Research to Improve Yo-Yo Test Performance
If you are looking to improve your yo-yo test score, first check out our page about Maximizing Your Yo-Yo Test Score, which in part involves Training to improve your Yo-Yo Test score. You might also find these Top-10 Tips to Maximize Your Score useful.
In addition to those methods mentioned above, there are scientific research papers which have investigated the effect of various methods and supplements on yo-yo test performance. While the purpose of these studies is usually to investigate physiological responses to exercise and other interventions, only using the yo-yo test as a tool, it may provide some information which could help improve yo-yo test performances.
Go to Altitude
A group of Australian footballers showed an increase in Yo-Yo IR2 performance after spending 19 nights at 3000m simulated altitude (Inness et al., 2017). The study involved a group of players staying overnight at a simulated altitude for at least 12 hours each night, and comparing their results to a matched control group that did not. After 19 nights, the group that was "living-high training-low", performed 13.5% better in the yo-yo test compared to the control group.
Even greater improvements in yo-yo test scores can be achieved using intermittent hypoxic training (IHT) (Brocherie et al., 2015, Inness et al., 2016). Inness et al. found the IHT group had a 27% greater change in Yo-Yo IR2 performance than the control group after only 6 sessions of IHT.
Take some Sodium Bicarbonate
Sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) has been shown to increase exercise performance, especially in high-intensity and interval activities, and several studies have shown improvements in the yo-yo test. Krustrup et al. ( 2015) found that bthe distance ran increased by 14% in the Yo-Yo IR2 following pre-exercise bicarbonate supplementation. Another study by Dixon et al. (2017) saw an improved Yo-Yo IR1 performance under the NaHCO3 condition (610±267 sec), compared to the placebo condition (556±259 sec).
Take some β-alanine
Beta-alanine is a compound that plays a role in muscle endurance in high-intensity exercise, and aids in the production of carnosine. Saunders et al. (2012) found that beta-alanine supplementation with 3.2 g·day-1 of β-alanine over a 12 week period improved YoYo IR2 performance.
References
- Saunders, B., Sunderland, C., Harris, R. C., & Sale, C. (2012). β-alanine supplementation improves YoYo intermittent recovery test performance. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 9(1), 39. doi:10.1186/1550-2783-9-39
- F. Brocherie, G.P. Millet, A. Hauser, et al. "Live high-train low and high" hypoxic training improves team-sport performance Med Sci Sports Exerc, 47 (10) (2015), pp. 2140-2149.
- Krustrup, P., G. Ermidis, and M. Mohr. 2015. Sodium bicarbonate intake improves high-intensity intermittent exercise performance in trained young men. J. Int. Soc. Sports Nutr. 12:25.
- M. Inness, R. Aughey, F. Billaut, Intermittent hypoxic training improves Yo-Yo IR2, but not time-trial performance in team-sport athletes. Int J Sports Physiol Perform, 11 (1) (2016), pp. 15-21,
- Matthew W.H. Inness, François Billaut, Robert J. Aughey, Live-high train-low improves repeated time-trial and Yo-Yo IR2 performance in sub-elite team-sport athletes, Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, Volume 20, Issue 2, 2017, Pages 190-195.
- Dixon, Helen & Baker, Catherine & Baker, Julien & Dewhurst, Susan & Hayes, Lawrence. (2017). Sodium bicarbonate ingestion improves Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test 1 performance: a randomized crossover trial. Nutrition and Dietary Supplements. 2017. 23-27. 10.2147/NDS.S131947.
- David Macutkiewicz & Caroline Sunderland, Sodium bicarbonate supplementation does not improve elite women's team sport running or field hockey skill performance. Physiol Rep, 6 (19), 2018
More Resources
- Read our Top-10 Tips to Maximize Your Score.
- Training to improve your Yo-Yo Test score
- Maximize Your Yo-Yo Test Score
- Yo-Yo Test References
- List of information pages
- Buying the Yo-Yo Test
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