in the NF group, while no improvements were observed in the CN group. FT's effect on body appreciation appeared to operate through the improvement of the mind-body connection in the FT and NF groups and via decreased body surveillance in the FT group. Conclusion: These findings support the developmental theory of embodiment and provide initial evidence that professionally delivered FT and NF might be used as effective strategies for the promotion of positive body image in young women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In recent years, new technologies such as the introduction of the smartphone and the tablet in everyday life and habits have often made adolescents sedentary. It is becoming a serious problem in society. It is important to propose, as soon as possible, proper and feasible programs to modify this trend. A solution should be to increase physical activity, reducing sedentary behaviors. Adopting dogs and walking and playing with them could be a solution, and the population should be sensitized about this aspect. Consequently, the objective of this scoping revision of the literature is to analyze the association between physical activity in adolescents and the presence of a dog in the family. Methods: Three electronic databases were screened until 21 February 2024. The detected articles were screened against the eligibility criteria. The results were narratively discussed. Results: After the screening process, a total of four studies were included. The studies presented heterogeneity in the physical activity assessment. This made it hard to synthesize the results. Indicatively, there is a positive association between physical activity and dog ownership. Conclusions: walking and playing with the dog increase the physical activity level of adolescents. Therefore, a sensibilization campaign should highlight the importance of having dogs in families, especially in adolescence. It is fundamental to daily walk and play with them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dual-task (DT) consists of the performance of two tasks simultaneously. An index of DT difficulty has been linked to decreased postural control. Because a wide range of DT is employed, this study aimed to evaluate its effects in static balance in older adults. PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus were screened, and the secondary tasks were grouped as manual, reaction time, discrimination and decision making, mental tracking, verbal fluency, working memory, or "other" tasks. A total of 66 studies have been included. The meta-analysis was conducted on 28 effects and showed a significant mean effect size of d = 0.24 (p =.02, SE = 0.10; confidence interval [0.04, 0.44]), indicating a worsening in stability during DT. In conclusion, postural control was worsened by the Stroop test and the arithmetic tasks improved it. The results do not underpin any conclusive statement on the impact of DT, and a standard operating procedure was created. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is strong scientific evidence that prenatal physical activity of moderate-to-high intensity is a prerequisite of the proper course of pregnancy, childbirth and fetus development. However, to date little data have been available on high intensity interval training (HIIT) performed during pregnancy. Following the PRISMA guidelines, this systematic review aimed at: first, to characterize HIIT protocols used or planned to be implemented during pregnancy; second, to determine their training effects on participant's health and obstetric outcomes. We included nine original works and three clinical trials in the analysis. The HIIT protocols substantially differed in terms of the training components (type, intensity, frequency, duration and progression) and the structure of intervals (intensity and time of workout and recovery intervals). Our most important finding is that performing HIIT during pregnancy is safe in terms of obstetric outcomes and well tolerated by pregnant participants, while providing them with the enjoyment of exercise. HIIT interventions either led to an improvement in selected maternal and fetal health parameters or had no impact. No adverse effects were observed. Pregnant women may benefit from HIIT programs in the same way as other populations. Evidence-based recommendations on prenatal HIIT should be developed and promoted worldwide among pregnant women, exercise and health professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to investigate muscle size satisfaction and predisposition to health harmful muscle gain practice in bodybuilders and recreational gymnasium users and to evaluate its relationship with sport mastery. The sample consisted of 132 men (51 bodybuilders and 81 recreational gymnasium users). The muscle size satisfaction and related variables were evaluated using a 23-item questionnaire (alpha=0.6, test-retest reliability 0.7). The difference between the actual and the desired girths of the widest site of the upper arm and the thigh was determined based on the subjects' reported data. The study showed that the majority of the gymnasium users (61.2%) wanted to gain muscle mass, but the tendency was observed that muscle size dissatisfaction, preoccupation with body shape, obligatory motivation, and obsessive attitude towards exercising depended on the sport mastery - the lower mastery predicted higher values. Entering bodybuilding competitions was associated with a 3.2-time (95% CI 1.14-9) higher muscle size dissatisfaction and a 4.8-fold increase (95% CI 1.4-16) in reported predisposition for health harmful muscle gain practice; however, being a bodybuilder was associated with 5.7-time (95% CI 1.9-17) higher predisposition for a health harmful practice. In conclusion, bodybuilders have lower muscle size satisfaction and significantly higher predisposition to health harmful muscle gain practice as compared to recreational gymnasium users. Our findings service for understanding that competitive bodybuilders are not body image homogeneous group if their sport mastery is ignored.