Training & Testing

Padulo J et al. Kinematic Analysis of Soccer Int J Sports Med

accepted after revision
January 23 , 2012
Bibliography
DOI http://dx.doi.org/
10.1055/s-0032-1304641
Published online: 2012
Int J Sports Med
Georg Thieme
Verlag KG Stuttgart New York
ISSN 0172-4622
Correspondence
Dr. Johnny Padulo, PhD St
Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
University of Rome
Via Columbia s.n.c.
00133 ROME
Italy
Tel.: +39/06/2042 7573
Fax: +39/06/2042 7258
sportcinetic@yahoo.it
Key words


footstep analysis


eld testing


heart rate
Kinematic Analysis of Soccer Players in Shuttle
Running
running economy [ 7 ] . Despite the fact that taking
into consideration kinematic parameters can
shed light on an athletes e ciency, no previous
study has investigated soccer players step char-
acteristics during both incremental (as Y
1
) or
constant speeds. Furthermore, specic training
using the intermittent shuttle run is used within
soccer to improve both cardiovascular and mus-
cular strength conditions with little considera-
tion of the biomechanical patterns of this training
tool.
We hypothesized that heart rate and the maxi-
mal run velocity performed in this test would
represent the most important parameters to
evaluate the aerobic conditions of each player. It
is widely known that metabolic variations gener-
ate alterations within the kinematic parameters
[ 4 ] . We therefore studied kinematic parameters
both at increasing velocity (Y
1
) and constant
velocity [95 % maximal aerobic velocity (MAV
95 %
)]
when the subjects complied with the standard
run (at the centre of the shuttle) and also heart
rates of soccer players during all phases tested
(Y
1
MAV
95 %
).
Introduction

The intermittent shuttle running test, the Yo-Yo
Endurance Lv
1
(Y
1
), is mainly used within soccer
to assess aerobic power in young soccer players
[ 1 ] . Consequently, intermittent training and test-
ing protocols have been proposed to improve
soccer players tness and to guide talent selec-
tion [ 5 , 8 , 12 ] . However, during the Y
1
test and
during exercise at a specic percentage of oxygen
uptake (VO
2max
) various authors have predomi-
nantly considered metabolic parameters (VO
2

heart rate and lactate) only, neglecting the
mechanical parameters [ 10 , 13 ] . In all forms of
locomotion [ 11 ] , biomechanical parameters
including mechanical parameters associated
with muscle strength are pertinent as intensity
changes as a function of time [ 10 ] . For instance it
is well known that a reduction in contact time is
associated with an increased ground reaction
force (GRF) as a consequence of increased step
length [ 14 ] . Research advocates that kinematic
parameters, as well as metabolic factors, may
contribute to running performance. Hasegawa et
al. state that step strategy changes at higher
speeds and therefore presumably inuences the
Authors J. Padulo
1
, S. DOttavio
1
, F. Pizzolato
2
, L. Smith
3
, G. Annino
1

A liations
1
Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, University of Rome, Italy

2
Faculty of Sport Science, University of Verona, Italy

3
School of Health, Sport and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Salford, United Kingdom
Abstract

The intermittent shuttle running test is mainly
used within soccer to assess aerobic power. For
this reason we studied kinematic parameters
and heart rate at both an increasing speed, [Yo-
Yo Endurance Lv 1 (Y
1
)] and at constant veloc-
ity [95 % maximal aerobic velocity (MAV
95 %
)].
12 soccer players were selected for this study.
A high-speed digital camera (210 Hz) was used
to record motion; Dartsh5.5Pro was used to
perform 2D video analysis and heart rate was
also recorded and computed during the test.
The parameters considered (baseline measures
with respect to the end of each test) in this
study were: step length (SL), contact time (CT)
and heart rate (HR). SL: 40 % in Y
1
and 22 % in
MAV
95 %
. CT: 31 % in Y
1
and 29 % in MAV
95 %
. HR:
increased 96 % in Y
1
and 17 % in MAV
95 %
. These
results highlight 2 dierent neuromechanical
strategies adopted under fatigued conditions.
In light of the clear changes of the CT in MAV
95 %

(29 %) and with respect to the moderate changes
in HR (17 %) it is clear that the CT is the most
important parameter, as it experiences greater
adaptations associated with neuromuscular pat-
terns, under a fatigued condition as opposed to HR.
Training & Testing
Padulo J et al. Kinematic Analysis of Soccer Int J Sports Med
Material and Methods

Subjects
12 junior level athletes (age 19.22 0.4 years; body mass
73 14 kg; height 1.76 0.06 m; BMI 22.60 2.60 kg/m
2
) partici-
pated in the study. Local ethical approval was gained. Players
possessed at least 6 years of experience in both soccer training
(with shuttle running) and competitions and had participated in
national/international championships at the time of the investi-
gation. The subjects were healthy, without any muscular, neuro-
logical and tendineous injuries and reported they were clear of
any drug consumption. The groups were homogeneous with
regard to their training status, in which none of the subjects
underwent any endurance strenuous activity and resistance
training outside of their normal endurance training protocol.
After being informed of the procedures, methods, benets and
possible risks involved in the study, each subject reviewed and
signed an informed consent to participate in the study in accord-
ance with the ethical standards of the IJSM [ 6 ] .
Experimental setting
All the tests were carried out in November 2010 at the Giulio
Onesti sport centre in Rome on the synthetic turf of the pitch,
which is certied for national matches. Testing took place on 2
separate days, Monday and Friday. All participants were in good
general health conditions at the time of the study and they car-
ried out the test during the same period of the sporting season.
The relevant data were acquired during 2 separate occasions,
starting at 4 p.m. up until 6 p.m. under the following weather
conditions (rst and second day): no rain, average temperature
1517 C, relative average humidity 8682 % and average wind
speed 3.303.40 ms
1
. Each participant completed a standard-
ized 10-min warm-up, which consisted of running at low speeds
and familiarization with shuttle running, following 5-min active
muscular stretching. Subjects wore soccer shoes during testing.
Procedure
On the rst day (Monday), the Y
1
was conducted. The test lasted
for 810 min and consisted of repeated 20-m shuttle runs at pro-
gressively increasing velocities dictated by an audio bleep emit-
ted from a CD player [ 1 ] . Failure to achieve the shuttle run in
time on 2 occasions resulted in termination of the test and the
distance covered in the last successfully completed shuttle was
recorded and represented the test result.
On the second day (Friday), the constant velocity test was con-
ducted. The constant velocity was calculated from the results of
Y
1
test (95 % maximal aerobic velocity (MAV
95 %
). The constant
velocity test lasted for ~4 min and consisted of repeated shuttle
runs at MAV
95 %
dictated by an audio bleep emitted from a CD
player every 5 s, with changed distance (18.75 1.15 m). Failure
to achieve the shuttle run in time on 2 occasions resulted in ter-
mination of the test and the distance covered in the last success-
fully completed shuttle was recorded and represented the test
result. During the tests HR recordings from a given number of
shuttles were used as a marker of performance. HR was recorded
by a Polar heart rate monitor (Sport Tester PE 3000; Polar Elec-
tro, Kempele, Finland) which was securely tted around the
chest for continuous HR recordings throughout selected steps of
the test. All testing sessions were performed on the soccer pitch,
approximately 20 meter from and perpendicular to the goal. The
running lane was marked by cones. An area of 3.0 0.6 m (in the
middle of the track) was used for the data acquisition space
(

Fig. 1 ), excluding change of direction.
During the test each subject was recorded with a digital camera
(Casio Exilim FH20), the sampling rate was 210 Hz. The camera
was located on a 1.5 meter high tripod, 6 meter from the running
lane, and perpendicular to the acquisition space and the sub-
jects sagittal plane [ 2 ] . The studied variables were step length
(SL), contact time (CT), step frequency (SF) and heart rate (HR);
all footsteps within the data acquisition space were sampled. We
taped kinematic markers on the feet of each subject. Each sub-
ject performed the tests individually, in order to avoid obstruc-
tion issues. The lm sequences were analyzed o-line using
Dartsh 5.5Pro motion analysis software (Dartsh, Fribourg,
CH). During the tests, the procedure was never interrupted and
the involved players suered no injuries. SL was dened as the
distance between successive foot contacts and CT was calculated
as time from initial contact through to toe-o of the ipsilateral
foot, this was in line with the protocol proposed by Cavanagh et
al. [ 3 ] . Furthermore, step frequency was calculated applying the
following formula for MAV
95 %
: [(speed kmh
-1
/3.6)/SL m].
Statistical analysis
The data from the investigation are presented as mean SD and
coe cient of variation [CV = (SD/mean)100]. In order to deter-
mine dierence between Y
1
and MAV
95 %
and dierence between
baseline measures and the end of the single test, an ANOVA with
repeated measures was applied on (i) step length, (ii) contact
time (iii) heart rate data. Assumption of normality was veried
using the Shapiro-Wilk W test. Statistical analyses were per-
formed using the software IBM

SPSS

Statistic version 15.0

(IBM Corporation, Somers, NY, USA). The level set for signicance
was p 0.05.
8.50 m 3 m 8.50 m
6
0

c
m
6
0

c
m
ACQUISITION SPACE
Fig. 1 The upper image presents a representa-
tion of the shuttle run performed.
Training & Testing
Padulo J et al. Kinematic Analysis of Soccer Int J Sports Med
Results

ANOVAs with repeated measures revealed signicant dierences
between 2 tests in all the variables investigated. For HR
F(
1,11
) = 410.05, p < 0.0001 and 2 = 0.974, (Y
1
146 5.2 and
MAV
95 %
168 5.3 beatsmin
-1
). SL F
(1,11)
= 6.72, p = 0.025 and

2
= 0.379, (Y
1
138 6.4 and MAV
95 %
144 5.2 cm). CT
F
(1,11)
= 179.37, p < 0.0001 and
2
= 0.942, (Y
1
194 8.3 and MAV
95 %

175 2.6 ms). The dierence between the rst step and the last
step in all the variables investigated was also signicant. For HR
F
(1,11)
= 2455.83, p < 0.0001 and
2
= 0.996, (rst step 126 5.5 and
last step 187 4.9 beatsmin
1
). SL F
(1,11)
= 25.94, p < 0.0001 and

2
= 0.702, (rst step 138 6.4 and last step 143 7.2 cm). CT
F
(1,11)
= 28.413, p < 0.0001 and
2
= 0.721 (rst step 191 6.7 and
last step 178 4.3 ms). Moreover also the interaction of test x
time was signicant: HR F
(1,11)
= 1 384.22, p < 0.0001 and

2
= 0.992; SL F
(1,11)
= 1 553.72, p < 0.0001 and
2
= 0.993; CT
F
(1,11)
= 712.33, p < 0.0001 and
2
= 0.985.
Y 1 . HR increased 94 % with respect to the start of the test
( p < 0.0001 ) . The maximum HR was 194 5.02 beatsmin
-1
(CV
2.57 %) which was achieved at 523 58.89 sec (

Fig. 2a ). SL dur-
ing the rst step was 115 7.40 (CV 6.44 %) and 161 5.44 cm (CV
3.38 %) on the last step (6 < 14.22 0.89 kmh
1
) an increase of
40 % (p < 0.0001) (

Fig. 2b ). CT of the rst step was 239 11.99
(CV 5.22 %) and 158 4.69 ms (CV 2.96 %) during the last step
(

Fig. 2c ) a decrease of 31 % ( p < 0.0001).
MAV 95 % : The velocity was 13.50 0.81 kmh
1
and distance
18.75 1.15 m. HR increased 17 % (p < 0.0001) in which the maxi-
mum HR of the 95 % MAV
95 %
was 181 4.81 beatsmin
1
(CV
2.65 %) and achieved at 188 10.95 s (

Fig. 2a ). SL (

Fig. 2b )
during the rst step was 162 6.91 (CV 4.26 %) and 126 3.52 cm
(CV 2.79 %) during the last step (22 %, p < 0.0001). CT (

Fig. 2c )
during the rst step was 153 1.48 (CV 0.97 %) and 197 3.82 ms
(CV 2.94 %) during the last step (29 %, with p < 0.0001). Step fre-
quency increased from 2.32 0.10 Hz (CV 4.31 %) during the rst
step to 2.98 0.08 Hz (CV 2.83 %) during the last step (29 %, with
p < 0.0001).
Discussion

The aim of this study was to examine the changes in kinematic
parameters and heart rate during an intermittent shuttle run-
ning at both incremental and constant speeds. Heart rate
increased linearly during both tests (Y
1
and MAV
95 %
), however
reached greater intensity during the end of the incremental test
(Y
1
). The results for both tests showed a trend between CT and
SL. In which greater CT was associated with smaller SL and vice-
versa (

Fig. 2b, c ). This leads to the rst consideration, that the
CT is associated with SL. Due to the fact CT is the phase in which
the athlete has ground contact, this parameter raises great inter-
est in which the primary component relates to ground reaction
forces. We believe CT has a central role within soccer, not only as
Step
H
e
a
r
t

R
a
t
e

(
b
e
a
t
.
m
i
n

1
)
S
t
e
p

L
e
n
g
t
h

(
c
m
)
C
o
n
t
a
c
t

T
i
m
e

(
m
s
)
a
b
c
210
200
190
180
170
160
150
140
160
150
140
130
120
110
100
250
230
210
190
170
150
130
0
6 7 8 9 12 13 14 16 15 11 10 km
.
h
1
0
170
0
5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55
Y
1
MAV
95%
Fig. 2 a = Heart Rate, b = Step length, c = Contact
Time; during MAV95 % (upper x-axis represents
number of shuttle runs) and Y1 (x-axis in lower
represents the increased velocity).
Training & Testing
Padulo J et al. Kinematic Analysis of Soccer Int J Sports Med
the study has showed a very tight relationship with the SL
(

Fig. 2a, b ) but also as an index of fatigue; which has also been
observed by other authors [ 9 ] . This is evident within the MAV
95 %

testing where speed was constant and determined a priori, in
which we analyzed the phenomenon and observed the eect of
fatigue. For example at the beginning of the test SL was ~162 cm,
and halfway through had decreased 17.72 %, which coincides
perfectly with step 30 at 11 kmh
-1
whereby the CT had increased
by 20 %. This suggests that already the mid-parametric tests
were strongly inuenced kinematically. Furthermore during the
MAV
95 %
test, with a reduction in SL and a corresponding increase
in CT it was evident that maintenance of speed would be
achieved through increases in step frequency, which is sup-
ported by previous research [ 10 ] . An increase in step frequency
suggests that during the MAV
95 %
test there was a greater energy
cost due to increased lower limb muscle activity [ 9 ] . This view is
reected, as during the shuttle run, there are several stages:
accelerated phase, intermediate run and deceleration, which
require a high muscle activity. These results highlight 2 dierent
neuromechanical strategies adopted in fatigue conditions: dur-
ing the incremental test (Y
1
), the CT decreased and the SL
increased whereas in the MAV
95 %
, the CT increased and the SL
decreased. In light of the clear adaptations of the CT during
MAV
95 %
(29 %) and with respect to the moderate changes in HR
(17 %) it is clear that the CT is the key parameter. This is also
because when the fatigue condition increased [ 9 ] the associated
adaptations within the neuromuscular patterns aected CT
more than HR.
In conclusion, whereas in the middle phase there was a reduc-
tion of~20 % in both CT and SL, SF conversely increased by 20 %.
We believe that continuing training beyond this threshold is
counterproductive as it would allow the athlete to take other
steps during the day and cause a state of very low tness in the
game of football. We believe that knowledge of these parameters
would allow the coach to improve the quality of training by pay-
ing attention to mechanical parameters that are easily measur-
able. In fact, the knowledge of the number of steps per shuttle
run allows to observe possible reductions of the SF: in this case,
if the SF is decreased by 20 %, then a passive recovery or another
training session will be the best choice. Finally, the use of MAV
95 %

allows to improve the specic strength in lower limbs by keep-
ing the number of steps constant as shown by Padulo et al. [ 11 ] ;
for example, given the number of steps per shuttle run, it is then
possible to require the soccer player to maintain a constant fre-
quency of steps per shuttle run.
Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to Domenico Arestia and Cristiano
Palermiti for technical suggestions and encouragement.
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