First a quick recap from Part 1. We learned about the importance of the Game Model and how it underpins every decision we make in regards to the training process. We will revisit the Game Model often through these series of posts. We then looked at the structure of the training week and detailed the goals & characteristics of each training day through the week.
When planning each day of training we need to understand what makes each day different from the next. We could run the exact same exercises 5 days a week and have a very different training experience. To do this we manipulate the training variables. Below I have listed and described each training variable in detail.
Load - Simply put this is the amount of stress experienced by the player throughout the session. This isn't solely physical stress. As coaches we can stress players in a few different ways. Including but often forgot about, psychologically. Yes, the physical stress is easier to explain and measure but we have to take into account all stresses experienced within the training sessions. We would use the match as our baseline to work from. For example if we are using sRPE, the match is using a 9 or10 (1-10 scale). If we multiply that number by the duration of a match (90 minutes). We get a load between 810 and 900. sRPE 9 x Session Duration 90 = 810 Load. So our high load would be around 900 when comparing training sessions. If you have the resources to monitor load using GPS/HR then that would require a better understanding of what metrics actually mean and how the affect each player.
Sample Load Scale (based on sRPE)
Above 800 Very High
650-800 High
500-550 Medium
350-500 Low
Below 350 Very Low
Duration of Session - This is as straightforward as it gets. This variable is how many minutes the training sessions lasts. Session duration has a correlation with volume of work. This makes sense as the longer you train you are more likely you are to repeat actions.
Very Long = 90+ minutes
Long = 80-90 minutes
Medium = 60-80 minutes
Short = 45-60 minutes
Very Short = Less than 45 minutes
Duration of Exercise - How long each exercise within a training sessions lasts. This could be any where from 5 seconds to 45 minutes. As we always want high quality and match like intensity from each exercise we expect that shorter exercises to be more demanding. It's important to note that exercise duration doesn't mean much without knowing the other variables. They all work codependent of each other. I won't even give parameters from long, medium, and short because that would be oversimplifying things.
Duration of Rest Between Exercises - How much rest you are giving the players between exercises and rotations to the next exercise. This is similar to duration of exercise as it doesn't mean much unless you know the other variables as well. Player rotations and coaching moments can serve as rest periods while the exercise is still taking place. We don't necessarily have to stop an exercise for rest.
Density (Duration of Session, Exercise, and Rest) - When we take into account the duration of the session, the duration of exercises within the session, and the amount of rest given we then know the density of that training session. This is important because we now know who much work and how much rest truly went into a session.
The above is an example of two different sessions. Starting at minute 0 through to minute 60 you see the top example is more dense than the bottom. This means the team is training more often than resting, even though the sessions are the same length. This gives us a better idea of how much work actually went on within the session.
# of Players per Exercise - How many players are active within a training exercise. Similar as the durations, number of players means very little unless you know the space they are training in. We could have 1 player performing an exercise in half a pitch or in a 5mx5m space. These are very different and lack context on their own.
7-11 per team = High
4-7 per team = Medium
1-4 per team = Low
Size of Space per player - As mentioned before applying space per player with the number of players involved creates a clearer picture as to the make up of the exercise and in turn what the demands will be upon that player. We should work backwards from the match. Where 22 players share a pitch that is around 120x70 meters.
Less space than a match = technical demands increase, change of direction increases, tackling increases, heart rate loading increases, intensity (meters per minute) increases
More space than a match = physical demands increase, high speed running and sprint increases
Now we have a better understanding of all the training variables, next post we will cover how to manipulate the variables to have the desired training sessions based on what type of training day it is.
Thank you as always,
Comments