The relationship between the RAST and a centre defender in football
This study aimed to establish the relationship between the Repeated Anaerobic Sprint Test
(RAST) and a centre defender playing football.
Client Background:
One participant (Participant A) was studied. Participant A is a 19-year-old male of white
British origin, weighs 90kg, height 1.90cm. Participant A is a non-smoker, non-drinker and is
in good health. Participant A plays amateur Football in a men’s league as well as playing for
Worthing college in the ECFA national league. There have been no serious injuries with
particulate A, Participant A is also a regular gym user training in anaerobic training. This
type of training has been carried out for the last 5 years. Participant A signed a PAR-Q form
and provided informed consent. Ethical approval was given by Worthing College in
association with Chichester University.
Justification for the choice of test:
The repeated anaerobic sprint test (RAST) was designed by the University of Wolverhampton
as a sport specific anaerobic test (peak performance, 2017). The ability to produce high
power outputs and high- velocity sprints is essential for football performance(Wragg,
Maxwell and doust, 2000), and a match involves an average of 30 ro 40 sprints
(Mohr,Krustup and bangsbom, 2003). Duthie,Pyne and hooper (2003) all said that training
should be focused on high intensity exercises with short rest periods which the RAST
replicates, this will condition the athletes to the demands of the football game. Repeated
sprint training increases an individual's acceleration from a static start (Harrison and Bourke,
, 2009) which benefits participant A since during a football game every player on the pitch will
be required to sprint from a static position at some point. Participant A is a central defender,
so they will have to deal with a lot of counter attacks during a game so they will be required
to sprint from a static or walking position to win the possession of the ball back. The RAST
monitors anaerobic capacity regularly for performers who perform multiple sprints
(Adamczyk, 2011) and is a practical test to estimate average anaerobic power
(Burgess,Holt,Munro & Swinton, 2016).
Method:
To conduct the RAST, 35m was measured on flat grass using a tape measure. A cone was
placed at each end. Participant A performed a brief warm-up, including a 3-minute pulse
raiser and various stretches, chosen by the participant. Three people stood at either end and
two stood in the middle. At the end of the countdown, Participant A sprinted to the cone 35m
away. The time taken was recorded, whilst those in the middle gave a 10-second countdown
before the next sprint (back to the starting cone) was initiated. A recovery time of only 10
seconds placed maximum stress on the anaerobic energy system. Participant A performed 6
35m sprints with 10 seconds recovery in between. The durations of the sprints were recorded
to calculate power outputs, allowing the fatigue index and the point at which energy
production changed to be identified.
Results:
The duration of each sprint was recorded and, using the equation below, the power output for
each sprint was calculated (Figure 1).
This study aimed to establish the relationship between the Repeated Anaerobic Sprint Test
(RAST) and a centre defender playing football.
Client Background:
One participant (Participant A) was studied. Participant A is a 19-year-old male of white
British origin, weighs 90kg, height 1.90cm. Participant A is a non-smoker, non-drinker and is
in good health. Participant A plays amateur Football in a men’s league as well as playing for
Worthing college in the ECFA national league. There have been no serious injuries with
particulate A, Participant A is also a regular gym user training in anaerobic training. This
type of training has been carried out for the last 5 years. Participant A signed a PAR-Q form
and provided informed consent. Ethical approval was given by Worthing College in
association with Chichester University.
Justification for the choice of test:
The repeated anaerobic sprint test (RAST) was designed by the University of Wolverhampton
as a sport specific anaerobic test (peak performance, 2017). The ability to produce high
power outputs and high- velocity sprints is essential for football performance(Wragg,
Maxwell and doust, 2000), and a match involves an average of 30 ro 40 sprints
(Mohr,Krustup and bangsbom, 2003). Duthie,Pyne and hooper (2003) all said that training
should be focused on high intensity exercises with short rest periods which the RAST
replicates, this will condition the athletes to the demands of the football game. Repeated
sprint training increases an individual's acceleration from a static start (Harrison and Bourke,
, 2009) which benefits participant A since during a football game every player on the pitch will
be required to sprint from a static position at some point. Participant A is a central defender,
so they will have to deal with a lot of counter attacks during a game so they will be required
to sprint from a static or walking position to win the possession of the ball back. The RAST
monitors anaerobic capacity regularly for performers who perform multiple sprints
(Adamczyk, 2011) and is a practical test to estimate average anaerobic power
(Burgess,Holt,Munro & Swinton, 2016).
Method:
To conduct the RAST, 35m was measured on flat grass using a tape measure. A cone was
placed at each end. Participant A performed a brief warm-up, including a 3-minute pulse
raiser and various stretches, chosen by the participant. Three people stood at either end and
two stood in the middle. At the end of the countdown, Participant A sprinted to the cone 35m
away. The time taken was recorded, whilst those in the middle gave a 10-second countdown
before the next sprint (back to the starting cone) was initiated. A recovery time of only 10
seconds placed maximum stress on the anaerobic energy system. Participant A performed 6
35m sprints with 10 seconds recovery in between. The durations of the sprints were recorded
to calculate power outputs, allowing the fatigue index and the point at which energy
production changed to be identified.
Results:
The duration of each sprint was recorded and, using the equation below, the power output for
each sprint was calculated (Figure 1).
