A child in a competitive environment sees their personal value in terms of their sporting talents. The children that are judged not to be very good feel worthless and left out, this can lead to a blow to the child’s self-esteem. For children, the basic goal of participation in sport should be for fun and enjoyment in a safe environment. Children are not mini-adults and so they don’t react the same to competition as an adult. Physically and psychologically children are undeveloped and very different from adults and so should be treated very differently.
Methods Of Training Continuous Training This is when an athlete exercises in a steady aerobic way. It is the most appropriate method of training to improve cardiovascular endurance for someone who has not trained for some time and is quite unfit. The training may take various forms from brisk walking to jogging. It could be over a distance or a set time. Interval Training This is a suitable type of training for team game players, as it fits the style of many games. It includes short bursts of anaerobic work followed by slow walking or jogging, which is aerobic work. When the athlete is running hard, lactic acid is produced and during the interval (recovery) the heart and lungs carry on working to repay the oxygen debt. Over time this causes capillarisation, strengthening of the heart muscles and improved oxygen uptake. All this leads to improved performance, especially within the cardiovascular system.
Fartlek Training Fartlek means “speedplay” in Swedish and it combines continuous and interval training. Fartlek training allows the athlete to run whatever distance and speed they wish, varying the intensity, and occasionally running at high intensity levels. This type of training works both the aerobic and anaerobic energy pathways. Circuit Training Circuit Training is an excellent way to simultaneously improve mobility, strength and stamina. Circuits usually consist of six to ten exercises that are completed one after another. Each exercise is performed for a specific number of repetitions or for a set time. The exercises are separated by timed rest intervals and each circuit is separated by a slightly longer rest period. The number of circuits may vary from two to six depending on the athlete’s training level.
Weight Training Weight training is a form of training that uses progressive resistance, either in the form of the actual weight lifted or in terms of the number of repetitions. Weight training is used to increase muscular strength, increase muscular endurance and to develop muscle bulk or size. For my personal exercise plan I have decided to use weight training. Although football has many different requirements, health and skill related, I would like to primarily increase my strength and muscular endurance.
Principles Of Training Specificity This means choosing the right training for your sport of training needs. Any training undertaken should be relevant and appropriate to the sport or activity that the individual is training for. For example, it wouldn’t be appropriate for a swimmer to do their training on the land. Although there would be benefits from some land based training, most of the training should be carried out in the water. The specificity rule does not govern just the muscles, fibre type and actions used but also the energy systems which are mainly used. The energy system used in training should replicate that used in the event.
Progressive Overload This means gradually increasing the workload in training so the athlete can improve. This rule considers the intensity of the training session. For improvement to happen, the training should be at an intensity where the athlete feels some kind of stress and discomfort, this signifies overload. If exercise takes place on a regular basis the body’s systems will adapt and start to cope with these stresses. For further improvement to occur, the intensity of the training will need to be gradually increased. This is progression and can be done by running faster or training longer etc.
Reversibility This means understanding that fitness can’t be stored for future use and will disappear if training is stopped. This is the rule that performance deteriorates when the training stops or the intensity of the training is decreased for an extended period of time. If you train for three weeks and then don’t train for one week then you will be at the same level of fitness/strength as before the three weeks of training.