Effects of the Off-Season on Muscular Power in Professional Rugby League

Purpose: Periods away from training and competition are necessary for physical and mental restoration in sport. There is limited research investigating changes to physical qualities in rugby league following prolonged breaks. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of the off-season on muscular power in rugby league. In addition, this study aimed to determine whether the type and volume of training players chose to complete had any relationship to feelings of restoration and/or readiness to return to training. Methods: Twenty professional rugby league players participated in this study. Lower-body muscular power was evaluated using a countermovement jump prior to the off-season and at the recommencement of training. Players completed a questionnaire to identify training and activities completed during the break and to assess feelings of restoration and readiness to commence training. Linear regression was used to estimate the effects of the number of days off on muscular power. One-way repeated-measures analysis of variance was conducted to examine differences in lower-body power throughout the study. Spearman rank order correlation was calculated to determine the relationship between off-season activities and feelings of restoration and readiness. Results: Peak velocity and peak force significantly increased following the off-season break. There were significant relationships between mental restoration and upper-body resistance training, as well as physical restoration and full-body resistance training. Conclusions: The off-season has a positive effect on a player's ability to generate muscular power. Coaches may want to encourage players to complete resistance training sessions with the aim simply to maintain training load and potentially help players to feel rested.