Esports players,got muscle?Competitive video game players’physical activity,body fat,bone mineral content,and muscle mass in comparison to matched controls

Background:Esports players,like traditional athletes,practice for long hours and,thus,are vulnerable to the negative health effects of prolonged sitting.There is a lack of research on the physical activity and the health ramifications of prolonged sitting by competitive players.The purpose of this study was to investigate activity levels,body mass index(BMI),and body composition in collegiate esports players as compared to agematched controls.Methods:Twenty-four male collegiate esports players and non-esports players between 18 and 25 years of age signed a written consent to participate.Physical activity was examined using daily activity(step count)with a wrist-worn activity tracker.A questionnaire assessing physical activity was also administered.Secondary outcomes included body-fat percentage,lean-body mass,BMI,and bone mineral content measured using dual X-ray absorptiometry.Results:The step count in the esports players was significantly lower than the age-matched controls(6040.2±3028.6 vs.12843.8±5661.1;p=0.004).Esports players exhibited greater body-fat percentage(p=0.05),less lean body mass(p=0.003),and less bone mineral content(p=0.03),despite no difference in BMI between the esports and non-esports players.Conclusion:As compared to non-esports players,collegiate esports players were significantly less active and had a higher body-fat percentage,with lower lean body mass and bone mineral content.The BMIs showed no difference between the 2 groups.Esports athletes displayed significantly less activity and poor body composition,which are all correlated with potential health issues and risk of injury.BMI did not capture this difference and should not be considered as an accurate measure of health in competitive esports players.

The Effects of Externally Paced Exercise on Executive Function and Stress in College-Aged Students

Purpose The purpose of the study was to investigate the acute effect of a beginner martial art class and aerobic exercise on executive function(EF)in college-aged young adults.There is overwhelming evidence that demonstrates acute as well as long-term aerobic exercise improves EF.Nevertheless,there is limited research comparing externally paced exercise(EPE)to self-paced exercise(SPE)such as walking on improving EF.EPE requires greater cortical demand than SPE to execute a motor plan.Methods Eight men and eight women,aged 24.2±2.8 years,participated in a Repeated Measures Crossover Design.Pre-and post-testing of EF with the Stroop and Tower of London(ToL)and stress level were measured after each of the two 1-h conditions:the SPE consisted of a walk(aerobic exercise)and the EPE was a beginner martial art class.Results There were significant main effects for the martial art class for the Stroop’s mean reaction time for congruent trials(P=0.01)with a large-effect size.The mean reaction time for incongruent trials was significant(P=0.05)with a medium-effect size.The ToL’s mean solution time(P=0.003)and mean execution time(P=0.002)were also significant with large-effect sizes.Stress levels were not significantly improved following either condition.Conclusion The martial art class significantly improved all the major domains of EF,while aerobic exercise of a similar intensity did not demonstrate any measured significant changes.The physiological benefits of physical exercise are well documented;however,the cognitive enhancing capability of EPE should also be appreciated given the results of this study.