Periodize your game

One of the scope of conditioning training is to overcome fatigue. Fatigue affects technical and tactical proficiency ( a tipical example are mistakes committed in the last part of the game; poor percentage of passing and kicking, wrong choices when you are reading the game and also important to consider is when youre tired youre prone to injuries). Thru an accurate program of conditioning, your team will grow up in self esteem, skills, proficiency, in few words: MORE VICTORIES ! Rugby can be defined as a fast paced game with bouts of intense, powerful physical activity for the conquest and retention or repossession of the ball alternated with periods of rest. Features of the game will include high bursts of speed at maximum and submaximum velocities to better reach the potential you must plan the season: in few words to get all this you have to organize coaching staff and players time effectively. Yopu have to create a guide, a target, for the presents and futures training sessions; all has to be done thre organized training plan,intended not to complicate a teams life but as a key to open the doors with the keys of victory! This approach is defined PERIODIZATION. It refers to 2 important training concepts: 1) Periodization of the annual plan; 2) Periodization of the conditional motor capacities (strength, speed and endurance)

Periodization incorporates smaller training phases, a week of training, microcycles, and bigger phases, about a month of training, a macrocycle. Furthermore if you periodize the conditional motor capacities they enable one

player to develop their motor capacities to an optimal level of performance.

During the transition period from the last season the strength and conditioning coach, under the principles of the coaching staff has to prepare the season: in few words organize all the works, the training sessions. The all works Is done thru a Preparatory period ( you start a new season and this phase ends near the starting of the season); a Competitive period (it starts with the beginning of the rugby league and it ends with the final games, and playoffs if theyre present; usually theres a break, around

Christmas, where you program a new preparatory period). Finally it starts a

new Transition period where you recover from the season and the injuries. Important to remember every training session depends on the training phase and the structure of the training week.It also and mostly depends on volume, intensity and quality of training (but this is another article..) Alessandro Fioravanti

References: -Tudor Bompa, F.Claro periodization in rugby 2008; -Tudor Bompa Institute P-ps course personal notes taken by the author - Notes taken thru training sessions by the author