VARIATIONS OF TOTAL BODY WATER CHANGES IN FOOTBALL PLAYERS DURING RUNNING

Abstract

Sweat loss, causing total body water changes, is an important issue of many sports activities. Changes of total body water (TBW) in 11 football players during their shuttle run tests were evaluated in this report. Pre- and post-test body composition parameters of participants were measured. Variations in TBW changes, detected by the end of the tests allowed dividing all participants into two groups: group A (n=5) included those who lost at least 100 ml of fluid and group B (n=6) of those who had traces of TBW changes. Statistical analysis of differences between groups through t-test revealed higher parameters of body surface area (BSA), body mass index (BMI) and TBW in group B in comparison with group A. It is suggested that athletes from group B, who had bigger size than their group A counterparts, had higher basal metabolic rate, which may result in higher TBW. Lack of TBW loss in group B during the test was probably related to the body’s attempt to preserve the thermo-cooling effect of water. Further research will help to better address issues of body water loss in athletes during running.