The Effect of Intensity Soccer Training Sessions on Marked Biochemical Indicators of Blood Acidity of Saudi Young Soccer Players

PURPOSE: To assess the effect of low-to-moderate-intensity exercise on specific blood biomarkers and blood acidity in young Saudi Arabian professional soccer players. METHODS: A total of 43 professional soccer players participated in the current study. A cross-sectional research method was used to compare the changes in the following blood biomarkers: calcium, magnesium, glucose, anion-gap metabolic acidosis, and carbon dioxide, after a range of low-to-moderate intensity training sessions. Measurements were taken in two soccer training sessions (Day 1, and Day 2). The exercise intensity was estimated by heart rate percentage of maximal heart rate. Wilcoxon signed-rank testing was used to analyze the results. RESULTS: Significant differences were found between and pre-and post-training sessions for anion-gap metabolic acidosis: Day 1: 12.55 vs 15.4 mmol/L; Day 2: 14.15 vs 16.35 mmol/L; and magnesium: Day 1: 0.82 vs 0.74 mmol/L; Day 2: 0.85 vs 0.74 mmol/L. Exercise caused anion-gap metabolic acidosis concentrations to rise post-training; magnesium levels decreased after training sessions on Day 1 and Day 2. CONCLUSION: The concentrations of anion-gap metabolic acidosis and magnesium were significantly affected by exercise intensity in the subjects, the former rose post-training while the latter fell. More studies are required to investigate the effects of different exercise intensities on other blood biomarkers in soccer players.