🌱 How to Plan Your Training

QUOTE OF THE DAY 🌱

HOW TO PLAN YOUR TRAINING

433 words | 1 min 34 sec read

To perform at your best you need to follow a plan that develops your strengths and your weaknesses.

An effective programme will deliver the right adaptation at the right time.

But to know what training is required - you will need to reverse engineer the performance process.

Ask yourself the following questions:

1. What are the most important aspects of my sports performance that require change?

2. What are my strengths and weaknesses?

3. What does the training and competition schedule look like?

Now that you have answered these questions let’s look at planning your programme…

Periodisation (planning) is a set of tools that enables growth of particular physical qualities at specific periods of the athlete’s calendar.

Training is broken down into 3-4 distinct phases:

1. Macrocycle - The Yearly Plan

2. Mesocycle - Months/Phases with specific training objectives.

3. Microcycle - days to weeks where you manipulate the volume and intensity of training

4. Training Unit - day to day operations (Mon-Sun)

Developing strengths and weaknesses happens by turning the ‘dial’ on intensity and volume within each training unit / microcycle…

This can mean more reps/sets/distance/time or greater %s & RPE.

If the dosage is sufficient, it will lead to growth and adaptation

Here is what this may look like:

A runner may complete 3-4 weeks of aerobic fitness training followed by a 2-3 weeks of speed and speed endurance work as you get closer to race day.

You may be a footballer in pre-season, focusing on fitness related training before moving into more technical and tactical microcycles before the season begins.

I introduce athletes to plyometric training using bilateral low impact/intensity movements first.

This is to develop rhythm and build capacity.

I also like to get the athlete moving forwards/backwards and side-to-side in the initial stages.

Finally I would include exercises like depth drops to expose the athlete to larger eccentric forces and improve their ability to ‘absorb’ force.

Whilst adding in concentric only jumps like seated jumps or squat jumps.

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TODAY’S TRAINING TAKEAWAY 🏋️

The training you complete really depends on the performance outcomes that you need for your sport..

Working backwards - what are the fitness qualities needed to achieve these outcomes…

And what methods can we use to develop these qualities.

If you want to perform at your best when it matters most then join my performance team…

Tailored Programming for Athletic Performance…

Click here to apply

See you tomorrow,

Dan.

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