Apologies, this is a bit of a long read, but if you could read part of it and send me feedback on chloe.brown11@gmail.com or on twitter at chloebrown11 it would be greatly appreciated :)
Thanks
Chloe
Aims of the review
Within this study the use of web 2.0 and it’s current use in various industries including sport will be looked at. The types of current training logs and training plans using the internet from current sports clubs and NGB’s will be looked at and analysed and finally a list will be compiled of which factors are a necessity and which are optional for a training plan and training log and then these will be linked up with web 2.0 to find the best way of delivering these and allowing the coach and athlete to communicate in this way.
Communication between and athlete and coach is an important part of the coaching process suggested by COACHING PROCESS. Yukelson (in Williams, 2006) states that effective communication is very important to team success and can affect motication, team dynamics, internalization of team goals and objectives and expectations that coaches and athletes have of one another. It can also affect the learning of new skills, concentration, confidence and behaviours, therefore affecting sport as a whole and leading to a change in performance. Harris and Harris (1984) suggest that communication in sport should be two ways so that the coach can send and receive information and both the coach and athlete feel that they are being valued. Yukelson (in Williams, 2006) suggests that a coach should provide an ideal psychological and sociological environment for the athlete to succeed, this can only be achieved by getting to know the athlete and communicating effectively with them. Yukelson (in Williams, 2006) suggests that coaches should assess ahead of a competition day what the athlete’s needs are as the wrong form of communication on a competition day can affect performance greatly. Often athletes will not only wish to communicate with coaches about the sport they are undertaking, but sometimes other areas of their life which may be affecting factors such as self esteem or concentration, the coach therefore needs to be able to be communicated to easily for the athlete. Harris and Harris (1984) state that the coach needs to provide an environment where the athlete can feel comfortable in communicating with the coach in order to allow a two way process of communication. Weinberg and Gould (2007) suggest that sending a message immediately can make feedback much more effective and therefore the communication in place must be easy and fast to use to send a message to athletes. DiBerardinis et. al (1983 in Weinberg and Gould, 2007) found that exercises that improve interpersonal relations in team sports also helped to improve performance, therefore a good interpersonal communication training session can improve morale, cohesion, performance and allow better communication between athletes, coaches and teams. When communicating with an athlete the coach must consider some key points (Harris and Harris, 1984) which are:
• The intended meaning of the message
• The length of the message
• The content of the message
• How it is delivered.
Web 2.0 - What is it?
Web 2.0 is the “participatory” or “read/write” Web, emphasizing tools and platforms that enable the user to talk back (Krasznavolgyi and Silverman, 2008). Chandler (2007) summarises web 2.0 into “user-generated content”. Therefore anything on the world wide web which has been in some way edited by users can be classed as being part of web 2.0. The use of technology is a major part of young people’s lives today and therefore should be considered when communicating with them. Clarke and Dugdale (2009) found that 82% of children own a mobile phone and 78% have access to a computer at home. The use of this technology gave young people a greater opportunity to write creatively and it was found that young people who used social networking sites and blogs enjoyed writing more and felt more confident. This therefore allowed them to write more prolifically in their school work. Bayam (in Jones 1998) stated that “the homogeneity of the net is further enhanced by the obvious, yet often ignored, fact that most of the world’s population have no internet access and likely never will.” Whilst Lockard () also said that less than “one percent of the adult global population” have no internet access and therefore overall in the world is seen as irrelevant. Although this may be the case for many countries in the United Kingdom ofcom (2008b) has shown that the majority of people have internet access and social media in particular has now become the number 1 activity on the internet (Qualman, 2009). Before considering how web 2.0 may be useful, the different aspects of web 2.0 must be looked at in detail to see what each provides.
Social Networking
Social networking was differentiated from the internet by Shih (2009) by saying that it is “the World Wide Web of people” therefore social networking is not just a matter of connecting a computer to another computer but more about bringing people together. She also suggests that the next stage in the digital revolution will be “capturing and using information about how we as individuals are connected.” “In most cases users are allowed to customise their user profile pages by entering HTML into such areas as ‘About me’” (Mason and Rennie, 2008) There are many forms of social networking for example Facebook and Myspace which include the majority of social networking aspects. Twitter, whilst a social network, is slightly different from the rest, it allows you to post a 140 character update about what you are doing and send messages to other users. It does not include other aspects of social networking such as file sharing, however is a good way to keep up to date with other members. Applications are a major part of keeping people interested in social networks like Facebook, there is a wide range available from games to sharing media and interests with friends. Some applications are based just within the social network site however there are some that provide a service such as Pizza Hut’s application which allows you to order pizza delivery through Facebook. Therefore we can see that Facebook is not only used for connecting friends and family but also to connect bussiness’s and can be personalised to the users wishes. Whilst applications can be used through the social networking site itself, applications can also be used to link the social networking site onto other sites, often appearing in the form of a widget. An example of this is the widget that allows you to embed your twitter feed onto another website. Clarke and Dugdale (2009) found that 56% of young people have a profile on social networking sites whilst ofcom (2008a) found that 50% of young people have a profile on social networking sites. This means that by using social networking to contact athletes is a way of connecting to them quickly. Ofcom (2008a) showed that 87% of social network users visit the network at least once a week. Ofcom (2008a) sees social network users in different categories,
• Alpha Socialisers who use them to flirt, meet new people and for entertainment,
• Followers who use them to keep up to date with their peers.
• Faithfuls who use social networking for talking to friends who they have not seen in a while.
• Attention Seekers who crave comments from others on their profile.
• Functionals who use social networking sites to pursue hobbies etc.
Some researchers find that the online communities within social networking sites can produce some problems in everyday “offline” life. Doheny-Farina (1996 in Baya, 1998) stated “A community is bound by a place, which always includes complete social and environmental necessities. It is not something you can easily join. You can’t subscribe to a community as you subscribe to a discussion group on the net. It must be lived. It is entwined, contradictory, and involves all our senses.” If this point of view is correct then we should be worried about the ethics and morality offline (Robins, 1995 in Baya, 1998)
Wikis
“Wikis are collaborative, web-based sites for sharing text and other resources” (Mason and Rennie 2008). The information within a Wiki can be edited by any user and therefore allows a joint document to be created. As they are generally written by non-specialists, the language makes it easier for everyone to read and understand meaning that certain aspects of knowledge are not confined to just the well educated. Wikis are generally popular because they use the idea of open participation and communal evaluation (Bruns 2006). Wikipedia is probably the most well known of all wikis. It is a user edited encyclopaedia that anyone on the web can use for free. Whilst this is of great use to the general public, for more in depth research it is not always accurate. Wikipedia has evolved into such a large database that “Reading the full content of Wikipedia would take you over 2 years” (Ayers et. al., 2008) Free wikis can be accessed through the use of Google docs or WetPaint however free services often do not allow you to save much data or manage the site in terms of security very well. Other services which usually involve a fee include sites like MediaWiki where administrators are able to regulate the site as much as they want and upload an unlimited number of files. (West and West, 2009). Wikis have been criticised for not being accurate as it has not been written by experts however Qualman (2009) suggests that Wikipedia is more accurate than Encyclopaedia Britannica. Grant (2009) suggests that there are still very few wikis being used in schools.
Blogs
Weblogs or “blogs” can be defined as “a webpage with new entries placed at the top, updated frequently – sometimes several times a day” (Rebecca Blood, 2002). Blogs are normally non commercial and can be used by anyone. Websites such as blogger.com and wordpress.com provide a service for free, allowing users to create and update a blog as often as they wish. Users “choose their own template and often spend considerable time adjusting the way their blogs look and work” (Jill Walker Rettburg, 2008). meaning that not only the content of the blog is important but also the layout and the aesthetics. One of the main reasons that blogging is so popular is because it is easy to produce and allows the user to display their thoughts or knowledge. (Jill Walker Rettburg, 2008). Blogs are generally written so that users can share their information with the world as though they expect followers. Generally only a few followers will be enough for the user to continue using this product (Jill Walker Rettburg, 2008). Blogs do not have to be written by only one member but can be a group effort, Blogger allows you invite friends to blog with you on one page. Blood (2002) suggests that by regularly updating a blog you can build better writers, self awareness, critical thinkers, reputations and connected businesses, although there is no research to prove most of these facts, the Clarke and Dugdale (2009) found that children who have blogs and update them regularly are generally better at literacy and enjoy writing more than their peers.
Podcasts and Vodcasts
Podcasts and Vodcasts are a form of blogging however rather than using text they use audio, video or both. Podcasts are only audio however vodcasts are video and generally audio. Podcasts are chosen as a form of blogging for business use as well as personal. Universities have begun to use podcasts and vodcasts and as there has been such a large market for now producing podcasts for lectures companies such as iTunes have a section especially for these files. They can be used to connect with customers and followers on a more personal basis. Podcasts can be downloaded onto a mobile device which makes listening to the podcast easier and can be replayed multiple times (Mason and Rennie 2008). As podcasts can be created by almost anyone, the content, especially of educational podcasts, may not be reliable and in much detail (Mason and Rennie, 2008).
Second Life, Chat Rooms and instant messaging
Second Life is a form of virtual reality, along with other sites such as habbo hotel. Virtual Reality can be describes as “a computer generated 3D environment within which users can participate in real time and experience a sensation of being there” (Ferguson and McMenemy, 2007). Whilst these are only a basic form of virtual reality they can still be quite lifelike. Second Life is controlled by residents where users are able to explore, learn and do business. The Open University has a “world” on Second Life which allows you to attend courses, discussion groups and lectures from a distance. Peachey and Whithall (2009) found that it takes only 10 minutes before the basics of second life can be learnt however there is not much extra you can do in Second Life that you can do in the real world. “Many people see Second Life as taking web 2.0 into web 3.0 or even web 3.D!” (Mason and Rennie, 2008). Virtual reality can be used to train people for example pilots can use a simulator to practice safely. Second life and habbo hotel also come under the category of chat rooms. Chat rooms can be used to link people together with similar interests who have never met before. There is a large amount of concern over using chat rooms however as many people feel that some users, especially those who are younger, are at risk of meeting someone who may harm them. Instant messaging is very similar to chat rooms in the way that it is possible to talk to other people who are online in real time, however it is more secure and private. Only people invited into a conversation may take part. MSN, Yahoo and AOL are among many instant messaging systems. Clarke and Dugdale (2009) found that 73.1% of young people regularly use instant messaging. “Predictions are that IM will surpass email as the primary online communications tool.” (Mason and Rennie, 2008). Online forums are another way of connecting with people. “A forum is essentially a website composed of a number of threads” (Mason and Rennie 2008). The threads all include a discussion between users on a specific topic.
File Sharing
File sharing has recently become very popular on the web. There are also many different forms of file sharing. It can be private or public and in some cases illegal. Sites such as youtube allow users to upload videos onto the network and make these available to the whole internet. As with Wikipedia, youtube can provide an educational purpose.
Most social networking sites now allow file sharing of some kind. Facebook for example will allow you to upload photos and videos to share with friends. Within these photos people can be “tagged” and so this enables them to collate all the photos or videos of themselves.
Google docs is a free to use, simple way to share documents online. You can upload any file type you want and allow everyone or only selected users to edit documents however only one person may edit at a time. Documents can then be downloaded again afterwards however sometimes not always in suitable file types.
Google Wave and Google Buzz
Google wave and buzz are currently very new products and therefore there is very little research available, however they can give an insight as to what direction the web is heading in. Google Wave was announced in 2009 and has been on a trial for a small number of users since. Google defines a Wave as “equal parts conversation and document. People can communicate and work together with richly formatted text, photos, videos, maps, and more.” A Wave is a live and shared piece of information between one or more users. Google Wave takes some of the aspects of file sharing, instant messaging, wikis and social networks in order to create one aspect of web 2.0. The most obvious difference between Google Wave and other aspects of web 2.0 is the completely live messaging, other users in a wave can see you typing before you send the message so waiting for messages is not needed. Google wave also has an application that can be put on the ipod/iphone and therefore can be used anywhere. Google Buzz is a newly created aspect of google which is very similar to a social networking site however lives within google mail. It has photo uploads, real time updates and can be connected to other social networking sites, it is also available as an application for the ipod/iphone.
Educational Usage
E-Learning
Rosenberg (2001) suggests that there are three fundamental criteria to be able to define something as e-learning which are:
1. E-learning is networked, which makes it capable of instant updating, storage/retrieval, distribution and sharing of instruction or information
2. It is delivered to the end-user via a computer using standard internet technology
3. It focuses on the broadest view of learning – learning solutions that go beyond the traditional paradigms of training
There are many definition of e-learning, Rosenberg (2001) also suggested that that distance learning defines one way correspondence and other approaches that do not fit e-learning and therefore e-learning can be described as a form of distance learning, however distance learning is not e-learning. Holmes and Gardner (2006) argue that e-learning allows students to become publishers of information and not just consumers, therefore allowing collaborative learning. Brown et. al. (2003) states that e-learning is “the use of computer network technology, primarily over an intranet or through internet to deliver information and instruction to individuals” whilst Govindasamy (2002) says that e-learning is delivered via all electronic media.
Within e-learning there are many different types, Holmes and Gardner (2006) suggested that they come under the categories of single user, multi user and community of learners. They suggest that e-learning initially started off with single user type of content however progressed up to having a community of learners. Examples of these types may include using virtual case studies, this can involve other students however allows students to take part in the study whilst still allowing them to research their role and perhaps allow them to perform tasks that otherwise would not have been possible. Holmes and Gardner (2006) suggested that this encourages a more active learning style which is useful for students. Problem based learning can also be used to allow students to develop thinking skills. A good example of this style is the Classrooms of the Future Project and website. The site asks students to analyse the problem scenario, list what is known, list what is needed, list possible actions, analyse information and present their findings (Holmes and Gardner, 2006). Figure 1 was taken from Hardaker and Smith (2002) and suggests that different parts of e-learning can fall into 4 different categories with some overlaps. Interactive media involves the student taking a larger part in the learning and feedback on choices are given where as static is the opposite and the information is a fixed to a single outcome every time. Individual work means that the student may work alone on the task however a collective form of e-learning would involve multiple users interacting using the web. However Hardaker and Smith (2002) do not state which one of these e-learning styles works best with people and this is possibly because different people have different learning styles and so a combination of all should be used to achieve success across a large group of people. This was also discussed by Gardner (1983) as a learner may have different types of intelligence and therefore learn in many different ways,
Figure 1: Diagram to show where certain aspects of web 2.0 sit when on a scale of individual vs collective and static vs interactive. Source:
Rosenberg (2001) discussed the benefits of e-learning and suggested that some of these benefits included lower costs, enhancing business responses, messages can be customised depending on the need, content is more timely and dependable, learning can take place at any time, access is becoming less of an issue, builds a community, allows access to the internet universally, small or large groups can use it and it can help gain feedback from users on how to provide a positive customer service. Clarke (2008) suggests that the benefits also include being able to learn anywhere and at any pace and therefore a slow learner may still learn all that is required where as in a classroom they would be hurried along with the pace of the rest of the class. Hills (2003) suggests that the downside of widely used e-learning is that those who are not digitally literate will struggle with learning. Therefore it is important that whilst the majority of young people today and now digitally literate, we do not exclude those who are not and so teaching styles need to vary to suit everyone. Hills goes on to discuss that e-learning alone does not provide the social aspect of learning as a lot of learning is done socially for example there will be no role models or face to face feedback, teachers can also not get to know the personality of their students and therefore may struggle when it comes to knowing how each student reacts to feedback. In order to create any environment you need to consider the student’s learning styles and what you want the student to learn. You can then begin to design a learning environment based around the student. Brown et. al. (2003) suggests the initial costs, the significant effort in planning and the use of interactive instead of static media is needed in order to make the e-learning environment work successfully however this is often hard to find and therefore e-learning is not used as effectively as it could be.
Unfortunately e-learning is not used as widely in all subject areas. Becker (2000) found that computers in schools are mostly used for computer and business subjects and this could be due to factors such as scheduling as teachers only have 1 session a week with students and therefore are less likely to use computers. Teachers are also under pressure to cover the curriculum and therefore have to cover a large amount of information within a year. Becker also noted that there is not usually enough computers within a school for convenient access to occur.
Virtual Case Studies and Web Quests
There are many ways of presenting case studies to students by using web 2.0 tools. Most of which are already online and require no setting up. It allows case studies to be explored in more detail, fieldwork to take place without leaving the site, experiments that may not be possible within the classroom and more. Holmes and Gardner (2006) suggest that there are 2 main varients for this type of learning, there is the type where the students control a real situation remotely and situation which are simulated from real data. Ramasundaram et. al. (2006 in Holmes and Gardner) found that although these situations are useful, they are very limited as there is a lack of “actual” experience as the students are not experiencing the landscape, humidity and other key aspects. Problem based learning can be used within web 2.0 to provide the student will a problem and allow them to experiment into what would be the best option. The Classrooms of the Future project (http://www.cotf.edu/) provides a good example of this, it provides a template and according to Holmes and Gardner (2006) asks the students to:
• Read and analyse the problem scenario
• List what is known
• Develop a problem statement
• List what is needed
• List possible actions
• Analyse information
• Present findings.
Simulations and games based learning allows students to put into practice the theory therefore are very useful for learning new situations.
WebQuests were originally developed by Bernie Dodge in 1995 who says that they are used to create lessons to help students solve authentic problems and to therefore further their learning. There are many sites that now provide WebQuests however they quite often involve a fee to sign up to them. http://questgarden.com is the original site of Bernie Dodge and has thousands of quests for students to try.
Virtual Learning Environments
Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) is an environment which enables e-learning to take place. (Weller, 2007) It therefore can be referred to as “The components in which learners and tutors participate in ‘on-line’ interactions of various kinds including online learning” (JISC, 2000 in Weller, 2007) Holmes and Gardner (2006) state that in order for an e-learning environment to work there must be some form of social interaction, this may be in the form of emails or the more advanced audio and video communication. This means that a VLE may not always lead to learning however may be used as a method of communication, this would therefore seem like a good solution for coaches and athletes to communicate in this way. Weller (2007) suggests that the main functions of a VLE is for
• Content delivery – easy upload and management of content
• Text based discussion boards with attachment capability
• Online assessment
• Student tracking – ability to record a student’s progress
• Text based discussion in real time with activities such as white board and webcasting
• Student tools such as a calendar, email, personal area for the uploading of files and a note taking tool
Quality on the Line (2000 in Gavindasany, 2002) identifies that institutional, student and faculty support, course development, teaching and learning, course structure and evaluation and assessment need to be in place for a VLE to be successful.
Within a VLE there may be many more tools which are of use to the tutor or the student that may differ for each system or course. VLE’S may also include aspects of web 2.0 that this article has already looked at for instance blogs, instant messaging and podcasts. Bouras et. al (2006) stated that a good virtual learning community require “a balanced combination of technology with the human factor” therefore we should make sure that when designing an environment in which people are to learn, there should be an element of personalisation for example in blogs or podcasts.
Browne et. al. (2006) found that most VLEs in higher education institutes are currently only used for access to resources and collaborative work whilst problem based learning, peer support and access to multimedia resources is used much less. Many VLEs were also shown to not be linked to any other systems such as email, library and student records.
Blended Learning
Blended learning refers to the use of both e-learning and traditional classroom learning. In order for this learning to occur students must be able to use the technology provided and face to face communication must not be lost. Driscoll (n.d.) provides the following as examples of what some people are using blended learning for:
• Online assessments
• Sharing information about the course after it has finished
• Making reference material available
• Deliver pre-work
• Provide online office hours
• Online coaching/mentoring
• Provide aids for work
• Allow access to experts in the field
• Improve communication through email and messaging.
Linking with mobile devices
There are many mobile devices on the market that can be used to link with web 2.0. The main contenders in mobile devices are android phones and the apple range of iphones and ipod touch. All of these devices allow for applications to be used and can connect to the internet to send information to different sources. Most mobile devices come in the form of a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), this is a computer based device that involves the use of an organiser (Trinder in kukulska-hulme, 2005) The apple store currently has thousands of applications for customers to use, some of which are free and others which range in prices. A selection of training applications were tested and it was found that they were very similar. Most of the applications involved logging data, showing example exercises with videos and providing generic training programmes. None of the applications that were looked at provided a personalised training plan in which a “serious” athlete could use. Some applications also used graphical interpretations of the data, calendars, simple logs of sessions and the possibility to link to the internet via either email, a certain site or social networks.
Another way of using mobile devices is by sending texts on updates for sites. For example social networks such as facebook offer a service where a user can be notified of a change to a profile by sending a text to a mobile phone. Users can also read, listen to or watch files and data whilst travelling and therefore using up “dead” time.
Mobile learning is an effective form of learning and can be done anywhere at any time, often without the presence of an internet connection as many mobile devices now connect to a 3G network. Rainger (in kukulska-hulme, 2005) suggests that there are 7 principles of design for mobile devices which are as follows:
• Useful and able to be used by users of different abilities
• Must be able to personalise it depending on preferences and abilities
• Simple to understand and use regardless of the user’s ability
• Effective communication of necessary material
• Minimize hazards from the user such as confirmation when deleting files
• Must be able to be used easily with not much physical or mental effort
• Good size for users to be able to use regardless of body size or mobility
Clarke (2008) believes that m-learning makes learning much more flexible as users are able to learn wherever they are and fits around the busy lifestyle of most people, he also goes on to explain that there are many benefits in m-learning such as:
• Providing administrative messages such as reminders
• Checking email
• Providing learning material whilst travelling
• Taking notes for assignments or in lectures
• Organisation
• Use of cameras for field trips
Privacy and Security
The safety of social network users is seen by Ofcom (2008a) as the reason why some people do not use social networking sites, this was later suggested that “while the potential risk is well documented, there appears to be a lack of research on the actual incidence of crimes such as identity theft as a result of the publication of personal details on these sites.” Lenhart and Madden found that the majority of teenagers were protecting themselves against online crimes, most by not filling out details that may allow people to find them. The problem with web security is that you need to provide a basic level of privacy without disrupting the operation of the server (Garfinkel & Spafford,1997). It is important to have good security settings and a private network, especially if children are involved under the child protection act (1989). The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre now provide advice and help on protecting children on the internet. Most existing services provide a high level of security for all users.
What does each site offer?
As there are many different websites within web 2.0 all providing different services it is important to look at what these are and the advantages and disadvantages of each service. This can then be used to identify which of the services and website will allow training plans and training logs to be incorporated in a safe yet user friendly environment.
Table 1: The positives and negatives of different web 2.0 sites and their links
Training Plans
Bompa (1999) states that an organised and well structured training plan, according to the scientific background, will help to provide direction for both the athlete and the coach and will allow the athlete to get the biggest gains from their training. Verkhoshanky (1988) states that programming training requires and in-depth, milti faceted knowledge of training and it’s contents. In order to programme the traiing effectively we must know the demands of the sport to be able to correctly plan the appropriate exercises. Training plans should consider the athlete’s individual needs and should be as objective as possible. There are many types of training plans, all of different durations and they should work together to form one annual plan. A training lesson plan is the shortest plan and will account for just one session of work, a micro plan is generally about one week in duration, a mesocycle is slightly longer, generally about a month, a macro cycle is generally about a year long and a quadrennial plan is a 4 year plan, often when looking at events such as the Olympics that only occur every 4 years. The combination of all of these units is known as periodisation, Within a year long plan Bompa (1999) suggests that it is broken down into the preparatory phase, followed by the competitive phase followed by a transitional phase. The preparatory phase can be broken down into general and specific preparation. According to Bompa (1999) there are 4 factors to a training plan which must be included, the athlete must undertake physical training which starts off general and then becomes more sport specific, technical training, tactical and finally psychological. He does not state that these must be done separately and therefore could overlap on a training plan. Yakovlev (in Bompa, 1999) states that once general training has occurred, the athlete is much more likely to adapt better when specific training is undertaken. The competition phase is next, where the main aim of the training is to maintain fitness, the precompetition phase includes competitions which are seen as practice, followed by the main competition phase which includes all of the most important competitions. Just before the major competition there is generally a tapering phase, where the athlete decreases their training load in order to supercompensate and regenerate in preparation for the competition. The final phase is the transitional phase, where the training volume curve normally drops to allow regeneration and preparation for the next cycle.
Bompa identifies that a single cycle within a year is not always appropriate, and therefore suggests a monocycle (1 cycle per year), bicycle (2 cycles per year) or tricycle (3 cycles per year) could occur. The latter cycles would allow the athlete to peak more than once depending on when major competitions may be placed within a year.
Bompa (1999) sees training broken down into a number of auxillary sciences including physiology, biomechanics, tests and measurements, sports medicine, psychology, motor learning, pedagogy, nutrition, history and sociology. In order to achieve a good training plan all of these aspects must be involved and looked at being included into the plan. Bompa (1999) also suggests that in order to help plan future programmes for the athlete, we must fully understand how the athlete is reacting to training so that the next training programme can be based on objective evaluations instead of the coach’s subjective view. Bompa (1999) views training plans as aiming to achieve a final goal which is planned according to the athlete. For each component of the training plan the principles of training should be taken into consideration, frequency, intensity, type, time (duration/volume), again these should be shown on the training plan itself. Another major factor for training plans is the use of recovery, this could be during a session, at the end of a season or just before a major competition in the form of tapering.
UK Athletics (2009) have produced a document for athletes detailing performance plans, one section states what plan’s each athlete should have and what they should include. The athletes must have a three year plan towards London 2012 Olympic games, which includes an evaluation of the most recent season, gap analysis and goal setting. The second plan is an annual plan which must include a one year planning document, all the key competitions, components of training, training camps, important personal dates, testing/screening dates and should meet the normal principles of adaptation. Without these documents the athlete may not have a place on the world class performance programme and therefore has little chance of making the Olympic squad. The document also goes into more detail about the yearly training plan for Paralympic athletes which should include a competition schedule in relation to key performance indicators, an organised training plan, 3 different sets of yearly key performance indicators, 4 sets of quarterly key performance indicators and an identification of strengths and weaknesses. Within the plan the athlete must record nutrition, a psychology plan and tactics, medical monitoring, mental training, health and well being and physiotherapy.
Dick (2007) suggests that at certain ages certain aspects of fitness should be covered in more detail as shown in the table below. When writing an annual plan this should be taken into consideration in order to allow the athlete to develop fully over their life time. This however may vary in different sports as they may peak at different ages.
Table 2: Table to show the aspect of fitness that should be worked on at certain ages. Source: Dick, 2007
In order to plan an annual training plan Bompa (1999) suggests that you will need results of test’s on your athlete, the competition calendar, performance prediction and goals which you wish to achieve. Dick (2007) agrees with this and states that the number of necessary competitions should also be taken into account. Verkhoshanky (1988) also agrees with Bompa and suggests that it is essential that the training plan is written as a result of what the athlete wants to achieve during the process. According to Locke and Latham (1985) the goals set should consider specificity, difficulty level, goal orientation, time constraints, long term and short term goals and should have the acceptance of the athlete in order to be achievable.
Current Training Plans
Coaches currently use training plans as the research behind these is very strong, however you generally only see annual training plans at an elite level as coaches at a lower level are not educated enough to be able to write one that would be suitable. Below are some examples of training plans taken from different sports and coaches.
Team Bath
Figure 2: Annual training plan used at Bath University
Source: O drive
The plan is laid out in a calendar style with the competitions displayed on the correct dates. The main focus of the training was broken down into sections (mesocycles) and this is displayed on the plan in different colours. An accompanying table is also given to the athletes along with information on what each mesocycle contains. This is all given to the athletes in either paper form or as an electronic document and therefore not all on one page for the athlete to look at easily to compare. This may present a problem and the athlete may not wish to read through many pages of information to find the piece that they need.
Performance Judo Player
Figure 3: Annual plan of a performance club judo player.
Source: O drive
This annual plan is a much more graphical version and allows the athlete to compare what is happening and when as it is all on one page. The plan shows the type of each component of fitness that will be trained at that stage, when physiological testing will take place, the phases of the plan it is in and when competitions occur. The graph in the middle shows the intensity and the volume of training. Whilst this plan is clear it does not give much detail on each component and again will be given to the athlete as a paper copy or an electronic document. It does not however give any information of how each aspect of fitness will be trained.
England Judo
Figure 4: Training plan for England judo U17’s. Source: O drive
The England Judo plan is linked up with the long term athlete development plan and is different for each stage of the athlete’s training life. Again it is quite a graphical version of the training plans and shows the volume and intensity as a graph. It shows the major and optional competitions, the phase of the plan and what is included in these. It does not go into much detail as to when each component of fitness will be trained or if physiological testing will occur. Whilst it does not look at each component of fitness it does give a rough idea of what and how certain aspects will be trained. As this is all on one page it is easy for the athlete to look at and compare when different events will occur however it will need to be given to the athlete as either a paper copy or an electronic document.
Polar Personal Trainer - www.polarpersonaltrainer.com
The polar personal trainer is an online way of forming a training programme however is only based around the aerobic fitness component. It is run by Polar, the makers of heart rate monitors and training measurement systems. The programme can be selected for running, cycling or outdoors activities and at different experiences and distances with the optional choice of inputting your average resting heart rate and VO2max if known. This then produces a training plan over a short time to enable you to follow, however the training plan is not specific or able to be sent to a coach. The training plan does however allow the use of heart rate to be linked with the training and sets a target heart rate zone for each part of the session.
Figure 5: Screen shot of a training session within polar personal trainer. Source: www.polarpersonaltrainer.com
Applications for Mobile Devices
There are many different applications for mobile devices to plan a training programme however all of these only include generic programmes and not those suited to the athlete therefore in order to gain the largest improvements these should not be used. Most of these applications are based around gym work or running and most provide example exercises. Some applications such as pocket personal trainer, ibuff and iworkout all provide video examples of each exercise in order to allow users to perform each exercise correctly. Only one application was found that allows the user to see in detail what should be performed, 12 week fitness breaks down the training programme into smaller microcycles. Mytrainer was the only application to allow editing of the programme and the setting of goals which according to many researchers as previously discussed, is a very important aspect of planning a programme. iTrain is the only application to provide basic test information where data can be input to allow the user to see where improvement has occurred and where it needs to occur. There are no applications which allow the user to plan over an entire year, import personalised training programmes or to train different types of fitness at once, therefore the applications used should note be a basis to improve performance, especially for performance level athletes.
Training Logs
Training logs allow coaches to see what state an athlete’s lifestyle is in and how much training they are currently undertaking. Originally a training log would be to log the amount of training an athlete has undertaken however more sophisticated systems now involve factors such as nutrition, mood and illness. A training log acts as a form of communication of the athlete to the coach and also allows other people to view the amount of training being undertaken by an athlete. This is particularly important while the athlete is young as they will be encouraged at school and by parents to take part in as many sports and activities as possible without anyone knowing how much exercise the child has done. Too much exercise in any athlete, and in particular children, can lead to burnout. Burnout can be defined as “a syndrome of physical/emotional exhaustion, sport devaluation, and reduced athletic accomplishment” (Raedeke, 1997 in Cox, 2002) and therefore will lead to a decrease of athletic performance and the possibility of the athlete dropping out from the sport. It is therefore important that the training logs are not just a form of communication between the athlete and coach, but also between other important role models such as other coaches, teachers and parents.
Current Training Logs
Many current training logs are based on sports such as running and cycling which is based on volume, or for use with personal trainers, therefore neither provides the needs that perhaps team sports may need to use and often a specific training log is needed to be created by the sports and only used at an elite level.
LiftLog – Houts (2006)
LiftLog is an offline book format of recording training and seeing improvements. The book provides a very basic overview and is based on weight lifting. It does talk about the importance of setting goals for your training and encourages you to create a new goal after every 2 week block of training where a review occurs. For each day there is a page with a place to put the date, nutrition, mood, cardio work, warm up and then a larger space to put in the weight lifting data with sets reps and weights. The log is very basic however could be carried around to show different coaches. At the end of the 2 week block it asks to identify which goals had been met and to create new ones, the total number of workouts and number of exercises on each part of the body, as well as the general feelings over this time. The athlete is also asked to measure their body weight on days 1, 7 and 14.
Training Peaks – www.trainingpeaks.com
An online form of recording training, it currently provides a service for personal use and professional use. The personal use is free and allows the user to log the training they have completed manually or to connect their training device and it will upload automatically. Information can be shared via email or facebook, running routes can also be shared on the training peaks site, nutrition can be recorded and changes in fitness can be tracked easily. It also allows you to link up with professional trainers to provide advice.
Figure 6: Screen shot of the training peaks logging system. Source: www.trainingpeaks.com
The professional version is generally used by the coach, they customise the data so that the athlete knows what they are supposed to be following and can upload instructional videos for the athletes. The data that the athlete logs is in an easy to read format and it also allows the coach to have access to work outs that other people have used. The only forms of communication are through forums, private messages and emails and appears to be more centred around personal fitness trainers and gym users. The communication is generally only between the coach and the athlete and therefore not available to other users. There is also no space to display a full training plan.
The website contains a blog which is updated with information regarding either the website or health and fitness tips on a daily basis with free online support for all members.
FA Girls Centre of Excellence – www.fawelite.com
The Football Association Girl’s Centres of Excellence have an online training system which links coaches with the players allowing communication to occur. It is free for members of the centre to use and is based in networks so only coaches of the centre can see their players on their squads. It is very easy to navigate and includes many different aspects of the players lifestyle such as resting heart rate, amount and quality of sleep, tiredness, motivation, appetite, muscle soreness, menstrual cycle, urine colour, fitness status, injuries, illness and mood. For the training sessions it asks what the training type was, date, time, comments, duration, time spent in each heart rate zone and feelings after training. There is a section for match days where the player is asked to fill out the sport, score, travelling time, description of the performance, intensity and how long they played for. Injuries are taken into more detail and asked the severity and location of the injury and how it was obtained. For illness this is again taken into more detail with the player asked to mark off what symptoms they have from a list, if they have taken any medication if yes what they have taken and also if they have seen a doctor or GP. The communication however is only available by sending a message to the coach the athlete is wishing to speak to. It can be difficult at the start to figure out how to use the system too and allows no feedback from the coaches on how they think the team performed.
Figure 7: Screen shot of the front page for the FA logging system. Source: www.fawelite.com
Strands – www.strands.com
Strands is another online logging system. It is free to use and has a home page very similar to the news feed on facebook and twitter as shown below. It allows you to keep track of how far you have fun/cycled etc. However has no form of communication between the coach and athlete and is a personal training style, it also does not state what the training was for. It is based on running, cycling and swimming and therefore not able to be used with all sports. However it does have an application on an iphone allowing users to update data anywhere.
Figure 8: Screen shot for strands logging system. Source: www.strands.com
Nike Training
Nike Training Club is an online tool to log training aimed at women. It provides training plans for users to try and log basic information. It can be used on either the computer or as an application on the ipod touch/iphone. Nike also allows the data to be shared with friends on facebook and online to allow motivation to increase as you can “compete” against friends.
Applications for Mobile Devices
There are many applications on the ipod touch and the iphone that can be used to log data however these are all based around work in the gym or a running programme. Some of these such as women’s health, 321 run, fitness plan, run documentation and running log all allow emails to be sent from the device to your (or another) email account with the data so that it can be analysed easier. The basic healthy living and running applications generally hold information on time, number of sessions and distance covered, in some cases such as run documentation the route can be recorded and in trainer lite gps can be used to record the distance and speed accurately. Some applications such as running log and gym buddy all hold a calendar style approach to filling in data whilst others display the information in a table form, few applications use graphs however fitness plan, run documentation and personal trainer all use graphs to display data. Run documentation allows you to input your pulse and calories however in order to do this you must have first measured these. Very few of these allow you to input data about body composition such as the basic height and weight and therefore the results gained cannot be classed as relative to each user, only gym bio and gym buddy, both of which are focused on weight lifting rather than cardio activity. Iworkout is the only application that includes a pedometer within it’s specifications.
Training Aids and Measurements
In order for training to be reliable and able to produce valid results it needs to be quantifiable. In order for training aids to be of use they must be able to connect to a computer or mobile device so that data can be uploaded and analysed.
GPS is a way of recording routes and distance travelled by athletes, they can be used within a training environment or on long distance runs/rides. The distance can be used to ensure the athlete is working hard enough for the session and the speed that the work was performed at.
Heart rate monitors are a widely used way to monitor the level of training an athlete is doing. Many heart rate monitors are now fitted with a way of counting calories and fitness indications such as VO2max. Most heart rate monitors now link up with gym equipment and some can be connected to a pc to upload the data. Heart rate can be used to establish the VO2 as they are linearly related until lactate turn point however after this point the VO2 and energy expenditure cannot be calculated. This therefore is a good use if the exercise intensity is quite low however for higher intensities a heart rate monitor may not be suitable for monitoring performance. Heart rate may fluctuate between days and different events such as a competition against training and therefore may not provide an exact result but more of a general result.
A better way of measuring training intensity can vary on the sport for example in cycling power can be measured, many companies currently sell devices to put on bikes in order to tell the cadence and power produced, again these can be linked up to computers to upload the data needed for a coach.
For sports where running is required a small device can be attached to the foot which measures the number of steps, speed and distance travelled. This can be uploaded to a computer and is a much better predictor than a pedometer. Whilst these are useful, in order to measure the distance the stride length must be known, which may change with the incline of the surface they athlete is running on or if the direction needs to be changed, therefore the distance covered is not always an accurate measurement and therefore nor is the speed which is calculated from the distance and time taken.
Digital Training Programme System
The importance of good communication between an athlete and a coach has already been highlighted as vital to the success of the athlete, and web 2.0 has also shown that it can be used as a good communication tool, yet there are currently no training plans and logging systems that use web 2.0. The key points of having a training plan with enough information about what type of training is occurring, how to train it and when is all needed in the plan, along with the competition dates and physiological testing dates. There also needs to be a space to display what is happening in each different type of cycle within the annual plan and the goals that the athlete is trying to achieve. The logging systems should allow the athlete to input a large range of information and for this to be communicated not only with the coach but other key sporting figures related to the athlete. The use of training aids to measure the intensity or distance during training can also be used to help the coach analyse the data fully and monitor what level the athlete is at.
An online form of communication between the athlete and the coach should also be confidential, especially when children are involved. In education it was found that students constantly say that communication from teachers, lecturers and other students is a major influence in how their online learning experience is (Alexander, 2001).
The essential aspects of a training plan have been identified as:
• Be objective and use data from testing
• Be related to the demands of the sport
• Be based around the individual’s lifestyle
• Should take into account the different aspects of sport (physiology, biomechanics, psychology, sociology, nutrition, sports medicine and motor learning)
• Following the principles of training
• Based on individual personal short term and long term goals for the athlete
• Identify key dates for competitions and training camps
• Contains a number of smaller cycles (mesocycles and microcycles)
• Contain multiple components of fitness
• Have preparatory, competition and transition phases.
The training logs have become more sophisticated as to include lifestyle aspects rather than just recording training and therefore should be referred to as a lifestyle log. Within this log it has been identified that the main aspects should include:
• Training (type, intensity, duration, date, time, feelings of how it went and time spent in each heart rate zone)
• Competitions (sport, duration, date, time, position played, score, travelling time and feelings of how it went)
• Injuries (where they occurred, when they occurred, how they occurred, date occurred, severity, if a doctor has been seen, how long predicted to be out of training for)
• Daily nutrition
• Morning heart rate, weight, height, hydration, muscle soreness, amount of sleep, quality of sleep, motivation, mood
• Illness (list of symptoms, medication taken and if a GP has been seen)
• Easy to interpret data
• Good communication and feedback from the athlete, coach and other contacts such as teachers
• Ability to personalise system
• Video files of how to perform exercises at home
All of these aspects should be taken into consideration when planning a training programme system it should include the relevant aspects of web 2.0 to form an effective communication system. Any system that is developed should be linked to social networking sites, in particular facebook, twitter, myspace and bebo, and therefore allow the athlete to share information with their friends to keep motivation up. Blogs are a good way for the coach to keep up to date with the athlete, but also for the athlete to keep up to date on any changes to training or competitions, therefore it is suggested that both the athlete and coach have their own blogs linked to the system. Instant messaging can be a useful tool for communicating and can save much time when sending messages, having an instant messaging application built into the system could be very useful for the coach and athlete to communicate. File sharing should also be included, the coach may need to pass on forms or other documents to the athlete, this could be incorporated so that documents can be uploaded and the athlete can then download these, information on specific training could also be sent in this way. A way in which file sharing and instant messaging can be used is by linking with google wave, this would allow the coach and athlete to have a conversation and then detailed information can be seen at a later date. Also files can be sent via the wave for the athlete to change and send back to the coach at no cost.
No comments:
Post a Comment