Posted: July 19, 2005

Multisport: Recovery Training - Chapter Two

This article is brought to you courtesy of Training Smart Online – The Experts in Training Program Design. We specialize in coaching athletes for: triathlon, marathon, swimming, cycling, running & more! Contact us at: www.trainingsmartonline.com.

By Angela Calder, Australian Institute of Sport

Acknowledgments:

The ACC wishes to acknowledge the following people for their contribution to the Advanced Coaching Study Pack – Recovery Training:
Angela Calder, Performance Unit, Australian Institute of Sport
Janet Bothwell, National Coaching Director, All Australia Netball Association
Bruce Osborne, South Australia Squash Association
Frank S Pyke, Director, Victorian Institute of Sport
Mark Sayers, Department of Sports Studies, University of Canberra
David Pyne, Department of Physiology and Applied Nutrition, Australian Institute of Sport
Sue Hooper, Department of Sport and Racing, 2000 Olympic Taskforce
Laurel MacKinnon, Department of Human Movement Studies, University of Queensland
Macmillan Education Australia
The National Coaching Foundation, UK
Sports Medicine Australia

ACC staff
Ben Harris 
Diane Bugg
Janice Yeung
Belinda White
Rebecca Layton
Tatijana Milicevic
Nicole den Duyn

Chapter 2: Monitoring Adaptive Responses

Background readings and references

Article 11:
Mackinnon, L.T. and Hooper, S.L. 1994, Training Logs: an effective method of monitoring overtraining and tapering, Sports Coach, 17 (3) pp 10-12. Australian Coaching Council, Australian Sports Commission, Canberra.

Article 12:
Sayers, M. 1994, Neuromuscular fatigue and recovery: a brief review, In Proceedings of the Australian Coaching Council’s Coaching Conference, Canberra.

Article 13:
Pyne, D. 1994, Physiological Basis of Fatigue, In, Proceedings of the Australian Coaching Council’s Coaching Conference, Canberra.

Article 14:
Hooper, S.L. 1995, Monitoring Overtraining in Athletes: Recommendations. Sports Medicine, 20: 321-7.

Monitoring training responses

The coach’s view

Workloads need to be adjusted to the adaptation rates exhibited by each individual and the wise coach will gauge this by monitoring the athlete regularly. Observed coaching cues or signs that indicate how an athlete is coping with training should be recorded in a coaching logbook in conjunction with the prescribed training program. The coach’s observations should include both sport specific and generic cues. As the coach improves with experience the more astute he or she becomes at recognising these signs.

A coach’s observations of an athlete’s adaptation to training

Coaching observations	Signs and symptoms of non-adaptation
Direct communication	Athlete tells me he/she has: heavy legs doesn’t feel good his/her legs are sore feels tired
Body language	Facial expression and colour The look in his/her eyes Bending over to recover after an effort Bad technique compared to normal
Physiological	Increase in resting heart rate Loss of body weight Loss of appetite
Psychological	Low motivation Low concentration Aggressiveness No self-confidence
Others	Poor eating habits Poor sleep patterns

An example from Guy Thibault (1993) Canadian speed skating coach

Monitoring training responses

The athlete’s view

All athletes should keep a daily training diary or logbook so that they can monitor their responses to training. A training diary or logbook is one of the most important tools for every athlete as it enables them to learn how to recognise when they are coping with training and when they are not. Learning to listen to and recognise their body’s signs and cues is undoubtedly one of the most critical skills an athlete can acquire. Recordings of the quality of sleep, morning resting heart rate and morning body weight, and a daily rating of energy levels are four essential markers that should be recorded daily by athletes. An example of a recording sheet for monitoring these variables is provided in Appendix 2.

One of the first signs of overtraining is consistently poor sleep. Also, a markedly elevated resting heart rate recorded first thing in the morning is an indication that any training undertaken should be modified. Body weight is best recorded each morning before eating and after going to the toilet. This is not a measure of fat stores but more likely to be an indication of hydration levels. Rapid weight loss or rapid weight gain is not advisable, and unexplained weight loss may be indicative of overstress. Feeling tired after training is a normal response but feeling constantly fatigued is a sign that the body is still adapting to its stressors.

These four variables take two minutes a day to record and may be the first indication of maladaptation or non-adaptation to training recognised by an athlete. A few days rest is usually enough for these variables to return to normal. If they do not normalise in this time the athlete should seek medical advice.

An athlete’s observations — warning of non-adaptive responses

	•	sudden drop in body weight (more than 3%).
	•	sudden increase in morning Heart Rate of >6bpm
	•	inability to respond to relaxation or meditation techniques
	•	sleep disturbances (plus or minus 2 hrs for more than 2 days)
	•	low quality sleep for more than 2 days
	•	feeling constantly tired
	

From Tim Frick (1993) Canadian wheelchair basketball coach

Monitoring training responses

The recalcitrant athlete

The frustration for many coaches is the lack of consistency with which these variables are recorded by many athletes. Some athletes choose to ignore recordings of any kind so they do not keep any records, diary or training log, despite knowing how valuable this information can be. The coach will need to find an alternative for athletes who are reluctant to keep daily records no matter how important this process is for the athlete’s training and health. A simple and quick self-assessment method is the smiley faces diagram. The variables assessed can be changed to suit different circumstances but the outcome is essentially the same. How you feel is often the best indication of how you are coping.

Coaches of team sports often experience more difficulty than coaches of other sports, with athletes being more reluctant to record their training responses. In an effort to overcome this problem basketball coaches at the Australian Institute of Sport have recently combined monitoring training responses with time management and planning strategies for their athletes. Every Friday each athlete receives a printed copy of the following weeks training times and sports commitments. On the reverse side of this page is a daily response sheet identifying nine variables which each athlete

must ranks on a scale of 1 (excellent) to 5 (awful). (See Appendix 3 for a copy.) This daily monitoring process takes the athlete less than one minute to complete and links the athlete’s responses closely to training loads and other life commitments such as study, work, domestic life and social roles.

The table below provides a quick and easy way to assess recovery, pre and post training. It can provide some useful subjective information from athletes who fail to complete a training diary or self-monitoring sheet. To complete this work task ask your athletes to tick the column which best represents how they feel both before and after training.

	Great!	Okay	Bad
PhysicallyBefore trainingAfter training
PsychologicallyBefore trainingAfter training
PerformanceBefore trainingAfter training

Article courtesy of www.trainingsmartonline.com - Expert Triathlon Coaching and Triathlon Training Programs.
This is chapter two of a five part series. Chapter One.

© Copyright Angela Calder, Australian Institute of Sport, 2005 - Reprinted with Permission