Repeated stroboscopic vision training improves anticipation skill without changing perceptual-cognitive skills in soccer players.

In this study we aimed to analyze the repeated effect of stroboscopic vision training on perceptual-cognitive skills in soccer players. A total of 28 male soccer players participated in this experimental and randomized study with parallel groups. The soccer players were pair-matched according to perceptual-cognitive skills and randomized into two groups: Stroboscopic vision training and Control. Multiple object tracking, anticipation, and decision-making skills were measured before and after the 8-week intervention. An increase in multiple object tracking (p < 0.05) and decision-making skills (p < 0.05) from baseline to post-experiment was found in both groups without main group effect (p > 0.05). The findings showed an increase in anticipation skill from baseline to post-experiment in both groups (p < 0.05), with higher anticipation skill for the stroboscopic group than in the control group post-experiment (p < 0.05). Thus, we conclude that repeated stroboscopic vision training could improve anticipation skill in soccer athletes.

Can Prolongate Use of Social Media Immediately Before Training Worsen High Level Male Volleyball Players' Visuomotor Skills?

Our aim was to analyze the effect of mental fatigue caused by prolonged social media use on high-level volleyball players' visuomotor skills. Eighteen high-level male young volleyball players participated in this randomized, counterbalanced, crossover design. All participants underwent a 2-week experiment in which we measured their response times when performing a visuomotor task with and without mental fatigue inducement through repeated use of social media immediately before training sessions. In the control condition, participants watched TV for 30-minutes, and in the social media condition, they used a social media app (Instagram®) on smartphones for 30-minutes. We found a significant Condition x Time interaction on visuomotor task response time (p = 0.03), but there was no significant main effect of either Time or Condition. Mental fatigue, induced by repeated app-based social media use for 30-minutes immediately before training sessions, affected elite male volleyball players' visuomotor skills.

Effects of different training strategies with a weight vest on countermovement vertical jump and change-of-direction ability in male volleyball athletes.

BACKGROUND: Weight vest training (WVT) is a strategy used to improve the physical performance of athletes. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of different training strategies with weight vests on vertical jump and change-of-direction ability (CODA) in male volleyball athletes. METHODS: Fifteen volleyball athletes (22.87±3.04 years, 83.22±10.84 kg, 1.86±0.69 m) participated in a six-week training programme and were randomized into three groups: weight vest plyometric training (WPG), weight vest technical-tactical training (WTG) and a control group (CG). The additional weight of 7.5% of individual body mass was employed in the experimental groups. Before and after the WVT, athletes performed countermovement vertical jump (CMJ) and CODA (t-test) tests. RESULTS: Two-way ANOVA with repeated measures showed that CMJ height increased in all training groups (P<0.05), with the WTG inducing greater CMJ height gains in comparison to the CG (P<0.05). According to magnitude-based inference, the effects of the WTG strategy were "very likely" beneficial for the CMJ compared to the CG. In addition, t-test time decreased similarly among the three training groups (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The results suggested that WVT may be incorporated in a volleyball training routine as an effective strategy for improving the CMJ performance in male volleyball athletes.