Personal fitness programme

Chapter 6

Writing the personal fitness programme

Athletes must design a personal fitness programme with the aim of improving performance in one of their practical activities. This is designed to suit their individual needs.

How to complete the performance analysis and evaluation

A personal fitness programme (PFP) is designed to meet the specific needs of an individual athlete. Typically it includes:

Introduction

  • Aim – the general skills or fitness you plan to improve for which sport and why?
  • Profile of who the PFP is for – age; sex; ability; experience
  • Brief overview of training programme – duration; frequency and type
  • How you will show progress – the tests and measures you will use

Baseline tests

  • Summary of tests used to measure current skill and fitness components
  • Test results

Evaluation of strengths and weaknesses

From the test results, a summary of:

  • strengths
  • areas to improve

Priority areas for this PFP

  • Specify the skill and/or fitness components to be improved
  • Set a SMART target for each component

Training plan

Details of training plan related to the principles of training:

  • detailed monitoring and adjustments
  • evidence of principles of training

Results

  • Results following the repeat of baseline tests

Evaluation

  • Effectiveness of the training programme in improving the specified components
  • How to maintain, extend or improve the training programme

For support in writing a PFP, see Principles of training.

How to evaluate a PFP

A PFP is only effective if it helps a performer to improve. It is essential to monitor and evaluate the effect of the PFP on the performer. A five-step process helps you to evaluate a PFP.

1. Establish the baseline

You can only see an improvement if you know where the performer started – it is essential to establish a baseline. Before starting the training programme, you need to measure the skill or fitness components that the performer plans to improve. For example, to measure a performer’s fitness you may use an endurance bleep test.

2. Monitor progress

Depending on the length of the training programme, you need to re-test at regular intervals – possibly every four weeks – to check if progress is being made. If not, you may need to redesign or adjust the training programme.

3. Record and present the data

Monitoring progress is easier if you record the data and use it to plot progress over time. For example, you may create a graph showing the bleep test results. This helps you and the performer to see progress at a glance and/or to compare results between performers.

4. Compare results

Although the PFP is specific to an individual, it may be useful to compare the performer’s results to those of other performers to check that appropriate progress is being made. For example, the bleep test provides national guidance on what is excellent to poor for different ages and sexes. It is important to use comparisons sensitively as the focus should be on personal improvement.

5. Evaluate the impact

A post-PFP test will show the impact of the training programme on the performer. Has it had the effect you wanted? If yes, you will want to explore the next steps with the performer – do you do more of the same, extend the challenge or focus on a new component? If the PFP has not had the desired effect, how will you change the training programme so that it does?

Many athletes will keep a training diary to help them to monitor and evaluate their PFP.