Discrepancy between exercise performance, body composition, and sex steroid response after a six-week detraining period in professional soccer players.

Abstract

PurposeThe aim of this study was to examine the effects of a six-week off-season detraining period on exercise performance, body composition, and on circulating sex steroid levels in soccer players.MethodsFifty-five professional male soccer players, members of two Greek Superleague Teams (Team A, n = 23; Team B, n = 22), participated in the study. The first two weeks of the detraining period the players abstained from any physical activity. The following four weeks, players performed low-intensity (50%-60% of VO2max) aerobic running of 20 to 30 minutes duration three times per week. Exercise performance testing, anthropometry, and blood sampling were performed before and after the six-week experimental period.ResultsOur data showed that in both teams A and B the six-week detraining period resulted in significant reductions in maximal oxygen consumption (60,31±2,52 vs 57,67±2,54; pConclusionOur results suggest that the six-week detraining period resulted in a rapid loss of exercise performance adaptations and optimal body composition status, but did not affect sex steroid resting levels. The insignificant changes in sex steroid concentration indicate that these hormones were a non-contributing parameter for the observed negative effects of detraining on exercise performance and body composition.