Sports Training: Principles, Methods and Load Adaptation
Sports training questions test whether you can name a principle, name a method, and then apply load in a realistic progression. Definitions alone rarely get full marks.
Principles of training
Continuity (regular, year-round work); overload (load above the habitual level); progression (gradual increase); recovery (rest so adaptation can occur); specificity (training matches the demand of the sport); individuality; variety; reversibility (detraining when training stops); periodisation (macro-, meso- and micro-cycles).
Load and adaptation
The training load has volume (how much), intensity (how hard), density (work-to-rest ratio) and frequency (sessions per week). The adaptation cycle: load → fatigue → recovery → supercompensation (performance above the previous level) → new, higher load. Excessive load without recovery produces overtraining, staleness and injury.
Methods
- Continuous - steady aerobic work, 20–60 minutes.
- Interval - repeated bouts with planned recovery, e.g. 6 × 200 m at 80% with 90 s rest.
- Fartlek - “speed play”, self-paced changes of pace over natural terrain.
- Circuit - 6–10 stations, 30–45 s each, repeated 2–3 times.
- Plyometric - bounding, hopping, depth jumps for explosive power.
- Weight training - sets and repetitions at a chosen percentage of 1RM.
Worked example
A 100 m sprinter is doing 3 × 60 m at 70% intensity in week one. Apply progression: hold volume but raise intensity to 80% in week two, then add a fourth repetition in week three, with a lighter week after. State the principle used (progression with overload, protected by recovery) - that sentence is worth the mark.
Traps
- Confusing volume with intensity.
- Saying “more training is always better” - no recovery, no supercompensation.
- Describing fartlek as interval training on a track.