Impact of french contrast training on field hockey players’ biomotor and physiological parameters: a pretest-posttest study

Abstract

Field hockey requires a diverse skill set that includes strength, speed, anaerobic power, and endurance due to current advancements in sports science, plyometric and strength activities for enhancing players' performance. As a result, field hockey players and coaches are in constant need of new training interventions which could be most effective for improving the required parameters. Therefore, the current study investigates the influence of French contrast training (FCT) on selected biomotor and physiological variables in field hockey players. A total of thirty (N=30) male field hockey players were purposively selected from Union Christian College, Aluva, India. They were randomized into two groups: a treatment group (TG) that underwent twelve weeks of FCT and a control group (CG) that performed their daily usual activities. The selected biomotor outcome parameters were muscular strength (MS) and speed (S), while the physiological parameters were anaerobic power (AP), resting heart rate (RHR), and vital capacity (VC). The pre and post-test mean differences were analysed using paired-sample t-test and the level significance was fixed at 0.05 across all cases. The results revealed that there were significant enhancements in MS (p<0.01), S (p<0.01), AP (p<0.01), and VC (p<0.01) in the TG after twelve weeks of FCT, while the CG did not show any significant differences. Exceptionally, RHR did not show any significant difference in both TG and CG. Conclusion: The study suggests that FCT can be an effective method to improve selected biomotor and physiological parameters, except RHR in male college-level hockey players. Keywords: French contrast training, muscular strength, speed, anaerobic power, resting heart rate, vital capacity.