Comparison of Speed and Nutritional Intake during Pre and In-Season Training Phases of Soccer Athletes

Soccer is a sport that requires a distinct training pattern for each phase. The training pattern during pre-season and in-season phases are related to athletes’ speed and achievement. Moreover, nutritional intake during each phase also influences soccer athlete achievement. This study aimed to compare speed and nutritional intake during different training phases of soccer athletes. This was quantitative research with a cross-sectional design. The research subjects were twenty-two young soccer athletes from the PPLP Training Centre in Central Java Province. The research variables were speed and nutritional intake, measured using 50-meter sprint test and 3x24-hour food recall, respectively. Data were collected during the pre-season and in-season training phases. Data were analyzed using an independent t-test and the Mann-Whitney test. The average age of the subjects was 17 ± 0.7 years, with lean body mass and fat mass percentage of 81.11 ± 3.14 % and 18.88 ± 3.19 %, respectively. There was a significant difference in the subject’s speed between pre-season and in-season training phases (p=0.001), with higher speed score during the in-season (7.43 ± 0.34) than the pre-season (7.02 ± 0.21). The total energy and macronutrient intakes of the subjects during pre-season and in-season training phases were not significantly different (p>0.05). However, there was a significant difference in calcium intake (p=0.018), with higher intake during in-season (1351.87 ± 666.74 mg) than the pre-season (873.44 ± 444.80 mg) training phase. Differences in speed and calcium intake were observed across training phases; therefore, training program and nutritional intake patterns should be adjusted based on the athlete’s training periodization.