Papers by Themistoklis Tsatalas
Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology, Jun 29, 2024
Journal of Sports Sciences

Journal of Sports Sciences, Feb 1, 2013
ABSTRACT Abstract This study investigated the effects of knee localised muscle damage on running ... more ABSTRACT Abstract This study investigated the effects of knee localised muscle damage on running kinematics at varying speeds. Nineteen young women (23.2 ± 2.8 years; 164 ± 8 cm; 53.6 ± 5.4 kg), performed a maximal eccentric muscle damage protocol (5 × 15) of the knee extensors and flexors of both legs at 60 rad · s(-1). Lower body kinematics was assessed during level running on a treadmill at three speeds pre- and 48 h after. Evaluated muscle damage indices included isometric torque, muscle soreness and serum creatine kinase activity. The results revealed that all indices changed significantly after exercise, indicating muscle injury. Step length decreased and stride frequency significantly increased 48 h post-exercise only at the fastest running speed (3 m · s(-1)). Support time and knee flexion at toe-off increased only at the preferred transition speed and 2.5 m · s(-1). Knee flexion at foot contact, pelvic tilt and obliquity significantly increased, whereas hip extension during stance-phase, knee flexion during swing-phase, as well as knee and ankle joints range of motion significantly decreased 48 h post-exercise at all speeds. In conclusion, the effects of eccentric exercise of both knee extensors and flexors on particular tempo-spatial parameters and knee kinematics of running are speed-dependent. However, several pelvic and lower joint kinematics present similar behaviour at the three running speeds examined. These findings provide new insights into how running kinematics at different speeds are adapted to compensate for the impaired function of the knee musculature following muscle damage.
Arthroscopy, Jul 1, 2010
First detailed gait analyses of quadrupedal locomotion in the common marmoset. The kinematics a... more First detailed gait analyses of quadrupedal locomotion in the common marmoset. The kinematics and kinetics were compared with those of Japanese macaques. Basis for comparative analyses of changes in gait due to rehabilitation & regenerative treatments.

European Journal of Applied Physiology
Purpose To determine the recovery kinetics of performance and exercise-induced muscle damage foll... more Purpose To determine the recovery kinetics of performance and exercise-induced muscle damage following different sprint-training protocols. Methods In a crossover design, ten male and female athletes (20.6 ± 2.4 years) performed 2 × (3 × 20 m: 2 min rest) and 1× (3 × 30 m: 3 min rest) of: (a) unresisted sprints (UST), (b) resisted sprints with 10% of body mass (BM) load (RST10), (c) resisted sprints with 20% BM load (RST20), against a control trial (no-training). Results Blood lactate (mmol/L) increased post-training versus pre-training in all sprint-training trials (6.7 ± 2.4 vs 1.2 ± 0.2, 5.6 ± 2.4 vs 1.3 ± 0.3, 7.3 ± 2.7 vs 1.2 ± 0.3, in UST, RST10, RST20, respectively), as did creatine kinase (U/L) 24 h, 48 h and 72 h post-training (UST: 251 ± 173, 238 ± 154, 209 ± 115 vs 155 ± 9, RST10: 252 ± 134, 240 ± 83, 218 ± 103 vs 164 ± 106; RST20: 237 ± 133, 323 ± 303, 262 ± 184 vs 179 ± 106, respectively). DOMS of knee-extensors (KE) and knee-flexors (KF) increased post-training up to 7...

Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology
Identifying playing styles in football is highly valuable for achieving effective performance ana... more Identifying playing styles in football is highly valuable for achieving effective performance analysis. While there is extensive research on team styles, studies on individual player styles are still in their early stages. Thus, the aim of this systematic review was to provide a comprehensive overview of the existing literature on player styles and identify research areas required for further development, offering new directions for future research. Following the PRISMA guidelines for systematic reviews, we conducted a search using a specific strategy across four databases (PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and SPORTDiscus). Inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied to the initial search results, ultimately identifying twelve studies suitable for inclusion in this review. Through thematic analysis and qualitative evaluation of these studies, several key findings emerged: (a) a lack of a structured theoretical framework for player styles based on their positions within the team for...

Medicina
The aim of the present study is to examine the acute effects of a specially designed musicokineti... more The aim of the present study is to examine the acute effects of a specially designed musicokinetic (MSK) program for patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) on (a) anxiety levels, (b) select kinematic and kinetic parameters, and (c) frontal cortex hemodynamic responses, during gait initiation and steady-state walking. Methods: This is a blind cross-over randomized control trial (RCT) in which 13 volunteers with PD will attend a 45 min MSK program under the following conditions: (a) a synchronous learning format and (b) an asynchronous remote video-based format. Changes in gait biomechanics and frontal cortex hemodynamic responses will be examined using a 10-camera 3D motion analysis (Vicon T-series, Oxford, UK), and a functional near-infrared spectroscopy (f-NIRS-Portalite, Artinis NL) system, respectively, while anxiety levels will be evaluated using the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale. Expected results: Guided by the rules of music, where periodicity is distinct, our specially design...

Future Internet
Understanding the performance indicators that contribute to the final score of a football match i... more Understanding the performance indicators that contribute to the final score of a football match is crucial for directing the training process towards specific goals. This paper presents a pipeline for identifying key team-level performance variables in football using explainable ML techniques. The input data includes various team-specific features such as ball possession and pass behaviors, with the target output being the average scoring performance of each team over a season. The pipeline includes data preprocessing, sequential forward feature selection, model training, prediction, and explainability using SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP). Results show that 14 variables have the greatest contribution to the outcome of a match, with 12 having a positive effect and 2 having a negative effect. The study also identified the importance of certain performance indicators, such as shots, chances, passing, and ball possession, to the final score. This pipeline provides valuable insight...

Nutrients
In sports nutrition, nitric oxide (NO•) precursors such as L-citrulline are widely used to enhanc... more In sports nutrition, nitric oxide (NO•) precursors such as L-citrulline are widely used to enhance NO• bioavailability, which is considered an ergogenic aid. Our study aimed to examine the effect of short-term L-citrulline supplementation on respiratory muscles’ performance, fatigue, and oxygenation in older adults. Fourteen healthy older males took 6 g of L-citrulline or a placebo for seven days in a double-blind crossover design. Pulmonary function via spirometry (i.e., forced expired volume in 1 s (FEV1), forced vital capacity (FVC), and their ratio)), fractional exhaled nitric oxide (NO•), maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP), rate of perceived exertion, and sternocleidomastoid muscle oxygenation (i.e., oxyhemoglobin (Δ[O2Hb]) and de-oxyhemoglobin (Δ[HHb]), total hemoglobin concentration (Δ[tHb]), and tissue saturation index (TSI%)) were evaluated at baseline, after seven days of L-citrulline supplementation, and after incremental resistive breathing to task failure of the respira...

Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology
Identifying and measuring soccer playing styles is a very important step toward a more effective ... more Identifying and measuring soccer playing styles is a very important step toward a more effective performance analysis. Exploring the different game styles that a team can adopt to enable a great performance remains under-researched. To address this challenge and identify new directions in future research in the area, this paper conducted a critical review of 40 research articles that met specific criteria. Following the 22-item Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines, this scoping review searched for literature on Google Scholar and Pub Med database. The descriptive and thematic analysis found that the objectives of the identified papers can be classified into three main categories (recognition and effectiveness of playing styles and contextual variables that affect them). Critically reviewing the studies, the paper concluded that: (i) factor analysis seems to be the best technique among inductive stati...

Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology
The present study aimed to identify the impact of social distancing measures on adolescents’ phys... more The present study aimed to identify the impact of social distancing measures on adolescents’ physical activity (PA) levels and well-being during the implementation of COVID-19 restrictive measures. There were 438 participants (207 boys and 231 girls), aged 12 to 15 years old (M = 13.5, SD = 0.55). They completed online questionnaires on well-being and PA in three waves (December 2020, February 2021, and June 2021). Correlation analyses were conducted to examine the relationship between well-being and PA variables in the three measurements. Additionally, separate three-way repeated-measures ANOVAs were conducted to capture possible differences in students’ moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) levels, life satisfaction, and subjective vitality among the three measurements due to gender, age, and interaction between gender and age. A significant relation emerged between the MVPA variables and well-being. In all measurements, adolescents’ PA levels did not meet the World Health...
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, Dec 27, 2022
This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY

Sensors
This systematic review documents the protocol characteristics of studies that used neuromuscular ... more This systematic review documents the protocol characteristics of studies that used neuromuscular electrical stimulation protocols (NMES) on the plantar flexors [through triceps surae (TS) or tibial nerve (TN) stimulation] to stimulate afferent pathways. The review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) statement, was registered to PROSPERO (ID: CRD42022345194) and was funded by the Greek General Secretariat for Research and Technology (ERA-NET NEURON JTC 2020). Included were original research articles on healthy adults, with NMES interventions applied on TN or TS or both. Four databases (Cochrane Library, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science) were systematically searched, in addition to a manual search using the citations of included studies. Quality assessment was conducted on 32 eligible studies by estimating the risk of bias with the checklist of the Effective Public Health Practice Project Quality Assessment Tool....
ΦΥΣΙΟΛΟΓΙΑ ΤΗΣ ΑΣΚΗΣΗΣ [ΠΑΝEΠΙΣΤΗΜΙΟ ΘEΣΣΑΛΙΑΣ, ΣΧΟΛΗ EΠΙΣΤΗΜΗΣ ΦΥΣΙΚΗΣ ΑΓΩΓΗΣ ΚΑΙ ΑΘΛΗΤΙΣΜΟΥ, ΤΜ... more ΦΥΣΙΟΛΟΓΙΑ ΤΗΣ ΑΣΚΗΣΗΣ [ΠΑΝEΠΙΣΤΗΜΙΟ ΘEΣΣΑΛΙΑΣ, ΣΧΟΛΗ EΠΙΣΤΗΜΗΣ ΦΥΣΙΚΗΣ ΑΓΩΓΗΣ ΚΑΙ ΑΘΛΗΤΙΣΜΟΥ, ΤΜΗΜΑ EΠΙΣΤΗΜΗΣ ΦΥΣΙΚΗΣ ΑΓΩΓΗΣ ΚΑΙ ΑΘΛΗΤΙΣΜΟΥ]

BioMed
The purpose of this paper is to present the design, construction, and technical aspects of a prot... more The purpose of this paper is to present the design, construction, and technical aspects of a prototype upper extremities lever-driven exercise system, called FIT-WHEEL (Functional and Intelligent Training system for WHEELchair users), as well as the preliminary experimental measurements conducted to test the device’s usability in healthy individuals. FIT-WHEEL was developed to provide a training modality that combines the known benefits of eccentric exercise and lever-propelled wheelchairs. Eleven healthy male participants performed, seven days apart, a moderate intensity concentric and eccentric exercise protocol on FIT-WHEEL consisting of 30 trials of both upper extremities at 30% of peak concentric and peak eccentric force, respectively. At the end of each exercise bout, participants completed a number of valid and reliable instruments examining attitudes, intention and enjoyment during concentric or eccentric exercise on the FIT-WHEEL system as well as the usability of the two e...
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Papers by Themistoklis Tsatalas