By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    HIPPA compliance
    How Medical Office Staff Can Make Your Practice HIPAA Compliant
    October 29, 2021
    Everything you need to know about hyaluronic acid treatment
    Everything you need to know about hyaluronic acid treatment
    February 10, 2022
    Which Mushroom Capsules Are Good for Your Health?
    May 5, 2022
    Latest News
    7 Most Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs: Which Should You Use?
    August 20, 2025
    Hospital Pest Control and the Fight Against Superbugs
    August 20, 2025
    Hygiene Beyond The Clinic: Attention To Overlooked Non-Clinical Spaces
    August 13, 2025
    5 Steps to a Promising Career as a Healthcare Administrator
    August 3, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Having Purpose Adds Years to Your Life
    June 28, 2011
    Can Light Affect Your Health?
    July 29, 2011
    Extending the Frontiers: Working Despite Alzheimer’s and Campus Smoking Bans
    September 1, 2011
    Latest News
    How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
    August 22, 2025
    How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
    August 22, 2025
    How One Fall Can Lead to a Long Road of Medical Complications
    August 22, 2025
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: The Science of Judo and Other Unpredictable Sports
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Wellness > The Science of Judo and Other Unpredictable Sports
Wellness

The Science of Judo and Other Unpredictable Sports

Dov Michaeli
Dov Michaeli
Share
5 Min Read
SHARE

We have 3 energy production systems.

The aerobic system, called oxidative phosphrylation, is used when we jog or run marathons. We pace ourselves so as to utilize oxygen in breaking down glucose for energy production. This system provides a bountiful 34-36 ATP molecules per glucose molecule, an extremely efficient rate of energy utilization.

We have 3 energy production systems.

The aerobic system, called oxidative phosphrylation, is used when we jog or run marathons. We pace ourselves so as to utilize oxygen in breaking down glucose for energy production. This system provides a bountiful 34-36 ATP molecules per glucose molecule, an extremely efficient rate of energy utilization.

More Read

How To Attract Patients in a Consumer-Driven Healthcare Market
Stay Healthier by Avoiding Sedentary Habits Working from Home
Kinds Of Foods That Can Make You Lose Weight
Why Primary Care Physicians Are the Next Phase in CCRC Care
4 Signs You Need to Take a Liver Function Test

The London Marathon

When we sprint the high rate of activity exceeds our capacity to provide enough oxygen, and the deficit is made up by anaerobic metabolism of glucose, or glycolysis. Problem is, we get a net of only 2 ATP molecules per glucose molecule -pretty inefficient. Obviously, this means that we can sustain anaerobic metabolism of glucose for only short periods of time.

glycolysis in action

 

But what about sports that involve sudden, very short bursts interspersed between longer periods of slower activity? For examle: martial arts like judo, wrestling, weight lifting, or the high jump.  The assumption has been that these are “lactic sports”, meaning that for these very short periods of intense efforts the source of energy is anaerobic metabolism.

Judo throw

A study by exercise physiologists at the University of Sao Paolo in Brazil showed that these quick bursts of  energy are supplied primarily by another system.

Phosphagens

Muscles contain phosphate-bearing substances that are high-energy storage molecules. The best known is creatine phosphate. Another is arginine phosphate. Basically these are the energy drinks of the muscle supplying a quick energy rush. They can last for a minute or two, until the more abundant ATP can kick in. What the Sao Paolo scientists found is that during this burst of energy the source of energy is creatine phosphate, a phosphagene, not glycolysis. This is actually not really surprising; creatine phosphate was well known as a temporary, fast-energy supply. What is surprising is how they established it, and where they published it.

To assess how the body gets energy during a more unpredictable sport, Emerson Franchini, and his team outfitted judo practitioners with a portable physiology lab: a mask attached to a device worn on the torso that analyzes gases in the martial artist’s breath and measures the pulse.

The athletes tried different kinds of throws, and also sparred at high intensity, while being monitored by the gas analyzer for  rest oxygen consumption, exercise oxygen consumption, post-exercise oxygen consumption, rest plasma lactate concentration and post-exercise plasma peak lactate. as well as blood samples and pulse. This kind of information has never been known before. But in Science, credibility comes with repetition and confirmation. So what’s the most effective way of teaching investigators how to do it? The written word just doesn’t make it, it too much room for misinterpretation,  or simply klotzy execution. And that’s where the Journal of Visual Experiments or JoVE in short, comes in. Papers published in this journal are in video form, with an accompanying text to amplify the visual. Why did it take that long to modernize our mode of scientific communication?

I urge you to log onto the site and see it for yourself. This is the wave of the future, albeit a bit late.

Practical aspects

Beyond the methodological innovation, what did we learn? Body-builders have been using creatine supplements as a muscle builder for years. I am not sure it does build muscle mass, but its function as a quick energy boost is perfectly plausible. Did the athletes stumble on scientifically-based stimulant? Time and scientific experimentation will tell.

TAGGED:energyexercise
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

travel nurse in north carolina
Balancing Speed and Scope: Choosing the Nursing Degree That Fits Your Goals
Nursing
September 1, 2025
intimacy
How to Keep Intimacy Comfortable as You Age
Relationship and Lifestyle Senior Care
September 1, 2025
engineer fitting prosthetic arm
How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
Health care
August 20, 2025
a woman explaining the document
How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
Public Health
August 20, 2025

You Might also Like

fashion-person-woman-apple.jpg
eHealthWellness

Millennials and Healthcare: How the Game Has Changed

August 18, 2016

Cultural Change for Students’ Health and Humanity

June 12, 2012
germ protection tips
Home HealthWellness

Are You Protected from Germs? Check Out This Infographic

November 2, 2013

Creating the Connected Patient

September 2, 2012
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?