THE EFFECT OF CORE STRENGTH TRAINING PROGRAM ON BALANCE AND FLEXIBILITY PERFORMANCE IN YOUNG FOOTBALL PLAYERS

Fethi Ferhat Çiçek, Önder Dağlıoğlu

Abstract


The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of a core strength training program on  balance and flexibility performance in young football players. A total of 20 licensed male football players between the ages of 18 and 21 who were doing regular football training participated voluntarily in the study. Participants were randomly divided into two groups as experimental (n:10, age: 18.80±0.91) and control (n:10, age: 19.60±1.34) groups.  The experimental group received a core strength training program in addition to football training 3 days a week for 6 weeks. Both groups continued their normal football training.  Balance and flexibility values were measured before and after the core strength training program. Balance performances of the subjects were measured with Star Excursion Balance Test (SEBT) and Flamingo Balance Test (FBT). Flexibility performance was measured with Sit and Reach test. SPSS 22.0 package program was used to obtain statistical results. Shapiro-Wilk test was used for normality test. Paired Samples T test was used for intra-group comparisons and Independent Samples T Test was used for inter-group comparisons. Significance level was determined as p<0.05. A positive significance was found in the balance and flexibility values of the experimental group after the core strength training program (p<0.05). As a result, it can be said that the 6- week core strength training program applied to young football players has a positive effect on balance and flexibility parameters.

 

Article visualizations:

Hit counter


Keywords


core training, balance, flexibility, football, strength

Full Text:

PDF

References


Stolen T, Chamari K, Castagna C, Wisloff U. (2005). Physiology of soccer: An update. Sports Medicine, 35(6):501–536. https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-200535060-00004

Buchheit, M., Al Haddad, H., Simpson, B.M., Palazzi, D., Bourdon, P.C., Di Salvo, V., Mendez-Villanueva, A. (2014). Monitoring accelerations with GPS in football: time to slow down. International journal of sports physiology and performance, 9(3): 442-445. https://doi.org/10.1123/ijspp.2013-0187

Bompa TO, Buzzichelli CA. (2021). Dönemleme Antrenman Kuramı ve Yöntemi. 6. baskı. Ankara: Spor Yayınevi ve Kitabevi.

Çağlayan A, Özbar A. (2017). The examination of the effects of functional training program applied on instable ground on anaerobic capacities of elite martial arts athletes. European Journal of Education Studies, 3(11):812–824. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1133471

Egesoy H, Alptekin A, Yapıcı A. (2018). Sporda kor egzersizler. International Journal of Contemporary Educational Studies, 4(1).

Nesser TW, Lee WL. (2009). The relationship between core strength and performance in Division I female soccer players. Journal of Exercise Physiology Online, 12(2):21–28.

Alter MJ. (2004). Science of Flexibility. 3rd ed. United States of America: Human Kinetics. Retrieved from https://books.google.ro/books/about/Science_of_Flexibility.html?id=3pPAWd1PW2sC&redir_esc=y

Akandere M. (1999). 17–22 yaş grubu kız çocukların esnekliklerinin geliştirilmesinde statik ve dinamik gerdirme egzersizlerinin etkisi. Beden Eğitimi ve Spor Bilimleri Dergisi, 1:12–13.

Clark, K.N. (2004). Balance and strength training for obese individuals. ACSM’s Health and Fitness Journal, 8:14–20. https://doi.org/10.1097/00135124-200401000-00008

Ragnarsdottir M, Woollacott MH, Tang PF. (1996). The concept of physiotherapy. Physical Therapy, 82(6):368–374.

Reyment, C.M., Bonis, M.E., Lunquist, J.C. ve Tice, B.S. (2006). Effects of a Four Week Plyometric Training Program on Measurements of Power in Male Collegiate Hockey Players. Journal of Undergraduate Kinesiology Research, 1(2), 44-62. Retrieved from https://minds.wisconsin.edu/bitstream/handle/1793/23639/kins474reymentetalspring2006.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

Özdal, M. (2016). Influence of an eight-week core strength training program on respiratory muscle fatigue following incremental exercise. Isokinetic and Exercise Science, 24(3), 225-230. https://doi.org/10.3233/IES-160621

Council of Europe. (1988). Eurofit: Handbook for the Eurofit tests of physical fitness. Rome: Council of Europe. Retrieved from https://rm.coe.int/09000016809b5a02

Bressel, E., Yonker, J.C., Kras, J. ve Heath, E.M. (2007). Comparison of static and dynamic balance in female collegiate soccer, basketball, and gymnastics athletes. Journal of Athletic Training, 42(1), 42. Retrieved from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17597942/

Gribble, P.A. ve Hertel, J. (2003). Considerations for normalizing measures of the Star Excursion Balance Test. Measurement in Physical Education and Exercise Science, 7, 89-100. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327841MPEE0702_3?urlappend=%3Futm_source%3Dresearchgate.net%26utm_medium%3Darticle

Tamer, K. (2000). Sporda Fiziksel-Fizyolojik Performansın Ölçülmesi ve Değerlendirilmesi. 2. Baskı, Bağırgan Yayınevi, Ankara.

Shumway-Cook A, Woollacott MH. (2007). Motor Control: Translating Research into Clinical Practice. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Retrieved from https://catalog.nlm.nih.gov/discovery/fulldisplay/alma9916677023406676/01NLM_INST:01NLM_INST

Sandrey, M.A. ve Mitzel, J.G. (2013). Improvement in dynamic balance and core endurance after a 6-week core-stability-training program in high school track and field athletes. Journal of Sport Rehabilitation, 22(4), 264-271. https://doi.org/10.1123/jsr.22.4.264

Dinç, N. (2024). 11-14 Yaş Arası Karatecilerde Dinamik Denge, Gövde Kas Dayanıklılığı, Kuvvet ve Esneklik Üzerine Core Antrenmanın Etkileri. Ulusal Spor Bilimleri Dergisi, 8(2), 62-69. Retrieved from https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/4237338

Kaplan, M., Tofighi, A. ve Taşkın, C. (2024). 14-16 Yaş Grubu Güreşçilerde Core Antrenman Programının Y Denge Performansına Etkisinin İncelenmesi. Kilis 7 Aralık Üniversitesi Beden Eğitimi ve Spor Bilimleri Dergisi, 8(2), 174 179. Retrieved from https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/besbid/article/1588009

Günay M, Tamer K, Cicioğlu İ. (2006). Spor Fizyolojisi ve Performans Ölçümü. Ankara: Gazi Kitabevi.

Çamsarı, M.A., İri, R. ve Şengür, E. (2024). 14-16 Yaş Arası Futbolculara Uygulanan Core Egzersizlerin Atletik Performans ve Futbol Teknik Becerilere Etkisi. Sivas Cumhuriyet Üniversitesi Spor Bilimleri Dergisi, 5(2), 68-80. Retrieved from http://cuspor.cumhuriyet.edu.tr/tr/pub/article/1481778

Kumar, R. ve Zemková, E. (2022). The Effect of 12-Week Core Strengthening and Weight Training on Muscle Strength, Endurance and Flexibility in School-Aged Athletes. Applied Sciences, 12(24), 12550. https://doi.org/10.3390/app122412550

Dilber AO, Lağap B, Akyüz Ö, Çoban C, Akyüz M, Taş M, Akyüz F, Özkan A. (2016). Erkek Futbolcularda 8 Haftalık Kor Antrenmanının Performansla İlgili Fiziksel Uygunluk Değişkenleri Üzerine Etkisi. CBÜ Beden Eğitimi ve Spor Bilimleri Dergisi, 11(2), 77-82. Retrieved from https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/cbubesbd/article/357856




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejpe.v12i11.6465

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2026 Fethi Ferhat Çiçek, Önder Dağlıoğlu

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Copyright © 2015 - 2026. European Journal of Physical Education and Sport Science (ISSN 2501 - 1235) is a registered trademark of Open Access Publishing Group. All rights reserved.


This journal is a serial publication uniquely identified by an International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) serial number certificate issued by Romanian National Library (Biblioteca Nationala a Romaniei). All the research works are uniquely identified by a CrossRef DOI digital object identifier supplied by indexing and repository platforms. All authors who send their manuscripts to this journal and whose articles are published on this journal retain full copyright of their articles. All the research works published on this journal are meeting the Open Access Publishing requirements and can be freely accessed, shared, modified, distributed and used in educational, commercial and non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).