Quick questions on Principles of training in QCE Physical Education Unit 4

Specificity says the training stimulus must match the demand. There are several dimensions of specificity.

Progressive overload says the stimulus must be increased over time to keep producing adaptation. The body adapts to a given load and stops adapting unless the load increases.

FITT is the prescription framework that turns training principles into a written program.

Reversibility says adaptations are lost when training stops or significantly reduces. Aerobic adaptations decay within around 2 weeks of detraining; strength adaptations decay more slowly but are reduced within 2 to 4 weeks of stopping. The implication for the program is that off-season detraining must be managed (maintenance work in the off-season) and that injury comebacks require a structured progressive build rather than a return to pre-injury load.

Individuality says programs must reflect the individual athlete's response. Two athletes given the same program will respond differently because of genetics, training age, lifestyle, recovery, age, and injury history. The implication is that prescriptions adapt to the individual, often through small adjustments to load, volume, or session selection based on monitoring data.

Variety says the program needs differences in mode and stimulus to avoid staleness and to develop the athlete across the full range of demands. Variety is not arbitrary; it is purposeful change to address a fitness component or to break a plateau. A repeat-sprint athlete might rotate through short sprints, hill sprints, and small-sided games as different ways to train the same energy systems.

Recovery is the period between sessions when adaptation occurs. The body does not adapt during the session; it adapts during the recovery from it. Recovery is influenced by sleep (around 7 to 9 hours per night for adult athletes; more for adolescents), nutrition (carbohydrate and protein intake aligned to training load), and active recovery (low-intensity movement, mobility work, hydrotherapy). Strong programs schedule recovery rather than treating it as the absence of training.

The principles do not stand alone. A training session for a chosen activity is justified by stacking principles:

Progressive overload is structured: one variable at a time, around 5 to 10 per cent per week, with planned deloads. "Add more" is not overload, it is randomness.

Define specificity and apply it to the design of an aerobic training session for a swimmer. [4 marks]

Construct a FITT prescription for muscular strength training for a beginner athlete in their off-season. [5 marks]

Explain the principle of reversibility and describe one strategy a coach uses in the off-season to manage it. [3 marks]