Health-Related Physical Fitness in Healthy Untrained Men: Effects on VO2max, Jump Performance and Flexibility of Soccer and Moderate-Intensity Continuous Running
August
Health-Related Physical Fitness in Healthy Untrained Men: Effects on VO2max, Jump Performance and Flexibility of Soccer and Moderate-Intensity Continuous Running
Zoran Milanović 0 1
Saša Pantelić 0 1
Goran Sporiš 0 1
Magni Mohr 0 1
Peter Krustrup 0 1
0 1 Faculty of Sport and Physical Education, University of Niš , Niš , Serbia , 2 Faculty of Kinesiology, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia, 3 Sport and Health Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter , Exeter , United Kingdom , 4 Center of Health and Human Performance, Department of Food and Nutrition, and Sport Science, University of Gothenburg , Gothenburg , Sweden , 5 Faculty of Natural and Health Sciences, University of the Faroe Islands, Tórshavn, Faroe Islands, 6 Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, Copenhagen Centre for Team Sport and Health, University of Copenhagen , Copenhagen , Denmark
1 Editor: Pedro Tauler, University of the Balearic Islands , SPAIN
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Competing Interests: The authors have declared
that no competing interests exist.
The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of recreational soccer (SOC)
compared to moderate-intensity continuous running (RUN) on all health-related physical fitness
components in healthy untrained men. Sixty-nine participants were recruited and randomly
assigned to one of three groups, of which sixty-four completed the study: a soccer training
group (SOC; n = 20, 34±4 (means±SD) years, 78.1±8.3 kg, 179±4 cm); a running group
(RUN; n = 21, 32±4 years, 78.0±5.5 kg, 179±7 cm); or a passive control group (CON; n = 23,
30±3 years, 76.6±12.0 kg, 178±8 cm). The training intervention lasted 12 weeks and
consisted of three 60-min sessions per week. All participants were tested for each of the following
physical fitness components: maximal aerobic power, minute ventilation, maximal heart rate,
squat jump (SJ), countermovement jump with arm swing (CMJ), sit-and-reach flexibility, and
body composition. Over the 12 weeks, VO2max relative to body weight increased more
(p<0.05) in SOC (24.2%, ES = 1.20) and RUN (21.5%, ES = 1.17) than in CON (-5.0%, ES =
-0.24), partly due to large changes in body mass (-5.9, -5.7 and +2.6 kg, p<0.05 for SOC,
RUN and CON, respectively). Over the 12 weeks, SJ and CMJ performance increased more
(p<0.05) in SOC (14.8 and 12.1%, ES = 1.08 and 0.81) than in RUN (3.3 and 3.0%, ES = 0.23
and 0.19) and CON (0.3 and 0.2%), while flexibility also increased more (p<0.05) in SOC
(94%, ES = 0.97) than in RUN and CON (0–2%). In conclusion, untrained men displayed
marked improvements in maximal aerobic power after 12 weeks of soccer training and
moderate-intensity running, partly due to large decreases in body mass. Additionally soccer
training induced pronounced positive effects on jump performance and flexibility, making soccer
an effective broad-spectrum fitness training intervention.
Health-related physical fitness has been defined as specific components of physical fitness
related to body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular fitness, flexibility and body
composition [1], whereas performance related fitness is defined in relation to crucial abilities
for success in sports competitions and athletic events [2]. It is well known that aging causes
deterioration of all health components if regular physical activity and an active lifestyle are
not maintained during the lifespan. In addition, improving or maintaining physical fitness
reduces the risk of all-cause and cardiovascular diseases [3]. Despite the fact that fitness is a
strong mortality predictor, many studies fail to take into account overall fitness status as an
independent risk factor compared to parameters such as hypertension, diabetes, smoking or
obesity [4].
Several studies argue that moderate-intensity continuous exercise training (RUN) is an
efficient intervention for improving cardiorespiratory fitness regardless of age, training status or
gender [5–9]. In addition, meta-analyses reports suggest high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and
sprint interval training as protocols for improving VO2max in inactive subjects [10–12].
Moreover, Milanović et al. [13] found that high-intensity interval training is beneficial for VO2max in
recreational subjects with lower baseline levels of VO2max (up to 40 mL kg-1 min-1) as well as
high levels (above 48 mL kg-1 min-1), while moderate-intensity exercise is more suitable for
moderately trained subjects (40–47 mL kg-1 min-1). Thus, different training status may impact the
efficiency of different training modes.
Nader [14] has reported that strength and endurance training produce diverse adaptations,
with little overlap between them. Furthermore, when strength and endurance training are
performed simultaneously, a potential interference in strength development may occur [14].
The training effects on body composition may also differ between different types of training,
although increases in lean mass and decreases in fat mass, (...truncated)