Making weight and cognitive performance in elite light- weight rowers
Making weight by utilizing acute and rapid weight loss tech- niques is common practice in weight categorised sports and has implications for physical and cognitive performance. In particular, the literature on the cognitive effects of making weight has primarily focused on combat sports and horse racing. To the authors’ knowledge there are no studies on the cognitive effects of making weight in elite lightweight rowers and this exploratory investigation is the first to do so. Five male, national level lightweight oarsmen (mean age 21 years; range 18-25 years, mean body mass 71 kg; range 66-75 kg) completed the Axon Sports Computerised Cognitive Assessment Tool (CCAT) and Visual Analogue Scales (VAS, assessing fatigue, stress and alertness) over the course of a 10 day period in the lead up to an early season club time trial. Prior to the trial, athletes were to meet a club stipulated weight target (71 kg) and for this study, the method by which they achieved this weight was not prescribed. From baseline to the day of the trial modest changes in body mass were observed (mean body mass loss = 0.78 kg; range +1.06 to –1.93 %) and significant (>1.65 std from a mean score computed from age-based within-subject standard deviation) decrements in cognitive performance were noted for two individuals as measured by tasks involving psychomotor speed, that is, detection (DET) and identification (IDT) tasks. Upon further analysis, a moderate correlation was observed between weight loss and cognitive performance as measured by psychomotor speed (DET) task scores (r2= 0.475, n= 4; one participant removed due to gaining weight from baseline to day 9). Subjective VAS assessments demonstrated that subjects were more fatigued compared to baseline on the day after the trial (Day 10, p < .01, n = 5) with a trend towards decreased alertness and increased stress over the weight loss and testing period. Due to the limited sample size of the current study, the meaningfulness of the relationships between the cognitive and subjective variables measured is limited; however this explor- atory study provides valuable insight into a field of limited research. This study also suggests that weight-making strategies in elite rowers can impact elements of cognitive performance and requires further research to fully elucidate this relationship and any concurrent impact on physical performance.