This week in the world of sports science, here’s what happened…
- Medvedev survives severe weather conditions at the US Open
- Offset walks: a fantastic exercise for spinal stabilization and core priming
- Dan Plexman’s incredible feel-good story
Medvedev survives severe weather conditions at the US Open
US Open finalist Daniil Medvedev expressed concerns over the extremely hot and humid weather conditions he played in at Flushing Meadows. He believes the weather conditions he experienced in his quarter-final victory over Andrey Rublev, would cause a player to “die”.
During his quarter-final match last Wednesday, the temperature rose to 35°C. Both players implemented various strategies to cope with the heat and humidity. They took lengthy toilet breaks to change their sweat-drenched clothes, hosed themselves down with cold water and used iced towels. Despite their strategies, Medvedev believed he played on “sensation” and couldn’t actually “see the ball”. Medvedev also likened the conditions to the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
Interestingly we have a fantastic blog: Heat training: Tips from the Tokyo Olympics on how to exercise in high temperatures | Science for Sport. This blog is more relevant now than ever with the recent heatwaves across the globe. It discusses the dangers of exercising in extreme heat. In fact, Medvedev is right! Extreme heat can lead to conditions like dehydration which can be life threatening. This blog is a must read and gives great advice on how to be ‘comfortable in the discomfortable’, when exercising in the heat.
Offset walks: a fantastic exercise for spinal stabilization and priming the core
Dr Aaron Horschig of Squat University released an excellent short video clip on offset walk exercises. Offset walks are exercises performed with a barbell that has more weight on one side of the bar. Because the weight is unevenly distributed on the barbell, it creates an unstable environment. It is best to hang a weight plate from the barbell with a resistance band, which results in a “shaking” or “bouncing” weight. Using the shaking or bouncing weight creates even more instability.
While the Earthquake bar creates more instability by having a flexible bar, hanging bands off a budget barbell also works.
The aim of the offset walks is to enhance the body’s awareness and activate deep spine and core muscles. Therefore, offset walks are a fantastic exercise to help stabilize the spine and prime the core prior to compound exercises such as squats. When performing the exercise, the video suggests taking three to five steps backwards and forward for two to three sets on each side. This is worth checking out and trying!
Dan Plexman’s incredible feel-good story
There have been quite a lot of negative bulletins on sports recently. However, I came across this amazing feel-good story. This story displays why sport is beautiful and how it can positively impact people’s lives.
So, in 2008, Dan Plexman suffered a workplace accident causing third to sixth-degree burns to over 60% of his body. He was placed in a coma for 11 days and only given a 13% chance of survival. Luckily Plexman survived and he joined the Thunder Bay arm wrestling club. He hoped arm wrestling would help restore function to his badly damaged arms from the accident and offer a social outlet for him.
What Plexman would go on to achieve was nothing short of phenomenal. In 2022, Plexman won both left and right arm events at the 2022 World Championships in the disabled category. This year he placed 3rd in his weight category at the able-bodied at the Canadian national championships. Such an awe-inspiring story!
From us this week:
>> New course: The Demands of Women’s Football
>> New podcast: The Force System – What You Need For Athletic Success
>> New infographic: Virtual Reality for Sports Training
>> New article: Needs Analysis
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I hope you enjoyed this week’s roundup of the hottest sports science news, and as always, we’ll be back next week with more to keep you at the forefront of the industry.
