Life Sports Leader Level 1 cheat sheet

Teaching styles form a continuum from command (teacher makes all decisions) through reciprocal, self-check, and guided discovery to divergent production (learner generates solutions); choice of style follows objective, learner readiness, and safety risk.

Skill learning progresses through cognitive (understanding, many errors), associative (refining, fewer errors), and autonomous (automatic, low attention cost) phases; instruction shifts from explicit demonstration to feedback and variability practice across phases.

Feedback rules: intrinsic feedback comes from the performer's own senses; augmented feedback is external. Knowledge of results describes outcome, knowledge of performance describes technique. Frequent augmented feedback early, faded later, supports retention.

Practice design: massed practice suits low-complexity continuous skills; distributed practice suits beginners and high-intensity tasks. Blocked practice aids immediate performance; random/interleaved practice aids retention and transfer.

Demonstration is most effective when the model is competent, the skill is presented from the performer's viewing angle, and cue words are limited to two or three key points.

Session structure: warm-up, introductory activity, skill/technique segment, game or application segment, cool-down and review. Time-on-task and active learning time are the primary process indicators of lesson quality.

Group management rules: small-sided teams increase ball contacts and decisions per player; maximum participation requires minimizing lines and elimination games that leave learners idle.

Leadership styles: autocratic (fast, safety-critical), democratic (shared decisions, higher commitment), and laissez-faire (only for self-directed, experienced groups). Situational leadership matches style to follower maturity.

Energy systems: ATP-PCr supplies ~10 seconds of maximal effort; anaerobic glycolysis dominates ~10 s to 2 min with lactate accumulation; oxidative phosphorylation dominates beyond ~2-3 min.

Heart rate reserve (Karvonen): target HR = HRrest + %intensity × (HRmax − HRrest). Estimated HRmax = 220 − age is a population average with roughly ±10-12 bpm individual error.

Cardiorespiratory prescription: moderate intensity = 40-59% HRR (or 64-76% HRmax), vigorous = 60-89% HRR; accumulate 150-300 min/week moderate or 75-150 min/week vigorous plus 2+ muscle-strengthening sessions.

Acute responses to exercise: increased heart rate, stroke volume, and cardiac output; systolic pressure rises while diastolic stays near baseline; blood is redistributed to working muscle via vasodilation and splanchnic vasoconstriction.

Chronic adaptations: endurance training raises stroke volume, capillary density, mitochondrial volume, and plasma volume and lowers resting HR; resistance training increases neural drive first, then muscle cross-sectional area.

Hydration: sweat losses of about 2% body mass impair performance. Replace roughly 1.0-1.5 L per kg body mass lost, and use beverages containing 400-800 mg/L sodium for prolonged sweating.

Carbohydrate guidance: 3-5 g/kg/day for light training, 5-7 g/kg/day for moderate endurance work, 6-10 g/kg/day for high-volume endurance training; pre-event meal 1-4 g/kg carbohydrate 1-4 hours before.

Protein: 1.2-2.0 g/kg/day for most athletes, up to about 1.6 g/kg/day for strength athletes, distributed across meals of 20-40 g; energy availability must be adequate to avoid relative energy deficiency in sport (RED-S).

Goal setting per Locke's theory: specific, measurable, difficult but attainable goals with feedback outperform vague 'do your best' goals; process, performance, and outcome goals serve different functions.

Arousal-performance models: inverted-U (moderate arousal optimal), drive theory (linear), and catastrophe theory (abrupt decline when cognitive anxiety is high and physiological arousal rises).

Self-determination theory: competence, autonomy, and relatedness are basic psychological needs; satisfying them supports intrinsic motivation, while controlling rewards can undermine it.

Attribution theory: attributing success to internal, stable, controllable causes (effort, strategy) supports persistence; attributing failure to stable uncontrollable causes (ability) risks learned helplessness.

Anxiety management: somatic techniques include progressive muscle relaxation, breathing control, and biofeedback; cognitive techniques include imagery, self-talk, thought stopping, and pre-performance routines.

Group dynamics: Tuckman's stages are forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning. Cohesion has task and social dimensions; Ringelmann effect and social loafing reduce individual effort in larger groups.

Sociological concepts: socialization into and through sport, social stratification by class and gender, and the distinction between functionalist (integration) and conflict (power, inequality) perspectives.

Inclusive practice: sex and gender are distinct from each other and from performance category; policies on participation should be transparent, evidence-based, and applied consistently to protect both fairness and inclusion.

Newton's laws: inertia (no acceleration without net force), F = m·a, and action-reaction (equal and opposite forces on different bodies). Impulse F·Δt = Δ(mv) governs takeoff, landing, and striking.

Levers: first class (axis between force and load), second class (load between axis and force, mechanical advantage), third class (force between axis and load, most human limbs, favors speed and range over force).

Torque τ = F × d (perpendicular distance from axis to line of force); muscle torque depends on moment arm, which changes with joint angle.

Projectile motion: horizontal velocity is constant (ignoring air resistance) while vertical velocity changes at g ≈ 9.81 m/s². Optimum release angle is below 45° when release height exceeds landing height.

Kinematic chain sequencing: proximal-to-distal order (hips, trunk, upper arm, forearm, hand) maximizes end-point speed in throwing and striking through summation of segment velocities.

Stability rules: greater base of support, lower center of gravity, and a center of gravity projection inside the base increase stability. Balance is static or dynamic depending on base movement.

Qualitative analysis sequence: preparation (describe the skill and identify purpose), observation (from valid angles), evaluation (compare to a model), and intervention (feedback and re-observation).

Force-velocity and length-tension relations: muscle force falls as shortening velocity rises, and force is greatest near optimal sarcomere length. Rate of force development matters for fast, brief actions.

Soft-tissue injury management: protect, elevate, avoid anti-inflammatory medication in the first 48-72 hours, compress, educate. Avoid harmful loading early; loading should be progressive and pain-guided.

Concussion: remove from play immediately if suspected, do not return the same day, and follow graduated return-to-learn before return-to-sport steps. Red flags (worsening headache, vomiting, drowsiness, focal deficits) require emergency referral.

RICE-type principles: rest, ice, compression, elevation. Ice is applied for about 10-20 minutes with a barrier to limit cold injury; compression and elevation limit edema.

Sprains are ligament injuries; strains are muscle-tendon injuries. Grading I-III reflects partial to complete disruption, and graded return to load follows tissue healing timelines.

Heat illness: heat exhaustion shows heavy sweating, weakness, and dizziness; heat stroke shows core temperature above 40 °C with confusion and requires immediate cooling and emergency transport.

Emergency action plan: written plan with venue maps, access routes, equipment location, designated first responder roles, communication protocol, and annual rehearsal with documentation.

Prevention framework: warm-up (including neuromuscular control elements), load management, strength and balance training, protective equipment, and rule enforcement reduce injury rates.

Risks of overtraining: persistent fatigue, performance decline, sleep and mood disturbance, and increased resting heart rate; management is rest, reduced load, and adequate energy intake.

Program planning cycle: needs assessment, goals and objectives (SMART), design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation. Objectives state audience, behavior, condition, and criterion.

Periodization: macrocycle (annual or multi-year), mesocycle (weeks to months), microcycle (about a week). Preparatory, competitive, and transition phases have distinct volume and intensity targets.

Facility capacity is limited by the most constrained resource: usable area, equipment count, supervision ratio, or change-room and access throughput. Compute capacity per activity slot, not per day.

Scheduling rules: allocate by peak demand data, stagger start times to relieve congestion, reserve buffer time for changeover and cleaning, and document bookings to prevent double use.

Risk management hierarchy: eliminate, substitute, isolate, engineer, administrate, then use personal protective equipment. Documentation of inspections and incidents supports legal defensibility.

Facility inspection: daily checks of playing surfaces, equipment anchoring, lighting, exits, and first-aid supplies; maintenance logs and hazard reports with closure dates are required records.

Accessibility: accessible routes, change and toilet facilities, signage, and emergency egress must accommodate wheelchair users and people with sensory impairments.

Budgeting: separate fixed and variable costs, project revenue conservatively, and track cost per participant as the core efficiency indicator for program viability.

Negligence elements: duty of care, breach of that duty, causation, and damages. Coaches owe a duty to participants to act as a reasonably prudent professional would in similar circumstances.

Standard of care rises with participant vulnerability (minors, beginners, injured athletes) and with the coach's qualifications and the activity's inherent risk.

Informed consent requires capacity, disclosure of material risks, comprehension, and voluntary agreement. Waivers do not excuse negligence in many jurisdictions and cannot protect against reckless conduct.

Supervision duties: adequate and proximate supervision, matching ratios to risk, safe equipment and environment, proper instruction and progression, and competent emergency response.

Mandatory reporting: suspicions of child abuse or neglect must be reported to designated authorities, and safeguarding policies require codes of conduct, screening, and two-adult rules.

Anti-doping: strict liability applies, so an athlete is responsible for substances found in their body. Therapeutic use exemptions must be obtained before use.

Ethics frameworks: consequentialism judges acts by outcomes, deontology by duties and rules, and virtue ethics by character. Codes of conduct translate these into expected behavior.

Equity and integrity: conflicts of interest must be declared and managed, selection must be transparent and criteria-based, and harassment or discrimination complaints require documented, impartial processes.