The Effects of Cold Abdominal Packs Upon Performance in Competitive Athletics Namely Basketball and Track

Author

Curtis Calvin Cooksey, Prairie View A&M College

Date of Award

8-1955

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Degree Discipline

Physical Education

Abstract

In considering the effect of physical training, no discussion would be complete without consideration of fatigue. Associated with severe exercise is fatigue of the skeletal muscles, the heart, and the central nervous system, resulting in the improper utilization and transport of oxygen, and the improper removal of lactic acid, carbon dioxide, and other waste metabolites. Chemical studies of the muscles, blood and urine in prolonged exercise have shown evidence of an increased acidosis of the blood, a rise in body temperature, and a depletion of the phosphocreatin and glycogen reserves. This has led to the feeding of sugar, in various forms, during intermissions in competitive sports.

All physical activity produces fatigue if continued for any length of time. Everyone is familiar with the exhaustion which often accompanies long periods of standing motionless or the fatigue brought about through continued use of muscles. When a person is tired or fatigued he does not think nor perform his best. Since recovery from fatigue is of vital concern to most coaches, many measures and methods have been attempted to offset fatigue. The use of drugs such as caffeine, alcohol and amphetamine have been tried to offset fatigue, which appear to raise the level of physical effect but generally only lessen awareness to fatigue. One could expect drugs to react for only a short time during any strenuous exercise, and they might do harm. Drugs that might push a tired athlete beyond his normal limit of endurance are altogether too dangerous even to be considered. Research has been made with the application of cold sprays and cold packs on the abdomen, which has been found to give temporary relief to fatigue. If, by the process of applying cold to a man's mid-section, fatigue can be warded off or recovery from fatigue facilitated, a useful tool is available for use by athletes who participate in strenuous bouts of exercise of relative short duration. It Is a common observation that in such a sport as basketball, team members frequently exhibit inferior performances during the second half of a game. This loss in capacity to play is, no doubt, at least partly due to fatigue. It Is obvious that any device or method which could be used either to warding off or which facilitates recovery from fatigue would be useful to coaches of almost every type of sport.

The purpose of this study Is to determine the effects of cold abdominal packs upon performance in competitive athletics namely Basketball and Track.

Committee Chair/Advisor

J. C. Mitchem

Publisher

Prairie View A&M College

Rights

Date of Digitization

1-19-2022

Contributing Institution

John B Coleman Library

City of Publication

Prairie View

MIME Type

Application/PDF

Recommended Citation

Cooksey, C. C. (1955). The Effects of Cold Abdominal Packs Upon Performance in Competitive Athletics Namely Basketball and Track. Retrieved from https://digitalcommons.pvamu.edu/pvamu-theses/953