Effect of educational training on nutrition and weight control in under-18 Spanish wrestlers

Abstract The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a formative program concerning nutrition, weight control, and its risks wrestlers under the age of 18 (under-18) at the Spanish national level. The sample comprised 36 under-18 wrestlers that were pre-selected for the Spanish national team. A quasi-experimental design with a pre-test and post-test was used. The dependent variableswere the knowledge of nutrition and weight control and its risks. The independent variable was the educational program. The program had three 30-minute sessions that combined talks, videos, and tasks to complete. Descriptive and inferential analyses were done (t-test, Wilcoxon test). Results indicate that the educational program was effective at increasing under-18 wrestlers’ knowledge about weight control and its risks,but was ineffective with regard to nutrition knowledge. The paper concludes with a discussion regarding the effect of the intervention program, the difficulties with including this type of knowledge and skill in the preparation of combat sport athletes, and the need for further research in this area.

摘要 本研究旨在探究针对西班牙国家级18岁以下摔跤运动员的营养、体重控制及其相关风险的形成性教育项目的实施效果。研究样本为36名入选西班牙国家队预选名单的18岁以下摔跤运动员。本研究采用前测-后测准实验设计，以营养知识、体重控制知识及其相关风险认知作为因变量，以该教育项目作为自变量。该教育项目共设3次时长30分钟的课程，融合专题讲座、视频教学与实操任务。研究采用描述性统计与推断性统计分析方法（含t检验、威尔科克森检验）。结果显示，该教育项目可有效提升18岁以下摔跤运动员对体重控制及其相关风险的认知水平，但对其营养知识的提升未产生显著效果。最后，本文就该干预项目的实际效果、在格斗类项目运动员备战过程中融入此类知识与技能的难点，以及该领域开展后续研究的必要性展开了讨论。