Anaerobic performance of adolescents versus adults: effect of age and soccer training

Abstract

Anaerobic performance, whether expressed in absolute or relative to body mass, was shown to be lower in children and adolescents as compared to adults. This study examined the interaction of age and soccer training on indices of anaerobic power. Subjects consisted of 36 boys (18 soccer players; age = 13.9 + 1.2 yr., and 18 untrained boys; age = 19.3 + 1.2 yr., and 38 adult males (19 soccer players; age = 24.1 + 2.3 yr., and untrained males; age = 21.7 + 1.6 yr.). Anaerobic performance was assessed by Wingate anaerobic power test using a flying start. A tow-way ANOVA revealed significant interaction ( p<0.01 ) between age and training in absolute peak (PP) and mean (MP) anaerobic power. However, when anaerobic power was related to body mass, the interaction became insignificant. Analyses of the main effects revealed that training had a significant (p<0.01) effect on MP (W/kg), but not PP. Further analysis of MP (W/kg) data showed that training was significantly effective among adults but not among adolescents. It was concluded, therefore, that soccer training did not improve adolescent’s PP and MP as much as it did in adults.