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- Can physical exercise modify intestinal integrity and gut microbiota composition? A systematic review of in vivo studiesPublication . Pereira, Stephanie Michelin Santana; São José, Vinicius Parzanini Brilhante de; Silva, Alessandra da; Martins, Karina Vitoria Cipriana; Leite , Luciano Bernardes; Forte, Pedro; Natali, Antônio José; Martino, Hércia Stampini Duarte; Lucia, Ceres Mattos Della; Bressan, JosefinaThere is little evidence about how physical exercise affects the gut microbiota since studies in the field are relatively recent. Thus, we aimed to systematically review the main effects of regular physical exercise on the intestinal integrity and microbiota composition in animal models, discuss the mechanisms involved, and indicate future directions. Searches for original articles were performed in PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase. A total of 18 studies were selected. These studies suggest that physical exercise has a significant impact on the gut microbiota. Voluntary running increased the thickness of duodenal villi and microbiota diversity but reduced its richness. Low-intensity treadmill running increased the abundance of the phylum Actinobacteria and the family Bifidobacteriaceae, while that of moderate-intensity reduced the Bacteroides/Prevotella ratio. High-intensity swimming and treadmill running altered the gut microbiota, evidenced by beta-diversity, and increased the Shannon and Chao indices but reduced short-chain fatty acids. Resistance exercise increased the Chao index and altered the functionality of the gut microbiota, increasing carbohydrate metabolism and reducing lipid and amino acid metabolism. Thus, regular physical exercise of different intensities and types can modify the gut microbiota, and the exercise benefits appear to be positively associated with training intensity.
- Long-term effects of multicomponent training on body composition and physical fitness in breast cancer survivors: a controlled studyPublication . Encarnação, Samuel; Schneider, André; Encarnação, Roberto Gonçalves; Leite , Luciano Bernardes; Forte, Pedro; Fernandes, Hélder; Monteiro, António M.Multicomponent training is suggested as an efficient way to address the side effects of long-term treatment in breast cancer survivors and reduce the age-related relapse risk in these patients. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of a multicomponent training intervention on breast cancer survivors’ physical fitness and body composition. This experimental and controlled study included 19 breast cancer survivors with 64.0 ± 8.6 years, to evaluate long-term effects (32 weeks) of multicomponent training on body composition [body weight (kg), body mass index, body fat (%), lean mass (kg), body water (%), basal metabolism (Kcal) and visceral fat (index)] and physical fitness [Upper limb strength (repetitions), lower limb strength (repetitions), upper limb flexibility (cm), lower limb flexibility (cm), dynamic balance (seconds), and aerobic fitness (repetitions)]. Bayesian statistical tests were employed to analyze the reduced dataset size, considering a Bayes factor ≥ 10 as the cutoff for significant differences. Hierarchical clustering identified participant improvements using Manhattan distance, and clusters were ranked by responsiveness. After 32 weeks, the experimental group showed significant reductions in body weight (Δ = − 1.67 kg; BF = 15.15; Cohen’s d = 0.19) and body fat percentage (Δ = − 3.99%; BF = 34.87; Cohen’s d = 0.73), while no relevant changes were observed in the control group. Improvements were also observed in upper limb strength (Δ = + 14.14 reps; BF = 1022.02; Cohen’s d = 3.45), strength in the surgically affected arm (Δ = + 13.57 reps; BF = 121.39; Cohen’s d = 2.37), lower limb strength (Δ = + 7.86 reps; BF = 206.55; Cohen’s d = 2.24), and aerobic fitness (Δ = + 97.57 reps; BF = 157.28; Cohen’s d = 0.10). Flexibility and dynamic balance also improved, with moderate to large effect sizes. The multicomponent physical exercise program effectively improved all physical fitness variables but was limited in body composition, exposing improvements only in body weight and % body fat. The intervention did not cause any side effects or injury to the participants
- Case Report: Case study of 100 consecutive IRONMAN®-distance triathlons—impact of race splits and sleep on the performance of an elite athletePublication . Knechtle, Beat; Leite , Luciano Bernardes; Forte, Pedro; Andrade, Marilia Santos; Cuk, Ivan; Nikolaidis, Pantelis Theo; Scheer, Volker; Weiss, Katja; Rosemann, ThomasLong-distance triathletes such as IRONMAN (R) and ultra-triathletes competing in longer race distances continue to extend ultra-endurance limits. While the performance of 60 IRONMAN (R)-distance triathlons in 60 days was the longest described to date, we analysed in the present case study the impact of split disciplines and recovery in one athlete completing 100 IRONMAN (R)-distance triathlons in 100 days. To date, this is the longest self-paced world record attempt for most daily IRONMAN (R)-distance triathlons.To assess the influence of each activity's duration on the total time, the cross-correlation function was calculated for swimming, cycling, running, and sleeping times. The autocorrelation function, which measures the correlation of a time series with itself at different lags, was also employed using NumPy.The moving average for swimming slightly increased in the middle of the period, stabilizing at similar to 1.43 h. Cycling displayed notable fluctuations between similar to 5.5 and 7h, with a downward trend toward the end. The moving average for running remains high, between 5.8 and 7.2 h, showing consistency over the 100 days. The moving average for total time hovered at similar to 15 h, with peaks at the beginning, and slightly declined in the final days. The cross-correlation between swimming time and total time showed relatively low values. Cycling demonstrated a stronger correlation with total time. Running also exhibited a high correlation with total time. The cross-correlation between sleep time and swimming time presented low values. In cycling, the correlation was stronger. For running, a moderate correlation was observed. The correlation with total time was also high. The autocorrelation for swimming showed high values at short lags with a gradual decrease over time. For cycling, the autocorrelation also began strong, decreasing moderately as lags increased. Running displayed high autocorrelation at short lags, indicating a daily dependency in performance, with a gradual decay over time. The total time autocorrelation was high and remained relatively elevated with increasing lags, showing consistent dependency on cumulative efforts across all activities. In a triathlete completing 100 IRONMAN (R)-distance triathlons in 100 days, cycling and running split times have a higher influence on overall times than swimming. Swimming performance is not influenced by sleep quality, whereas cycling performance is. Swimming times slowed faster over days than cycling and running times. Any athlete intending to break this record should focus on cycling and running training in the pre-event preparation.
- Sex-specific differences in performance and pacing in the world’s longest triathlon in historyPublication . Knechtle, Beat; Leite , Luciano Bernardes; Forte, Pedro; Andrade, Marilia Santos; Nikolaidis, Pantelis Theo; Scheer, Volker; Duric, Sasa; Cuk, Ivan; Rosemann, ThomasSex differences in performance and pacing in triathlon have been studied for IRONMAN triathlons (3.8 km swimming, 180 km cycling and 42.195 km of running) and ultra-triathlons (i.e. Double-, Triple-, Quintuple- and Deca Iron ultra-triathlons) corresponding to 2x, 3x, 5x and 10x the IRONMAN triathlon distance. However, no study has to date investigated the sex difference in performance and pacing in the longest triathlon held in history, the Triple Deca Iron ultra-triathlon covering 114 km of swimming, 5,400 km of cycling and 1,266 km of running. A total of 14 triathletes (10 men and four women) competed in the 2024 Triple Deca Ultra Triathlon in Desenzano del Garda, with four men and three women officially finishing the race within the time limit. The data were analyzed to investigate performance differences across disciplines (i.e. swimming, cycling, and running), pacing strategies and sex differences. Variability was assessed using each discipline's coefficient of variation (CV). The relation-ships between CV and overall rankings were examined using linear regression analysis. Men were faster in swimming (12.4%), cycling (24.8%) and running (8.5%). Cycling showed the greatest pacing variability, while running exhibited steadier pacing, with more consistent athletes performing better overall, reflecting the unique endurance challenges of this segment. Overall, men were faster than women in all split disciplines, with the highest sex difference in cycling and the smallest in running. The analysis revealed significant differences in both cycling and running times among athletes. The variability in cycling times indicates diverse pacing strategies and endurance levels, while the running times further highlight the individual performance dynamics of the athletes. The results illustrate how variability in pacing affects cumulative performance and final rankings.