The Effects of High-Intensity Interval Training and Game-Based Training on Junior High School Soccer Player

There was a lack of empirical comparison of the concurrent strength effects of High-Intensity Interval Training and Game-Based Training in the context of youth soccer players. Objective: The main purpose of this study was to examine the effects of those two types of training within six week-period of cardio activities performance characteristics of male junior high school soccer players in Kediri, East Java. Methods: By applying a quantitative approach and experimental research design, this study took 20 male junior high school soccer players with a mean age of 14.5-year-old to fulfill the requirement that the samples were in the youth stage and were accustomed to a training workload and involved in soccer training and matches for at least two years to meet the minimum criteria. The research instruments were the pre-test and post-test to measure the O2max of the research subjects. Results: For 6 weeks, the subjects performed HIIT at close to ~85% of maximal heart rate while the GBT intensity was set at 70-75% of maximal heart rate. The findings implied that students with HIIT were more likely to have a greater heart rate during the study and training to get into the local tournament. Also, sprinting performance increased significantly in both groups from pretest to post-test without any changes in running performance. Conclusion: These findings may become the reference to conduct further research on different characteristics of subjects or other areas of study.