Achieving peak performance is a process that unfolds one step at a time, throughout the training period. Yet, to get to this level of athletic development before the goal race, training, alone, is not enough. There are some basic principles, in the field of sports science, that can help an athlete boost their performance.
In essence, these principles are necessary when creating the athlete’s annual training plan. As a rule of thumb, their implementation is key in providing the best possible coaching guidance to your athlete.
So, let’s go over these principles that every coach — and every athlete — should take into account, when aiming for optimal performance.
8 Principles for peak performance
1. The Principle of Progression
The principle of progression is critical for a training plan to be successful. According to this principle, there must be a gradual, and systematic increase of the total training load, at all levels, during the training process. When creating the macrocycle based on this principle, you automatically eliminate the possibility of injuries. In addition, you help your athlete to gradually improve their overall physical condition and, ultimately, reach peak performance.
2. The Principle of Adaptation
In conjunction with the principle of progression, the principle of adaptation also plays a key role in the coaching process. All in all, it refers to the body’s ability to adapt to increased — or even decreased — physical demands. This way, the athlete learns to adapt to the specific requirements (muscular, technical, etc.) of the sport they engage in.
3. The Principle of Specificity
In general, this principle is divided into two parts. On one hand, as we often like to write in our articles, every athlete is unique; and, every athlete has different needs when it comes to training. For this reason, it is very important to create a customized training program for them; and, that’s where the principle of specificity comes in.
Now, on the other hand, this principle also states that the training, for the most part, should be sport-specific. For instance, a triathlete’s and a marathon runner’s training needs to be focused on increasing their endurance levels; that is, in order to help them reach peak performance.
4. The Principle of Individualism
Although the principle of individualism is also essential for reaching maximum performance, often coaches don’t give it much importance. As we’ve mentioned, every athlete is unique, thus, responds differently to training stimuli; in that, there are many factors that contribute to many different responses.
One such factor is the athlete’s gender. Due to the physiology of the two genders, male and female athletes differ in both musculoskeletal adaptations and hormonal responses. Also, the developmental age of each athlete (mainly affecting them during the development period) — where the physical, physiological, and psychological developments of the individual take place — can cause different responses in training stimuli.
A key part in all this, is the coaching age of the athlete — how many years they’ve trained on a specific sport; indeed, a catalytic factor in creating an efficient training plan. Finally, heredity can determine an athlete’s course, as well; both, on a physical and emotional level.
5. The Principle of Overload
Based on this principle, the athlete must receive a training stimulus higher than that of their athletic condition. This is how your athlete will manage to improve on their current physical condition. As a result, their body can effectively assimilate the stimulus and adapt accordingly during the recovery period; the latter being necessary for minimizing fatigue from the new training stimulus. Not to mention, for avoiding injuries altogether.
6. The Principle of Reversibility
As mentioned, the athlete improves by increasing their training stimulus, at regular intervals. Naturally, the athlete adapts to this new data, which helps improve their performance during the recovery period. However, if either the training stimulus is too intense for the athlete’s current state, or if the recovery period lasts longer than necessary, there’s a risk that your athlete will not improve.
Instead, their performance would decrease, because of fatigue or detraining. Therefore, great care is cautioned, as a body that receives the wrong stimuli may regress to its previous physical state; or even lower.
7. The Principle of Variety
By this principle, you have to provide as much variety — both in stimuli and training methods — as the athlete can stomach. What’s more, variety can even mean the athlete engaging in a whole different sport; especially on rest days, for some extra fun. This helps them relax mentally and emotionally.
8. The Principle of Rest
The importance of the principle of rest is well-known to coaches. It simply states that an athlete needs adequate rest to be physically and mentally ready for their next training session. During the rest phase, the athlete recovers from minor injuries and muscle damage that may have been incurred during training; thus, avoiding serious injuries, down the line.
To sum up…
In conclusion, implementing the 8 principles for peak performance in your coaching process, is essential for helping your athlete reach their best possible level of performance. If anything, these principles can serve as your lodestar, when creating a training plan; one that can meet the needs and goals of each athlete. In the end, keeping to these principles, you can help them level up, and reach peak performance, while being scientific and effective about it.