Understanding the Presence of Mental Fatigue in Elite Female Football

Impact of temperature on physical and cognitive performance in elite female football players during intermittent exercise

There is limited research on female football players, especially related to their physical and cognitive performance under different climactic conditions. We analyzed the impact of a hot environmental temperature on physical performance and anticipation in elite female football players during a fatigue-inducing intermittent protocol. Elite female players (n = 21) performed the countermovement jump (CMJ) and responded to filmed sequences of offensive play under two distinct environmental temperatures (i.e., mild environment temperature- 20°C and 30% rh versus hot environment temperature- 38°C and 80% rh), interspersed by 1-week interval. Linear mixed models were used. CMJ performance declined following the intermittent protocol on both temperature conditions (p < 0.05). Moreover, there were significant main effects for protocol on CMJ speed (m/s) (p = 0.001; ηp 2 = 0.12), CMJ power (p = 0.002; ηp 2 = 0.11), and CMJ Heightmax (p = 0.002; ηp 2 = 0.12). After performing the intermittent protocol, exposure to a hot temperature caused a greater decline in anticipation accuracy (mild temperature = 64.41% vs. hot temperature = 53.44%; p < 0.001). Our study shows impaired performance in elite female football players following an intermittent protocol under hot compared with mild environmental conditions. We report decreased performance in both CMJ and anticipation performance under hotter conditions. The results reveal that exposure to hot temperatures had a negative effect on the accuracy of their anticipatory behaviors. We consider the implication of the work for research and training interventions.

Monitoring load, wellness, and psychological variables in female and male youth national team football players during international and domestic playing periods

Aim

To study differences in total load exposure, wellness, and psychological variables in youth female (N = 19) and male (N = 20) national team football players during domestic and international playing periods, respectively.

Procedures

The players filled out questionnaires on well-being, stress, and resilience before and after both playing periods lasting 8 days each. The Hooper index was used to monitor daily wellness levels during both playing periods. The number of training sessions and matches were recorded, and the session rating of perceived exertion was collected. Training load, monotony, and strain were calculated. Daily measurements were used to evaluate in-period changes, and composite scores were used to describe differences between periods.

Results

The international compared to the domestic playing period was for both groups characterized by more matches played, longer field training session durations, and of fewer gym-based sessions (P < 0.05). The male players increased total exposure time (25%; P < 0.05), monotony (P < 0.001), and strain (P < 0.001), which was not changed in the female players. Well-being decreased (P < 0.05) during the international playing period in male players. Stress levels were higher (P < 0.05) for both genders during the international compared to the domestic playing period. During the international playing period, positive correlations were found between the initial levels of stress, and the change in stress (P = 0.03; r2 = 0.12), and between the changes in total load and changes in well-being (P = 0.02; r2 = 0.12), whereas a negative correlation was found between the changes in wellness and stress (P = 0.03; r2 = 0.14).

Conclusion

A playing period characterized by increased match focus, longer field training sessions, and fewer gym-based training activities may lead to changes in the physical and mental profiles of youth national team football players. Alterations to load exposure and wellness may influence mental health. Players with high initial stress levels may be subjected to greater changes compared to other players. Sports scientists and medical staff may benefit from initiating structured monitoring systems to track alterations in physical load and mental health in youth national team players.

Carbohydrate Nutrition and Skill Performance in Soccer

In soccer, players must perform a variety of sport-specific skills usually during or immediately after running, often at sprint speed. The quality of the skill performed is likely influenced by the volume of work done in attacking and defending over the duration of the match. Even the most highly skilful players succumb to the impact of fatigue both physical and mental, which may result in underperforming skills at key moments in a match. Fitness is the platform on which skill is performed during team sport. With the onset of fatigue, tired players find it ever more difficult to successfully perform basic skills. Therefore, it is not surprising that teams spend a large proportion of their training time on fitness. While acknowledging the central role of fitness in team sport, the importance of team tactics, underpinned by spatial awareness, must not be neglected. It is well established that a high-carbohydrate diet before a match and, as a supplement during match play, helps delay the onset of fatigue. There is some evidence that players ingesting carbohydrate can maintain sport-relevant skills for the duration of exercise more successfully compared with when ingesting placebo or water. However, most of the assessments of sport-specific skills have been performed in a controlled, non-contested environment. Although these methods may be judged as not ecologically valid, they do rule out the confounding influences of competition on skill performance. The aim of this brief review is to explore whether carbohydrate ingestion, while delaying fatigue during match play, may also help retain sport soccer-specific skill performance.

The impact of sprint, middle-distance, and long-distance orienteering races on perceived mental fatigue in national level orienteers

Experiencing mental fatigue (MF) before an orienteering race can lead to a slower completion time. This study aimed to explore the changes in perceived MF, mood and other psychological responses during an orienteering competition. Sixteen national level orienteering athletes (20.8 ± 4.9 years) provided informed consent and completed the online surveys, before and immediately after each race, and 24- and 48-hours post competition (48POST). This study measured MF, physical fatigue, stress, tiredness and motivation using 0-100 Visual Analogue Scale, and the mood was assessed using The Brunel Mood Scale (BRUMS). A moderate to large increase in MF (ES = 0.93 [0.54 to 1.31]), BRUMS fatigue (ES = 0.61 [0.3 to 0.92]), and PF (ES = 1.21 [0.81 to 1.61]) was reported following orienteering races. A small increase in tiredness and BRUMS confusion, and a small decrease in motivation, stress and BRUMS vigour was also reported. There was a delay in recovering from the MF elicited by competition, with a small increase in MF (ES = 0.54 [0.08 to 1.15]) at 48POST compared to the pre-competition value. This study found that orienteers experience MF during competition and have a delayed recovery that can last up to two days after the competition.

Mental fatigue and technical performance in elite rugby league

The aims of this study were to determine the impact of elite rugby league competition on mental fatigue; and to investigate how mental fatigue influenced in-match technical performance. Twenty elite male rugby league players recorded their pre- and post-game subjective mental fatigue and had their technical performance analysed during matches across one competition season. Metrics were created to assess in-match technical performance and described the percentage of positive, neutral, and negative involvements for each player, while accounting for the context and difficulty of each involvement. Self-reported mental fatigue increased from pre-game to post-game (maximum a posteriori estimation [MAP] = 33.1, 95% high-density interval [HDI] = 26.9-39.8), with backs reporting higher changes in mental fatigue than forwards (MAP = 18.0, 95% HDI = 9.7-26.9). Larger increases in mental fatigue from pre-game to post-game were negatively associated with the adjusted percentage of positive involvements metric (MAP = -2.1, 95% HDI = -5.6 to 1.1). Elite rugby league players reported increased mental fatigue following competitive games, with backs reporting a greater increase than forwards. Mental fatigue impacted technical performance, whereby participants had a lower percentage of positive involvements when they reported being more mentally fatigued.

Can Self-Regulatory Strength Training Counter Prior Mental Exertion? A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials

Background

Prior mental exertion consumes self-regulation and influences any subsequent physical or cognitive performance according to the strength model of self-regulation. However, the counteractive effect of self-regulatory strength training remains unclear.

Objective

This study aims to report a comprehensive systematic review investigating self-regulatory strength training programmes on physical or cognitive performance.

Methods

To select relevant studies from the available literature, a thorough search was conducted on PubMed, Web of Science, EBSCOhost (CENTRAL, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, SPORTDicus), Scopus, and Google Scholar, as well as the sources of reference for gray literature. Only randomized controlled trials involving healthy humans, strength-based self-regulation training programmes with comparable protocols, and a physical or cognitive task associated with the study were selected for the current review. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment Development and Evaluation (GRADE) framework was used to develop the summary of findings.

Results

Twelve articles were included based on the selection criteria. Evidence certainty for outcomes was graded as either low or very low level. The majority of the studies reported that self-regulatory strength training programmes can significantly counter prior mental exertion and decrement of performance, while only one study did not find such improvement. According to the strength model, a period of training increased the ‘self-regulatory muscle.'

Conclusion

Strength is an important ingredient in the resource model of self-regulation and can be trained to counter prior mental exertion and improve subsequent physical and cognitive performance. The training effects are cross-domain (e.g., emotional and cognitive domains; higher and lower levels of executive functions). However, motivation plays a key role to mobilize this resource. Future studies should examine the mechanism that underlies the strength.

Systematic Review Registration

https://inplasy.com/inplasy-2022-1-0060/, identifier: INPLASY202210060.