International Journal of Human Movement and Sports Sciences Vol. 12(4), pp. 678 - 684
DOI: 10.13189/saj.2024.120409
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Adolescent Swimmers' Autonomic Modulation: Analyzing the Effects of the COVID-19 Confinement Period

João. Viola ^1,*, Shiva Ebrahimpour Nosrani ², José Manuel Borges ³, Luís. Rama ^2
1 Faculty of Sport Sciences & Physical Education, University of Coimbra, Portugal
² Faculty of Sport Sciences and Physical Education, Research Center for Sport and Physical Activity (CIDAF), University of Coimbra, Portugal
³ Porto Football Club, Porto, Portugal

ABSTRACT

This study aimed to investigate the effects of compulsory confinement due to COVID-19 on young swimmers through their autonomic responses. It involved six elite athletes, with an average age of 15.20 ± 0.48 years (five males and one female, aged 15.09 years), monitored over 35 days. This period included 5 days prior to confinement, 12 days during confinement, 4 days during the first week of regular training post-confinement, and 7 days each in the second and third weeks of training. This study utilized two methods to assess the impact of training load on heart rate variability (HRV): the arbitrary units of load to quantify the training load and the log-transformed root mean square of successive R-R intervals (LnRMSSD) to evaluate HRV. Heart rate values were used to prescribe training tasks during confinement. The study observed significant changes in LnRMSSD over time, with a decrease during the confinement period (F = 3.033; p = 0.019) and a return to baseline levels for all swimmers by the third week of regular training. However, two swimmers who, on their initiative, performed an additional exercise program during confinement in addition to what the coach requested exhibited the opposite behavior by increasing the LnRMSSD value. The study suggests that the absence of regular swim training during confinement decreased HRV in most swimmers, which could be reversed or minimized by using non-specific training strategies. Also, the study highlights the practicality of HRV as a monitoring tool.

KEYWORDS
Heart Rate Variability, Swimming, Youth, Parasympathetic Nervous System, COVID-19 Pandemics

Cite This Paper in IEEE or APA Citation Styles
(a). IEEE Format:
[1] João. Viola , Shiva Ebrahimpour Nosrani , José Manuel Borges , Luís. Rama , "Adolescent Swimmers' Autonomic Modulation: Analyzing the Effects of the COVID-19 Confinement Period," International Journal of Human Movement and Sports Sciences, Vol. 12, No. 4, pp. 678 - 684, 2024. DOI: 10.13189/saj.2024.120409.

(b). APA Format:
João. Viola , Shiva Ebrahimpour Nosrani , José Manuel Borges , Luís. Rama (2024). Adolescent Swimmers' Autonomic Modulation: Analyzing the Effects of the COVID-19 Confinement Period. International Journal of Human Movement and Sports Sciences, 12(4), 678 - 684. DOI: 10.13189/saj.2024.120409.