Tom formerly worked for OPL and is now an Assistant Professor in the Department of Community Medicine at the United Arab Emirates University.

Loney T1, Carter JM2, Scullion, LJ2, Nicholson, GF2, Al Shehhi M3 Urine color is an effective biomarker for self-monitoring hydration status in Army Cadets from the United Arab Emirates. To be presented at the American Industrial Hygiene Association Conference 2012.

1Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

2Optimal Performance Limited, Bristol, United Kingdom.

3United Arab Emirates Armed Forces, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Dr Mark Rayson of Optimal Performance Limited (OPL), meeting with our Malaysian partners, Charismatic Consultancy, and other stakeholders.

Optimal Performance Limited (OPL), in collaboration with our Malaysian partners, Charismatic Consultancy, have just embarked on a project to conduct a study assessing training, health and physical performance of Officer Cadets at the National Defence University in Kuala Lumpur.

Advance Magazine Front Cover

ADS ADVANCE Magazine has published details of the Queens Award for Enterprise and International Trade won by Optimal Performance Limited (OPL). The award was presented to company directors (Mark Rayson & Gill Dixon) at a reception at Buckingham Palace.  OPL won the Queen’s Award for its outstanding achievement in growing its overseas sales over nine-fold in three years, for further details please read our previous news release.

The ADVANCE magazine is produced by the Times Group in partnership with ADS – the trade organisation advancing UK Aerospace, Defence, Security and Space industries.

A copy of the article is free to download from our website (ADS Advance Magazine OPL Article).

Blacker SD, Horner FL, Brown PE, Linnane DM, Wilkinson, DM, Wright A, Bluck LJ, Rayson MP. Health, Fitness, and Responses to Military Training of Officer Cadets in a Gulf Cooperation Council Country. Military Medicine, 176(12), Dec 2011, pp1376-1381.

Objective: To quantify the health, fitness, and physiological responses to military training of Officer Cadets from a Gulf Cooperation Council country. Methods: One hundred and nineteen Officer Cadets volunteered; body composition, core body temperature, aerobic fitness, hydration status (urine osmolality), cardiovascular strain, physical activity (3-dimensional accelerometry), and energy expenditure (doubly labelled water) were measured over 5-days of Basic Training (BT), Army Training (AT), Navy Training (NT), and Air Force Training (AFT). Results: There were no differences between courses for body mass index (mean all courses: 24.1 ± 4.1 kg.m⁻²) or peak core body temperature (mean all courses: 38.1 ± 0.4 °C) (p > 0.05). AT body fat (19.8 ± 3.6%) and BT VO₂ max (36.8 ± 11.6 mL.kg⁻¹.min⁻¹) were lower than the other courses (BT, 26.1 ± 8.1; NT, 26.0 ± 6.0; AFT, 24.7 ± 6.1%) and (AT, 44.8 ± 9.6; NT, 45.0 ± 7.5; AFT, 44.6 ± 5.2 mL.kg⁻¹.min⁻¹), respectively (p < 0.05). NT urine osmolality (979 ± 90 mOsmol.kg⁻¹) was similar to BT (946 ± 181 mOsmol.kg⁻¹ p > 0.05) but lower in AT (868 ± 144 mOsmol.kg⁻¹, p < 0.05) and AFT (883 ± 121 mOsmol.kg⁻¹, p < 0.05). Cardiovascular strain during NT (22 ± 5 %HRR) was lower than other courses (range, 25 ± 4-29 ± 3% Heart Rate Reserve) (p < 0.05). Physical activity level during AFT (1.70 ± 0.18 AU) was lower than other courses (range, 1.86 ± 0.21-1.92 ± 0.18 AU) (p > 0.05). Conclusion: Positive developments were apparent from BT leading into other courses. Potential exists to increase physical training volume on all courses, which may improve participants’ aerobic fitness, body composition, and health.

Dr James Carter participating in the Occupational Health Video Conference at UAEU

Dr James Carter of Optimal Performance Limited (OPL) recently attended an Occupational Health Video Conference hosted by the United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) in conjunction with Ireland’s Royal College of Physicians Occupational Medicine group. James delivered a presentation to critically appraise a recent peer reviewed publication: ‘Nolte, Noakes and Van Vuuren, Trained humans can exercise safely in extreme dry heat when drinking water ad libitum, J Sport Sci 2011; 29(12): 1233–1241. This paper examined hydration and body temperature of soldiers during a self-paced load carriage task in the heat. The presentation stimulated an interesting discussion, particularly as the methodology used and issues investigated in the paper are extremely relevant to physically demanding occupations in the UAE and wider GCC region.

For further information on our work within the UAE please visit our UAE Armed Forces page or for further details on the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at UAEU please visit their website.

Vice Chairman H.E. Abdallah Bin Hamad al Attiyah of the National Academy for Professional Training (NAPT) and Dr Mark Rayson of Optimal Performance Limited (OPL)

Vice Chairman H.E. Abdallah Bin Hamad al Attiyah of the National Academy for Professional Training (NAPT) and Dr Mark Rayson of Optimal Performance Limited (OPL) have signed a Partnering Agreement in Qatar. Through this agreement the companies plan to work together to enhance performance during training.

NAPT was founded in Qatar in 2003 to provide a basic training service and basic maritime service to the Oil & Gas Industry. Since then, the Academy has developed into the largest academy of its kind in The State of Qatar offering a wide range of services and keeping up with the development of The State of Qatar and the Industry’s demands. Course modules are inclusive of basic awareness courses, maritime courses, advanced courses and specialized courses for the mentioned industries. Consultation services are inclusive of fire suppression, fire risk assessments, health and safety procedure writes, health and safety consultation. For further information please see the NAPT website.