Table 1.

Demographics and physiological characteristics of subjects

	Soccer players	Controls	Significance
Age (years)	22.5±2.2	21.3±3.1	NS
Weight (kg)	78.3±4.5	75.3±5.9	NS
Height (cm)	178.2±4.7	174.6±3.6	NS
% Body fat	14.6±1.7	13.9±2.2	NS
Waist–hip ratio	0.96±0.1	0.84±0.03	P<0.05
Resting heart rate (bpm)	62.6±8.4	56.3±3.5	NS
Maximal heart rate (bpm)	194.5±9.2	185.5±3.4	NS
VO2max (mL/kg/min)	57.5±4.3	54.1±4.5	NS

Abbreviations: NS, not significant; VO_2max, maximal oxygen consumption.