Fatigue-Induced Balance Impairment in Young Soccer Players

Abstract

Context: Although balance is generally recognized to be an important feature in ensuring good performance in soccer, its link with functional performance remains mostly unexplored, especially in young athletes.Objective: To investigate changes in balance induced by fatigue for unipedal and bipedal static stances in young soccer players.Design: Crossover study. Setting: Biomechanics laboratory and outdoor soccer field.Patients or Other Participants: Twenty-one male soccer players (age ¼ 14.5 6 0.2 years, height ¼ 164.5 6 5.6 cm, mass ¼ 56.8 6 6.8 kg).Intervention(s): Static balance was assessed with posturalsway analysis in unipedal and bipedal upright stance before and after a fatigue protocol consisting of a repeated sprint ability (RSA) test (2 3 15-m shuttle sprint interspersed with 20 seconds of passive recovery, repeated 6 times).Main Outcome Measure(s): On the basis of the center-ofpressure (COP) time series acquired during the experimental tests, we measured sway area, COP path length, and COP maximum displacement and velocity in the anteroposterior and mediolateral directions. Results:Fatigue increased all sway values in bipedal stance and all values except COP velocity in the mediolateral direction in unipedal stance. Fatigue index (calculated on the basis of RSA performance) was positively correlated with fatigue/rest sway ratio for COP path length and COP velocity in the anteroposterior and mediolateral directions for nondominant single-legged stance.Conclusions: Fatigued players exhibited reduced performance of the postural-control system. Participants with better performance in the RSA test appeared less affected by balance impairment, especially in single-legged stance.Key Words: postural sway, repeated sprint ability test, athletes Key PointsIn young soccer players, balance was adversely affected by fatigue. A moderate correlation existed between balance impairment and repeated sprint ability performance.

Repeated sprint ability in young basketball players: one vs. two changes of direction (Part 1)

“…Change of direction ability in team sport 7 impairment which is a model of change of direction, especially in single leg stance (Pau, Ibba, & Attene, 2014). Lakomy and Haydon (2004) found also that, in multiple (<10) sprint trials, increased fatigue and slower sprint times occurred in enforced deceleration within 6 m after the finish line compared with sprints without forced deceleration (Lakomy & Haydon, 2004).…”

Characterization of Static Balance Abilities in Elite Soccer Players by Playing Position and Age

“…Quantitative analysis of postural sway, which is known to be related to postural control system performance, revealed that soccer players present superior balance abilities compared with basketball players, swimmers and non-athletes for single leg stance (Matsuda, Demura, & Uchiyama, 2008, while it has been suggested that poor postural control may represent a predictive factor for lateral ankle sprains (Beynnon, Murphy, & Alosa, 2002, Trojian & McKeag, 2006. Significant increases in sway, which indicate balance impairment, were also observed as the consequence of intense muscular effort made during a competitive match or repeated sprints (Brito et al, 2012;Pau, Ibba, & Attene, 2014).…”

“…COP PL and Mean MV COP , see Chiari, Rocchi, & Cappello, 2002) were normalized by dividing their values by the participant's height. The proposed methodology was used in previous similar studies on elite soccer players or athletes of other disciplines and can be considered accurate and reliable (Hrysomallis, 2011;Matsuda et al, 2008;Pau et al, 2014). At the time of the test, players were called two at a time into a dedicated quiet room for measurements.…”

Effects of training on postural control and agility when wearing socks of different compression levels

“…In the elderly population, decline in balance control is a major risk factor for falls [3]. In sports, the standing limb in the kicking action in soccer and taekwondo is important to ensure stability needed for successful execution [25,35]. From an injury prevention perspective, balance deficit that occurs immediately after anaerobic stress and fatigue could affect sports performance and might increase the probability of injuries [29,32].…”