Small-sided soccer games for 1 hour two to three times a week during 12 weeks for untrained men aged 20-40 years resulted in significant increases in muscle mass and leg bone mass, whereas no effects occurred for the inactive control group. The postural balance was improved as well. In a follow-up study on long-term effects of soccer for men, it was demonstrated that 64 weeks of training have an additional effect on both muscle mass and leg bone mineral density. These effects were observed despite the fact that the training volume was reduced significantly. After the first 12 weeks the training frequency was only 1.3 times per week, indicating that a relatively small amount of training can nevertheless affect bone strength in the longer term.

70-year-old men as fit as 30-year-olds

The research group has also examined muscle function and postural balance in a group of 65-75 year old men who have played recreational soccer most of their lives and compared the values with a group of men at the same age without specific training and a group of 30-year-old untrained men.

- "The research shows that 70-year-old men, who have played soccer most of their lives on a recreational basis, have just as good a balance and rapid muscle strength as untrained 30-year-olds and much better balance and muscle strength than their peers" says Peter Krustrup.

As an example, the untrained older men had more than twice as many falls in a one-leg balance test, compared to the soccer-trained older men and untrained young men.

Source: University of Copenhagen