Measurement of resting muscle oxygenation and the relationship with countermovement jumps and body composition in soccer players

Abstract

The measurement of resting muscle oxygenation capacity is under investigation in team sports. The aim of the current study was to observe the changes after a preseason, in muscle oxygen saturation (SmO2 ) at rest and the relationship with body composition and jump power in soccer players. 17 soccer players (age 21.8 ± 2.2 years) were enrolled. Body composition, somatotype, countermovement jump (CMJ) and single-leg countermovement jump (SLCMJ) were evaluated. Also, SmO2 at rest in the gastrocnemius muscle using the technique of arterial occlusion in the dominant leg and non-dominant leg was performed. All measurements were made before and after the preseason. The t-student test, Pearson’s correlation and inter-individual response of the subject’s statistic were applied to measure the magnitudes of change and the effect size. An inverse relationship was observed between SmO2 at the initial-occlusion (r=-0.82), final-occlusion (r=-0.79) and SmO2 recovery (r=-0.82) with the SLCMJ power. A moderate relationship was also observed between oxygen consumption and fat mass (r= 0.64). The measurement of SmO2 at rest can be considered as a possible performance parameter because it has determined its relationship with the ability to produce strength and jumping power in soccer players.