Objective Measures of Strain and Subjective Muscle Soreness Differ Between Positional Groups and Season Phases in American College Football

in International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance

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Benjamin A. McKay Centre of Medical and Exercise Physiology, School of Medicine, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia
Athletics Department, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA

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Jace A. Delaney Boston Celtics, Boston, MA, USA

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Andrew Simpkin School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences, National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland

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Theresa Larkin Centre of Medical and Exercise Physiology, School of Medicine, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia
Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute, Wollongong, NSW, Australia

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Andrew Murray Physical Education & Health Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom

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Diarmuid Daniels Orreco Ltd, Business Innovation Unit, National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland

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Charles R. Pedlar Orreco Ltd, Business Innovation Unit, National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland
Faculty of Sport, Allied Health and Performance Sciences, St Mary’s University, London, United Kingdom
Division of Surgery and Interventional Science, University College London, London, United Kingdom

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John A. Sampson Centre of Medical and Exercise Physiology, School of Medicine, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia

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DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1123/ijspp.2022-0347
Keywords:
oxidative stress; countermovement jump; positional differences; internal load
First Published Online:
14 Apr 2023
In Print:
Volume 18: Issue 6
Page Range:
625–633
Restricted access

Purpose: To assess objective strain and subjective muscle soreness in “Bigs” (offensive and defensive line), “Combos” (tight ends, quarterbacks, line backers, and running backs), and “Skills” (wide receivers and defensive backs) in American college football players during off-season, fall camp, and in-season phases. Methods: Twenty-three male players were assessed once weekly (3-wk off-season, 4-wk fall camp, and 3-wk in-season) for hydroperoxides (free oxygen radical test [FORT]), antioxidant capacity (free oxygen radical defense test [FORD]), oxidative stress index (OSI), countermovement-jump flight time, Reactive Strength Index (RSI) modified, and subjective soreness. Linear mixed models analyzed the effect of a 2-within-subject-SD change between predictor and dependent variables. Results: Compared to fall camp and in-season phases, off-season FORT (P ≤ .001 and <.001), FORD (P ≤ .001 and <.001), OSI (P ≤ .001 and <.001), flight time (P ≤ .001 and <.001), RSI modified (P ≤ .001 and <.001), and soreness (P ≤ .001 and <.001) were higher for “Bigs,” whereas FORT (P ≤ .001 and <.001) and OSI (P = .02 and <.001) were lower for “Combos.” FORT was higher for “Bigs” compared to “Combos” in all phases (P ≤ .001, .02, and .01). FORD was higher for “Skills” compared with “Bigs” in off-season (P = .02) and “Combos” in-season (P = .01). OSI was higher for “Bigs” compared with “Combos” (P ≤ .001) and “Skills” (P = .01) during off-season and to “Combos” in-season (P ≤ .001). Flight time was higher for “Skills” in fall camp compared with “Bigs” (P = .04) and to “Combos” in-season (P = .01). RSI modified was higher for “Skills” during off-season compared with “Bigs” (P = .02) and “Combos” during fall camp (P = .03), and in-season (P = .03). Conclusion: Off-season American college football training resulted in higher objective strain and subjective muscle soreness in “Bigs” compared with fall camp and during in-season compared with “Combos” and “Skills” players.

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