Investigating the physiological, perceptual and performance effects following the application of heated garments in soccer substitutes.

Abstract

In soccer, substitutes experience up to 45 minutes of limited activity before potentially entering a match. During this period, a decline in muscle (Tmuscle) and core (Tcore) temperature may be experienced, likely exacerbated in colder environments. Thus, methods are needed to support substitutes in maintaining bodily temperatures during such transitions. This gives opportunities for passive heating methods to defend against the likely decline in Tmuscle and Tcore, with the ambition of improving performance. In Chapter 3, a systematic review and meta-analysis showed that passive heating devices applied between an active warm-up and performance, enhanced peak power output (PPO) during exercise and had a favourable yet non-significant attenuation of Tcore. However, conclusions should be treated with caution as the current literature includes large heterogeneity and a range of methodologies. Thus, additional research was necessary to investigate the effects of passive heating interventions on bodily temperature. In Chapter 5, the feasibility of using a passive heating intervention (heated trousers; HUUB Design, Derby, UK; HEAT) for soccer substitutes was established. This Chapter demonstrated that after active pre-match and half-time warm-ups, HEAT in both thermoneutral (18°C) and cold (2°C) environments, attenuated drops in Tmuscle and Tcore, providing scope for potential performance improvements. Thus, Chapters 6 and 7 investigated whether HEAT improved substitute performance in a closed match simulation and open match-play, which demonstrated that in ≤ 18℃, HEAT improved physical performance and aspects of cognition. In summary, this Thesis provides novel data showing attenuations in the drop of Tmuscle experienced by soccer substitutes in ≤ 18℃ conditions, which in combination with improved match readiness, likely underpins the overall performance improvement. These findings will be informative for other sports which experience lengthy transition periods.

Date of Award	26 Sept 2024
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Northumbria University
Supervisor	Marc Briggs (Supervisor), Stuart Goodall (Supervisor) & Kirsty Hicks (Supervisor)