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Body Composition, Eicosapentaenoic Acid, and Vitamin D are Associated with Army Combat Fitness Test Performance

BACKGROUND: The Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT), an updated and newly developed metric to assess combat readiness, may require specialized exercise and nutritional interventions. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to investigate the relationship between body composition, erythrocyte long-...

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Autores principales: Heileson, Jeffery L., McGowen, Jared M., Moris, Jose M., Chapman-Lopez, Tomas J., Torres, Ricardo, Funderburk, LesLee K., Forsse, Jeffrey S.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Routledge 2022
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9261738/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35813844
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15502783.2022.2094717
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author Heileson, Jeffery L.
McGowen, Jared M.
Moris, Jose M.
Chapman-Lopez, Tomas J.
Torres, Ricardo
Funderburk, LesLee K.
Forsse, Jeffrey S.
author_facet Heileson, Jeffery L.
McGowen, Jared M.
Moris, Jose M.
Chapman-Lopez, Tomas J.
Torres, Ricardo
Funderburk, LesLee K.
Forsse, Jeffrey S.
author_sort Heileson, Jeffery L.
collection PubMed
description BACKGROUND: The Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT), an updated and newly developed metric to assess combat readiness, may require specialized exercise and nutritional interventions. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to investigate the relationship between body composition, erythrocyte long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC n-3 PUFA), serum vitamin D (VITD) and ACFT performance. METHODS: Sixty cadets (43 males, 17 females; 20.9 ± 3.8 years; 173.6 ± 10.2 cm; 75.6 ± 13.7 kg) completed the 6-event ACFT (3-repetition maximum trap-bar deadlift [3DL], standing power toss [SPT], hand-release pushups [HRPU], sprint-drag-carry shuttle run [SDC], leg tuck [LTK], or plank [PLK], and 2-mile run [2MR]), body composition analysis via dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (percent body fat [%BF], lean body mass [LBM], fat-free mass index [FFMI (LBM+bone mineral content)]), and an omega-3 questionnaire. A sub-sample (n = 50) completed blood draws for fatty acid (eicosapentaenoic acid [EPA] and docosahexaenoic acid [DHA]) and VITD analysis. Significance was set at p < .05. RESULTS: Lower %BF predicted better performance on all ACFT events (p < .05), except the PLK. Higher LBM was predictive of better performance on the 3DL, SPT, and SDC (p < .05), but no other events. Adjusted FFMI was positively correlated with the 3DL, SPT, HRPU, SDC, and ACFT scores (p < .01 for all). Cadet EPA and DHA dietary intake and omega-3 erythrocyte status was well below established recommendations (25.6 ± 33.9 mg, 58.3 ± 78.1 mg, respectively) and an omega-3 index (O3i = %EPA+%DHA in erythrocytes) of 3.96 ± 1.36%, respectively. EPA was associated with better performance on the 3DL (r = 0.280, p = .049), SPT (r = 0.314, p = .027), LTK (r = 0.316, p = .047), and PLK (r = 0.837, p = .003). After adjusting for body composition, erythrocyte EPA only remained predictive of PLK scores (p = .006). Every 0.1% increase in EPA translated into 5.4 (95% CI: 2.1, 8.8) better PLK score. The O3i or DHA were not associated with any performance variables. Cadets’ average serum VITD status was 38.0 ± 14.9 ng∙ml(−1). VITD was associated with 3DL (r = 0.305, p = .031), HRPU (r = 0.355, p = .011), 2MR (r = 0.326, p = .021), and total ACFT score (r = 0.359, p = .011). VITD remained predictive of each event after adjustment for body composition. Every 10 ng∙ml(−1) increase in VITD was associated with 3-point increase in 3DL, HRPU, 2MR scores, and a 13-point increase in the total ACFT score. CONCLUSIONS: Our data highlight the importance of measures of muscularity, LBM and FFMI, on ACFT performance. Additionally, EPA and VITD status is associated with various strength, power, and muscular and aerobic endurance components of the ACFT. While these results could help professionals better assess and train military personnel, especially since these measures are modifiable through exercise and dietary interventions, they are ultimately hypothesis generating and warrant further exploration.
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spelling pubmed-92617382022-07-08 Body Composition, Eicosapentaenoic Acid, and Vitamin D are Associated with Army Combat Fitness Test Performance Heileson, Jeffery L. McGowen, Jared M. Moris, Jose M. Chapman-Lopez, Tomas J. Torres, Ricardo Funderburk, LesLee K. Forsse, Jeffrey S. J Int Soc Sports Nutr Research Article BACKGROUND: The Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT), an updated and newly developed metric to assess combat readiness, may require specialized exercise and nutritional interventions. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to investigate the relationship between body composition, erythrocyte long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC n-3 PUFA), serum vitamin D (VITD) and ACFT performance. METHODS: Sixty cadets (43 males, 17 females; 20.9 ± 3.8 years; 173.6 ± 10.2 cm; 75.6 ± 13.7 kg) completed the 6-event ACFT (3-repetition maximum trap-bar deadlift [3DL], standing power toss [SPT], hand-release pushups [HRPU], sprint-drag-carry shuttle run [SDC], leg tuck [LTK], or plank [PLK], and 2-mile run [2MR]), body composition analysis via dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (percent body fat [%BF], lean body mass [LBM], fat-free mass index [FFMI (LBM+bone mineral content)]), and an omega-3 questionnaire. A sub-sample (n = 50) completed blood draws for fatty acid (eicosapentaenoic acid [EPA] and docosahexaenoic acid [DHA]) and VITD analysis. Significance was set at p < .05. RESULTS: Lower %BF predicted better performance on all ACFT events (p < .05), except the PLK. Higher LBM was predictive of better performance on the 3DL, SPT, and SDC (p < .05), but no other events. Adjusted FFMI was positively correlated with the 3DL, SPT, HRPU, SDC, and ACFT scores (p < .01 for all). Cadet EPA and DHA dietary intake and omega-3 erythrocyte status was well below established recommendations (25.6 ± 33.9 mg, 58.3 ± 78.1 mg, respectively) and an omega-3 index (O3i = %EPA+%DHA in erythrocytes) of 3.96 ± 1.36%, respectively. EPA was associated with better performance on the 3DL (r = 0.280, p = .049), SPT (r = 0.314, p = .027), LTK (r = 0.316, p = .047), and PLK (r = 0.837, p = .003). After adjusting for body composition, erythrocyte EPA only remained predictive of PLK scores (p = .006). Every 0.1% increase in EPA translated into 5.4 (95% CI: 2.1, 8.8) better PLK score. The O3i or DHA were not associated with any performance variables. Cadets’ average serum VITD status was 38.0 ± 14.9 ng∙ml(−1). VITD was associated with 3DL (r = 0.305, p = .031), HRPU (r = 0.355, p = .011), 2MR (r = 0.326, p = .021), and total ACFT score (r = 0.359, p = .011). VITD remained predictive of each event after adjustment for body composition. Every 10 ng∙ml(−1) increase in VITD was associated with 3-point increase in 3DL, HRPU, 2MR scores, and a 13-point increase in the total ACFT score. CONCLUSIONS: Our data highlight the importance of measures of muscularity, LBM and FFMI, on ACFT performance. Additionally, EPA and VITD status is associated with various strength, power, and muscular and aerobic endurance components of the ACFT. While these results could help professionals better assess and train military personnel, especially since these measures are modifiable through exercise and dietary interventions, they are ultimately hypothesis generating and warrant further exploration. Routledge 2022-07-05 /pmc/articles/PMC9261738/ /pubmed/35813844 http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15502783.2022.2094717 Text en © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) ), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
spellingShingle Research Article
Heileson, Jeffery L.
McGowen, Jared M.
Moris, Jose M.
Chapman-Lopez, Tomas J.
Torres, Ricardo
Funderburk, LesLee K.
Forsse, Jeffrey S.
Body Composition, Eicosapentaenoic Acid, and Vitamin D are Associated with Army Combat Fitness Test Performance
title Body Composition, Eicosapentaenoic Acid, and Vitamin D are Associated with Army Combat Fitness Test Performance
title_full Body Composition, Eicosapentaenoic Acid, and Vitamin D are Associated with Army Combat Fitness Test Performance
title_fullStr Body Composition, Eicosapentaenoic Acid, and Vitamin D are Associated with Army Combat Fitness Test Performance
title_full_unstemmed Body Composition, Eicosapentaenoic Acid, and Vitamin D are Associated with Army Combat Fitness Test Performance
title_short Body Composition, Eicosapentaenoic Acid, and Vitamin D are Associated with Army Combat Fitness Test Performance
title_sort body composition, eicosapentaenoic acid, and vitamin d are associated with army combat fitness test performance
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9261738/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35813844
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15502783.2022.2094717
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