Background
Through scholastic sports programs, adolescent athletes compete to represent their communities. However, few studies investigate the changes in physiological and mental profiles during varied sport periodization among this population. Therefore, the
Conclusion
The present study demonstrates that muscle mass, aerobic capacity, peak AJ power, and 10 m sprint performance, but not planned agility, were greater during OS compared to CS among elite adolescent basketball players. Furthermore, the stress-related responses reflected by the D/C ratio and mood tension were relatively lower during the OS in these athletes. Thus, this study suggests that coaches and sport science professionals should closely monitor athletes' training states across varied training/competition periods to better react to modifying training or recovery plans.
Results
The training load during OS was 26.0% lower than CS (p = 0.001). Muscle mass, aerobic capacity, 10 m sprint, and Abalakov jump (AJ) power during OS were greater than that during CS (+2.2-9.8%, p < 0.05), but planned agility was greater during CS (p = 0.003). The salivary DHEA-S/cortisol was greater during CS than during OS (p = 0.039). The overall mood state and sleep quality did not differ between periods, but the POMS-tension was higher during CS (p = 0.005).