Selected Cardiovascular and Psychological Changes Throughout a Competitive Season in Collegiate Female Swimmers
John Dobson1, Brandonn Harris, Ally Claytor
1Department of Health Sciences and Kinesiology, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, Georgia.
Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research
|October 26, 2020
Summary
This study found that overload training in female swimmers decreased heart rate variability and increased stress, but tapering effectively restored these measures. Logarithm of the root mean square of successive R-R intervals (lnRMSSD) and heart rate response to handgrip (HRhg) effectively monitored training fatigue.
Area of Science:
- Sports Physiology
- Exercise Science
- Cardiovascular Physiology
Background:
- Monitoring training load and recovery is crucial for optimizing athletic performance and preventing overtraining in collegiate athletes.
- Vagal control of heart rate (HR), psychological stress, and burnout are key indicators of an athlete's physiological and psychological state.
- Understanding the impact of overload training and tapering on these measures can inform evidence-based training strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of overload training and tapering on cardiovascular and psychological markers in collegiate female swimmers.
- To assess the sensitivity of specific heart rate variability and stress measures to training load fluctuations throughout a competitive season.
Main Methods:
- Thirteen NCAA Division-I female swimmers were assessed at baseline (BL), during overload training (OL), and after tapering (TP).
- Cardiovascular measures included resting logarithm of the root mean square of successive R-R intervals (lnRMSSDrest), HR response to forced breathing (HRdiff), and HR response to sustained handgrip (HRhg).
- Psychological measures included the Athlete Burnout Questionnaire and the Recovery-Stress Questionnaire.
Main Results:
- Psychological measures of stress and burnout significantly increased throughout the season (p < 0.05).
- lnRMSSDrest decreased (p < 0.01) and HRhg increased (p < 0.05) during OL, returning to BL levels after tapering (p < 0.05 and p < 0.01, respectively).
- HRdiff decreased progressively throughout the season (p < 0.05), indicating impaired vagal stimulation during overload.
Conclusions:
- Overload training negatively impacted cardiac vagal control, but tapering effectively restored these physiological markers.
- lnRMSSDrest and HRhg demonstrated sensitivity to training workload, suggesting their utility in monitoring fatigue.
- These findings support the use of specific cardiovascular measures for preventing excessive training-induced fatigue in swimmers.
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