Body Composition in Football Players
by Tyler Bosch
NSCA Coach
March 2019
Vol 4, Issue 5
Body composition is an important physical characteristic to consider for football players and their performance. Tyler Bosch goes over the various methods of measuring body composition, what the numbers really mean, and how they can be used to develop a player's training.
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This article originally appeared in NSCA Coach, a quarterly publication for NSCA Members that provides valuable takeaways for every level of strength and conditioning coach. You can find scientifically based articles specific to a wide variety of your athletes’ needs with Nutrition, Programming, and Youth columns. Read more articles from NSCA Coach »
Related Reading
Abdominal body composition differences in NFL football players.
Body composition and bone mineral density of National Football League players.
Body size and composition of National Football League players.
Prevalence of metabolic syndrome risk factors in high school and NCAA Division I football players.
Longitudinal body composition changes in NCAA Division I college football players
References
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3. Binkley, TL, Daughters, SW, Weidauer, LA, and Vukovich, MD. Changes in body composition in division I football players over a competitive season and recovery in off-season. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 29(9): 2503-2512, 2015.
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5. Bosch, TA, Burruss, TP, Weir, NL, Fielding, KA, Engel, BE, Weston, TD, and Dengel, DR. Abdominal body composition differences in NFL football players. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 28: 3313-3319, 2014.
6. Bosch, TA, Carbuhn, A, Stanforth, PR, Oliver, JM, Keller, KA, and Dengel, DR. Body composition and bone mineral density of division 1 collegiate football players, a consortium of college athlete research (C-CAR) study. Published ahead of print. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 2017.
7. Bosch, TA, Raymond-pope, C, and Dengel, DR. Changes in total and regional body composition during the season in Division 1 football players. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise 50(5S): 146, 2018.
8. Buell, JL, Calland, D, Hanks, F, Johnston, B, Pester, B, Sweeney, R, and Thorne, R. Presence of metabolic syndrome in football linemen. Journal of Athletic Training 43: 608-616, 2008.
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19. Oliver, JM, Lambert, BS, Martin, SE, Green, JS, and Crouse, SF. Predicting football players’ dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry body composition using standard anthropometric measures. Journal of the Athletic Training Association 47(3): 257-263, 2012.
20. Raymond, CJ, Dengel, DR, and Bosch, TA. Total and segmental body composition examination in collegiate football players using mutifrequency BIA and DXA. Published ahead of print. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 2017.
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22. Steffes, G, Megura, A, Adams, J, Clayton, RP, Ward, RM, Horm, TS, and Potteiger, JA. Prevalence of metabolic syndrome risk factors in high school and NCAA Division I football players. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 27: 1749-1757, 2013.
23. Trexler, ET, Smith-Ryan, AE, Mann, JB, Ivey, PA, Hirsch, KR, and Mock, MG. Longitudinal body composition changes in NCAA Division I college football players. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 31(1): 1-8, 2017.
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