Maturity Status Does Not Exert Effects on Aerobic Fitness in Soccer Players After Appropriate Normalization for Body Size

Abstract

The present study investigated the effects of pubertal status on peak oxygen uptake (VO2peak), respiratory compensation point (RCP), and ventilatory threshold (VT) in young soccer players using different body size descriptors. Seventy-nine soccer players (14 prepubescent, 38 pubescent and 27 postpubescent) participated in this study. A maximal exercise test was performed to determine the VO2peak, RCP, and VT. Ultrasonography was used to measure lower limb muscle volume (LLMV). LLMV (mL-b) was rated as the most effective body size descriptor to normalize VO2peak (mLO2·mL-0.43·min-1), RCP (mLO2·mL-0.48·min-1), and VT (mLO2·mL- 0.40·min-1). The values of VO2peak, RCP, and VT relative to allometric exponents derived by LLMV were similar among groups (p > .05; 0.025 < η2 < 0.059) when the effect of chronological age was controlled. Allometric VO2peak, RCP, and VT values were: 100.1 ± 7.9, 107.5 ± 9.6, and 108.0 ± 10.3 mLO2.mL-0.43·min-1; 51.8 ± 5.3, 54.8 ± 4.7, and 57.3 ± 5.8 mLO2·mL-0.48·min-1; and 75.7 ± 7.1, 79.4 ± 7.0, and 80.9 ± 8.3 mLO2·mL- 0.40·min-1 for prepubertal, pubertal, and postpubertal groups, respectively. Maturity status showed no positive effect on VO2peak, RCP, and VT when the data were properly normalized by LLMV in young soccer players. Allometric normalization using muscle volume as a body size descriptor should be used to compare aerobic fitness between soccer players heterogeneous in chronological age, maturity status, and body size.

Assessing Differences in Cardiorespiratory Fitness With Respect to Maturity Status in Highly Trained Youth Soccer Players

“…Current results are in accordance with Cunha et al (9) who also found that while those of advanced maturity present higher absolute values (L.min -1 ) of VO 2max , when expressed relative to body mass (mL . kg BM -1. min -1 ) differences in measures of VO 2peak are removed (10,25). Present results suggest a reduced oxygen cost for a given relative submaximal running intensity, in players identified as pre-PHV, when compared to their more mature counterparts.…”

“…In contrast to measures of anaerobic fitness components, such as speed, power and strength (26,27), where those of an advanced maturity status are shown to excel, measures of aerobic fitness are shown to be either, similar between groups of differing maturity status or favour less mature individuals, when appropriately scaled (9,10,25). This is supported by the present result, which show no differences between pre-and mid-PHV groups in measures of soccerspecific endurance (Yo-Yo IR1), as well as the absence of any relationship between players' maturity offset and Yo-Yo IR1 performance (r = 0.16, P > 0.05).…”

“…Yet, there is little information regarding the impact of maturation with respect to detailed measures of cardiorespiratory fitness, in highly trained youth soccer players. Moreover, recent research has highlighted the importance of appropriate scaling to successfully accommodate the nonlinear relationship between body size descriptors and VO 2peak (10,25,1). Adopting the traditional ratio-standard method (mL•kg -1 •min -1 ) results in an adjusted VO 2peak which is not independent of body size, therefore research advocates the use of allometric scaling, when interpreting VO 2 data, to remove the confounding influence of body size, in individuals at different stages of maturation (10).…”

The Empirical Research of Aerobic Endurance Training in Football

“…At this stage, no ball state of aerobic training on the football still occupied large proportion of the special physical training, the long run, trail running, running speed, intermittent running training with coaches at all levels of aerobic endurance training program.In specific training period and the stage of training, no ball aerobic endurance training for the athletes' physical reserves also lay a good foundation, but often use constant of the aerobic stamina training not using basketball, can make the football player special form of muscle contraction, the motor unit recruitment methods, muscle fiber type and energy metabolism and function form, technique and rhythm of running to produce a series of morphology and physiological and biochemical characteristics, such as adaptive change.And this kind of adaptive changes such as a sharp turn in the football match, abrupt stop, interception, jumping, change to the outbreak of key technologies, such as hard links such as has a bad influence [3][4][5].…”

Influence of high-intensity interval training in adolescents with asthma

“…Indeed, the gold standard for accounting for body size on peak V̇O2 is to allometrically scale (Nevill et al, 2005), which has been missing from a large proportion of studies, including those specifically in asthma. When correcting for body size using allometric scaling, the higher peak V̇O2 usually associated with increases in maturity are no longer different between maturational groups (Cunha et al, 2011, Cunha et al, 2016, McNarry et al, 2014b). The use of scaling peak V̇O2 is of particular importance within asthma research due to the obese asthma phenotype.…”