American Journal of Sports Science

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Physiological Characters in Mixed Martial Arts

Received: 19 June 2013    Accepted:     Published: 20 July 2013
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Abstract

Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a relatively new sport and is a mixture of many different martial arts. Currently, study on the physiological characters in the sport is very limited. The present study evaluated the physiological characters in 5 active male MMA athletes at two occasions with one year between. Aerobic- and anaerobic capacity were estimated through measurement of VO2max and anaerobic threshold using both treadmill running and arm cycling. Muscle strength was evaluated through series measurements. Body composition and personal competition records were also examined. The subjects presented above average aerobic capacity, but rather high anaerobic capacity and threshold levels compared with other similar sports. No significant difference in VO2max, anaerobic threshold or body composition was observed between the two test occasions, despite a decreased tendency in muscle strength/power in the second test compared to the first. The results were interpreted to indicate either the MMA athletes had reached the physiological requirements for MMA or the one year physical training was inefficient in further improving the parameters.

DOI 10.11648/j.ajss.20130102.11
Published in American Journal of Sports Science (Volume 1, Issue 2, July 2013)
Page(s) 12-17
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Mixed Martial Arts, Physiological Characters, Aerobic Capacity, Anaerobic Capacity

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Author Information
  • Sports Medicine Unit, Department of Surgical and Perioperative Sciences, Ume? University, 901 87 Ume?, Sweden

  • Sports Medicine Unit, Department of Surgical and Perioperative Sciences, Ume? University, 901 87 Ume?, Sweden

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    Petter Alm, Ji-Guo Yu. (2013). Physiological Characters in Mixed Martial Arts. American Journal of Sports Science, 1(2), 12-17. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajss.20130102.11

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    Petter Alm; Ji-Guo Yu. Physiological Characters in Mixed Martial Arts. Am. J. Sports Sci. 2013, 1(2), 12-17. doi: 10.11648/j.ajss.20130102.11

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    AMA Style

    Petter Alm, Ji-Guo Yu. Physiological Characters in Mixed Martial Arts. Am J Sports Sci. 2013;1(2):12-17. doi: 10.11648/j.ajss.20130102.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ajss.20130102.11,
      author = {Petter Alm and Ji-Guo Yu},
      title = {Physiological Characters in Mixed Martial Arts},
      journal = {American Journal of Sports Science},
      volume = {1},
      number = {2},
      pages = {12-17},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ajss.20130102.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajss.20130102.11},
      eprint = {https://download.sciencepg.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajss.20130102.11},
      abstract = {Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a relatively new sport and is a mixture of many different martial arts. Currently, study on the physiological characters in the sport is very limited. The present study evaluated the physiological characters in 5 active male MMA athletes at two occasions with one year between. Aerobic- and anaerobic capacity were estimated through measurement of VO2max and anaerobic threshold using both treadmill running and arm cycling. Muscle strength was evaluated through series measurements. Body composition and personal competition records were also examined. The subjects presented above average aerobic capacity, but rather high anaerobic capacity and threshold levels compared with other similar sports. No significant difference in VO2max, anaerobic threshold or body composition was observed between the two test occasions, despite a decreased tendency in muscle strength/power in the second test compared to the first. The results were interpreted to indicate either the MMA athletes had reached the physiological requirements for MMA or the one year physical training was inefficient in further improving the parameters.},
     year = {2013}
    }
    

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    T1  - Physiological Characters in Mixed Martial Arts
    AU  - Petter Alm
    AU  - Ji-Guo Yu
    Y1  - 2013/07/20
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    JF  - American Journal of Sports Science
    JO  - American Journal of Sports Science
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    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajss.20130102.11
    AB  - Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a relatively new sport and is a mixture of many different martial arts. Currently, study on the physiological characters in the sport is very limited. The present study evaluated the physiological characters in 5 active male MMA athletes at two occasions with one year between. Aerobic- and anaerobic capacity were estimated through measurement of VO2max and anaerobic threshold using both treadmill running and arm cycling. Muscle strength was evaluated through series measurements. Body composition and personal competition records were also examined. The subjects presented above average aerobic capacity, but rather high anaerobic capacity and threshold levels compared with other similar sports. No significant difference in VO2max, anaerobic threshold or body composition was observed between the two test occasions, despite a decreased tendency in muscle strength/power in the second test compared to the first. The results were interpreted to indicate either the MMA athletes had reached the physiological requirements for MMA or the one year physical training was inefficient in further improving the parameters.
    VL  - 1
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