MSc by Research Student

Course Start: October 2016

Supervisor: Dr John Hough
Supervisor 2: Dr Laura Charalambous

Working thesis title

Exercise-induced hormonal and immunological responses to a 12-day period of intensified training

Abstract

Diagnosis and prevention of overreaching and the overtraining syndrome (OTS) in athletes still remains equivocal and therefore establishing a reliable biological marker would be useful. Resting hormonal markers (i.e. cortisol and testosterone), and immunological markers (i.e. immunoglobulin A) have been identified as potential markers of chronic physiological stress. The research output, however, is inconclusive with no clear and consistent alteration in these markers to highlight overreaching. More recently it has been suggested that exercise-induced hormone responses may provide a useful marker to highlight a state of overreaching (Meeusen et al., 2010; Hough et al., 2013; Hough et al., 2015). Therefore, the proposed research will examine the exercise-induced hormonal and immunological responses before and after an intensified training period in an attempt to highlight a marker of overreaching.

Research Questions

• Does a period of intensified training have an impact on exercise-induced hormones?
• Does a period of intensified training have an impact on the function of the immune system?

About Me

I graduated with a first class honours in Sport and Exercise Science at the University of Bedfordshire in July 2016 and started studying a MSc by Research in October 2016. My principle interests are in hormonal and immunological alterations to acute and chronic exercise.

Contact Information

E: michael.harrison@study.beds.ac.uk