Comparison Of Energy Expenditure Observed Between Scheduled Activities In Female Collegiate Basketball And Lacrosse Athletes

Abstract

Specific energy needs of team-sport female athletes have been understudied, particularly with regard to scheduled daily activities. PURPOSE: To examine the difference between energy expenditure changes in NCAA Div II female basketball (BBALL) and lacrosse (LAX) athletes depending on scheduled team activities. METHODS: All athletes (BBALL: n=10; 19.8±1.3 yrs, 173.9±13.6 cm, 74.6±9.1 kg, 27.1±3.2 % fat; LAX: n=20; 20.4±1.8 yrs, 168.4±6.6 cm, 68.8±8.9 kg, 27.9±3% fat) were outfitted with heart rate and activity monitors during four consecutive days on five different occasions (20 days total) across their competitive seasons to assess differences in activity energy expenditure (AEE), total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) and physical activity level (PAL). Data collected was categorized by type of scheduled daily activities: Practice, Game, Conditioning or Off. All dependent variables were analyzed using a mixed factorial ANOVA with paired sample T-Tests as post-hocs when necessary. RESULTS: All results are outlined below in Table 1. Independent of day type, TDEE, AEE, and PAL levels were greater (p<0.05) in LAX athletes. Changes between day types for each sport were significantly different (p<0.05) for TDEE, AEE, and PAL. CONCLUSION: Calculated levels for TDEE, AEE, and PAL in female collegiate BBALL and LAX athletes were determined to all be different, irrespective of the scheduled daily activity. LAX athletes, regardless of scheduled activities, had greater TDEE, AEE, and PAL compared to BBALL athletes. Caloric expenditure in female collegiate athletes varies significantly depending on scheduled team activities with energy needs progressively increasing between Off, Conditioning, Practice, and Games.Table 1: TDEE, AEE, and PAL, in practice, game, conditioning, off, and combined days, in female collegiate BBALL and LAX athletes.† Significantly different between sports (p<0.05); Different letters denote statistical differences between days.