Research Center in Sports Sciences, Health and Human Development

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Publications

Underwater Struggles: An Approach to Depression, Anxiety, and Burnout in Swimmers

Publication . Pinto, Mafalda P.; Costa-Machado, Renato; Neiva, Henrique P.; Morais, J.E.

Competitive swimming, often seen as a rigorous sport, has profound impacts in the physical well-being of athletes and on their mental health. It demands high levels of dedication and resilience, which can sometimes lead to psychological challenges such as depression, anxiety, and burnout. This brief review aims to resume on a solid basis the impact of depression, anxiety, and burnout in swimmers. Five studies were analysed. The research sentence was defined ((depression OR anxiety OR burnout) AND (swimmers OR swimming OR swim)) and the search was done considering only title and abstract and publication dates from the past six years. Time of day and sleep quality significantly affect adolescent swimmers' performance, anxiety, and depression, varying by trial distance and sex. Broad, data-driven research is needed to differentiate healthy engagement from maladaptive specialization. Aquatic exercises show mental health benefits, requiring clinician support, confidence, and safety, with seasonal limitations. Moreover, coaches should consider athletes' circadian typology and sleep quality for optimal performance. There is a lack of information regarding mental health in competitor swimmers. Future studies must refine intervention strategies, assess sustainability, and address heterogeneity in findings, as comprehensive, nuanced empirical evidence remains crucial. Apart from the competitive athletes, aquatic exercises appear to benefit mental health, but require clinician support, confidence, and safety considerations. Time of day and sleep quality impact adolescent swimmers' performance and mental health, differing by trial distance and sex. There is a need for information to truly understand the difference between healthy engagement and maladaptive specialization.

2024Conference object

Open access

Comparison of the Active Drag and Passive Drag Coefficients at the same Swimming Speed Through Experimental Methods

Publication . Lopes, Tiago J.; Pinto, Mafalda P.; Oliveira, João P.; Marinho, Daniel A.; Morais, J. E.; Sampaio, Tatiana

Studies about drag in swimming usually report or put the focus on its absolute value. However, it is being claimed that the drag coefficient better represents the hydrodynamic profile of a swimmer. Drag is strongly dependent on speed. Thus, increases in speed will lead to increases in drag. This could lead to misleading interpretations since drag is the water resistance that makes the swimmers’ displacement difficult. Conversely, the drag coefficient is less dependent on speed, which can be seen as a more appropriate measure of the swimmers’ hydrodynamic profile. This study used a complete experimental methodology (experimental and cross-sectional study) to determine the resistive forces in crawl swimming at the same speed (i.e., 1.00, 1.05, 1.10 m/s, etc.). In 10 proficient non-competitive adult swimmers (seven men and three women), the drag coefficient (CD ) was compared and the difference between using the technical drag index (TDI) with drag (D, passive or active) or with its respective CD 's. Measurements of active drag (DA ), passive drag (DP ) and CD (CDA and CDP ) were carried out. The TDI was calculated as a measure of swimming efficiency and the frontal surface area (FSA) obtained in active conditions. The active FSA was 20.73 ± 5.56% greater than the passive FSA (large effect size), the propulsion was 58.29 ± 69.61% greater than drag and CDA was 24.60 ± 46.55% greater than CDP (moderate effect size). TDI was significantly lower, but with a small effect size when measured with CD values compared to drag. TDID vs TDICD revealed strong agreement (> 80% of plots were within IC95). This study concludes that proficient swimmers presented a CDA greater than the CDP, but with strong agreement between them, probably due to FSA during active conditions. CD data appears to be a more absolute indicator of drag than TDI.

2025Journal article

Open access

Characterization and Comparison of Athletic Performance and Change of Direction Deficit Across Youth Futsal Age Groups

Publication . Oliveira, João P.; Marinho, Daniel A.; Sampaio, Tatiana; Carvalho, Sílvio; Martins, Hugo; Morais, J. E.

Futsal players need peak strength, functional capacity, speed, and explosive lower-limb power for optimal performance. The aim of this study was to (i) characterize and compare anthropometric characteristics, lower limb strength/power, dynamic balance, linear sprint speed, COD performance, and COD deficit across young futsal age groups and (ii) identify key predictors of COD deficit. Methods: Thirty-three male futsal players from three age groups (U13, U15, and U17) were tested. Results: All anthropometric variables showed significant group effects with moderate to strong effect sizes, where U17 presented the largest values, followed by U15 and U13. Strength and power variables presented the same trend. The dynamic balance differed significantly across groups. Significant differences between groups with moderate effect sizes were noted in linear sprints (F = 19.54, p < 0.001, η2 = 0.57), zigzag (F = 19.54, p = 0.002, η2 = 0.35), and COD deficit (F = 19.54, p < 0.001, η2 = 0.46). Post hoc tests revealed that U13 and U15 outperformed U17 in the COD deficit (p < 0.002). The COD deficit showed a quadratic relationship with age, initially improving but later declining in older players (p < 0.001). The body mass and the posteromedial relative difference predicted the COD deficit, with the coefficient of determination (R2) explaining 39% of the COD variance. Conclusions: Coaches and practitioners should utilize COD drills to target various movement patterns and account for pubertal timing, as growth can impact performance

2025Journal article

Open access

Hierarchical clustering of the pre-exam anxiety levels in physically inactive and active adolescent students from 56 countries: an observational study using PISA program data

Publication . Encarnação, Samuel; Teixeira, José Eduardo; Forte, Pedro; Leite, Luciano Bernardes; Sortwell, Andrew; Branquinho, Luís; Ferraz, Ricardo; Afonso, Pedro; Vaz, Paula Marisa Fortunato; Monteiro, António M.

The relationship between physical activity and anxiety among students has been extensively studied, with research highlighting the protective effects of physical activity on mental well-being. Methods: This article synthesizes existing literature on the topic and presents a novel analysis of pre-exam anxiety rates among physically inactive high school students from 56 countries. Using data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2018, a hierarchical clustering method was applied to identify four clusters based on strati ed country groups by the students pre-exam anxiety levels. Results: The results indicated ve clusters for low physically active students (three with higher anxiety rates and two with lower levels of the condition) and four clusters for the low physically active individuals (two for higher anxiety rates and two for lower levels). Furthermore, the hierarchical model worked with good precision in the clustering task. In conclusion, considering the low physically active students, Brazil (82%) and the Dominican Republic (81%) recorded the highest pre-exam anxiety levels, while the Czech Republic (35%) had the lowest. Among the physically active students, Malaysia (82%), Brazil (81%), and Costa Rica (81%) recorded the highest anxiety levels, whereas again, the Czech Republic (35%) had the lowest. Discussion: These ndings emphasize that although physical activity generally relates to reduced anxiety, this association varies across cultural and educational contexts.

2025Journal article

Open access