Comparison of Physical Fitness Parameters of Soccer Players and Sedantary Children.

Sport & Scıence, vol.2, pp.138-145, 2006 (SCI-Expanded)

COMPARISON OF PHYSICAL FITNESS PARAMETERS

OF SOCCER PLAYERS AND SEDANTARY CHILDREN

Ozgan Saygin, Ertugrul Gelen, Yakya Polat, Kürsad Karacabey

Key words: soccer, physical fitness, children

I N T R O D U C T I O N

R e g a r d l e s s of t h e type of f i t n e s s program, 20% or more of c h i l d r e n fail to meet

r e c o m m e n d e d fitness s t a n d a r d s in one or more areas.

( 1 4 ) A l o n g with d e c r e a s e s in

the amount of physical activity, children are s p e n d i n g more time in s e d e n t a ry

a c t i v i t i e s such as w a t c h i n g t e l e v i s i o n , playing c o m p u t e r g a m e s , or e x p l o r i n g the

internet [4].

F o o t b a l l ( s o c c e r ) is possibly the sport most w i d e l y practiced in the world by

c h i l d r e n . Different a s p e c t s related with this sport have been studied, but mainly in

p r o f e s s i o n a l and young adult players .Exercise intensity in football (soccer) ranges

f r om s t a n d i n g and w a l k i n g to sprinting, covering a mean distance close to 11 km

at an average intensity c o m p a r a b l e to that o b s e r v e d during marathon running

( 7 0 - 8 0% of t h e maximal oxygen uptake) .Despite this similarity in average intensity,

f o o t b a l l (soccer) is an intermittent high-intensity e x e r c i s e [ 1 1 , 1 2 , 9 ],

E v a l u a t i o n of physical activity patterns and physical fitness should be included

in the c o m p l e t e a s s e s s m e n t of children. In addition, the type and amount of

s e d e n t a r y activity should also be a s s e s s e d . With the limitations in available

i n s t r u m e n t s , practitioners have few c h o i c e s regarding which instruments to use or

may have difficulty interpreting data g l e a n e d from t h e s e instruments by others.

Often, practitioners only indirectly assess physical activity by evaluating such factors

as w e i g h t , muscle tone, heart rate, blood pressure, and skin condition. A l t h o u g h

a f f e c t e d by physical activity or the lack t h e r e o f , such a s s e s s m e n t s do not give

direct information about physical activity. Rather t h a n simply asking about s e t t i n g s

w h e r e physical activity t a k e s place (physical e d u c a t i o n in the school) or about

p a r t i c u l a r s p o r t s programs (soccer, s w i m m i n g , etc.) [5,19, 20].