The effects of 8-week wearable resistance training on neuromuscular adaptations in soccer players

Although wearable resistance training (WRT) has been shown to enhance athletic performance, the underlying neuromuscular and morphological mechanisms remain poorly understood. This study investigated the effects of an 8-week in-season WRT program on physical performance and neuromuscular adaptations in collegiate soccer players.

Thirty highly trained male soccer players were stratified and randomly assigned to a WRT group (n = 15; age: 22.8 ± 2.9 years; height: 180.1 ± 6.2 cm; body mass: 76.1 ± 7.4 kg; 2% body mass load distributed on the lower limbs) or a control group (CON, n = 15; age: 22.2 ± 3.3 years; height: 178.7 ± 5.5 cm; body mass: 74.3 ± 6.5 kg; unloaded placebo garments). Participants completed three weekly intervention sessions over an 8-week period, integrated into their regular technical-tactical training. Pre- and post-intervention assessments included 10-m and 30-m sprint times, countermovement jump (CMJ) height, 5-0-5 change-of-direction (COD) time, maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) torque, knee extensor isometric rate of force development (RFD), normalized vastus lateralis RMS amplitude, and ultrasound-derived vastus lateralis architecture (muscle thickness and pennation angle).

Mixed-design ANOVA revealed that the WRT group demonstrated significantly greater improvements than CON in 10-m (Cohen's d = -1.18, p = 0.025) and 30-m sprint times (d = -0.85, p = 0.016), CMJ height (+10.97%, p < 0.001), and 5-0-5 COD performance (d = -0.95, p = 0.027). Importantly, WRT elicited a significant increase in RFD (+7.95%, d = 1.08, p = 0.049). However, no significant group × time interactions were observed for MVC, sEMG amplitude, or muscle morphology (all p > 0.05). Session-RPE training loads did not differ between groups.

Low-load WRT (2% body mass) is an effective modality for enhancing multidirectional explosive performance. The increase in RFD without concomitant changes in maximal strength or muscle morphology suggests that these functional gains are primarily driven by early-phase neural adaptations rather than structural hypertrophy. Practically, WRT represents a time-efficient in-season micro-dosing strategy that may augment explosiveness without significantly increasing perceived internal training load.