Orienteering

Fitness Testing Assignment: Orienteering - by Terence Ho

Contents

• Introduction
• Features of Orienteering
• Characteristics of Succesful Orienteers
• Fitness Testing Procedures
• Conclusion
• References

Introduction

Orienteering is a sport developed in Sweden in 1918 aiming at utilizing the natural environment to encourage people to be more active. It can be defined as a sport involves both physical and cognitive components. The physical component comprises a cross-country running event, which takes the format of time trial; the technical aspect involves navigating around a set course with the use of a specially produced map and compass (Creagh and Reilly 1997). In this context, the physiological features of this sport will be reviewed; also, the characteristics of successful orienteers and different physiological testing procedures will be described.

Features of Orienteering

Physiological factors

The duration of orienteering completion indicates that it is an endurance event, the intensity of effort being reflected in the heart rate response (Creagh and Reilly 1997). Most championship orienteering events are conducted over distances ranging from 8-14 kilometres. The world championship events include a short distance events (completion time, 25 to 30 min), a classic distance race (completion time, 70 to 90 min) and a relay event (approximately 40 to 50 min) (Arnott et al 1989).

It was suggested that due to the unique physical and cognitive characteristics of this sport, orienteering evoked a significantly more variable heart rate response than cross-country running and fell running (Creagh et al 1998). Besides, the study by Bird and associates (1993) showed that the recorded heart rate of 16 competitive orienteers (aged 15-62 years) during three competitive events was between 140-180 beats per minute for the majority of each event (irrespective of age or course type). The heart rate data indicated that the activity was largely aerobic but varied in intensity, with phases of strenuous anaerobic work. Thus anaerobic processes do appear to be an important feature of orienteering performance (Arnott et al 1989).

The mean oxygen uptake for orienteers is 6.0 litres per minute whilst 3,000 metres runners average 4.8 litres per minute. Runners in the 800-1500 metre category have similar oxygen uptake scores that exceed those of the orienteers. Hence, the competitive orienteers may be compared to other endurance-trained athletes in respect of physiological characteristics (Arnott et al 1989).

Intrinsic factors

The duration of orienteering competitions demands a strong component of aerobic training, in female elite athletes, 77% of the total training time are spent on aerobic training. Leg strength is also important to overcome the gradient encountered in competition, despite no relevant study shown in orienteering, other studies have demonstrated that the improvement shown in cross country running performance was after strength training (Creagh & Reilly 1997).

During different phases of the competition, the blood lactate level varies. In rough orienteering (fast orienteering with little emphasis on navigation) the blood lactate level of elite male orienteers rose from 4.4 to 6.7 mmol/L. In contrast, during fine orienteering (complex navigation was required and the pace was then lowered) the blood lactate level decreased from 3.6 to 4.6 mmol/L (Creagh & Reilly 1997). This indicates that the body will respond differently in different phases during competition. On the other hand, the magnitude of glycogen consumption and the pronounced increase in serum cortisol during the orienteering race reflect the great muscular output demands during forest running (Johansson et al 1990).

Extrinsic factors

Running off road, as in orienteering, makes greater demands on the body. It was shown that there are differences in both heart rate and lactate responses between running in forests and on a treadmill. Running in the forests terrain elicits increases in energy cost from 26% to 72% depends on the density of undergrowth and gradient (Creagh & Reilly 1997).

Moreover, orienteering terrain was thought to be the most varied, particularly in terms of underfoot vegetation, although the gradient also varies considerably, and the constant changing of direction in negotiating obstacles is also likely to interfere with running style consequently affecting recorded heart rates (Creagh et al 1998).

Characteristics of Successful Orienteers

Anthropometry

The endurance nature of orienteering would suggest that athletes are likely to have similar anthropometric characteristics of distance runners (Creagh & Reilly 1997, Arnott et al 1989).

In those elite female orienteers as portrayed through their somatotypes is close to that reported for elite marathon runners, who had similar endomorphy (2.8) and mesomorphy (3.6), however, a higher ectomorphy (4.6) ratings have been reported in distance runners. This is also reflected in the greater adiposity levels amongst elite female orienteers ranging from 19 to 22% when compared with elite distance runners, whose relative adiposity ranged from 13 to 17% (Creagh & Reilly 1997).

For elite male orienteers, both endomorphy and ectomorphy ratings were close to those of marathon runners, however, the mesomorphy ratings were lower than those reported in the marathon runners (3.5 and 4.3 respectively) (Creagh & Reilly 1997, Arnott et al 1989).

Aerobic factors

Orienteers have relatively high VO_{2 max}. In elite male, it ranges from 61.6±4.0 to 75.7±3.7. In elite female, the VO₂ range varies from 46.1±8.1 to 62.8±2.0. These findings depend on the number of participants in different studies and their original nationality.

Apparently, the orienteers in USA demonstrate the lowest VO_{2 max} whereas the Swedish athletes show the highest VO_{2 max} among other European countries (Creagh & Reilly 1997).

Anaerobic factor

Despite orienteering is characterized by its aerobic components, however, it is not a sports that required steady state work. Anaerobic capacity is necessary especially running in difficult terrain, ascending slopes and crossing obstacles (Creagh & Reilly 1997). The anaerobic energy system provides the initial source of energy for any race and is a valuable source of energy during heavy work when the aerobic system need support (Arnott et al 1989). However, the performance in anaerobic tests is relative poor (Creagh & Reilly 1997). Arnott and colleagues(1989) suggested that the championship level orienteers should aim to improve their level of anaerobic power.

Muscle performance

Relatively high proportion of type I (slow twitch) muscles fibre was found.

A greater percentage of slow twitch fibres in quadriceps in male orienteers (67%) than race walkers (59%), downhill skiers (48%), sprinters/jumpers (39%) and sedentary individuals (44%). A similar pattern exists amongst female orienteers, with cross country skiers being the only athletes with a higher proportion of slow twitch fibres than orienteers (Creagh & Reilly 1997).

However, the consequent low proportion of type II (fast twitch) fibres is accompanied by poor muscle strength and is also related to a low anaerobic profiles amongst orienteers. It was suggested that the leg extension strength in male orienteers was 2.2 Nm/Kg whereas the track athletes have the strength of 2.7 Nm/Kg. In contrast, the female orienteers have close leg flexion and extension strength compared with normal healthy women, although they have been shown to demonstrate superior leg flexion strength in comparison with roadrunners (Creagh & Reilly 1997).

Skills

Besides the physical capability, good propioception, agility and balance are very crucial. Running on an uneven surface and crossing over obstacles are frequent come in orienteering. Furthermore, the cognitive aspects are essential to have analytical perception of environment and prompt decision making (Arnott et al 1989).

Fitness Testing Procedures

Aerobic Power

Test performed

Maximum effort treadmill test (Rossignol & Gordon 1991)

Aim

To assess the athlete's aerobic power

Setting

Laboratory

Nature of test

This test consists of running continuously on the treadmill at an assigned constant velocity

Valuables measured

Running velocity shown on treadmill, heart rate throughout the whole testing, respiratory exchange ratio, VO₂

Testing Procedures

1. The aim of the testing and the whole testing procedure are clearly explained.
2. Warm up / stretching exercises are instructed before the testing.
3. General familiarization is given by running on the treadmill (up to the starting running velocity).
4. Constant running velocity is assigned specifically to both male and female groups. It is recommended that 14 kph for male orienteers and 12 kph for female orienteers.
5. Treadmill gradient starts at 0% and is raised 1% every minute.
6. VO₂ is recorded in every minute.
7. Heart rate is recorded by heart rate monitor (Polar Electronics) in the last 10 seconds of each minute, previous research has found this monitoring system to be reliable, unobtrusive and not to interfere with the orienteers' running or concentration (Bird et al 1993).
8. Encouragement is given to the athlete to run as long as possible under safe situation.
9. The athlete continue running until exhaustion, exhaustion is indicated by:
   • Maximal heart rate appears to have reached,
   • Respiratory exchange ratio approaches or exceeds 1.1, and
   • VO₂ does not increase with increasing gradient.

Limitations

• As this test is developed based on the physical abilities of athletes in western countries, athletes with different body builds ,e.g. Asian athletes, may find the suggested speed too fast.
• As orienteering is basically an outdoor activities, most of the running surfaces are irregular, the test result shown by running on the treadmill may not reflect the true performance.
• The athletes must familiarize with running on the treadmill in order to perform maximally.
• Good quality and reliable treadmill is essential to obtain accurate and repeatable results.

Normative Data

VO_{2 max} (international level)

Males-70-80 ml/kg/min

Females-55-65 ml/kg/min

Alternate Testing Procedure

Terrain trial (Rossignol & Gordon 1991)

This is a maximal effort test ideal of testing aerobic ability in the field setting, it can also simulate the situation during orienteering competition. The variables investigated included heart rate responses during the run and total time needed to cover the whole forest venue which composed of different types of running terrain. The total distance suggested is around 3-4 km.

Anaerobic Capability

Anaerobic Threshold

Test performed

Terrain three speed test (Rossignol & Gordon 1991)

Aim

To determine the anaerobic threshold of the athletes in a field setting

Setting

Field

Nature of test

This test consists of running a 800 m course over open bush land at a regular speed

Valuables measured

Blood lactate, heart rate

Testing Procedures

1. A resting blood lactate is taken before warm-up
2. Warm up includes jogging less than 800m and appropriate stretching exercise for the lower limbs
3. The athlete is instructed to run close to the course that is marked by tape
4. The athlete should run in a consistent pace instead of a set heart rate
5. The effort level should be close to 80%, 90% and 95% of maximum heart rate
6. The rest period between each terrain effort is 3 minutes
7. Heart rates are recorded every 15 seconds and averaged over the last 2 minutes to obtain a plateau heart rate
8. Blood samples are taken to obtain blood lactate immediately after exercise

Limitations

• Some athletes may find it hard to run slow enough to select an 80% of maximum heart rate
• Reproducibility of results may be moderate as the nature of the terrain course can change with the weather.
• Only large improvements in aerobic fitness will be detected but not the small improvement

Normative Data

Improvements in aerobic fitness will be measured by decrease in heart rates and lactate levels. Improvements in the anaerobic threshold at 4mmol lactate will also translate as faster running (Rossignol & Gordon 1991)

Alternative Methods

Treadmill three speed test (Rossignol & Gordon 1991)

It can be used to determine the anaerobic threshold of the athletes. This test consists of running continuously on the treadmill at a constant gradient of 3% and three speeds are chosen from 10, 12,14,16,18 kph so that two are below the anaerobic threshold and one is just above the anaerobic threshold. The approximate heart rate for the three workloads should be close to 80, 90 and 95% of maximum heart rate. Each test workload is for four minutes and a 3 minutes rest period is assigned between workloads. Heart rates are recorded every 15 seconds and averaged over the last 2 minutes to obtain a plateau heart rate. Blood lactate samples are taken before warm-up and immediately after exercise

Lactic Anaerobic Power

Test performed

Timed hill run (Rossignol & Gordon 1991)

Aim

To determine the lactic anaerobic power of the athletes in a field setting

Setting

Open forest

Nature of test

This test consists of running over a 20% grade hill, improvements are indicated by faster times over set distance

Valuables measured

Time for the hill run, blood lactate

Testing Procedures

1. A resting blood lactate is taken before warm-up
2. The distance for male is 200m and for female is 180m
3. The athlete is instructed to warm up with a 10 minutes jog and stretching routine to lower limbs
4. The time for hill-run is recorded to the nearest second
5. Blood samples are taken to obtain blood lactate at 2, 4, 6 and 8 minutes after exercise

Limitations

• As in other field test, change of weather or condition of ground may alter the accuracy of measurement
• Improvement must be related to a retest on the same environment

Normative Data

Elite athletes should have the running time between 45 and 70 seconds

Alternate Methods

The similar procedure can be carried out in laboratory setting. Rossignol and Gordon (1991) suggested the term "Glycolytic" Run to test the anaerobic ability and lactic acid tolerance because the majority of energy involved may be glycolytic depending on the duration achieved. The routine procedures are the same except the test is conducted on treadmill at a speed of 13 kph for males and 11 kph for females using the same gradient.

Other Relevant Tests

Agility test

Test performed

Line drill test (Zachazewski et al 1996)

Aim

To determine the agility ability in terms of rapid directional change, cutting, pivoting, sudden accelerations and decelerations

Setting

Basketball court

Nature of test

This test consists of series of a timed shuttle run in the basketball court with cones marking the correct distances (see Figure 1 below)

Valuables measured

Elapsed time of the run

Testing Procedures

1. Routine warm up and sub-maximal trials runs for familiarization of the course
2. Test is started from the near-baseline (point A)
3. On the command "go", the athlete is instructed to make four continuous roundtrips:
   • From the near baseline to the near free-throw line and return("A" to "B" to "A")
   • From the near baseline to the half court line and return ("A" to "C" to "A")
   • From the near baseline to the far free-throw line and return ("A" to "D" to "A")
   • From the near baseline to the far baseline and return ("A" to "E" to "A")
4. In each line, athlete is required to touch with his/her foot during the run
5. Time needed for repeating a total of four repetitions is charted
6. The four run times are averaged for comparison of the target time (listed in normative data)

Limitations

Agility is described to be one of the important requirements of orienteering, however, no structured agility testing procedure was found in the literature. The line drill test was selected because it involves straight line running and frequent turning; also a norms of the performance is established. In this test, fatigue can be one of the limiting factors to the test. Degree of fatigues can be evaluated by comparing the time of the first run with the time of the fourth run:

Normative Data

There are no measures of reliability or validity for the line drill test in the literature and the only normative data available in the literature are lists of target times found in journals of the National Strength and Conditioning Association, which show the norms of the performance of college basketball players (Zachazewski et al 1996).

Table 1. The norms of college basketball players' performance in line drill test

	Line Drill Test Time (s)
Position	Male	Female
Centre	30	35
Forward	28	33
Guard	26	30

Flexibility Tests

Flexibility is important for maximizing the efficiency in running and preventing injuries. In orienteering/running, there are a few muscles group should be addressed, namely pelvic girdle muscles group (mainly Hip Flexors and Tensor Fascia Lata), knee extensors (mainly Rectus Femoris in Quadriceps muscles), knee flexors (mainly Hamstrings ) and calf muscle group.

Pelvic girdle muscles/knee extensors group

Athlete is positioned in Thomas test position (supine lying with the tested leg hanging over the edge of the plinth and the other thigh is held closed to chest, lumbar spine should be flattened on the plinth). Positive hip flexors contracture is indicated by the free-hanging thigh rises off the plinth from the original position.

If the leg does not lift off the plinth but abducts as the other leg is flexed to the chest, it is called a positive "J" sign and is indicative of a tight iliotibial band on the extended leg side. In the same position, if the free-hanging knee is kept less than 90°( full knee extension is considered to be 0°), a Rectus Femoris contracture may be present. However, muscle tightness should be observed and palpated to differentiate the tight structures like tight hip capsule (Magee 1997).

Knee flexors group

90-90 straight leg raising test is used to test the length of hamstrings. The athlete is positioned in supine with the tested hip flexed to 90° while the knee is bent. The knee is actively extended in turn as much as possible. For normal flexibility in the hamstrings, knee extension should be within 20° of full extension.

However, neurological symptoms should be excluded before the testing especially athletes currently suffering form hamstrings strains (Kornberg and Lew 1989).

Calf muscles group

The athlete is instructed to stand in a lunge position with the tested foot flat on the ground and maximally dorsi-flexes the ankle while the knee move towards the wall. The knee is moved maximally forward in line with the foot while the knee cap touch the wall. The horizontal distance between the big toe and the wall is measured. If such distance is less than 10 cm, the result is classified as unsatisfactory (Rossignol & Gordon 1991). During the test, the heel should be kept on the ground throughout the whole procedure and foot hyperpronation to gain "extra dorsiflexion" should be prohibited.

Conclusion

Orientation is the sport composed of both physical and cognitive components. Good aerobic ability, anaerobic power and muscle endurance are essential in attaining maximum performance. Different testing procedures include maximum effort treadmill test, terrain three speed test, timed hill run, line drill test and flexibility test are useful in evaluating the ability in aerobic capability, anaerobic threshold, anaerobic power, agility and soft tissue extensibility respectively.

References

Arnott I, O'Rouke J and Spinks W (1989)

Orienteering: What does it take? Sports Coach 12:17-20.

Bird SR, Bailey BA and Lewis BA (1993)

Heart rates during competitive orienteering: British Journal of Sports Medicine 27(1):53-57.

Creagh U, Reilly T and Nevill AM (1998)

Heart rate response to "off-road" running events in female athletes. British Journal of Sports Medicine 32:34-48.

Creagh U and Reilly T (1997)

Physiological and biomechanical aspects of orienteering. Sports Medicine 24(6):409-418.

Johansson C, Tsai L, Hultman E, Tegelman R and Pousette Å (1990)

Restoration of anabolic deficit and muscle glycogen consumption in competitive orienteering. International Journal of Sports Medicine 11:204-207.

Kornberg C and Lew P (1989)

The effect of stretching neural structures on grade one hamstring injuries. Journal of Orthopedic and Sports Physical Therapy 13:481-487.

Magee DJ (1997)

Orthopedic Physical Assessment (3rd edn.) Philadelphia: Saunders.

Rossignol PL and Gordon DA (1991)

Physiological assessment of the orienteer. In Draper J, Minikin B and Telford R: National Sports Research Centre Test Methods Manual. Australia: National Sports Research Program, pp. 3-19.

Zachazewski JE, Magee DJ and Quillen WS (1996)

Athletic Injuries and Rehabilitation. Philadelphia: Saunders.

Exercise Physiology Educational Resources 1998