Abstract Introduction Understanding how external and internal loads relate during a competitive season in high performance athletes, and identifying which capacities have more influence on the perception of effort, can help to better plan training and monitor competitive performance. Material and Methods In this study we followed a professional male futsal team (n = 11) over a 37-week competitive season to determine variables that influence the perceived effort in periods of low and high training loads. External load indicators (strength, power, cognitive performance, sleep quality, and cardiorespiratory fitness) and the perception of effort were monitored regularly. The significance level adopted for this study was p <0.05. Results In the period of low accumulated load, poor cognitive performance was directly related to the perception of effort at a greater extent (rho = 0.60; p = 0.048), while in the period of high load the power production capacity was inversely related with perceived effort (r=- 0.72; p = 0.02). Conclusions Both cognitive performance and explosive force production should be monitored throughout the regular season, but planning should seek to enhance these specific factors at different times of the season.
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