Physical Preparation in Rugby
Adriano Vretaros Strength and Conditioning Coach São Paulo – BRAZIL avretaros@gmail.com
Rugby: Characteristics - I
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Rugby Union
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Rugby League
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Rugby Sevens
Rugby: Characteristics - II
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Team Sport
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Collision Sport
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Invasion and Evasion Game
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Multiple Requirements (T-T-P)
Rugby: Characteristics - III
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Intermittent Sport
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High Intensity Demands
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High Force Collisions
Tactical Positions in Rugby - I ●
Forwards
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Backs
Tactical Positions in Rugby - II 1- Loosehead prop
11- Left wing
2- Hooker
12- Inside centre
3- Tighthead prop
13- Outside centre
4- Second row
14- Right wing
5- Second row
15- Fullback
6- Blindside flanker 7- Openside flanker 8- Number 8 9- Scrum half 10- Fly-half
Motor Skills in Rugby ●
Pass
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Kick
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Run
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Contact
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Jump
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Push
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Dribble
Rugby: Tackle
Rugby: Scrum
Rugby: Ruck
Rugby: Maul
Rugby: The Lineout
Anthropometric Profile in Rugby - I ●
N= 112 rugby players – European Super League (Elite)
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Body Composition: Dual Energy X-ray – Absorptiometry (DXA) scans
%Body Fat Fullback and Wingers Centres Half Backs Hookers Props Back Row Forwards
Total Mass(Kg)
13(2,1) 13(2,4) 12(3,4) 15(3,9) 16(4,3) 15(2,1) (Morehen et alii, 2015)
86(8,2) 91(6,6) 81((8) 84(9,5) 102(8,5) 93(5,5)
Anthropometric Profile in Rugby - II VARIABLES
FORWARDS (n=06)
BACKS (n=05)
Weight (Kg)
100,6+\-17,7
85,67+\-8,5
Height (m)
182,91+\-5,71
177+\-6,05
%MM
50,9
50,77
%FM
21,7
23,26
Kg MM
53,77
42,68
Kg FM
23,9
19,27
Somatotype
3,5 – 6,5 – 0,9
3 – 7 – 0,6
(Rodriguez-Rodriguez et alii, 2008)
Bioenergetics of the Rugby
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Alactic System
(30-40%)
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Lactic Acid System
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Aerobic System
(10-20%) (30-50%)
(Bompa & Haff, 2012)
Total Distances Traveled by Different Tactical Positions ●
Fullback – 7,760m
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Wing – 7,457m
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Center – 7,301m
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Five-eight – 8,402m
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Halfback – 8,500m
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Houker – 6,988m
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Lock – 5,481m
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Row – 6,936m
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Prop players – 4,597m (Austin & Kelly, 2014)
Match Demands in Rugby League Competition
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n= 17 Elite(E) and 22 Semi-elite(SE) rugby league players
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Total Intensity (E: 108,9+\-10,6m.min ; SE: 102,3+\-9,7m.min)
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High Intensity (E: 36,7+\-9,8m.min ; SE: 29,6+\-7,8m.min)
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Mean Playing Speed (E: 6,6+\-0,6Km.h-1 ; SE: 6,2+\-0,6Km.h-1)
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Support Play (E: 0,29+\-0,16min-1 ; SE: 0,15+\-0,09min-1) (p<0,01)
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ELITE PLAYERS: decrements in most physical performance measures during the second-half match (p<0,01) (Sirotic et alii, 2009)
The Movement Characteristics of Elite Rugby Union ●
n=96 elite players from 08 English Premiership Clubs
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Global Positioning System (GPS)
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44 Competitive Matches (2010-2011 season)
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Low Speeds - ¨Sprinting¨: Backs (50+\-76m) and Forwards (37+\-64m)
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Backs travelled greater (p<0,05) absolute and relative distances than Forwards
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Scrum Half: total distance (7098+\-778m)
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Front Row: (5158+\-200m)
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Back Row: greatest distances ¨sprinting¨ speeds (number 8 – 77m)
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Training Program – Structured (Cahill et alii, 2013)
Capacities Conditioning in Rugby
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Strength (Maximum, Elastic-explosive, Elasticreactive, Power)
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Endurance (ATP-CP, Lactic Acid, Aerobic)
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Speed (Reaction, Motion, Displacement, Endurance)
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Agility (Reactive)
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Flexibility (Mobility)
Coordinative Capacities in Rugby ●
Hand-eye coordination
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Eye-foot coordination
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Orientation spatiotemporal
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Balance (dynamic, static and recovered)
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Precision
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Acrobatics (falls, spins, diving)
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Laterality
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Anticipatory Timing
Controlled Testing Performance in Rugby Players ●
1) FIELD TESTING
Strength (1RM Bench press, Squat, Deadlift, Vertical Jump, Long Jump, Sit-ups, SJ, CMJ, DJ, SBJ) Endurance (3000m, Cooper, Yo-Yo Test) Agility (Shuttle run) Velocity (Sprint 10, 20, 30 and 50m) Flexibility ●
2) LABORATORY TESTING
Wingate test, VO2max, Isokinetic evaluation, Biochemical tests
VO2max in Amateur Rugby Players ●
Cooper Test
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Yo-Yo Test
52,71+\-3,53 51,17+\-3,28 *ml\Kg\min (Carvalho et alii, 2011)
Lactate and Heart Rate in Rugby Seven (Ruffino & Wheeler, 2003) Player
Division
Function
Lactate
HR
Lactate
HR
Lopez,GA
First
Pillar
12,9
177
11,9
160
Carrizo, D
First
Wing
13,2
164
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171
Vidal, D
M20
Pillar
14,2
168
8
173
Alanis, M
M20
1\2 Scrum 10,8
173
15,3
172
Nelegatti, L
M18
Pillar
10,7
163
23
161
Alanis, F
M18
Wing
15,4
171
12,7
160
Physical Tests in Rugby ●
n=20 – 12 Forwards and 08 Backs
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Age= 18-30 years
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TESTS: 1)Test of 3000 meters 2) 20m shuttle run test
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Test of 3000m= 54+\-2,8 ml\Kg\min
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20m shuttle run test= 54,3+\-4,7 ml\Kg\min
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CORRELATION: 1)Forwards – r=0,94 2)Backs – r=0,77 (Pastor. 2003)
Physical Fitness of Rugby Players in the Post Season Period VARIABLES
MEAN
Age (years)
21,4
RCQ
0,84
Cooper
36,43 ml\Kg\min
50m (s)
7,86
Sit-ups (rep)
42,1 (Lima Borges et alii, 2013)
Rugby-5: Indexes of Physical Development (Filenko et alii, 2013) Indicators Height (cm)
Height
Weight
30m run
Long jump the spot
Forward torso bent
Shuttle run
1
Weight (Kg)
0,38
1
30m run (s)
-0,30
-0,23
1
Long jump the spot (cm)
0,28
0,16
-0,22
1
Forward torso bent (cm)
0,35
0,08
-0,19
0,50
1
Shuttle run 4x9 (s)
-0,24
-0,19
0,32
0,03
-0,07
1
Fitness Profile of Elite Rugby Players ●
n=41 male U-19 Rugby Players
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Backs(n=16) and Forwards(n=25)
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Body Weight (Kg) – significant differences= BACKS(+\-4,12- p<001, effect size strong) and the FORWARDS
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20m time\seconds (SC=0,49)
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Agility 10x5m (SC=0,49)
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Mesomorph (SC=0,47)
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Endomorph (SC=0,39)
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50m time\seconds (SC=0,36)
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VO2max (SC= -0,30) (Vaz et alii, 2015)
Training Types to Rugby Players
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Technical Training
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Physical Training
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Technical-Tactical Training
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Technical-Physical Training
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Technical-Tactical-Physical Training
Physical Conditioning in Rugby ●
General Physical Preparation
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Physical Preparation Specific 1)Individualized Tactic by Function 2)Team Style of Play
Strength Training for Rugby - I â&#x2014;?
PHASES: 1) Anatomic Adaptation 2) Hypertrophy 3) Maximum Strength 4) Power
Strength Training for Rugby - II
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Conventional Strength Training
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Olympic Lifting Techniques
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Functional Training
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Strongman Training
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Wrestling Training
Muscles Contraction Regime in Rugby ●
Isometric
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Concentric
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Eccentric
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Stretch-shortening cycle
Testosterone and Cortisol Responses in Rugby Training ●
n=27 elite male Rugby Players
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Four Protocols
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PROTOCOL 01: 5 x 15 – 55%RM
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PROTOCOL 02: 3 x 5 – 85%RM
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PROTOCOL 03: Strongman Session
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PROTOCOL 04: Based on Boxing and Wrestling
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Salivary Testosterone and Cortisol – PRE and POST
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T\C ratio increased significantly in PROTOCOL 1-2
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Absolute testosterone response PROTOCOL 1-3-4 (p<0,01) (Gaviglio et alii, 2015)
Endurance Training for Rugby - I
â&#x2014;?
Intensive Interval Training
â&#x2014;?
Extensive Interval Training
Endurance Training for Rugby - II ●
GROUP 01 – Reduced Training (SSG)
SSG
AREA
SIZE
Duration
Repetition
Pause
WORK
TOTAL
2 vs 2
20x20m
100m2
2´30´´
5
2´
12´30´´
20´30´´
1 vs 1
15x10m
150m2
2´30´´
5
1´30´´
7´30´´
13´30´´
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GROUP 02 – Intermittent Training
INT 30´´ x 30´´
Vel 30-15 95%
Blocks 2
Block 10
Pause 6´ passive
Work 10´
Total 26´
15´´ x 15´´
100%
2
8
5´ passive
8´
13´
10´´ x 10´´
95%
2
7
5´ passive
4´10´´
11´40´´
(Garcia, 2014 apud Dellal, 2012)
Rugby: Effort-Pause Ratio
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Forwards (1:7)
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Backs (1:20)
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15-a-side game (1:4 to 1:2)
Responses to a Maximal Speed Training Session in Elite Rugby Players ●
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n= 18 male Rugby Players PROTOCOL: 6 maximal effort repetitions of 50m running sprints (5 minutes recovery)
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T, C, Ck, La, MS and CMJ
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PRE, IP, 2P, 24P
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JUMP Parameters: several declining (p<0,05) IP recovering 2P – secondary decline 24P Biomodal Recovery pattern of neuromuscular function (Johnston et alii, 2015)
Running Techniques in Rugby ●
Running Posture
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Balance 1) Foot Speed 2) Height of the foot during recovery 3) Foot landing distance
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The Effect of Ball Carrying
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Pelvic Stability (Sayers, 1998)
Carry or Not the Ball Affects Sprint Speed in Rugby Union ●
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HYPOTHESIS: running with the ball in two hands – SHORTER STEPS PERFORMED: 9 sprints – total under three conditions over 30m TRUNK: more upright without ball – 80,16+\-2,53o – compared with the ball in one hand: 78,15+\-3,01o and two hands: 77,58+\-2,98o STEP LENGTH: without a ball: 1,93m+\-0,11 – similar ball in two hands: 1,93m+\-0,09 STEP Frequency: without ball: 5,03+\-0,17Hz – ball in two hands: 5,05+\-0,08Hz Incorporating the ball in the SPECIFIC TRAINING of SPRINT (Setter, 2014)
Sprint Speed in Rugby ●
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GROUP 1: Sled + Sprint Sled (12,6% of body weight): 1 set x 3rep x20m (2`micro – 8`macro)
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Sprint: 2 sets x 3rep x 20m (2`micro and 4`macro)
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GROUP 2: Only Sprint
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Sprint: 1 set x 3rep x20m (2´micro – 8´macro)
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Sprint: 2 sets x 3rep x 20m (2´ micro – 4´macro)
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In the two groups (1 and 2) improvements were fount at the first speed of 10m with 30m test Sled is effective for speed drills – SHORT DISTANCES (Cesar Garcia, 2015)
Agility Training in Rugby - I ●
Multi-directional nature of Rugby:
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1) Physiological Capacities
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2) Biomechanical Abilities
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3) Advanced Cognitive Strategies
(Wheeler, 2009)
Agility Training in Rugby - II ●
Agility Skill Classification:
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1) SIMPLE -Planned Movement Planned Enviroment
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2) TEMPORAL – Planned Movement Unplanned Enviroment
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3) SPATIAL – Unplanned Movement Planned Enviroment
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4) UNIVERSAL - Unplanned Movement Unplanned Enviroment (Wheeler, 2009)
Altitude Training in Rugby ●
12 sessions of repeated sprint training (10x6sx30s recovery)
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4 weeks – HYPOXIA(13%FO2) vs NORMOXIA(21%FO2) HYPOXIA GROUP
DISTANCES
PRE
POST
p Value
Time vs Condition
5m (s)
1,06+\-0,06
1,04+\-0,05
0,01
0,785
10m (s)
1,79+\-0,10
1,75+\-0,06
0,064
0,765
20m (s)
3,05+\-0,10
3,05+\-0,11
0,12
0,413
20m RSA (s)
32,2+\-1,11
31,9+\-1,2
0,039
0,391
Yo-Yo IR1 (m)
1237+\-265
1621+\-364
<0,001
0,002
(Adapted from Galvin et alii, 2013)
Rugby: Force of Collisions ●
Force of Tackle: Rugby vs American Football
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Click - VIDEO
Rugby: Scrum Mechanics - I
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The Science of the SCRUM
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Click Here VIDEO - Scrum in Rugby
Rugby: Scrum Mechanics - II ●
Scrummaging against an instrumental Scrum Machine
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Kinetic data
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Scrummaging Combinations: front-row only, front-row plus second-row, full scrum minus side-row and full scrum Three orthogonal components of force The back-row (number 8) forward did not substantially contribute any additional forward force Lateral and Vertical shear force experienced by the frontrow Side-row contributed an additional 20-27% to the forward force (Milburn, 2008)
Activity of Spinal Muscles during Machine and Live Scrums ●
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Muscles Activity: Sternocleidomastoid, Upper Trapezius and Erector Spinae – EMG Higher Isometric Force: Extension, Flexion and Rotation Motions Erector Spinae: significantly higher – push phase of Live Scrummaging (p<0.01) – 56+\-26% lower (CBS vs Live) and 62+\-18% lower (CBS vs Live) and large effect size (d>0,8) Upper Trapezius: lower in the CTS than CBS and Live conditions (d>1,1) Sternocleidomastoid: similar across conditions (Cazzola et alii, 2014)
Physical Contact Changes the Internal and External Load during Rugby Simulations ●
Contact (CON) vs Non-contact (NCON)
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Relative Distance Covered (ES= 1,27+\-0,29)
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Low Intensity Activity (ES= 1,13+\-0,31)
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High Intensity Running (ES=0,49+\-0,34)
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Heart Rate (ES= 0,52+\-0,35)
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Blood Lactate (ES= 0,78+\-0,34)
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RPE (ES= 0,72+\-0,38)
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Session RPE (ES= 1,45+\-0,51)
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Muscle Soreness was also greater after CON compared to the NCON trial (ES=0,97+\-0,55) (Mullen et alii, 2015)
Neck Function in Rugby Players ●
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Active Cervical Spine range of motion and proprioception Flexion, Extension, Left and Right Lateral Flexion, Plus Left and Right Rotation Rugby Forwards – Neck Extension (Forwards: 43o ; Backs: 55o) Decrement correlating with the number of Years of Played Significantly worse in Rugby players after neck extension than Non-rugby players (6o vs 3o) Effect on neck range of motion that is equivalent to chronic disability INJURY: age-related neck problems (Lark & McCarthy, 2007)
Rugby Headgear ●
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Reduce the consequences of a HEAD IMPACT MEASURED: maximum acceleration and head injury of a headform fitted with the headgear 02 Headgear – commercially available and tested Limited effectiveness to reduce consequences of a head related impact CONCLUSION: IRB should increase the maximum allowable headgear thickness to 20+\-2mm (Eager et alii, 2014)
Fatigue in Rugby - I ●
Proficiency: 1) Technical 2) Tactical
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Technique: 1) Individual 2) Team (Bompa & Claro, 2008)
Fatigue in Rugby - II ●
PERIPHERAL 1) Cardiovascular 2) Metabolic 3) Neuromotor
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CENTRAL
Fatigue of the Trunk Flexor and Extensor Muscles in Rugby Players ●
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Four Protocols (A, B, C, D) A: Isokinetic: before and after fatigue, with a 10 rep isokinetic fatigue period B: Isokinetic: before and after fatigue with a 45 second isometric fatigue period C: Isometric: before and after fatigue with a 10 rep isokinetic fatigue period D: Isometric: before and after fatigue with 45 second isometric fatigue period
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In FLEXION: protocol D – Greatest Fatigue
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Peak Torque bring 16,2% less after than before fatigue (Corin et alii, 2005)
Fatigue and Muscle Damage in Women´s Rugby Sevens ●
National (n=12) vs State (n=10)
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Testing for lower-body neuromuscular function (CMJ)
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Perceived Soreness and Perceived Recovery
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National Players: greater on-field movements for total time, distance, high speed running (>5ms-1) and impacts >10G (effect size= 0,55-0,97) and displayed a smaller decrement in performance from day one to day two State Players: much greater 4-fold increase (Ck=737 U\l) in Ck compared to the 2-fold increase (Ck= 502U\l) in National Players (Clarke et alii, 2015)
Injuries in Rugby - I ●
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RUGBY: higher risk injury than other sports High levels of gravitational force are sustained in tackling and scrum
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Injury by 83% players – knee (25%)
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5,95 injuries per 1000 match playing hours
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The Stability Index increased (p=0,03) by 15% in the medial\lateral direction post-season compared to pre-season Risk Factor Injury: Scrum-half (14,80%) playing position, injuries in the 2nd half of the match (57%) and during contact (67%) (Jacoras & Puckree, 2014)
Injuries in Rugby - II 2002
2003
2004
Number Injuried Players
19
22
21
Recurrent Injuries
12
10
18
New Injuries
38
30
20
TOTAL Injuries
50
40
38
Off-season Training (h)
32,7
28,1
30,7
Pre-season Training (h)
56,2
63,8
40,5
Combined off-and pre-season training (h)
88,8
91,8
71,2
In-season Training (h)
67,7
78,6
79,9
Overall Training Time (h)
196,5
170,4
151,1
(Viljoen et alii, 2009)
Different Recovery Times on the Activity Profiles of Rugby League ●
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Recovery Cycles: Short (separated by 5 or 6 days), Medium (separated by 7 or 8 days) and Long (separated by 9 or 10 days) Speed, Distance and Repeated High-intensity effort activity Relative Total Distance – Short recovery than those involving Medium (ES=1,13) or Long (ES=1,08) INJURIES: high after SHORT between-match recovery cycles Injury Rates: Hit-up Forwards and outside backs positional groups were the highest after LONG between-match recovery cycles (Murray et alii, 2014)
Periodization Programs to Rugby Players ●
Pendulous
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Structural
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Selective Charges
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Modulated in Blocks
Comparison of Training Loads in Professional and Amateur Rugby â&#x2014;?
Union Rugby Buenos Aires (URBA)
Description of hours
PROFESSIONAL
AMATEUR
Weekly hours available
80 hours
25 hours
Effective weekly hours
30 hours
07 hours
Hours of training dedication
37,50%
28%
(Sciancalepore, 2015)
Rugby Union: Change the Game Between 1972 – 2004 (Quarrie & Hopkins, 2007) ●
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Increases in: Passes, Tackles, Rucks, Tries and Ball-inplay Reductions: Lineouts, Mauls, Kicks in play, and mean participation time per player Time trends: increase in the number of Rucks and a decrease in the number of Scrums Good weather conditions: increases in tries and points scored and with reductions in the number of kicks in play and participation time per player Professionalism: players have become heavier and Backs have become taller Overall: law changes, developments in match analysis, equipment technology and player training
Successful and Less-successful in Semi-elite Rugby League â&#x2014;?
The high-sucess group was able to maintain ball-in -play time: A) 22% greater than the low-success group (p=0,01) and
B) Greater than their mean period of match-play (p=0,01) â&#x2014;?
Forwards from the high success group: 1) Covered less total distance (p=0,02 ; p=0,01) 2) Less high-intensity running distance (p=0,01 ; p=0,01)
3) Involved in a greater number of collisions (p=0,03 ; p=0,01) (Hullin & Gabbet, 2015)
Nutrition: Protein Distribution during a Rugby Pre-season ●
Muscle Protein Synthesis (MPS)
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n=25 Elite Rugby Union Players
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Start and End of a preseason
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Daily protein intake was 2,2+\-0,7g.Kg-day-1
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Carbohydrate: 3,6+\-1,3g.Kg-day-1
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Consuming more than 20g of protein
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3,8+\-0,9 times per day (68+\-18% of eating occasions) (Mackenzie et alii, 2015)
Genomics in Rugby Players ●
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Inter-individual variations in rugby performance Strength, Short-term muscle power, VO2max, Injury susceptibility
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Elite Athletes: Molecular Genetic Techniques
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Develop large DNA biobanks
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Detailed exploration of the heritable bases of those traits
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Growing knowledge of the molecular mechanisms
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Genetic Tests (Heffernan et alii, 2015)
Rugby: Post-match Recovery Strategies (Gill et alii, 2006)
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N=23 Elite male rugby players- New Zealand
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04 interventions: CWT, GAR, ACT and PAS
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Four competitions weeks
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Creatine Kinase(Ck) analysis: 3,5 hours before and immediately after four games and at 36 and 84 hours postmatch Ck from pre-to post competition – levels of 1023,0 (308,3) and 2194 (833,7) – significant increases(p<0,01)
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ACT – 88,2% recovery after 84 hours
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GAR – 84,4% recovery after 84 hours
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CWT – 85,0% recovery after 84 hours
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PAS - 39,0% recovery after 84 hours (p<0,05)
Mental Toughness in Elite University Rugby League SCALE
Australia (n=25)
Great Britain (n=24)
Determination
13,56+\-0,96
13,08+\-1,14
Self-belief
16,32+\-2,66
17,67+\-1,52
Positive Cognition
17,48+\-0,59
15,83+\-1,01
Visualization
12,60+\-1,68
10,25+\-1,68
Total Mental Toughness
59,96+\-3,92
56,83+\-3,14
Commitment
16,20+\-2,36
16,33+\-1,52
Control
8,56+\-1,53
11,42+\-1,10
Challenge
13,56+\-1,96
11,13+\-1,15
Total Hardiness
38,32+\-3,89
38,88+\-2,21
PPI-A
PVS III - R
(Adapted from Sheard, 2009)