Chapter 15: Training Programs And Performance

Question 1

• What is annual plan?
• What are the 5 purposes of an annual plan?
• What is a macrocycle?
• What is a microcycle?
• What’s the difference between general and specific preparation?
• What is tapering?
• What is fatigue?

Answer 1

• A training program spread across the whole year and broken up into the preparatory, competitive and transition phases.
• Achieve short term, achieves long term goals, develops athletes, integrates training with other commitments and prevents over training.
• A large block of time in a training program. Can range from up to 4 years or the entire length of a training program.
• Shortest block of training typically consisting of a week of individual sessions.
• General preparation occurs at the start of preparation phase and involves cardiovascular, speed, strength and flexibility training. Whereas specific preparation occurs as competition phase approaches and involves specific skills, strategies and personalised fitness.
• Reduction in training volume while maintaining intensity in the weeks leading up to an event to allow the body to be fully recovered and maximises muscle glycogen stores. Eg significantly decrease training volume in the last week before major event.
• The diminished capacity to work at optimal level.

Question 2

• Identify the 3 phases the coaches would incorporate into the annual training program and outline the objective of each phase.
• What are 4 factors that can affect individual fitness?
• What are 6 factors that cause fatigue in an athlete?
• What are some activities to do for recovery?

Answer 2

-Preparation: emphasis is on providing a suitable fitness or skill base before competition starts.
Competition: emphasis is on maintaining fitness and skill levels, developed during the pre-season, and further developing and refining strategies, tactics and game plans.
Transition: emphasis is on physiological and psychological rest from competition and training but remain active and motivated through other activities eg cross training.
-Injuries, n° of games played, position and amount of time on field.
-Inability to maintain ATP resynthesis, metabolic by-products eg lactic acid, depletion of fuels, dehydration, reduced calcium stores and blood flow restriction to muscles.
-Active/passive recovery, replenishment of glycogen stores, fluids and electrolytes, rest, regenerative techniques and recovery clothing.

Question 3

• What is hydrotherapy?
• What is cryotherapy?
• What is hot water immersion?
• What is contrast water therapy?
• What is pool or ocean recovery?
• How is a massage a recovery method?
• What is hyperbaric oxygen therapy?

Answer 3

• Movement in hot/cold water to aid recovery, by reducing muscle soreness and promote muscle repair.
• Use of cold treatments to promote recovery. The cold reduces blood flow to the extremities, blood vessels constrict, the heart rate slows and blood pressure increases.
• Involves increasing muscle and core body temp to increase blood flow to help recovery and assist in repairing soft tissue.
• Involves immersion in hot and cold water to aid recovery due to the alternating blood vessel dilation and constriction creating a pumping action that helps flush out waste products like lactic acid.
• Involves active recovery in water to aid recovery.
• Can aid the athlete physically and psychologically by relaxing muscles, increasing blood flow, help clear away lactic acid and other metabolic by-products.
• Involves breathing in pure O2 to increase O2 delivered to fatigued muscles.

Question 4

• How can compression clothing aid recovery?
• What is over training?
• What are 7 methods to identify and prevent over training?
• What is a acute injury?
• What is a chronic injury?

Answer 4

• Involves applying surface pressure over an area of the body to increase blood flow for O2 delivery to the muscles.
• A state of severe fatigue whereby an athlete has trained beyond the body’s ability to recover resulting in a decline in performance. To prevent over training you can reduce volume for some weeks to allow body to recover.
• Early identification, monitor training loads, minimise known causes, individualise training, poor nutrition, take a holistic view of the person and laboratory testings.
• Occurs as a result of an internal force eg muscle strain or external force eg collision.
• Result from repetitive use and are often associated with inadequate rest and recovery.

Question 5

• What’s the purpose of a warm up?
• What’s the purpose of a cool down?
• What are the 4 rules for rehabilitation?
• What is cross training and 3 benefits?
• What is periodisation?
• What is peaking?

Answer 5

• Prepare muscles and joints for exercise by increasing blood flow and flexibility.
• Removes waste products, ensuring H.R, blood flow and core body temp are returning to normal and prevent DOMS.
  1. Don’t resume activity before complete recovery
  2. Restart slowly and monitoring the previously injured part.
  3. Make adjustments in activity according to how the injury responds.
  4. Be alert to signs that the recovery process is not being effective.
• Training in activities different to their sport. Benefits: Recovery from injury, cardiovascular improvement and variety to reduce monotony.
• Dividing training into periods, varying in purpose, length and intensity, in order to ensure peak performance during competition.
• Reaching optimal performance at the right time. Involves monitoring of conditioning, psychological, technical and tactical facets of the annual plan.

Question 6

• Explain the most beneficial recovery method for use after an 800m and high jump events.
• What is recovery?
• Explain the 2 benefits to the muscular system of hydrotherapy.

Answer 6

• After 800m, active recovery is used to increase blood flow to assist muscle recovery whereas passive recovery is used after high jump to replenish used phosphate creatine stores.
• Returning an athlete to a state of performance readiness, mentally and physically. It allows athletes to be able to train sooner and with better quality training and prevents overtraining. Eg shorter runs on days after long runs.
• Reduces tissue damage and pain by assisting more rapid waste by-product removal from muscles.