Heart rate variability and psychophysiological profiles in high-performance team sports

Abstract

This paper poses two objectives, pursued in two different studies. The first is to analyse the usefulness of a heart rate variability (HRV) analysis within the context of high-performance team sports. The second is to analyse HRV based on mood profiles, assessed using the POMS. For the first study, 53 athletes were selected from 3 different elite team sports: basketball, hockey and soccer. For the second study, the sample comprised 18 elite football players, divided into two groups: the iceberg profile and altered mood state. The results show that football players have a different HRV profile from basketball or hockey players, who both display a fairly similar one. In the case of soccer players with the iceberg profile, the vigour factor is negatively correlated with LF / HF and LF% and positively correlated with the HF% parameter. In the case of soccer players with the altered mood state, the fatigue factor is negatively correlated with the pNN50 and HF parameters. The results offer a deeper insight into HRV in team sports with a view to adapting the monitoring process and obtaining indicators of mood states associated with HRV.