Dr Luke Del Vecchio

Introduction: Cardiorespiratory fitness is a key determinant of morbidity, mortality, and functional independence in older adults. Direct measurement of maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) through cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) is resource intensive and often inacc in community-based exercise physiology practice. Emerging nonexercise technologies such as the VentriJect Seismofit® (VS) offer a practical alternative, yet evidence of its accuracy and reliability in older adults and walking modalities is limited.
Methods: Thirty community-dwelling adults (53–69 years) completed the Adult Pre-Exercise Screening System questionnaire and underwent a submaximal graded treadmill test (Bruce protocol; terminated at 85% age-predicted maximal heart rate or rating of perceived exertion of 15). VO2max was estimated using the VS device in duplicate for reliability. Predicted VO2max was compared against treadmill-derived metabolic equivalents (METs) using Pearson correlation and linear regression.
Results: VS-estimated VO2max was significantly correlated with Bruce treadmill performance (r = 0.45, P = .012), explaining 20% of the variance. The regression slope indicated a 0.21 MET increase per 1 mL·kg−1·min−1 VO2max. Participants were distributed across stages 2–4 METs, linking to activities of daily living from brisk walking to jogging. Test-retest reliability of VS estimates was excellent (r = 0.98).
Conclusions: VS-derived VO2max estimates show promise as a practical tool for predicting functional capacity in middle-aged and older adults. With further validation, non-exercise assessment may enable exercise physiologists to streamline functional evaluation and tailor activity counselling in settings with limited access to CPET.

Background: Accurate assessment of body composition beyond BMI is necessary in clinical care. Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) and 3D scanning (3DS) are practical two-compartment (2C) methods estimating % body fat (%BF), fat mass (FM), and fat-free mass (FFM). Precision and validity are essential components of all body composition devices, yet BIA and 3DS have rarely been compared simultaneously against a reference method.
Objectives: To evaluate the precision of BIA and 3DS and their validity versus dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA).
Methods: Forty-four healthy women (40–65 y) underwent body composition assessment by DXA, BIA, and 3DS. Outcomes were whole-body 2C estimates for all devices and regional estimates for DXA and BIA. Precision was derived from duplicate measures; validity was assessed using Bland-Altman analyses between devices.
Results: Precision error (%CV) for %BF, FM, FFM was: DXA 1.17, 1.14, 0.72; BIA 1.25, 1.26, 0.57; 3DS 2.78, 2.76, 1.08. All met preset acceptability limits (%BF 2%, FM 3%, FFM 2%) except 3DS %BF. Bland–Altman analyses showed poor individual-level agreement across devices. Despite only minor biases between devices in some cases, there were wide limits of agreement that crossed zero, had proportional bias, or a combination of the two.
Conclusion: BIA and 3DS exhibited acceptable precision for most whole-body 2C outcomes, yet measurements were not interchangeable with DXA at the individual level. These findings caution against applying cross-device normative data or clinical cut-points and underscore the limitations of substituting BIA or 3DS for DXA in general practice.

Kicking strikes are fundamental in combat sports such as Taekwondo, karate, kickboxing, Muay Thai, and mixed martial arts. This review aimed to explore the measurement methods, kine-matics such as velocities, kinetics such as impact force, determinants, and injury potential of kicking strikes in combat sports. Searches of Academic Search Premier, The Allied and Complementary Medicine Database, CINAHL Plus, MEDLINE, SPORTDiscus, Scopus, and Web of Science databases were conducted for studies that measured kicking velocity and impact force. A total of 88 studies were included in the review. Studies most frequently involved only male participants (49%) aged between 18 and 30 years of age (68%). Studies measuring velocity predominantly implemented camera-based motion capture systems (96%), whereas studies measuring impact force displayed considerable heterogeneity in their measurement methods. Five primary strikes were identified for which foot velocities ranged from 5.2 to 18.3 m/s and mean impact force ranged from 122.6 to 9015 N. Among the techniques analysed, the roundhouse kick exhibited the highest kicking velocity at 18.3 m/s, whilst the side kick produced the highest impact force at 9015 N. Diverse investigation methodologies contributed to a wide value range for kicking velocities and impact forces being reported, making direct comparisons difficult. Kicking strikes can be categorised into throw-style or push-style kicks, which modulate impact through different mechanisms. Kicking velocity and impact force are determined by several factors, including technical proficiency, lower body strength and flexibility, effective mass, and target factors. The impact force generated by kicking strikes is sufficient to cause injury, including fracture. Protective equipment can partially attenuate these forces, although more research is required in this area. Athletes and coaches are advised to carefully consider the properties and potential limitations of measurement devices used to assess impact force.

Purpose: This pre-post intervention study aimed to examine the effects of a 12-week supervised modified Taekwondo exercise program on the functional fitness of community-dwelling older adults.

Methods: 10 participants (mean age: 72.3 ± 4.6 years) completed the program over a 12-week period. The intervention consisted of Taekwondo-based exercises modified for older persons. Changes to functional fitness were measured using the finger-to-nose test, functional reach test, timed up and go test, 30-second sit-to-stand test, 30-second arm curl test, Chester step test, chair sit-and-reach test, and back scratch test. Participants were assessed prior to the training and after the final training session, changes were measured using descriptive statistics and paired sample ‘t’ tests.

Results: Effect sizes ranged from small to large (Cohen's d = .22 to 1.23). The exercise program was well- tolerated by participants, with a high level of engagement and no attrition for the duration of the program. Results showed significant improvements in most measures of functional fitness (p < .05) except for the back scratch test (p = .051).

Conclusion: These findings suggest a well-designed, supervised, modified Taekwondo exercise program can significantly improve functional fitness in older adults.

Accredited exercise physiologists are higher education qualified health professionals who prescribe exercise as a preventative and treatment modality for individuals diagnosed with chronic conditions. Reflective practice is integral to the exercise physiology discipline, however its integration into curriculum requires further development and research. Utilising clinically based scenarios, final year students (N = 21), participated in a three-week reflective learning experience using the 6 step SPROUT acronym, represented as Situation, Past experiences, Read and refer, Other influences, Understanding and Taking it forward. Students completed the Reflection in Learning Scale (RLS) and responded to questions about confidence. Reflective scripts were reviewed, and clinical supervisors were interviewed. For the RLS, students scored higher on planning, knowledge integration and mental processing and lower for topic interactions, mindful summarising and coping with negative feelings. Students (75%) indicated that they were mostly or very confident in the use of reflective practice. Qualitative responses showed that using SPROUT did reinforce clinical learning. Time constraints and the separateness of higher education from the ‘real world’ were also points of view. Analysis of student scripts revealed a range of developing reflective ability. Supervisors focused on the importance of reflective practice and the contribution, that SPROUT had made to the overall experience.

Functional fitness represents the physical capacity needed to perform activities of daily living, independently without undue fatigue, deteriorates with age. Taekwondo is a traditional form of martial arts training that has shown several positive effects on fitness in younger adults. However, a paucity of research has investigated the impact of modified Taekwondo training in older adults. Therefore, this study aimed to implement a modified Taekwondo program for older adults over the age of 60 and determine its impact on functional fitness. Fifteen participants from a Taekwondo exercise class (average age: 72.7 years) and 10 non-exercising controls (average age: 73.8 years) participated. Functional fitness for all participants was pre-tested and post-tested using the following measures: = finger to nose test (FTNT) = timed single-leg stance (TSLS), timed up and go (TUG) = 30-second sit to stand test (30S2ST), 30-second arm curl test (ACT), two-minute step in place (2SIPT), chair sit and reach test (CSRT), back scratch test (BST). No significant differences were found between pre-test and post-test measures for both groups. Effect sizes showed that the intervention had a small effect on hand-eye coordination, timed single-leg balance, upper limb strength, aerobic fitness, and lower limb flexibility. Despite no functional effect, six weeks of modified Taekwondo training still reached improvements in balance, aerobic fitness, and lower limb flexibility.
La condition physique fonctionnelle se détériore avec l’âge, ce qui a des effets néfastes sur la santé et l’autonomie. Le taekwondo est une forme traditionnelle d’entraînement aux arts martiaux qui a montré plusieurs effets positifs sur la condition physique chez les jeunes adultes. Cependant, peu de recherches ont étudié l’impact d’un entraînement modifié au taekwondo chez les personnes âgées. Par conséquent, cette étude visait à mettre en œuvre un programme de taekwondo modifié pour les personnes âgées de plus de 60 ans et à déterminer son impact sur la condition physique fonctionnelle. Quinze participants d’un cours de taekwondo (âge moyen : 72,7 ans) et dix témoins non pratiquants (âge moyen : 73,8 ans) ont participé. L’aptitude fonctionnelle de tous les participants a été pré-testée et post-testée à l’aide des mesures suivantes: = test doigt-nez (FTNT = position chronométrée sur une jambe (TSLS), chronométré et partez (TUG) = test assis-debout de 30 secondes), test de flexion des bras de 30 secondes (ACT), pas en place de deux minutes (2SIPT), test d’assise et d’atteinte de la chaise (CSRT), test de rayure du dos (BST). L’analyse de la variance pour un design mixte a été utilisée pour évaluer les différences au niveau de signification de 0,05. Aucune différence significative n’a été trouvée entre les mesures pré-test et post-test pour les deux groupes. La taille de l’effet a montré que l’intervention avait un faible effet sur la coordination œil-main, l’équilibre chronométré d’une jambe, la force des membres supérieurs. Malgré des améliorations encourageantes de l’équilibre, de la capacité aérobie et de la flexibilité des membres inférieurs, six semaines d’entraînement de taekwondo modifié n’ont pas amélioré de manière significative les mesures de condition physique fonctionnelle chez les personnes âgées vivant dans la communauté.