Relationship Between Physiological Load, Body Composition, And Performance Across Season In Female Soccer Athletes

Abstract

Body composition has been widely recognized as one of the many factors that could affect performance in the collegiate athlete, including body fat percentage and its changes across the competitive season. Zephyr Performance Systems have been used as a tool to measure physiological load in competitive athletes. Changes in body composition and fitness measures have been reported in female soccer athletes, but few have examined the relationship between them across the season, and their potential effect on post-season fitness measures. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between physiological load and body composition across the season on the post-season performance of the Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test 2 in Division I Female Soccer Athletes. METHODS: Thirty female soccer athletes, age (19.4 ± 1 year) with preseason body fat percentage (22.7 ± 5.3%), participated in the Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test 2 (YYIR2) prior to their fall pre-season conditioning period. Body fat percentage was assessed pre and post-season using BodPod assessment. Zephyr Performance Systems were worn during home season games to quantify and record the athletes’ physiological load, which was averaged over the season (AVEPL). Athletes completed a second YYIR2 at the conclusion of their post-season play and the change in the distance covered on this assessment from pre to post-season was recorded (ChangeDist). RESULTS: No differences were observed in YYIR2 or body fat percentage between pre and post-season. However, AVEPL was negatively correlated with pre to post-season change in distance covered (ChangeDist), r = -0.489, p =0.040. Linear regression analysis also revealed ChangeDist was inversely related to AVEPL (β = -0.448, p =0.048). When adjusted for age and pre to post-season change in body fat percentage (ChangeBF), AVEPL remained inversely related to ChangeDist (β = -0.446, p =0.037). CONCLUSIONS: Athletes with higher average physiological load across the season exhibited a decrease in performance on the post-season Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test 2 when compared to pre-season, regardless of change in body fat percentage. Further research should be done to determine whether these results are due to a true decline in fitness levels or a decline in motivation to perform on the post-season assessment.