My last post about German sports sciences was just an example, probably representing for the status of sport sciences in more countries. I might look like an isolated coach thinking this way, but let me explain myself better.
\nIt\u2019s not that I do not appreciated the contribution of sport sciences to elite performance sport, although there are not that many, it\u2019s more that I think sport science is sometimes overrated just because of the word science.
\nIn general I have very good relationship with sports scientist from all fields, I invited them to speak at the seminars that I organised in 1990-2000, a few names? Per Tesch, Carmelo Bosco, Marco Cardinale, Atko Viru, Paul Balsom, most of them have been coaches or worked closely together with coaches, some of them often came to the track to listen, to observe, to exchange opinion.<\/p>\n
Just others don\u2019t seem to have seen an athlete in years, they forgot the way to the pitch, the track, the pool, the field, or the indoor arena, becoming detached from their object of study. But maybe they don\u2019t need to. What I really encounter that they sometimes are not even aware of the\u00a0 important work in their own field. A biomechanist should not have to ask me: \u2018Carmelo Bosco, who is that??\u201d and tell me he is completely unaware of the research of Bosco, so I have to send him Bosco\u2019s publications\u00a0 Especially not when he is on his way to reinvent the wheel by proposing the same research Bosco did in the 1980\u2019s.<\/p>\n
Another example? I will translate this piece of \u201cscience\u201d written by a famous professor in exercise sciences in Holland, in November 2004. Translated: (1.) \u201cThe latest piece of equipment in the world of sports is the Omegawave\u201d…. \u201dIt would register the signal from the brain, the so-called \u201comega-brainwaves\u201d, a type of brainwave\u00a0 that looks like it has been specially invented for the Omegawave\u201d.\u00a0 (Italics are mine).
\nBut wait a minute, the professor forgot to read e.g:
\nAladjalova, N.A: Slow electrical processes in the brain, Progress in Brain Research, Vol.7,\u00a0 Elsevier, 1964, or<\/p>\n
Bechetereva, N.P: The neurophysiological aspects of human mental activity; Oxford University Press , 1978, maybe
\nIlyukhina, V.A; Kiryanova, R.E; Baez, E: Infraslow processes of the human brain\u00a0 and organization of mental activity; in. Psychophysiology. Today and tomorrow.; Bechereva, N.P.(Ed.) Pergamon Press, Oxford, GBR, 1981, pg.45-55, and
\nIlyukhina, V.A: The Omega-potential: A quantitative parameter of the state of brain structures and organism. 1.physiological significance of the omega-potential when recorded from deep structures and from the scalp; Human Physiology Vol.8, No.3, 1982, pg.450-456
\nOtherwise, he would not have to make a fool out of himself by suggesting that the omegawave is just some\u00a0 obscure or imaginary brainwave. Of course a professor in exercise science is not a brain specialist or neuroscientist you might say\u2026 but if a professor in exercise science and a teacher has a strong opinion or view about a subject we might at least expect that he knows what he is talking about \u2026
\n(2) \u201cThe Omegawave partially relies in calculation of the HRV and based on this the heart rate at anaerobic threshold is estimated\u201d\u00a0 Nobody could or would ever state that the HR at anaerobic threshold is derived from HRV.\u00a0 So again, an assumption based on yes, on what?? The estimation of the HR at anaerobic threshold in the Omegawave system is derived from the amplitude-frequency analysis of the ECG formerly called differential ECG, which is a completely different test than HRV.
\nAlthough resent publications showed\u00a0 that even HRV indeed could be used to estimate the HR at anaerobic threshold…..<\/p>\n
Anosov, O; Patzak, A; Kononovich, Y; Persson, P.B: High frequency oscillations of the heart rate during ramp load reflect the human anaerobic threshold; Eur.J.Appl.Physiol.Vol.83, 2000, pg. 388-394.<\/p>\n
Floter, N; Schmid, T; Keck, A; reer, R; Jelkmann, W; Braumann, K.M: Bestimmung der individuellen anaeroben Schwelle mittels der Herzfrequenzvariabilit\u00e4t in Abh\u00e4ngigkeit von der sympatho-adrenergen Aktivit\u00e4t; Deutsche Zeitschr. Sportmedizin, Vol.63, No.2, 2012, pg.41-45.<\/p>\n
I won\u2019t bore you with the rest of the tabloid-science in\u00a0 this article, but it was a insult to exercise science and to the scientists behind the principles of the Omegawave system.
\nMore important is the question: why is this happening? Where is this coming from? My guess is that\u00a0 in many cases it\u2019s a matter of \u201cnot invented here\u201d, being overly critical on concept, ideas, publications or equipment not coming from their own institute or their own country. An observation made a long time ago:
\nBut there is more:
\nYour homework for coming week: read these two articles about\u00a0 science and science in general and you will start to see where I am standing.
\n1.\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0http:\/\/sportsperformancescience.blogspot.nl\/2010\/12\/ten-things-sports-science-does-wrong.html#more<\/p>\n
2.\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0http:\/\/www.economist.com\/news\/briefing\/21588057-scientists-think-science-self-correcting-alarming-degree-it-not-trouble<\/p>\n
Let me end with this piece of wisdom:
\n\u201c The human understanding, once it has adopted opinions, either because they were already accepted and believed, or because it likes them, draws everything else to support and agree with them. And though it may meet a greater number and weight of contrary instances, it will, with great and harmful prejudice, ignore or condemn or exclude them by introducing some distinction, in order that the authority of those earlier assumptions may remain intact and unharmed.\u201d
\nSir Francis Bacon (1561-1626)<\/p>\n
Next time about \u201cnew\u201d sprinting technique, and about the \u201cwindows of trainability\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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