Explained: The ABC of Dexa and How it can Help Indian Cricket Going Forward

“The Yo-Yo Test and Dexa will now be part of selection criteria and implemented in the customized roadmaps of the central pool of players,” a BCCI release after the January 1 review meet stated. While Yo-Yo Test was a known commodity, Dexa (dual x-ray absorptiometry) forced everyone to do quick google checks. In the fitness circles, Dexa has been there for “donkey years” and will only empower the current strength and conditioning set-up for the betterment of players going forward.

In an exclusive conversation with News18 Cricketnext, former India strength and conditioning coach Ramji Srinivasan answers the many FAQs around Dexa and how it’s going to benefit the current set-up. Ramji had suggested Dexa to the BCCI back in 2011 and it’s been finally inducted.

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“DEXA has been there for donkey years. I recommended DEXA in 2011 to BCCI and in 2016 all the Tamil Nadu Ranji Trophy boys had to undergo DEXA,” says Ramji.

What does Dexa do?

It basically helps to understand muscle gain and map the fat in specific areas. And the error percentage is only 1-2%. It then tracks the physiological response to diet and exercise. So somebody carrying more fat is more prone to injuries because of the load on the joints. Every time you hit the ground, four-five times the bodyweight load falls on the joints. There are bio-mechanical changes in running patterns and other things because of excess fat. It then also shows bone health and density and also helps to understand the percentage of body fat to lean muscle mass.

And where the fat deposits are occurring. For women, it’s gynoid fat and for men, it’s android fat. For men, the deposits are mostly in the midsection area and for women, it’s mostly in the hip area and the waist region. It also helps in understanding the visceral fat percentage in the body. It’s the fat surrounding the organs and is very very important. It basically helps understand muscle symmetry.

Another thing it helps understand is the resting metabolic rate. In simpler terms, it is the basic calorie required to maintain the current mass of the body under resting conditions. Once you understand this, you can address fat loss by reducing your calorie intake.

What does Dexa show?

Dexa shows everything – the percentage of skeletal mass to lean muscle mass to fat percentage and depositions around organs. It has direct implications on the workout schedules and the diet pattern which needs to be drawn for individual players according to the fat percentage. If somebody has a higher fat percentage, they need to bring it down. Proper exercise and diet program is of utmost importance to bring the fat percentage down and increase lean muscle mass.

Reducing fat percentage is just one aspect of strength and conditioning, the next aspect is peak performance. That is a different ball game altogether. 10-12% is the maximum fat percentage I would like. You can go down to 5-6% for professional soccer players. Indian cricketers can maximum push it to 10-12%. This also helps in remaining injury free. Dexa is a tool to understand a problem and device a solution. By just doing DEXA, you can’t expect miracles and expect your guys to be super athletes tomorrow.

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Can Dexa help anticipate future breakdowns?

Not really. When you are carrying extra fat in your body you are carrying excess baggage and pushing more load on joints and ligaments. Before the injury, probabilities of injuries can happen but it’s not 100% foolproof. There are players who are on the beefy side but can sprint and run without any problem or injury. I have also seen fast bowlers who have not gone close to a gym and have been injury free for the last 10 years. Different strokes for different folks.

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