Using Bar Velocity to Assess Post-match Neuromuscular Fatigue in Young Soccer Players

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the recovery of neuromuscular performance using mechanical parameters collected during jump (vertical and horizontal) and strength-power exercises in youth soccer players after official soccer matches. Twenty-one outfield highly trained youth male soccer athletes (age: 18.23±0.73 years; weight: 72.12±6.99 kg; height: 1.78±0.08 m) from two teams competing in the 1^st division of U-19 Portuguese National Championship participated in this study. Players completed a battery of physical tests at −2 h, + 30 min, +24 h, and +48 h in relation to the match. Countermovement jump height, horizontal jump distance, and bar velocity during the half squat, bench press, and hip thrust exercises, at fixed loads, were recorded. Countermovement jump was impaired until 24 h post-match (−1.7% from pre- to 24 h post-match, p=0.050; ES=−0.82). Half-squat bar velocity was reduced immediately following the match (−6.8% from pre-match, p=0.004; ES=−0.64) but recovered at +24 h (+2.9%, p=1.00; ES=0.02). Hip-thrust bar velocity was reduced for up to 48 h post-match (−7.4% from pre- to 48 h post-match, p<0.001; ES=−0.80). No impairments were found in the horizontal jump and bench press at any moment. Our findings show prolonged decrements in strength of the posterior chain following a soccer match, measured in the hip thrust exercise, while the other exercises displayed faster recovery dynamics.

Key words

fatigue - recovery - team sports - strength training

Publikationsverlauf

Eingereicht: 18. Mai 2023

Angenommen: 07. August 2023

Accepted Manuscript online:
07. August 2023

Artikel online veröffentlicht:
22. April 2024

• References

• 1 Brownstein CG, Dent JP, Parker P. et al. Etiology and recovery of neuromuscular fatigue following competitive soccer match-play. Front Physiol 2017; 8: 831
• 2 Silva JR, Rumpf MC, Hertzog M. et al. Acute and residual soccer match-related fatigue: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Sports Med 2018; 48: 539-583
• 3 Dalen T, Lorås H, Hjelde GH. et al. Accelerations – a new approach to quantify physical performance decline in male elite soccer. Eur J Sport Sci 2019; 19: 1015-1023
• 4 Krustrup P, Mohr M, Steensberg A. et al. Muscle and blood metabolites during a soccer game: implications for sprint performance. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2006; 38: 1165-1174
• 5 de Hoyo M, Cohen DD, Sañudo B. et al. Influence of football match time-motion parameters on recovery time course of muscle damage and jump ability. J Sports Sci 2016; 34: 1363-1370
• 6 Rampinini E, Bosio A, Ferraresi I. et al. Match-related fatigue in soccer players. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2011; 43: 2161-2170
• 7 Raya-González J, Castillo D, de Keijzer KL. et al. The effect of a weekly flywheel resistance training session on elite U-16 soccer players’ physical performance during the competitive season. A randomized controlled trial. Res Sports Med Print 2021; 29: 571-585
• 8 Rønnestad BR, Nymark BS, Raastad T. Effects of in-season strength maintenance training frequency in professional soccer players. J Strength Cond Res 2011; 25: 2653-2660
• 9 Goulart KN, de O, Couto BP, Junior GOC. et al. The effect of post-match resistance training on recovery in female footballers; when is best to train?. Sci Med Footb 2021; 5: 208-215
• 10 Sabag A, Lovell R, Walsh NP. et al. Upper-body resistance training following soccer match play: compatible, complementary, or contraindicated?. Int J Sports Physiol Perform 2021; 16: 165-175
• 11 Thomas K, Dent J, Howatson G. et al. Etiology and recovery of neuromuscular fatigue after simulated soccer match play. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2017; 49: 955-964
• 12 Abbott W, Clifford T. The influence of muscle strength and aerobic fitness on functional recovery in professional soccer. J Sports Med Phys Fitness 2021; 62: 1623-1629
• 13 Jeffries AC, Marcora SM, Coutts AJ. et al. Development of a revised conceptual framework of physical training for use in research and practice. Sports Med Auckl NZ 2022; 52: 709-724
• 14 Gathercole RJ, Sporer BC, Stellingwerff T. et al. Comparison of the capacity of different jump and sprint field tests to detect neuromuscular fatigue. J Strength Cond Res 2015; 29: 2522-2531
• 15 Sánchez-Medina L, González-Badillo JJ. Velocity loss as an indicator of neuromuscular fatigue during resistance training. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2011; 43: 1725-1734
• 16 Callaghan DE, Guy JH, Kean CO. et al. Back squat velocity to assess neuromuscular status of rugby league players following a match. J Sci Med Sport 2021; 24: 36-40
• 17 Whitehead S, Till K, Weaving D. et al. The use of microtechnology to quantify the peak match demands of the football codes: A systematic review. Sports Med Auckl NZ 2018; 48: 2549-2575
• 18 Nedelec M, McCall A, Carling C. et al. The influence of soccer playing actions on the recovery kinetics after a soccer match. J Strength Cond Res 2014; 28: 1517-1523
• 19 Neto WK, Vieira TL, Gama EF. Barbell hip thrust, muscular activation and performance: A systematic review. J Sports Sci Med 2019; 18: 198-206
• 20 Ramirez-Campillo R, Alvarez C, Gentil P. et al. Sequencing effects of plyometric training applied before or after regular soccer training on measures of physical fitness in young players. J Strength Cond Res 2020; 34: 1959-1966
• 21 Macadam P, Cronin JB, Uthoff AM. et al. Role of arm mechanics during sprint running: A review of the literature and practical applications. Strength Cond J 2018; 40: 14-23
• 22 Helms ER, Byrnes RK, Cooke DM. et al. RPE vs. Percentage 1RM Loading in Periodized Programs Matched for Sets and Repetitions. Front Physiol 2018; 9
• 23 Sanchez-Medina L, Perez CE, Gonzalez-Badillo JJ. Importance of the propulsive phase in strength assessment. Int J Sports Med 2010; 31: 123-129
• 24 Gantois P, Fonseca F, de S, Nakamura FY. et al. Analysis of velocity- and power-load relationships of the free-weight back-squat and hexagonal bar deadlift exercises. Biol Sport 2022; 40: 201-208
• 25 de Hoyo M, Núñez FJ, Sañudo B. et al. Predicting loading intensity measuring velocity in barbell hip thrust exercise. J Strength Cond Res 2021; 35: 2075-2081
• 26 Loturco I, Kobal R, Moraes JE. et al. Predicting the maximum dynamic strength in bench press: the high precision of the bar velocity approach. J Strength Cond Res 2017; 31: 1127-1131
• 27 Pallarés JG, Sánchez-Medina L, Pérez CE. et al. Imposing a pause between the eccentric and concentric phases increases the reliability of isoinertial strength assessments. J Sports Sci 2014; 32: 1165-1175
• 28 Martínez-Cava A, Hernández-Belmonte A, Courel-Ibáñez J. et al. Reliability of technologies to measure the barbell velocity: Implications for monitoring resistance training. PLoS One 2020; 15: e0232465
• 29 Pérez-Castilla A, Piepoli A, Delgado-García G. et al. Reliability and concurrent validity of seven commercially available devices for the assessment of movement velocity at different intensities during the bench press. J Strength Cond Res 2019; 33: 1258-1265
• 30 Bradley PS, Sheldon W, Wooster B. et al. High-intensity running in English FA Premier League soccer matches. J Sports Sci 2009; 27: 159-168
• 31 Dankel SJ, Loenneke JP. Effect sizes for paired data should use the change score variability rather than the pre-test variability. J Strength Cond Res 2021; 35: 1773-1778
• 32 Hopkins WG, Marshall SW, Batterham AM. et al. Progressive statistics for studies in sports medicine and exercise science. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2009; 41: 3-12
• 33 Magalhães J, Rebelo A, Oliveira E. et al. Impact of Loughborough Intermittent Shuttle Test versus soccer match on physiological, biochemical and neuromuscular parameters. Eur J Appl Physiol 2010; 108: 39-48
• 34 Cormack SJ, Newton RU, McGuigan MR. et al. Reliability of measures obtained during single and repeated countermovement jumps. Int J Sports Physiol Perform 2008; 3: 131-144
• 35 Zabaloy S, Giráldez J, Gazzo F. et al. In-season assessment of sprint speed and sprint momentum in rugby players according to the age category and playing position. J Hum Kinet 2021; 77: 274-286
• 36 Krustrup P, Ørtenblad N, Nielsen J. et al. Maximal voluntary contraction force, SR function and glycogen resynthesis during the first 72 h after a high-level competitive soccer game. Eur J Appl Physiol 2011; 111: 2987-2995
• 37 Chatzinikolaou A, Christoforidis C, Avloniti A. et al. A microcycle of inflammation following a team handball game. J Strength Cond Res 2014; 28: 1981-1994
• 38 Wollin M, Thorborg K, Pizzari T. The acute effect of match play on hamstring strength and lower limb flexibility in elite youth football players. Scand J Med Sci Sports 2017; 27: 282-288
• 39 Ekstrand J, Waldén M, Hägglund M. Hamstring injuries have increased by 4% annually in men’s professional football, since 2001: a 13-year longitudinal analysis of the UEFA Elite Club injury study. Br J Sports Med 2016; 50: 731-737
• 40 Yoshimoto T, Chiba Y, Ohnuma H. et al. Measuring muscle activity in sprinters using T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging. Int J Sports Physiol Perform 2022; 17: 774-779
• 41 Delgado J, Drinkwater EJ, Banyard HG. et al. Comparison between back squat, Romanian deadlift, and barbell hip thrust for leg and hip muscle activities during hip extension. J Strength Cond Res 2019; 33: 2595-2601
• 42 Mackala K, Stodółka J, Siemienski A. et al. Biomechanical analysis of standing long jump from varying starting positions. J Strength Cond Res 2013; 27: 2674-2684