Exploring Changes in Body Composition Before and After a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Season of Marching Artists.

The purpose of this study was to observe the changes in body composition of collegiate marching band artists after a competitive season NCAA Division I football season. Thirty-seven marching artists (7 females, 31 males; age: 21.5 (1.4) years; height: 177.2 (9.5) cm had body fat percentage (BF%), fat mass (FM), android adiposity, gynoid adiposity, bone mineral content (BMC), and lean soft tissue (LST) measured before and after a competitive season of Division I football. Body composition measures were conducted using single-frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis device (Quantum IV, RJL systems, Clinton MI). Pre- and post-season differences in anthropometrics and body composition were evaluated using repeated measures analysis of variance with Cohen's statistics to estimate the magnitude of effect. Over the 15 weeks, participants experienced an average body mass loss of -0.4 (2.5) kg (=0.17). BF% and FM increased on average by 1.4 (1.8)% (=0.78) and 0.95 (1.8) kg, respectively. There were small increases in both android (0.08 (0.2) kg; =0.36) and gynoid (0.10 (0.3) kg; =0.38) fat throughout the season. Additionally, BMC showed a trivial increase of 0.002 (0.1) kg (=0.02), despite a large decrease in mean LST (-1.40 (1.3) kg; =1.06). Nutrition and physical activity level may have led to physical changes. Interventions designed to maintain adiposity throughout a season may be necessary. Additionally, resistance training programs may be appropriate to help maintain or increase LST throughout a season. Healthcare providers should be aware of changes in body composition which may lead to higher prevalence of injuries.