درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

Background: Water polo (WP) is a sport with great aerobic/ anaerobic physiological demands. There are few studies that have evaluated the physical demands during the WP game and its relationship with the physiological indices of aerobic fitness Aim: Our aim was to determine the aerobic/ anaerobic profiles of the WP athletes through specific test. Materials and Methods: WP male athletes participated in this study (24.5±5.6 years, 85.9±10.3 kg, 183.0±6.3 cm, n=23). The athletes performed an anaerobic WP test (TAnaWP) to determine the height (Alt- cm) of the 1st/ 15th/ 30th jumps, total time(s) of the jumps (TT30) and the fatigue index (FI). Blood lactate kinetics were determined immediately after (Lac0 min) and during the recovery period; Lac 1/ 3/ 5/ 8/ 12 min. They also performed an aerobic water polo test (TAerWP) to determine maximal oxygen consumption (VO 2 max) a heart rate (HRmax), peak blood lactate (Lacp) and the second lactate threshold (LL2). Results: The following results (in cm) were obtained in TAnaWP: Alt1st (44±6), Alt15th (32±7) and Alt30th (24±9); TT30 (56.9±9.5); FI (42.0±12.5%); (Lac0), (Lac1), (Lac3), (Lac5), (Lac8) and (Lac12) (5.2±1.7; 7.8±1.6; 9.0±2.0; 9.4±2.2; 9.2±2.7; 8.5±2.2 mmol/L, respectively). The mean maximal values for the aerobic test were: VO 2 max=44.4±5.3 ml/kg/min, HRmax=174.3±9.1 bpm, Lacp=8.6±2.1 mmol/L. The values obtained at LL2 were: 157.5±13.5 bpm/ 90.5±8.2% HRmax). Conclusion: The proposed tests may be a possibility to determining the physiological fitness of WP athletes.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between gut microbiome composition, athletic performance, and post-exercise recovery in endurance athletes following probiotic supplementation.  Method: In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, 40 male endurance runners (age: 28.3 ± 5.2 years) were randomly assigned to either a probiotic (n=20) or placebo (n=20) group for 8 weeks. The probiotic group received a daily supplement containing a blend of Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium lactis, and Lactobacillus plantarum (20 billion CFU total). Fecal samples were collected before and after the intervention and analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Athletic performance was assessed through VO2max testing and time to exhaustion. Recovery was evaluated by measuring delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) and creatine kinase (CK) levels. Results: The probiotic group showed a significant increase in gut microbial diversity (Shannon index: p<0.01) and relative abundance of beneficial bacteria such as Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus (p<0.001). Significant improvements were observed in VO2max (4.7%, p<0.05) and time to exhaustion (7.2%, p<0.01) in the probiotic group compared to placebo. The probiotic group also demonstrated reduced DOMS (23%, p<0.05) and lower peak CK levels (18%, p<0.01) relative to the placebo group. Multiple regression analysis revealed that changes in Akkermansia muciniphila and Bifidobacterium abundances were significant predictors of performance improvement (R² = 0.68, p<0.001). Conclusion: This study provides evidence that gut microbiome modulation through probiotic supplementation can enhance athletic performance and accelerate post-exercise recovery in endurance runners. These findings suggest that targeted manipulation of the gut microbiome may be a novel strategy for improving sports performance and recovery.