Effect of high-intensity interval training on body composition and bioenergetic indices in boys - futsal players

Abstract

Background: High-intensity interval trainings (HIIT) can result in the best improvement of body fitness among athletes in the shortest possible time. The impact of HIIT on bioenergetic factors of futsal players has not been studied extensively. The objective of the present study was to investigate the effect of 3-week HIIT on body composition indices, maximum aerobic power, and maximum anaerobic power, anaerobic power among boys - futsal players. Material: 30 boys - futsal players (mean± SD age, 13.49±1.03 years; BMI, 20.95±1.78 kg/m2) participated in the study voluntarily. They were randomly assigned to experimental (n=15) and control (n=15) groups. HIIT lasted for three weeks, three sessions a week for 12-36 minutes on treadmill. Weight, body mass index (BMI), waist to hip ratio (WHR), thickness of body fat, maximal aerobic power, and maximum anaerobic power were recorded before intervention and 48 hours after the final training session. Aerobic power was measured with 20-m shuttle run, and maximum anaerobic power was measured with RAST test. Paired sample t-test was used to determine pretest-posttest differences, and independent t-test was used to determine between-group differences. The significance level was set to P < 0.05. Results: Significant differences were found in weight, BMI, thickness of body fat, maximum aerobic power and maximum anaerobic power in experimental group (P = 0.001) before and after training intervention, but the change in WHR was not significant (P < 0.05). No significant differences were observed in selected body composition between experimental and control groups, but they exhibited significant differences in maximum aerobic power and maximum anaerobic power (P = 0.001). Conclusion: According to the results, HIIT can be an effective training program for improving the performance of bioenergetic indices of futsal players. Also, it is recommended to study the effect of similar trainings with longer durations on other indices in other sports in future studies.