Multicomponent Training Distress Scale (MTDS) Questionnaire to Detect Training Distress in Collegiate Soccer Players

It may be helpful for coaches and trainers to understand risk factors that predict training distress in collegiate athletes. Recognizing who is at risk can assist in the detection of early symptoms so that training adjustments can be made and overtraining avoided. Subjective measurements of subjects’ psychological state can be collected with simple questionnaires and are useful for determining training distress. PURPOSE: To employ the Multicomponent Training Distress Scale (MTDS) questionnaire to examine athletes’ mood and physical states for determination of training distress risk. Gender, season duration, and grade in school were considered variables of interest for predicting training distress. METHODS: 17 male and 26 female collegiate soccer players were enrolled in the study. The MTDS was administered at four time points throughout the season (at the beginning, twice during the season, and once during post-season play). Questionnaires were given to all athletes at the end of their training sessions. Multivariate analyses were performed with the dependent variables of the MTDS across time, grade in school and gender. Only the composite MTDS score is reported in this abstract. RESULTS: The overall multivariate was significant (p\u3c0.05); the main effects for gender, time, and year in school were also significant (p\u3c0.05). Overall, female scores were higher than males. Males exhibited less training distress throughout the season while females had increasing scores throughout the season, then declined at the end (p=0.042). Post-hoc analysis for year in school showed that freshman and sophomores had higher training distress scores compared with juniors and seniors (p=0.001). CONCLUSIONS: MTDS identified gender and year in school as possible variables that could serve as indicators for risk of training distress. College coaches and trainers should consider applying different training loads to men and women as well as underclassmen and upperclassmen