The Effects of Weekly Recreational Soccer Intervention on the Physical Fitness Level of Sedentary Young Men

Abstract

Recreational soccer (RS) has a great potential to improve the physical fi tness levels of diverse populations when performed two to three times per week. However, to date, only Beato and collaborators have examined the eff ects of once-a-week RS on physical fi tness, even though this frequency is widespread among participants. Th us, this study aimed to investigate the eff ect of weekly performed RS intervention on components of physical fi tness in sedentary young men. Twenty-healthy men aged 20-27 years were randomly assigned to a soccer (n=10) group or a control (n=10) group. Participants in the soccer group played a 60-min. small-sided soccer game once-a-week for eight weeks. Before and aft er the intervention period, body composition, aerobic fi tness, blood pressure, anaerobic performance and isokinetic leg strength were assessed. Aft er eight weeks of the once-a-week intervention period, in the soccer group, body fat and thickness of skinfolds were signifi cantly decreased (p<0.05). Peak oxygen uptake, running distance, squat and countermovement jump (p<0.01), concentric quadriceps and eccentric hamstring strength were also improved only in the soccer group (p<0.05). In contrast, other variables, including body mass (BM), body mass index (BMI), fat-free mass (FFM), heart rate responses, blood pressure, and anaerobic performance remained the same as before the intervention period (p>0.05). Participating in weekly RS programme can lead to some health and performance benefi ts. However, the people who wish to further improve their health status and performance level should increase the frequency of RS activity.