Acute effects of differential learning on football kicking performance and in countermovement jump

PLoS One. 2019 Oct 23;14(10):e0224280. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0224280. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to identify the acute effects of a differential-learning training program on football kicking performance and countermovement jump. Twenty youth Portuguese under-15 football players participated in this study. All players were exposed to two training approaches: i) traditional, in which the players performed a total of 36 kicks in a blocked and repetitive approach; and ii) differential learning, which consisted in the 36 kicks using differential variations in each kick. Football kicking impact and velocity were assessed using a Stalker radar gun, while the kicking accuracy was assessed by aggregating the total number of points achieved during 12 kicks into a goal, which was divided into quantifiable scoring zones. Lastly, leg power was measured using a countermovement jump. Measurements were performed at baseline, post-intervention, and following a 35-minute training match. The comparisons between the baseline and post-test revealed that the differential learning approach promoted a possibly ~5% increase in the countermovement jump (small effects) and a likely ~3% increase in the average velocity (small effects) when compared with the traditional training approach. From the accuracy perspective, there was a moderate decrease from the baseline to the post-test and post-match in accurate kicks into zone 1 (centre of the goal) and a moderate decrease from the baseline to the post-match in accurate kicks into zone 5 (lateral zones at short height) in the differential intervention. In turn, a small increase in the accurate kicks into zones 4 and 6 (lateral zones of the goal and nearest to the bar, respectively) was found from the baseline to the post-match in the differential intervention. Overall, the differential learning intervention was more beneficial than a traditional training protocol with respect to acute improvements in countermovement jump performance, football kicking velocity and higher scoring zones kicking accuracy.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Athletic Performance / physiology*
  • Humans
  • Learning*
  • Male
  • Movement*
  • Soccer / physiology*
  • Statistics as Topic
  • Time Factors

Grants and funding

This work was funded by the research Project NanoSTIMA: Macro-to-Nano Human Sensing: Toward Integrated Multimodal Health Monitoring and Analytics, NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000016, Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional (FEDER) - NORTE 2020. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.