Objectives
Dietary compensation for energy expenditure is one hypothesis for why many individuals struggle to maintain a healthy body weight. The objective of this investigation was to assess the relationship between the amount of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and dietary intake of college students within corresponding 24-hour periods.
Methods
College students enrolled in a personal health and fitness class were recruited to participate in this study. As part of the course, all students completed a 7 day food journal and were concurrently assigned to wear a Polar Active fitness tracker with a tracker wear time of 24 hours per day. Physical activity data was collected from consenting participants and served as the independent variable. Dietary intake including but not limited to total kilocalories (kcals), carbohydrate (CHO), protein, fat, and selected micronutrients were also collected. Pearson correlations were assessed using SPSS between physical activity and dietary variables. Further, amount of daily MVPA was divided into <30 minutes, 30–60 minutes, and > 60 minutes per recorded day. ANOVA was utilized to compare dietary means of various activity levels.
Results
A total of 110 students participated in this study with 50% female, 45% male, 5% that did not answer, mean age of 21.3 (±1.7) and BMI 24.7 (±3.7). A weak but positive correlation was identified between total minutes of MVPA and total kcal intake (r = 0.124, P = 0.007). The total intake of fat (g) (r = 0.16, P < 0.001), saturated fat (g) (r = 0.11, P = 0.01), CHO (g) (r = 0.17, P < 0.001), protein (g) (r = 0.10, P = 0.03), and added sugar (r = 0.09, P = 0.04) increased with greater time spent in MVPA. No relationship was detected for fiber intake. When participants were separated into physical activity categories, those in the lowest category consumed more trans-fat than both the middle and high category (P = 0.003).
Conclusions
College students in this study tended to increase their overall intake as physical activity increased. The lack of relationship between physical activity and fiber intake in combination with the positive relationship detected with added sugar suggests that the quality of carbohydrate may decrease as students perform more physical activity.
Funding Sources
None to report.
Rugby Union is a physically demanding sport requiring a variety of anthropometric and physiological characteristics to maximize performance. Factors such as muscular power, speed, agility, maximal aerobic power, mobility, and body composition all factor into player performance. PURPOSE: To determine changes in body composition, anthropometric and physiological characteristics of collegiate rugby union players throughout a competitive season. METHODS: Participants included 37 (20.3 ± 1.5 years) men from a collegiate rugby club. Muscular power (vertical jump), speed (10m and 20m sprint), agility (L-drill), mobility (FMS active straight leg raise and shoulder mobility) maximal aerobic power (VO2 peak via 20m multistage shuttle run SR), height, body mass, fat mass (ADP), fat-free mass (ADP), and body fat levels (ADP and sum of 7 skinfolds (SKBF%)) were assessed during the pre-season (PRE), midseason (MID), and post-season (POST). Training and match loads were estimated for each player by multiplying each player's rating of perceived of exertion (RPE: 6-20) by the amount of training/playing time. RESULTS: PRE, MID, and POST variables were compared using a repeated measures ANOVA (p < .05). Paired-Samples T-Tests were used for post-hoc analysis to determine when the significant changes occurred (p < .017). THROUGHOUT A SEASON
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