Investigation of readiness and perceived workload in junior female basketball players during a congested match schedule

Abstract

This study aimed to: a) investigate the differences in workload and readiness between two junior female national basketball teams competing at different European Championships (EC); b) compare workload, readiness and match performance for players with longer and shorter playing times, and; c) examine the relationship between workload, readiness and match performance variables. Under-18 (U18) (n = 10, height = 179.9 ± 6.6 cm, body mass = 70.2 ± 5.1 kg) and under-20 (U20) female national basketball teams (n = 11, height = 178.4 ± 8.8 cm, body mass = 73.0 ± 9.7 kg) were monitored during congested match schedules encompassing 7 matches within 9 days. Daily workload was determined via the session rating of perceived exertion (sRPE workload); readiness was measured by heart-rate variability (HRV) and well-being (WB); and match performance was assessed using the efficiency statistic and playing time. Analysis of workload and readiness during the EC showed no statistically significant between-team differences in any variables except WB for the U18 team, which was lower on Day 8 compared to the U20 team (p = 0.03; effect size [ES] = large). Players accumulating longer playing time showed a higher sRPE workload (p = 0.01, ES = moderate) and efficiency statistic (p = 0.04, ES = moderate) while no readiness variable differed significantly (p > 0.05) compared to players with shorter playing time. Trivial-to-small correlations were observed between workload, readiness and match performance variables. The study shows that junior female basketball players were able to cope with a congested schedule of 7 matches in 9 days irrespective of the competition context or individual differences in workload. Finally, combining objective and subjective methods to assess workload and readiness is recommended due to the weak relationships observed between these methods.

Recovery of the physiological status in professional basketball players using NESA neuromodulation treatment during different types of microcycles in season: A preliminary randomized clinical trial

“…Similarly, Clemente et al (2019) also concluded that weeks with two matches presented moderately greater fatigue (p = 0.47; d = 1.40, moderate effect) and lower sleep quality (p = 0.42; d = 1.32, moderate effect) than weeks with one match. Despite these results, basketball players can apparently cope with different types of congested match schedules after the failure to detect significant differences in training load, readiness, and recovery status (Clemente et al, 2019;Pino-Ortega et al, 2019;Fox et al, 2020;Lukonaitiene et al, 2021).…”

Differences in Weekly Training Load, Well-Being, and Hormonal Responses between European- and National-Level Professional Male Basketball Players during the Pre-Season Phase

“…Overall, this outcome might indicate a likely negative correspondence between the sRPE-load and well-being values. However, previous literature documented a negative, small (rho = −0.150) relationship between sRPE-load calculated during matches performed across a European championship in youth female basketball players, and the well-being measured in the following morning [ 18 ]. Overall, considering our outcomes and those reported in previous literature [ 18 ], it seems important for basketball practitioners to monitor both load and well-being across various parts of the season due to their small relationship.…”

“…However, previous literature documented a negative, small (rho = −0.150) relationship between sRPE-load calculated during matches performed across a European championship in youth female basketball players, and the well-being measured in the following morning [ 18 ]. Overall, considering our outcomes and those reported in previous literature [ 18 ], it seems important for basketball practitioners to monitor both load and well-being across various parts of the season due to their small relationship. It also seems important to investigate further the relationships between load and well-being across different times of the seasons and different basketball populations, which might provide useful indications for practitioners.…”

Influence of Congested Match Schedules, Pre-Match Well-Being and Level of Opponents on Match Loads during World Rugby Women’s Sevens Series

“…While this evidence is important from a practical standpoint to identify the main match load measures affecting post-match perceived well-being [5], the assessment of the relationships between pre-match well-being and match loads could also provide further insight for women's rugby sevens practitioners about players' capacity to perform matches based on previous well-being values. Previous studies across various team sports mainly assessed the effect of well-being on training sessions rather than on match performance [15][16][17][18][19]. Specifically, a negative effect of pre-training perceived well-being on external load measures in Australian football players [15] and on internal perceived training load in professional male soccer [16] as well as female volleyball players [19].…”