Sports enthusiasts have long touted the benefits of functional training for athletes. But is there solid evidence to back up these claims? Let's break it down. Functional training involves exercises that mimic real-life movements and sports-specific actions. Unlike traditional gym workouts, it focuses on improving the body's overall performance in a practical setting...

In sports like running, jumping, or soccer, coaches often need to study athletes' moves to help them improve. One big challenge is quickly spotting athletes, their gear, and field boundaries in videos or photos. Existing methods struggle with this, mainly because they lose important time details, mix up targets, have overlapping objects, and combine two tough tasks: ...

You might think having two legs that work exactly the same would be best for runners, right? Surprisingly, a closer look at middle- and long-distance runners shows that this isn't always the case. A recent review found that the difference between how your left and right legs perform, called inter-limb asymmetry, doesn't always spell trouble. Imagine your legs as two...

You might think that athletes do better when they focus on where they want to go, like a far target. But a study had college students throw a medicine ball while switching their focus between near and far targets. Surprisingly, focusing on the far target didn't make much difference. Instead, when they concentrated on their own movements, either during or after the th...

Imagine stepping up to take the winning penalty kick in a soccer match. The crowd is deafening, and your team's fate hangs in the balance. Can simply picturing yourself sinking that goal actually improve your chances? That's what scientists are trying to figure out. They're exploring the fascinating world of mental imagery, the ability to create vivid mental pictures...