Heart-rate and technical-action dynamics during a six-minute wrestling-specific test in Greco-Roman wrestlers: implications for training monitoring

Background and Study Aim. Greco-Roman wrestling involves repeated technical actions performed under changing exercise intensity and brief periods of reduced activity. Heart rate reflects the physiological response to exercise, whereas technical-action volume characterizes the amount of external work performed. Their dynamics during wrestling-specific exercise may differ across successive periods of activity and rest, which affects their interpretation in training monitoring. This study aimed to examine the temporal dynamics of heart rate and technical-action volume and the association between their changes during wrestling-specific exercise. Materials and Methods. Data from 24 highly qualified male Greco-Roman wrestlers representing the 55–130 kg weight categories were retrospectively analysed. The athletes performed a six-minute wrestling-specific test consisting of repeated throws with an arm-and-neck grip, with a 30-second passive pause after the third minute. Heart rate was continuously recorded using Polar H10 chest sensors, while technical-action volume was determined from the number of valid repetitions performed during the 40-second and 20-second phases of each minute. Descriptive statistics and within-athlete comparisons were used to analyse changes in HR and technical-action volume, and Spearman correlation analysis was applied to assess associations between their changes. Results. From minute 3 to minute 4, mean end-of-minute HR decreased from 168.4 ± 8.8 to 164.0 ± 7.3 beats/min (p < 0.001), whereas technical-action volume increased from 7.2 ± 0.8 to 9.7 ± 1.2 repetitions in the 40-second phase and from 10.1 ± 1.3 to 11.1 ± 1.3 repetitions in the 20-second phase (both p < 0.001). During the 30-second pause preceding minute 4, HR decreased by 5.33 beats/min (95% CI: −7.70 to −2.97; p < 0.001). Within-athlete changes in HR were not significantly correlated with changes in technical-action volume in either the 40-second phase (Spearman ρ = 0.153, p = 0.475) or the 20-second phase (ρ = −0.188, p = 0.378). Conclusions. Heart rate and technical-action volume characterize different components of wrestlers’ responses to wrestling-specific exercise and should be interpreted as complementary monitoring indicators. Their combined assessment may provide a basis for evaluating physiological responses and performed technical work during interval-based wrestling activity. The observed temporal patterns should be interpreted within the conditions of the applied test protocol and not as evidence of a causal effect of the inter-period pause.

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