Children and adolescents are often suggested to be more responsive to physical training during periods of rapid growth, the so-called "golden periods". However, whether changes in physical fitness are related to the actual training or to the normal growth remains unclear1. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of an entire season of soccer training and match play on physical fitness responses in two groups of highly-trained young soccer players differing in growth rate, biological maturity and age. Methods Twelve pre-age at peak height velocity (pre-APHV) players (age 12.9±0.5 y; -1.34±0.60 y to PHV, height 1.51±0.07 m; body mass 40.2± 7.2 kg) and 11 post-APHV players (age 15.7±0.6 y; 0.92±0.73 y from PHV, height 1.67± 0.07 m; body mass 52.0± 6.4 kg) trained on average of ~14 h of combined soccer training and competitive match play per week during an entire season (8 months). Physical fitness tests, conducted at the beginning and end of the season, included: counter movement jump (CMJ), acceleration (ACC) and maximal sprinting speed (MSS) obtained during a 40-m sprint with 10-m splits, repeated-sprints ability (10 x 30-m sprints, RSA) and an incremental running test to estimate maximal aerobic speed (MAS). Results & Discussion The pre-APHV group displayed an almost three-fold greater increase in growth (i.e., height) than the post-APHV group. Substantial improvements in all physical performance variables were observed throughout the season in both groups. After adjustment for changes in height, betweengroup differences in training responses (Figure 1) favored the post-APHV group for CMJ, ACC, MSS and RSA. On the contrary, MAS was most responsive to training in the pre-APHV group. Conclusions The differential adaptive responses in neuromuscular (i.e., CMJ, ACC, MSS, RSA) and cardiovascular (i.e., MAS) fitness in response to soccer-specific training in our sample of young soccer players are likely to be mediated by age and/or biological maturation and growth-related factors, respectively.
© Copyright 2011 7th World Congress on Science and Football (WCSF), 2011. Alle Rechte vorbehalten. / Übersetzt mit https://www.DeepL.com/Translator