Preliminary Analyses Of Home And Away Game Recovery In Student-Athletes Using A Holistic Coaching App

Collegiate basketball athletes have a season of ~80 games with half of those played on the road. Research has shown that road games result in different psychological approaches and nutritional changes for athletes. However, it is not well known if recovery differs between home games and road games. Wearable technology allows for the assessment of recovery metrics using heart rate variability, resting heart rate, sleep performance, and respiratory rate. Further, athlete-facing coaching apps partnered with wearable devices may offer additional recovery benefits following competition. PURPOSE: To determine differences in recovery metrics after home and away games in collegiate basketball athletes using a wearable device with and without a holistic coaching app. METHODS: Division I basketball athletes (n = 11; 64% female) were randomized to either the wearable-only group (W; n = 5) or the wearable and coaching group (WC; n = 6). All athletes wore a wearable device continuously for 8 weeks that recorded heart rate, heart rate variability, and sleep performance. Athletes in the WC group also received coaching from a holistic, athlete-facing coaching app. Recovery metrics were provided from the wearable device using a proprietary algorithm. Games were categorized as played at home or away. A 2 (game) x 2 (group) repeated measures ANOVA was used to determine differences in recovery. RESULTS: There was no significant interaction between game and group (p = 0.09). No significant differences were found in recovery metrics due to game location (p = 0.62) or group (p = 0.89). Average recovery scores at home games were 54.6 ± 17.0% and 51.4 ± 21.2% of the W and WC groups, respectively. The W group had a non-significant, lower recovery score after away games (45.5 ± 13.0%), while the WC group were non-significantly higher (62.8 ± 18.2%). CONCLUSIONS: Preliminary analyses showed there were no significant differences in recovery metrics between home and away games for the two groups. However, despite an abbreviated testing period there were some notable, non-significant changes in recovery scores that may be important for athlete well-being and overall performance. Further research is needed in a larger sample of collegiate athletes to determine the effects of a holistic coaching app on recovery metrics after home and away games.