Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia: Understanding Eating Disorders

Anorexia Nervosa

DSM-IV-TR Criteria for Anorexia Nervosa (307.1)

  1. Refusal to maintain body weight at or above a minimally normal weight for age and height (e.g., weight loss leading to a weight less than 85% of that expected).
  2. Intense fear of gaining weight or becoming fat, even though underweight.
  3. Disturbance in the way in which one’s body weight or shape is experienced, undue influence of body weight or shape on self-evaluation, or denial of the seriousness of the current low body weight.
  4. In postmenarcheal
Read More

Training Systems in Athletics

Classification Systems

Natural Systems and Releases

The classification of a natural system refers to its realization in nature and exploits the physical characteristics of the environment. By contrast, artificial systems aim to categorize based on specific characteristics and distances. We will adopt the following general classifications:

  • Continuous Systems: Performed without pausing the training load.
  • Fractional Systems: Characterized by dividing the training load into parts with recovery pauses between
Read More

Strength Training Principles and Methods

Training Cycles

Macrocycle

Macrocycles are involved in the development stages of a new physical and sports training plan. According to the objectives, they can last from one to three years, with the most common being the annual or seasonal macrocycle.

Mesocycle

Mesocycles are the parts into which a macrocycle is divided. They usually last from one and a half to three months, with specific goals within each macrocycle.

Microcycle

The microcycle is the smallest unit in which training is organized, lasting

Read More

Praxiology and Motor Actions in Sports

Key Concepts

Drive Communication

A set of relationships between participants in a praxiosocial situation (e.g., hitting an opponent in boxing, intercepting a ball, exchanging equipment in rhythmic gymnastics).

Motor Task

An organized set of motor objectives, engines, and environmental conditions. This constitutes the situation prior to praxiomotor action. Norms and conditions shape and define a game, sport, or physical act. Examples include the rules of a sport or game engine. A motor task distinguishes

Read More

Front Crawl Technique: Propulsion and Recovery

Curve 4, Sweep-Up, or Phase-Out Push


Crawl-4curva-coloInicial.jpgInitial Position: The arm is between the neck and the midline of the body, slightly below the shoulder. The elbow is at maximum flexion, looking out and slightly upward. The hand points out and back.
Crawl-4curva-coloFinal.jpgFinal Position: The arm is almost fully extended along the side of the body. The elbow points upward and out of the water. The hand faces inward and upward, partially out of the water. The pull is complete.

Description of Motion: This is the most propulsive phase of
Read More

Neanderthals: Evolution, Characteristics, and Extinction

Neanderthals

Evolution and Characteristics

In the Sima de los Huesos site at Atapuerca, Spain, complete skeletons of at least 32 individuals dating back 300,000 years were discovered. These remains reveal that Homo neanderthalensis, or Neanderthal Man, evolved in Europe.

One defining characteristic of Neanderthals was their prominent brow ridges, a feature also present in the more developed Homo habilis and Homo ergaster. While this trait has disappeared in modern humans, it persisted until around

Read More