It is important for coaches to understand the relationship between commonly measured variables (e.g., displacement, velocity, and force) and their relationship to the derived variable of power.
CoachesExercise Sciencekinetic selectpowertesting for powerexercise testingstrength and conditioning
Knowing when to train and how much time to devote to training each of the three energy systems is an important ingredient of success in endurance sports. This knowledge is also reflected in a well-designed and scientifically-based training plan.
CoachesExercise Sciencekinetic selectendurance exerciseendurance trainingstrength and conditioning
The catecholamines—primarily epinephrine, but also norepinephrine and dopamine—are secreted by the adrenal medulla and are important for the acute expression of strength and power because the hormones act as central motor stimulators and peripheral vascular dilators to enhance enzyme systems and calcium release in muscle.
Considering that the term "power" typically evokes the perception of high-speed movement, many people are inclined to take the tenets of specificity to literally mean “train fast, be fast.” However, to create the most strategic methods of training and adaptation, it is vital to compartmentalize power into the primary testable and trainable elements.
CoachesExercise ScienceTesting and Evaluationpowerpower trainingstrength and conditioning
Oxygen uptake (or consumption) is a measure of a person’s ability to take in oxygen and deliver it to the working tissues, and the ability of working tissues to use oxygen. During low-intensity exercise with a constant power output, oxygen uptake increases for the first few minutes until a steady state of uptake is reached.
Knowledge of metabolic rate can help athletes as well as health-conscious people improve their exercise performance or obtain the fat-to-lean-mass ratio optimal for their personal situations. Two examples of how this works follow.
CoachesExercise ScienceNutritionmetabolic ratefitness teststrength and conditioningweight loss
Athletes in field and court sports require reactive agility—they must accelerate, decelerate, and change direction in a constantly changing environment. These requirements result in technical differences between sprinting in a field or court sport and sprinting the 100-m.
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Research shows that the appropriate integration of resistance training into the endurance athlete’s training can result in significantly better performance when compared to classic endurance training plans that focus only on aerobic endurance.
CoachesExercise Sciencetraining for runnersweight trainingstrength trainingsport performance trainingEndurance training
Coaches can also benefit from understanding the concepts of positive and negative reinforcement and positive and negative punishment as they relate to motivation. Although coaches use a mixture of both reward and punishment, using rewards and a positive approach is arguably the best approach because it focuses on what athletes should do and what they did right.