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Psychological Intervention Based on Mental Relaxation to Manage Stress in Female Junior Elite Soccer Team: Improvement in Cardiac Autonomic Control, Perception of Stress and Overall Health

Author

Listed:
  • Eleonora Pagani

    (Department of General Psychology, Catholic University, 20123 Milan, Italy)

  • Naomi Gavazzoni

    (DISCCO Department, University of Milan, 20122 Milan, Italy)

  • Giuseppina Bernardelli

    (DISCCO Department, University of Milan, 20122 Milan, Italy
    Exercise Medicine Unit, Istituto Auxologico Italiano, IRCCS, 20135 Milan, Italy)

  • Mara Malacarne

    (BIOMETRA Department, University of Milan, 20129 Milan, Italy)

  • Nadia Solaro

    (Department of Statistics and Quantitative Methods, University of Milano-Bicocca, 20126 Milan, Italy)

  • Emanuele Giusti

    (Psychology Research Laboratory, Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS, 20149 Milan, Italy)

  • Gianluca Castelnuovo

    (Department of Psychology, Catholic University, 20123 Milan, Italy
    Clinical Psychology Research laboratory, Istituto Auxologico Italiano, IRCCS, 28824 Verbania, Italy)

  • Piero Volpi

    (IRCCS Humanitas Research Hospital, 20089 Milan, Italy)

  • Giulia Carimati

    (IRCCS Humanitas Research Hospital, 20089 Milan, Italy)

  • Daniela Lucini

    (Exercise Medicine Unit, Istituto Auxologico Italiano, IRCCS, 20135 Milan, Italy
    BIOMETRA Department, University of Milan, 20129 Milan, Italy)

Abstract

Chronic stress may represent one of the most important factors that negatively affects the health and performance of athletes. Finding a way to introduce psychological strategies to manage stress in everyday training routines is challenging, particularly in junior teams. We also must consider that a stress management intervention should be regarded as “efficacious” only if its application results in improvement of the complex underlying pathogenetic substratum, which considers mechanistically interrelated factors, such as immunological, endocrine and autonomic controls further to psychological functioning and behavior. In this study, we investigated the feasibility of implementing, in a standard training routine of the junior team of the Italian major soccer league, a stress management program based on mental relaxation training (MRT). We evaluated its effects on stress perception and cardiac autonomic regulation as assessed by means of ANSI, a single composite percentile-ranked proxy of autonomic balance, which is free of gender and age bias, economical, and simple to apply in a clinical setting. We observed that the simple employed MRT intervention was feasible in a female junior soccer team and was associated with a reduced perception of stress, an improved perception of overall health, and a betterment of cardiac autonomic control. This data may corroborate the scientific literature that indicates psychological intervention based on MRT as an efficacious strategy to improve performance, managing negative stress effects on cardiac autonomic control.

Suggested Citation

  • Eleonora Pagani & Naomi Gavazzoni & Giuseppina Bernardelli & Mara Malacarne & Nadia Solaro & Emanuele Giusti & Gianluca Castelnuovo & Piero Volpi & Giulia Carimati & Daniela Lucini, 2023. "Psychological Intervention Based on Mental Relaxation to Manage Stress in Female Junior Elite Soccer Team: Improvement in Cardiac Autonomic Control, Perception of Stress and Overall Health," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(2), pages 1-12, January.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2023:i:2:p:942-:d:1025232
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Daniela Lucini & Massimo Pagani, 2021. "Exercise Prescription to Foster Health and Well-Being: A Behavioral Approach to Transform Barriers into Opportunities," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(3), pages 1-22, January.
    2. Daniela Lucini & Mara Malacarne & Wolfgang Gatzemeier & Massimo Pagani, 2020. "A Simple Home-Based Lifestyle Intervention Program to Improve Cardiac Autonomic Regulation in Patients with Increased Cardiometabolic Risk," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-12, September.
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    5. Daniela Lucini & Angelo Fallanca & Mara Malacarne & Maurizio Casasco & Leonarda Galiuto & Fabio Pigozzi & Giorgio Galanti & Massimo Pagani, 2020. "Streamlining Analysis of RR Interval Variability in Elite Soccer Players: Preliminary Experience with a Composite Indicator of Cardiac Autonomic Regulation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(6), pages 1-10, March.
    6. Daniela Lucini & Leonarda Galiuto & Mara Malacarne & Maria Chiara Meucci & Massimo Pagani, 2021. "Cardiac Autonomic Effects of Yearly Athletic Retreats on Elite Basket Players: Usefulness of a Unitary Autonomic Nervous System Indicator," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-14, February.
    7. Daniela Lucini & Eleonora Pagani & Francesco Capria & Michele Galliano & Marcello Marchese & Stefano Cribellati, 2021. "Evidence of Better Psychological Profile in Working Population Meeting Current Physical Activity Recommendations," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-12, August.
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