Validity and reliability of Polar M400 GPS watches for measuring distances covered by team sports players

Piotr Makar; Adam Kawczyński; Rui Miguel Silva; Mehmet Yildiz; Ana Filipa Silva; Zeki Akyildiz

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20920

Validity and reliability of Polar M400 GPS watches for measuring distances covered by team sports players

Heliyon. 2023 Oct 14;9(10):e20920. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20920. eCollection 2023 Oct.

Authors

Piotr Makar¹, Adam Kawczyński¹, Rui Miguel Silva^{2

3}, Mehmet Yildiz⁴, Ana Filipa Silva^{2

3

5}, Zeki Akyildiz⁶

Affiliations

¹ Gdańsk University of Physical Education and Sport, Poland.
² Escola Superior Desporto e Lazer, Instituto Politécnico de Viana do Castelo, Rua Escola Industrial e Comercial de Nun'Álvares, 4900-347 Viana do Castelo, Portugal.
³ Research Center in Sports Performance, Recreation, Innovation and Technology (SPRINT), 4960-320 Melgaço, Portugal.
⁴ Afyon Kocatepe University Sports Science Faculty, Turkey.
⁵ The Research Centre in Sports Sciences, Health Sciences and Human Development (CIDESD), 5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal.
⁶ Faculty of Sport Sciences, Gazi University, 06560 Ankara, Turkey.

Abstract

Monitoring locomotor demands in team sports becomes popular in professional and recreational daily activities. Precise measurements are main of importance in training routine. The aim of this study is three-fold: (i) analyze the validity of Polar M400 Global Positioning System (GPS) watches for measuring distances covered in team sports simulation cycle; (ii) testing inter-unit reliability of two devices attached during testing; and (iii) testing inter-session reliability for the same simulation cycle. Methods: Twenty-one team athletes (age: 24.5 ± 5.2 years; body mass: 71.8 ± 5.7 kg; height: 176.5 ± 4.3 cm) were tested in the team sport simulation cycle (TSSC). Two Polar M400 sport watches were used by each player on their wrists at the same time. The data obtained from Polar M400 were compared to the reference fixed distance of the TSSC to determine the watch validity. Inter-session reliability was also tested using the two watches in two different sessions. Results: No significant differences between the reference value and the watches (F = 1.086; p = 0.368; $η_{p}^{2}$ ≤0.042) were found. The %CV (0.03-0.05%) and SEM (0.05-0.09) values found for all considered groups confirmed good levels of reliability of the Polar M400 to measure total distance. Conclusions: The Polar M400 is a valid and reliable watch for measuring the distances covered by team sport athletes. Both coaches and athletes can monitor the distances covered with accuracy and precision, through the use of the Polar M400 sport watch.

Keywords: Assessment; Reliability; Sport watches.