Assessment of a perceived exertion session between the coach and sub17 athletes during a soccer championship

Abstract

Introduction: For a precise prescription of training loads, it is important that the perceived exertion (RPE) between coach and athlete are in agreement. Thus, the aim of this study was to verify the association between the RPE of the session (SRPE) perceived by coach and athlete for the daily monitoring of training loads in young athletes during the main championship of the year, for this team. Methods: Twelve young soccer players (age: 15,8 ± 0,9 years; weight: 59,9 ± 11,7 Kg; height: 1,71 ± 0,09m; IMC: 20,5 ± 3,2Kg/m2; body fat: 12,7 ± 2,1%) and one coach volunteered to participate in this study. All participants were familiar with the SRPE method. Prior the beginning of the trainings the coach was asked the SRPE, and the athletes answered after the training session. RPE was collected for 11 weeks. Results: The SRPE of the eleven-week session was similar between coach and athletes (p = 0.09), with strong correlation (p = 0.001, r = 0.73). However, the SRPE according to training-intensity categories was similar only in the difficult category (p = 0.075). Conclusion: SRPE is a reliable tool for quantifying the training load but should be used with more experienced athletes.