Monitoring Athlete Training Loads: Consensus Statement

Abstract

Monitoring the load placed on athletes in both training and competition has become a very hot topic in sport science. Both scientists and coaches routinely monitor training loads using multidisciplinary approaches, and the pursuit of the best methodologies to capture and interpret data has produced an exponential increase in empirical and applied research. Indeed, the field has developed with such speed in recent years that it has given rise to industries aimed at developing new and novel paradigms to allow us to precisely quantify the internal and external loads placed on athletes and to help protect them from injury and ill health. In February 2016, a conference on "Monitoring Athlete Training Loads-The Hows and the Whys" was convened in Doha, Qatar, which brought together experts from around the world to share their applied research and contemporary practices in this rapidly growing field and also to investigate where it may branch to in the future. This consensus statement brings together the key findings and recommendations from this conference in a shared conceptual framework for use by coaches, sport-science and -medicine staff, and other related professionals who have an interest in monitoring athlete training loads and serves to provide an outline on what athlete-load monitoring is and how it is being applied in research and practice, why load monitoring is important and what the underlying rationale and prospective goals of monitoring are, and where athlete-load monitoring is heading in the future.

Internal workload and non-contact injury: a one-season study of five teams from the UEFA Elite Club Injury Study

“…It is among these reasons why monitoring both internal (eg, s-RPE) and external (eg, Global Positioning Satellite Systems GPS) workloads and considering within the context of the player and situation is likely best practice when implementing an effective workload monitoring programme. Another limitation could be that athletes/players may potentially misuse the technique by providing a false perception of effort in order to influence subsequent training sessions 35. However, in the current study, the study protocol set out in advance to staff and players that the data collected should not influence the decision-making process.…”

Revised Approach to the Role of Fatigue in Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury Prevention: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analyses

“…2) [20]. It is therefore important to monitor [internal (i.e., response to workload) and external (i.e., performed workload)] training load [82]. An increase in overall physical fitness protects the athlete against injury and serves as a moderator for decreasing the perceived workload and in turn decreasing the injury risk [17].…”

“…4.6.5) should be closely monitored. For example, internal load can be monitored relatively easily by measuring heart rate or by multiplying RPE by minutes practiced or played in a game (load = RPE × duration in min) [82]. It is imperative to give athletes responsibility and a voice in regulation of their perceived fatigue [8, 9].…”

“…The importance of frequent monitoring of recovery and stress parameters to lower the risk of injuries seems to be intuitive [27, 82]. If possible, it is advised to administer the Recovery-Stress Questionnaire for Athletes (RESTQ-Sport) frequently [88].…”

40 anos da Pós-graduação da EEFE-USP: contribuições para o avanço do conhecimento em Treinamento Esportivo

“…Como em todas as formas de estresse siológico, há uma reação homeostática, que, por sua vez, resulta em alterações metabólicas e siológicas transitórias 14 cuja magnitude parece ser decorrente e dependente da combinação entre demanda física e emocional [15][16] . B et al 17 a rmam que o monitoramento da carga de treinamento é essencial para determinar se (e como) os atletas estão se adaptando ao programa de treinamento; avançar no entendimento das respostas individuais, e avaliar a fadiga e a necessidade "para a recuperação", minimizando o risco de um "overreaching" não funcional, lesões e infecções.…”