The Effect of Breakfast on a Resistance Training Session and Response in Female Collegiate Athletes

Breakfast consumption has been shown to be an essential component to a healthy lifestyle in various populations, yet research in this area is limited among female athletes. This study aimed to examine the effect of breakfast consumption on collegiate female athletes during a resistance training session and their nutritional habits throughout the remainder of the day. Twenty-three female collegiate Division I athletes (basketball, volleyball, bowling, and soccer) during the offseason participated in this cross-over study. The study included three visits: baseline measures for heart rate (HR), blood glucose (BG), salivary cortisol (SC), and 5-repetition maxes for strength exercises; and two randomized conditions: a resistance training session with breakfast (experimental) and one with breakfast omission (control). For each condition, BG, HR, and SC was collected after a wait period which immediately preceded a resistance training session. Blood glucose, RHR, SC, heart rate recovery (HRR), and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) was collected after resistance training. A two-way multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to examine how the condition (breakfast or breakfast omission) and time (pre and post) affected BG, HR, and SC. BG was more stable between pre and post in the experimental condition compared to the control. Lastly, a Wilcoxon signed-rank test showed that breakfast was associated with increased happiness and lower academic stress. This study showed that consuming breakfast could influence female collegiate athletes emotionally and physiologically, promoting further research as it could be of importance to female athletes, coaches, and administration.