Neuromuscular and inflammatory responses to handball small‐sided games: the effects of physical contact

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of physical contact on neuromuscular impairments and inflammatory response during handball small-sided games. Using a counterbalanced design, 12 elite male junior handball players were divided into two groups: contact (C-SSG) and no-contact (NC-SSG), performing both contact and no-contact small-sided games, in reverse order on two training sessions separated by 5 days. The methodology and rules were identical for the two SSG regimens, with the only difference being the inclusion or prohibition of upper body use for physical contacts. Upper and lower body neuromuscular performances and blood concentrations of inflammatory cytokine IL-6 were assessed before and immediately after the games. During small-sided games, video analysis was used to establish the physical contact counts. Significant differences were found in most upper and lower limbs muscles kinetic variables and in the physical contact events (all P < 0.001) following the two training regimens. There was an increase in IL-6 after C-SSG and no changes following NC-SSG (P < 0.05 and P = 0.12, respectively). Moreover, a strong correlation was found between the number of physical contacts and IL-6 responses (r = 0.971, P < 0.001) in C-SSG. This study indicates that an inflammatory response and large upper and lower body neuromuscular impairments result from physical contact in elite handball players. These outcomes outline the specific physiological profile of C-SSG that, in turn, might be used by practitioners and coaches as a practical approach to strategically select exercises in athlete's overall training program.

Effect of contact and no-contact small-sided games on elite handball players

“…In the same study (Dello Iacono, et al, 2015), the SSG regimen was proven to have practical advantages over a high-intensity intermittent training protocol, and was more effective in inducing performance gains in vertical jumps and agility skills. Therefore, the contact events occurring in the C-SSG protocol are likely to provide neuromuscular overloads (Dello Iacono, Eliakim, Padulo, et al, 2016) that, when adequately planned in the handball conditioning agenda, may result in long-term adaptations and functional gains. Moreover, this finding could also help athletes in developing certain physical abilities according to the demands of their playing position, with pivot and back defenders identified as the optimal target, requiring of more muscle hypertrophy and strength type of work (Karcher & Buchheit, 2014).…”

“…In fact, such an evidence-based theoretical framework represents a means for optimising the design of handball-specific training drills with the aim of providing players with the most appropriate learning environments. These drills include well-designed technical, tactical, and handball-specific physical development programmes (Dello Iacono, Eliakim, Padulo, Ben-Zaken, & Meckel, 2016). In this context, by manipulating the exercise constraints and rules, coaches are likely to affect the physiological responses and both physical and technical demands of controlled game situations, with the aim of inducing the desired effects for maximal performance improvement.…”

Beneficial effects of small-sided games as a conclusive part of warm-up routines in handball

“…Lower body mechanical capabilities were assessed by a CMJ test according to the protocol previously described by Dello Iacono et al (2017). Each subject performed a bilateral CMJ on a force plate (Kistler Biomechanics, Winterthur, Switzerland) starting from a stationary position Specific warm-up in team handball with their hands on the waist and knees fully extended, squatting down to about ~90° of knee flexion before starting an explosive, upward motion, with the intent to jump as high as possible.…”

“…Subjects performed two selfchosen trials without data being recorded before completing three PP with 30-45 s of rest between them. The same procedural methods described above for the lower body mechanical responses assessment were applied (Dello Iacono et al, 2017). All PP trials were analyzed for the eccentric and the concentric phases and the kinetic parameters selected for further analysis were: peak eccentric force (F peak-ecc ), peak concentric force (F peak-con ), and peak concentric power (P peak-con ).…”

“…The SSG warm-up was composed of: regular small-sided handball matches and were organized in 3-a-side teams including goalkeepers (Iacono et al, 2015;Dello Iacono et al, 2016;Dello Iacono et al, 2017;Dello Iacono et al, 2018). The SSG warm-up consisted of 3 × 2 min bouts with a passive recovery of 1 min between bouts played on a regular handball court (40 m × 20 m).…”