Within-week differences in external training load demands in elite volleyball players

Area of Science:

• Sports Science
• Exercise Physiology
• Volleyball Performance Analysis

Background:

• Understanding training load variations is crucial for optimizing performance and preventing injuries in elite athletes.
• Elite volleyball demands high physical exertion, necessitating detailed analysis of training and match demands.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze within-week variations in external training intensity.
• To compare these variations across different microcycles and playing positions in elite women's volleyball.
• To identify how training load differs relative to match proximity.

Main Methods:

• Collected training and match data from the 2020-2021 season, including various match types.
• Utilized local positioning system (LPS) data for total distance, jumps, accelerations, and decelerations.
• Calculated high metabolic load distance (HMLD), acute (AC) and chronic (AC) workload, monotony, and strain using rolling average (RA) and exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) methods.

Main Results:

• Most performance indicators showed significant differences based on distance to match days, with moderate to large effect sizes.
• The AC ratio (EWMA) differed significantly between playing positions, with middle blockers exhibiting lower workloads than left hitters, setters, and liberos.
• Strain, acceleration/deceleration ratio, and acute mean load (RA) did not show significant differences among distance to match days.

Conclusions:

• External training intensity varies significantly with proximity to matches in elite women's volleyball.
• Middle blockers consistently experience lower accumulated workloads compared to other positions.
• These findings highlight the need for position-specific training load management in elite volleyball