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In elite football, the emphasis is placed on monitoring the output from the Global Positioning Systems (GPS) component of a Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) device; however, this does not comprehensively overview the total demands due to the intermittent multidirectional nature. The aim of the study was to investigate the application of accelerometer data provided by MEMS, to evaluate movement requirements in elite football. A two-staged research approach, involving an effectiveness and efficacy stage, was deployed. The effectiveness stage examined two MEMS-accelerometer variables (PlayerLoadTM (PL) and PlayerLoadTM per meter (PL.m-1)) for four years and four months. Ninety-nine English Premier League outfield football players' participated. In the efficacy stage, 26 elite outfield football players completed three different training modalities (running, possession and dribbling) and a range of MEMS-accelerometer variables were analysed. In the effectiveness stage, the mean difference in PL for all training activities other than Set Pieces were similar to Matches (-283 to -246au). Model coefficients for PL.m-1 were smallest in Team Shape (-0.00114au), Attacking (0.00025au) and Games (0.00196au), and largest for Possession (0.03356AU), Defending (0.03182au) and Skills Games (0.03106au) compared to Matches. The findings suggest that PL.m-1 but not PL may be effective at describing differences in movement requirements. In the efficacy stage, PL.m-1 and inertial movement analysis (IMA) efforts were the only variables that had greater mean differences in the smaller conditions, confirming PL.m-1's suitability in evaluating movement requirements of different training activities and pitch dimensions. The findings suggest such a variable offers value in a monitoring strategy in football.

Female soccer has seen a substantial rise in participation, as well as increased financial support from governing bodies over the last decade. Thus, there is an onus on researchers and medical departments to develop a better understanding of the physical characteristics and demands, and the health and performance needs of female soccer players. In this review, we discuss the current research, as well as the knowledge gaps, of six major topics: physical demands, talent identification, body composition, injury risk and prevention, health and nutrition. Data on female talent identification are scarce, and future studies need to elucidate the influence of relative age and maturation selection across age groups. Regarding the physical demands, more research is needed on the pattern of high-intensity sprinting during matches and the contribution of soccer-specific movements. Injuries are not uncommon in female soccer players, but targeting intrinsically modifiable factors with injury prevention programmes can reduce injury rates. The anthropometric and physical characteristics of female players are heterogeneous and setting specific targets should be discouraged in youth and sub-elite players. Menstrual cycle phase may influence performance and injury risk; however, there are few studies in soccer players. Nutrition plays a critical role in health and performance and ensuring adequate energy intake remains a priority. Despite recent progress, there is considerably less research in female than male soccer players. Many gaps in our understanding of how best to develop and manage the health and performance of female soccer players remain.

We assessed the effects of post-exercise cold-water immersion (CWI) in modulating PGC-1α expression in response to exercise commenced with low muscle glycogen availability. In a randomized repeated-measures design, nine recreationally active males completed an acute two-legged high-intensity cycling protocol (8 x 5 min at 82.5% peak power output) followed by 10 minutes of two-legged post-exercise CWI (8°C) or control conditions (CON). During each trial, one limb commenced exercise with low (LOW: <300 mmol.kg-1 dw) or very low (VLOW: <150 mmol.kg-1 dw) pre-exercise glycogen concentration, achieved via completion of a one-legged glycogen depletion protocol undertaken the evening prior. Exercise increased (P<0.05) PGC-1α mRNA at 3 h post-exercise. Very low muscle glycogen attenuated the increase in PGC-1α mRNA expression compared with the LOW limbs in both the control (CON VLOW ~3.6-fold vs. CON LOW ~5.6-fold: P = 0.023, ES 1.22 Large) and CWI conditions (CWI VLOW ~2.4-fold vs. CWI LOW ~8.0 fold: P = 0.019, ES 1.43 Large). Furthermore, PGC-1α mRNA expression in the CWI-LOW trial was not significantly different to the CON LOW limb (P = 0.281, ES 0.67 Moderate). Data demonstrate that the previously reported effects of post-exercise CWI on PGC-1α expression (as regulated systemically via β-adrenergic mediated cell signalling) are offset in those conditions in which local stressors (i.e. high-intensity exercise and low muscle glycogen availability) have already sufficiently activated the AMPK- PGC-1α signaling axis. Additionally, data suggest that commencing exercise with very low muscle glycogen availability attenuates PGC-1α signaling.

Hamstring muscle injury is highly prevalent in sports involving repeated maximal sprinting. Although neuromuscular fatigue is thought to be a risk factor, the mechanisms underlying the fatigue response to repeated maximal sprints are unclear. Here, we show that repeated maximal sprints induce neuromuscular fatigue accompanied with a prolonged strength loss in hamstring muscles. The immediate hamstring strength loss was linked to both central and peripheral fatigue, while prolonged strength loss was associated with indicators of muscle damage. The kinematic changes immediately after sprinting likely protected fatigued hamstrings from excess elongation stress, while larger hamstring muscle physiological cross-sectional area and lower myoblast:fibroblast ratio appeared to protect against fatigue/damage and improve muscle recovery within 48 h after sprinting. Contrastingly, a high myoblast:fibroblast ratio appears crucial for the latter stage of muscle regeneration. We have therefore identified novel mechanisms that likely regulate the fatigue/damage response and recovery following repeated maximal sprinting in humans.

© 2017 National Strength and Conditioning Association. The aim of this investigation was to describe differences in training loads between position groups within professional American football. Integrated micro technology data were collected on 63 NFL football players during an American football training camp. Five key metrics (total distance, high-speed distance, player load (PL), PL per minute, and total inertial movement analysis [IMA]) served to quantify both running and nonrunning activities. Players were classified into position groups (defensive back [DB], defensive linemen [DL], linebacker, offensive linemen [OL], quarterback, running back, tight end, and wide receiver [WR]). Training sessions were identified by their relationship to the upcoming match (e.g., -4, -3, and -2). Running and nonrunning activities varied between position groups relative to the training day. Differences in total distance between DB and WR were observed to be unclear across the 3 training days (game day [GD] -4: 74 ± 392 m; GD -3: 2122 ± 348 m; and GD -2: 2222 ± 371 m). However, moderate to large differences were observed between these 2 positions and the other positional groups. A similar relationship was observed in PL and PL per minute, with the DB and WR groups performing greater amounts of load compared with other positional groups. Differences in high-speed distance varied across positional groups, indicating different outputs based on ergonomic demands. The OL and DL groups ran less but engaged in a higher amount of nonrunning activities (total IMA) with differences ranging from moderate to large across the 3 training days. Total IMA differences between offensive and defensive linemen were unclear on GD -4 (24 ± 9) and GD -2 (22 ± 8) and likely moderate on GD -3 (29 ± 9). Positional differences with regard to running and non-running activities highlight the existence of position-specific training within a training microcycle. In addition, total IMA provides a useful metric f

Mechanisms mediating post-exercise cold-induced increases in PGC-1α gene expression in human skeletal muscle are yet to be fully elucidated, but may involve local cooling effects on AMPK and p38 MAPK related signalling and/or increased systemic β-adrenergic stimulation. We aimed to therefore examine whether post-exercise cold-water immersion enhancement of PGC-1α mRNA is mediated through local or systemic mechanisms. Ten subjects completed acute cycling (8x5 min at ~80% peak power output) followed by seated-rest (CON) or single leg cold-water immersion (CWI; 10 min, 8°C). Muscle biopsies were obtained pre-, post- and 3 h post-exercise from a single limb in the CON condition but from both limbs in CWI (thereby providing tissue from a CWI and non-immersed limb, NOT). Muscle temperature decreased up to 2 h post-exercise following CWI (-5°C) in the immersed limb, with lesser changes observed in CON and NOT (-3°C; P<0.05). No differences between limbs were observed in p38MAPK phosphorylation at any time point (P<0.05), whilst a significant interaction effect was present for AMPK phosphorylation (P=0.031). Exercise (CON) increased gene expression of PGC-1α 3 h post-exercise (~5-fold; P<0.001). CWI augmented PGC-1α expression above CON in both the immersed (CWI; ~9-fold; P=0.003) and NOT limbs (~12-fold; P=0.001). Plasma Normetanephrine concentration was higher in CWI vs. CON immediately post-immersion (860 vs. 665 pmol/L; P=0.034). We report for the first time that local cooling of the immersed limb evokes transcriptional control of PGC1-α in the non-immersed limb, suggesting increased systemic β-adrenergic activation of AMPK may mediate, in part, post-exercise cold-induction of PGC-1α mRNA.

We tested the hypothesis that both post-exercise and passive cold water immersion (CWI) increases PGC-1α and VEGF mRNA expression in human skeletal muscle.Study 1 Nine males completed an intermittent running protocol (8 × 3-min bouts at 90 % [Formula: see text], interspersed with 3-min active recovery (1.5-min at 25 % and 1.5-min at 50 % [Formula: see text]) before undergoing CWI (10 min at 8 °C) or seated rest (CONT) in a counterbalanced, randomised manner. Study 2 Ten males underwent an identical CWI protocol under passive conditions.Study 1 PGC-1α mRNA increased in CONT (~3.4-fold; P < 0.001) and CWI (~5.9-fold; P < 0.001) at 3 h post-exercise with a greater increase observed in CWI (P < 0.001). VEGFtotal mRNA increased after CWI only (~2.4-fold) compared with CONT (~1.1-fold) at 3 h post-exercise (P < 0.01). Study 2 Following CWI, PGC-1α mRNA expression was significantly increased ~1.3-fold (P = 0.001) and 1.4-fold (P = 0.0004) at 3 and 6 h, respectively. Similarly, VEGF165 mRNA was significantly increased in CWI ~1.9-fold (P = 0.03) and 2.2-fold (P = 0.009) at 3 and 6 h post-immersion.Data confirm post-exercise CWI augments the acute exercise-induced expression of PGC-1α mRNA in human skeletal muscle compared to exercise per se. Additionally CWI per se mediates the activation of PGC-1α and VEGF mRNA expression in human skeletal muscle. Cold water may therefore enhance the adaptive response to acute exercise.

© 2015 Taylor & Francis. The present study evaluated the effectiveness of participation in recreational football during a community health programme, on physiological markers of health within a hard to reach population. Nine men (Age: 33 ± 9 years, Mass: 75.4 ± 13.7 kg, Height: 1.74 ± 0.07 m and Body Fat: 19 ± 2%) were recruited to participate in the study in collaboration with an English Premier League Football Club. Participants completed the 12-week football-based programme which included two coached football sessions each week. Physiological tests for blood pressure, resting heart rate, cholesterol and an anthropometrical test for body composition were completed at three time points during the study (Weeks – 1, 6 and 12) in an attempt to evaluate the impact of the intervention on health. During each training session, measurements of intensity (%HRmax, identified from the yoyo intermittent level 1 test), duration and rating of perceived exertion were made. The 12-week programme (mean HRmax throughout programme = 75 ± 4% beats min−1; mean RPE throughout programme = 6 ± 1) elicited few changes in physiological markers of health with the only significant change been a decrease in resting heart rate from weeks 6 to 12 (87 ± 22 beats min−1 at week-6, to 72 ± 17 beats min−1; p < 0.05). These data would suggest that the current community football-related health project was not effective in improving physiological markers of health, but was able to maintain their level of health. A lack of improvement may be due to the low intensity of sessions and a lack of coach education for the promotion of sessions that aim to improve health.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the challenges that men from hard-to-reach (HTR) populations encounter when attempting to commit to regular participation in physical activity and health behaviours, and to explore the psychological and social effects of participation in a twelve week football-led health improvement intervention. STUDY DESIGN: A twelve week football specific physical activity intervention targeting men from HTR populations was delivered by Everton Football Clubs' Football in the Community (FitC) scheme as part of a national programme of men's health delivered in/by English Premier League (EPL) football clubs. Men living in homeless shelters and/or recovering from substance misuse were recruited over a period of three months. The programme consisted of a two hour football session, twice weekly, alongside the dissemination of healthy living messages. Football sessions were conducted by a qualified FitC coach. METHODS: This research was conducted during a twelve week period of immersed practitioner-research. Ethnographic and observational methodologies were adopted. Psychosocial issues were discussed with participants through informal client-researcher interactions and data were logged via field notes. Records of attendance were logged. Participants who failed to attend a session were contacted and their reason(s) for non-attendance were recorded. Data were analysed using deductive and inductive reasoning. RESULTS: Despite the apparent ambition of the participants to regularly participate in the FitC programme, adherence to the programme was poor. Economic, environmental and social barriers to engagement in the programme were apparent. Engagement in the programme resulted in positive psychosocial developments; the development of structure, social interaction and social capital. CONCLUSION: Community based football-led health improvement programmes endorsed by professional football clubs appear well positioned to connect with, and attract, men from HTR populat

The chapters contained within this volume were first presented at The Fourth World Conference on Science and Soccer, held in Portland, Oregon, in June 2014 under the auspices of the World Commission of Science and Sports.

This study aims to examine the effectiveness of a Premier League football club's Football in the Community (FitC) schemes intervention in promoting positive healthful behaviour change in children. Specifically, exploring the effectiveness of this intervention from the perspectives of the participants involved (i.e. the researcher, teachers, children and coaches). A range of data collection techniques were utilized including the principles of ethnography (i.e. immersion, engagement and observations), alongside conducting focus groups with the children. The results allude to the intervention merely 'keeping active children active' via (mostly) fun, football sessions. Results highlight the important contribution the 'coach' plays in the effectiveness of the intervention. Results relating to working practice (i.e. coaching practice and coach recruitment) are discussed and highlighted as areas to be addressed. FitC schemes appear to require a process of positive organizational change to increase their effectiveness in strategically attending to the health agenda. © 2013 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.

An accurate evaluation of training load is paramount for the planning and periodization of training. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the relationship between a new method to monitor training load in soccer (Visual Analogic Scale training load; VAS-TL), and two established heart rate-based methods (TRIMP and Edwards' method). 51 soccer players (age 15.6±0.3 years) answered 2 questions to assess perceived exertion and fatigue (VAS1-TL, and VAS2-TL) after training sessions and official matches. Performance in the Yo-Yo tests, VAS scores and heart rate of training sessions and matches, and match activity were analysed. We found significant correlations (r=0.60-0.72; p

AIM: The present study investigated whether increased activation of heat shock factors (HSF) following exercise relates primarily to the increased muscle temperature or to exercise in general. METHODS: Six subjects completed 40 min of intermittent cycling (15s:15s exercise:recovery at 300 +/- 22 W) at an ambient temperature of either 20.0 +/- 1.3 or 40.3 +/- 0.7 degrees C. Muscle biopsies were taken prior to and immediately following the exercise protocol with samples analysed for HSF DNA binding by electrophoretic mobility shift assay. RESULTS: Exercise at 40 degrees C resulted in significantly increased oesophageal (39.3 +/- 0.2 degrees C) and muscle temperature (40.0 +/- 0.2 degrees C) at the end of the exercise protocol compared with 20 degrees C (oesophageal, 38.1 +/- 0.1 degrees C; muscle, 38.9 +/- 0.2 degrees C). However, an increased DNA binding of HSF was not evident following exercise at 40 degrees C (reduced by 21 +/- 22%) whereas it increased by 29 +/- 51% following exercise at 20 degrees C. CONCLUSION: It appears that increased temperature is not the major factor responsible for activation of HSF DNA binding.