Aerobic fitness
Football is a high-intensity intermittent sport that at senior level lasts 90 minutes with the possibility of an additional 30 mins in some circumstances. Therefore, aerobic fitness (endurance) will clearly have an impact on performance. Evidence suggests that the aerobic fitness level of a player not only directly influences performance but also aids quicker recovery from high-intensity efforts within a game. Aerobic fitness has also been shown to impact and lower injury and illness rates of players.
The game
Female football has progressed significantly in recent years with distances of 9 - 11km now reported for players at the top level. Roughly a third of this distance is made up of high intensity efforts with over 1,000 changes of activity and over 400 accelerations and decelerations with a game.
The evidence
Evidence shows that aerobic fitness influences distance covered, number of sprints and ball involvement, with research suggesting an 8 - 12% increase in aerobic fitness correlates with enhanced technical involvement during a game. Reduced injury and illness risk has also been shown to be correlated with aerobic fitness with 4 - 6 weeks pre-season training significantly reducing both injury and illness incidence within a season. Research suggests that aerobic fitness is predictive of injury, illness, and performance outcomes.
Testing
Testing aerobic fitness is straightforward and can be completed with or without equipment. Traditional tests such as the Cooper 12-minute run, the 1.5km timed run and the MSFT (bleep test) can be used to gain a measure of aerobic fitness within the field. They are cheap and easy to use compared to newer technology adopted by professional clubs. At youth level they should prove adequate in gaining an understanding of aerobic fitness levels of all but elite female players. Increasingly the Yo-Yo intermittent tests have been used due to its inclusion of recovery periods, making it more relevant to the intermittent nature of football. Higher Yo-Yo test scores are linked to increased high intensity efforts during a football match.
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