Physiological Strain Experienced By A Collegiate Mascot During NCAA Division I Football Games

Heart rate (HR) and body temperature tracking have been used to monitor workload and athlete safety during competition. An understudied group who also exerts substantial effort during sporting events is team mascots. Mascots wear heavy suits/uniforms leading to an environment not conducive to effective temperature regulation. Limited information is available examining mascot exertion; data are needed to determine the physiologic impact of performing in a mascot suit and to understand potential health risks. PURPOSE: To describe the physiologic strain experienced by a collegiate mascot during football games. METHODS: A physiologic tracking system evaluated HR, skin temperature (TSkin), and respiratory rate (RR) from individuals (N = 3 males) who performed mascot activities “in suit” (weighing ~14 kg) during 4 NCAA Division I University football games. HRmax was determined using a graded treadmill test (not “in suit”). Core body temperature (TCore) was measured for one game each using an ingestible temperature monitoring capsule. Body weight was measured pre- and post-activity to estimate sweat loss (no food, ad libitum drinking) and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) from 6-20 (Borg’s Scale) was reported. Due to limited sample size, statistical analysis was limited to means and standard deviations. RESULTS: Individual participant data (age = 20.6 ± 0.8 years, height = 180.5 ± 5.8 cm, weight = 82.8 ± 13.8 kg) are presented in Table 1. A second game for Participant 3 is reported to display physiologic responses between different ambient conditions. CONCLUSION: The mascot suit micro-environment posed great physiologic strain on the wearers, potentially putting them at risk for heat-related illness. Future research should continue to examine this phenomenon and explore the effects of performing in varying environments (e.g. indoor vs. outdoor) and events (e.g. sports vs. parades), as strain may differ with ambient environment and activity load.