REVIEW  EXERCISE PHYSIOLOGY AND BIOMECHANICS 

The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness 2019 June;59(6):982-93

DOI: 10.23736/S0022-4707.18.08929-6

Copyright © 2018 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Recovery in volleyball

Julio CALLEJA-GONZALEZ ¹, Juan MIELGO-AYUSO ² ✉, Braulio SANCHEZ-UREÑA ³, Sergej M. OSTOJIC ⁴, Nicolas TERRADOS ⁵

¹ Department of Physical Activity and Sports, University of the Basque Country, Vitoria, Spain; ² Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Physiology, University of Valladolid, Soria, Spain; ³ Human Movement and Quality Life School, National University of Costa Rica, Heredia, Costa Rica; ⁴ Center for Health, Exercise and Sport Sciences, Belgrade, Serbia; ⁵ Regional Unit of Sport Medicine-Avilés City-Council Foundation, Department of Functional Biology, University of Oviedo, Asturias, Spain

INTRODUCTION: In current team sports (including volleyball), the players have to play numerous competitive matches without time to recover. Volleyball can be defined as a moderate duration exercise including repeated bouts of high-intensity activity interspersed with brief periods of low to moderate active recovery or passive rest. A match is characterized by repeated explosive activities, such as: jumps, shuffles and rapid changes in direction.
EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: To guarantee adequate recovery after matches, it is necessary to know the type of fatigue induced and if possible its underlying mechanisms. Recovery strategies are commonly utilized in volleyball despite limited scientific confirmation to support their effectiveness to facilitating optimal recovery.
EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS: It is particularly important to optimize recovery because players spend a much greater proportion of their time recovering than they do in training.
CONCLUSIONS: Therefore, the main aim of this brief review is to facilitate useful information for practical application, based on the scientific evidence and applied knowledge specifically in volleyball.

KEY WORDS: Volleyball; Nutritional sciences; Fatigue