Abstract
The use of exercise interventions to prepare athletes for the demands of training and competition is common practice in sport. An emerging area of interest in research and applied sporting environments is game day priming. This term broadly refers to strategies applied on the day of competition, with the aim of enhancing performance and an athlete’s readiness to perform. This thesis aims to build on the current knowledge base by evaluating the literature pertaining to game day priming; determining the current practices of high-performance sport professionals in relation to game day preparation; and assessing the influence of high intensity, low volume field- and gym-based exercise interventions as priming strategies.Chapter One provides an overview of the topic of priming and provides a rationale for subsequent thesis chapters. Chapter Two systematically reviews the literature and presents current priming modalities, implementation strategies, and performance outcomes, and highlights potential mechanisms which may contribute to a priming effect. Chapter Three provides an update to the published systematic review in Chapter Two, offering a contemporary overview of current priming practices. Thirty-eight studies were reviewed across both chapters, with results showing that a range of exercise modalities can be used to elicit a priming response. Short duration, maximal intensity cycling and sprints, and high load, low volume resistance training interventions, were shown to provide greater improvements in subsequent strength and power performance when compared with high volume resistance training and endurance focused cycling and running. This was evident across a range of recovery intervals; however, the literature best supported a 4–6-hour recovery between the priming stimulus and subsequent performance.
Chapter Four contains a Delphi study which explored the importance and use of game day preparation strategies from the perspective of 25 applied sport performance practitioners working internationally in high-performance and/or professional sports. This research extended the review findings by determining the translation from research to practice and obtained consensus relating to the importance and use of different preparation strategies on the day of competition. This Delphi approach found there was consensus (≥75% agreement) among high-performance practitioners that strength and power-based priming implemented in the hours preceding competition could be used to potentiate the neuromuscular system, drive acute positive hormonal changes and to assist with psychological readiness. However, it was noted that individualised approaches should be considered when implementing priming strategies within team sport environments.
Chapter Five assessed the perceptual, physiological and performance responses 2-hours post a field-based sprint priming intervention. This timeframe was selected due to the application in rugby sevens tournaments, which typically commence early in the day with ~2-3 hours between matches. Thirteen highly trained female rugby sevens players (age: 20.7 ± 2.0 years; height: 169.3 ± 4.8 cm; weight: 68.8 ± 7.9 kg) completed either a 20-min field-based priming session (repeat sprints and rugby specific contact drill) or control condition (no exercise). The priming protocol resulted in a larger increase in mental readiness, physical readiness, and testosterone concentrations 30 minutes post exercise when compared with the control, however there were no differences between conditions at 2 hours post intervention. Cognitive performance decreased 2 hours post the priming condition for congruent and incongruent tasks when compared with the control. These findings indicate that perceptual and physiological responses to priming were not coupled with performance improvements. The field-based priming was not accompanied by perceptual, physiological or performance improvements at 2 hours post intervention.
Chapter Six shifted the priming session from the field to the gym and assessed perceptual, physiological and performance measures following a low volume, high intensity resistance training session. Using a counterbalanced crossover design, ten highly trained female rugby players completed both a resistance training priming session (3 sets of 4 reps of trap bar deadlift with 85% of 1RM) and a control condition (no exercise), each separated by seven days. There was a reduction in countermovement jump relative peak power in the 2 hours post priming compared with a no exercise control, with no meaningful differences in countermovement jump height, isometric mid-thigh pull relative or absolute force, or 5m, 10m or 20m sprint times between the priming and control condition 2 hours post intervention. These findings suggested that high load resistance training may not be an effective strategy to improve performance and readiness two hours later in female rugby players.
Collectively, the findings presented in this thesis highlight the current practices surrounding game day priming exercises. Consensus on the importance of priming from the perspective of sports performance practitioners was obtained and the experimental studies were the first to investigate the effects of field-based repeat sprint priming and strength-based priming within a highly trained female population. Given the scarcity of research investigating the priming response in female athletes, this thesis should act as a starting point for further investigations, with consideration of exercise modality, intensity, volume and rest periods needed to develop a greater understanding of priming interventions and effects.
| Date of Award | 2024 |
|---|---|
| Original language | English |
| Supervisor | Kate PUMPA (Supervisor), Andrew MCKUNE (Supervisor) & Nick BALL (Supervisor) |
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