Christos Koutsouridis1, Christos Galazoulas1, Vasiliki Manou1, Nikolaos Stavropoulos1, Georgios Karamousalidis1
1Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, School of Physical Education & Sport Science, Depart-ment of Physical Education & Sport Science, Thessaloniki, Greece
Effects of a Short-Duration Interval Cycling Re-Warm-Up on the Performance of Basketball Substitutes
Sport Mont 2026, 24(2), Ahead of Print | DOI: 10.26773/smj.260616
Abstract
The manuscript investigates whether a short, high-intensity interval cycling re-warm-up (RWU) can mitigate the performance decline observed in basketball substitutes after passive bench rest. Thirteen semi-professional male basketball players participated in a within-subjects crossover design consisting of two experimental conditions (CON and RWUint), performed on separate days in a counterbalanced order. In the control condition, athletes completed 15 minutes of passive rest following a standardized warm-up, whereas in the experimental condition (RWUint), they completed 13.5 minutes of rest followed by three 5-second maximal cycling sprints at 7.5% of their body mass, separated by 25-second recovery intervals. In both condi-tions, athletes rested for one additional minute before the subsequent measurements. Perfor-mance outcomes included the countermovement jump (CMJ) and the modified agility T-test (MAT), while physiological variables (heart rate and body temperature) and subjective percep-tions, rating of perceived exertion (RPE) and perceived readiness to return (PRR), were also assessed. The findings demonstrated smaller declines in CMJ (p<0.001 in CON; p=0.005 in RWUint) and MAT performance (p=0.03 in CON; p=0.56 in RWUint) under the RWUint condi-tion than in passive rest, as well as reduced reductions in heart rate and body temperature (p<0.001). Although RPE slightly increased (p=0.150) and PRR remained stable (p=0.303) fol-lowing RWUint, both parameters deteriorated during passive rest (p=0.003 and p<0.001, respec-tively). The authors conclude that brief, high-intensity interval re-warm-up sessions effectively preserve physiological readiness and neuromuscular performance, offering a practical, time-efficient strategy for basketball substitutes during competition.
Keywords
re-warm-up, basketball performance, substitute players, cycle ergometer, agility, jump perfor-mance
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