Utilization Planning and Training Phases

Utilization Planning and Annual Training Plan

  • Utilization planning involves reviewing the annual training plan over a year.

  • Three primary phases:

    • Prep phase (preparatory phase).

    • Competition phase.

    • Transition phase.

  • The duration of the prep phase and the number/length of transition phases depend on the seasonality of the sport and the time between competition phases.

Preparation Phase

  • Even if the prep phase isn't long, durations are relative within the preparation phase.

  • General preparation occurs during the off-season.

  • Goals for the off-season:

    • Increase muscle mass.

    • Increase strength.

    • Increase aerobic capacity.

  • General preparation involves general strength training to create a new foundation.

General vs. Specific Preparation

  • General Prep: Not generic in the sense that is not as important. But the point is to create a new foundation.

  • If increasing strength: focus on multi-joint (maybe single-joint) strength exercises (bench press, squats, deadlifts) with heavier loads.

  • If increasing muscle mass: higher volume of general/foundational exercises (single and multi-joint) to increase lean mass, creating a foundation for more specific movement patterns.

  • Transition from strength/mass gains to applying it in a sport-specific manner (planes of movement emphasis).

    • Consider lateral movement, acceleration, deceleration, rate of force development, and unilateral force requirements.

    • Transition from squats to single-leg strength/stability for acceleration/deceleration, moving towards the rule of specificity.

  • Injury risk reduction preparation.

    • Train rate of force development to reduce injury risk at higher demands.

Transition Phase

  • A transition phase can be inserted between specific prep and competition (one week of a deload, reducing frequency, intensity, and duration, acting as active recovery).

  • After recovery, athletes are ready for reactive ability and open drill scenarios in competition.

  • Post-competition, a transition/recovery period leads back into the prep phase.

  • Off-season to pre-season to competition, then post-competition recovery before starting over.

Cycles Within General Prep

  • General prep can include different cycles.

  • A training block (e.g., one month) may focus on progressive overload.

  • Another block (e.g., two weeks) might change the stimulus (strength to power).

  • Multiple cycles can occur within a single phase, depending on time and stimuli needed for competition readiness.

  • Monocycle: One competition period throughout the year (prep base, competition/in-season, postseason transition).

Bicycles and Tricycles

Bicycle Plan (Two Competition Phases)

  • Two competition phases inherently shorten prep time.

  • Prep time might not be symmetrical (e.g., three months for season one, one month for season two).

  • Example: Track (indoor/outdoor), spring ball.

  • Season B (second season) is a continuum of competitions or skill development from Season A (primary season).

  • Post Season A, the prep phase (going into Season B) focuses on what attributes should be trained that were weak in Season A.

  • Track example (100m outdoor to 60m indoor): Focus on acceleration training since the 60m requires more rapid acceleration.

  • Physical demands dictate the prep phase; with limited time (e.g., one month), general prep might be skipped if it was covered in the first prep phase.

  • With multiple seasons, phases become tighter and require modification.

  • Volume increase means intensity decreases.

  • Periodization manages stress (fatigue) for optimal peaking and recovery.

Volume and intensity

  • Volume (solid bars), intensity (dots), peaking (linear dotted line).

  • Manage fatigue, which is essentially stress management.

  • How much stress can be given while still recovering in an appropriate timeframe?

  • Prep phase (five months): General prep blends into specific prep and pre-competition (preseason), leading into the competition phase.

Programming

  • Speed/power: Mobility, flexibility, hypertrophy, anatomical adaptation, maximum strength, and power conversion.

  • Endurance: Building aerobic capacity (zone one, zone two) and increasing oxidative capacity, transitioning to anaerobic efforts (above lactate threshold, tempo, zone four, five).

  • Treat training the same way, just the programming based off of energy systems, rate of force development, and absolute force production; the stimulus is just a different way of how we're creating the appropriate stimulus.

Breaking Down the Prep Phase

  • Mobility, flexibility, hypertrophy, anatomical adaptation, maximum strength, convert to power, preserve max strength and power (competition).

  • Figure skating: Focus on range of motion, stability, upper/lower body integration, proprioception, etc.

  • Needs analysis determines required stimulus and periodization via progressive overloading to maximize performance.

Bicycles

  • Two competitions, two prep periods, and potentially two transition periods.

  • Prep phases are shorter.

  • Shorter general prep into specific prep in second prep, roughly 50/50 in the first prep phase.

  • After competition, the transition leads to a second, shorter prep phase with less emphasis (if any) on general prep.

Multi-Sport Athletes

  • Football in the fall, baseball in the spring.

  • Assess stimuli from the football prep and competition phases (consider position played).

  • Determine required new stimuli for baseball based on the position.

  • Prioritize what they didn't get (beneficial for injury risk reduction or movement) over what they already have a foundation in.

  • Example: More transverse plane rotational movement for baseball (throwing, swinging) compared to football's lateral movement, linear acceleration/deceleration, and change of direction.

  • Previously filled buckets will need less emphasis.

  • The least filled buckets should get prioritized.

Tricycle Plan (Three Competition Periods)

  • May or may not have a prep phase, depending on competition duration.

  • Tennis or MMA examples.

MMA Example

  • MMA fighter with three fights per year.

  • Needs analysis: Opponent's fighting style (striker, grappler).

  • Conditioning for a grappler: High-intensity, multiple muscles, isometric training (clinch work), eccentric strength.

  • Conditioning for a striker: Training may be more specific to striking principles.

  • Consider VO2 max and anaerobic endurance requirements.

Cutting Weight

  • During weight cutting (40 pounds before a fight): Very low volume, high stimulus.

  • Maintain neuromotor patterns with submaximal percentages.

  • Lighter plyometrics to maintain rate of force development.

  • Address dehydration concerns and limit volume to prevent overheating.

Manipulation of Stimuli

  • Middle/high school soccer player (fall, indoor, spring seasons).

  • Fall (11v11 on a bigger field): Focus on aerobic capacity for longer distances.

  • Indoor (6v6 on a smaller field): Focus on short acceleration/deceleration.

  • Spring (back outside): Improve anaerobic endurance and longer sprints, potentially increasing aerobic capacity.

  • Identify the most important stimuli for short prep phases.

Strength Coaching

  • Understanding the sport's physiological demands is key, even without having played it.

  • Generate stimuli to peak performance and manage fatigue.

Micro, Meso, Macrocycles

  • Terms used interchangeably to describe subphasing an annual training plan.

  • Annual plan broken into prep, competition; within prep, general and specific prep; within general prep, weekly sessions with specific purposes.

  • Start with the big picture and bring it down to the details, considering progressive overload and stimulus requirements.

Weekly Plans

  • Two-a-days are multiple sessions in a single day.

  • Energy demands (practice type: sprints vs. distance) influence weight training emphasis.

  • Adjust stimulus percentage based on fatigue from practice to prevent injury and excessive fatigue.

  • Adapt to the head coach's plan; know what athletes are (and aren't) getting in practice, determining stimulus and training volume.

  • Coach wants numbers, not necessarily specificity of the sport.

Misconceptions of Strength Training

  • A coach wants metrics to demonstrate that their program is working.

  • Strength coach needs numbers to demonstrate program effectiveness, estimate injury risk.

  • Improvement in weightlifting doesn't automatically translate to better athletic performance.

  • Need to measure the most appropriate improvements (that translate to the athletes movement/position).

  • Decision-making and spatial awareness are developed by actually playing the sport.

Plateaus

  • Back strength may limit squat strength; single-leg strength can improve acceleration.

  • Increasing acceleration leads to improved field/court performance.

  • Understanding plateaus, finding new stimulus for continued improvement.

Two and Three a Day Plans

  • Fly-ins (plyos) in the morning, main practice in the afternoon, strength training in the evening.

  • Plyos in the morning prior to main training to train biometrics.

Shock Cycles

  • Not shock therapy.

  • High-intensity or high-volume demand days to supercompensate stimulus.

  • Followed by active rest days.

  • Consecutive days of supermaximal overload.

  • Training the body to manage consecutive and high fatigue over time (tournaments or double headers)."

  • Potential injury risk because of fatigue, so train accordingly.

Peridisation and Competition

  • Things to think about: sport type, testing, specific demands, goals, timing and more.

Different Types of Peridisation

  • Linear Peridisation

Linear Periodization (Conventional)

  • Emphasizes base training with lower intensity and high volume.

  • Gradually ramps up volume first, then switches to building intensity while reducing volume closer to competition.

  • Traditional approach involving progressive overloading in four-week cycles with active rest/deload weeks.

Reversed Linear Periodization

  • Ramps up intensity first during the prep phase while keeping volume down.

  • As competition nears, it brings intensity down slightly and increases volume.

  • Suitable for scenarios like transitioning from a 100m to 60m track runner or an Ironman to Olympic distance triathlete, clearing someone after an injury, focusing on stability and force.

  • Adapts the periodized model of stimulus, keeping in mind what is required for what phase.

Undulating Periodization

  • Incorporates frequent changes in volume and intensity.

  • Might involve alternating hypertrophy training (more sets/reps, lower intensity) with high-intensity strength or power days (85-90% RM, low reps).

  • Can adjust depending on training session of training duration.

Professional Integration

  • Sports scientist, athletic trainer, physical therapist, sports med doc, sports nutritionist, and sports psychologist.

  • These individuals integrate their own periodization into the training session.

  • Sports psychologist: mental delivery will be focused during phases.

  • Sports dietitians: periodized calorie requirements of athletes.