Course Curriculum

The course has 10 classes with a combination of live and on-demand sessions. Over 5 hours of coaching education including Q&A sessions with Dr. Cone following each of the live sessions. This course will take place over 3 weeks with one live session per week. In addition all sessions will be recorded so you can continue to take the course at your own pace or watch any class again for review. Reserve your spot for the next course on March 22nd.

Class 1: Introduction: Sports Science & Periodization

• Understanding how your players bodies respond to the physical stimulus placed on them by the game and your training sessions.
• Adaptation leads to higher performance if you periodize your sessions correctly.
• John builds out various examples of weekly periodization for teams of different ages.
  
• The sweet spot: How to ensure you are not overreaching or under-training with your team.
  

Class 2: Qualities of effective periodization

• Common mistakes coaches make at each age group and how you can avoid them.
• The cumulative effect of training. The development of your players is the product of the quality and number of their experiences.
• 5 qualities of effective periodization and how they help you to adjust your periodization.
  
• Problem solving by using the loop of assess & identify, plan, implement, & monitor.
  

Class 3: Age, maturation & RAE

• Developmental stages: Early, Transitional, Amateur, & Professional Athlete Development
• RAE (Relative Age Effect): What month your players were born in matters.How you can use this information as coaches to improve player success, reduce injury rates and lower dropout rates.
• Growth: The timing and rate of growth are different for every player on your team. We’ll give you a tool to calculate and track PHV (Peak Height Velocity).
• BONUS: PHV (Peak Height Velocity) and Maturity Offset Tool. This will be an invaluable resource for you as a coach and a great benefit to share with parents.
  

Class 4: The importance of addressing individuals within the team

• How to analyze the age differences of players within your team and the specific challenges.
• Chronological age differences and layering in the complexity of growth and predicted biological age.
• How the timing and rate of growth impacts the risk of injury.
  
• How to identify player groups within a team based on Peak Height Velocity.
  
• The Fit For 90 PHV tool will help you calculate the Peak Height Velocity for your players and identify outliers in the team.
  
• Your players' age relative to the rest of the team can lead to differences in training stress and readiness to train that we need to address as coaches.
  

Class 5: Mapping your games and pre-season planning

• Start planning the year by mapping your games. John will continue to use the Fit For 90 periodization tool provided in this course with you during this class.
• Tackling the challenges of match congestion in each environment: John periodizes specific schedules with match congestion that are common specific to youth club, high school, & college teams.
• Pre-Season planning: How to extend your pre-season so the players come in fit reducing the likelihood of injuries.
  
• Planning the pre-season: You have to look back as well as forward. The length of your off-season determines the balance that exists between your players readiness and fitness.
  
• How long does it take to prepare a team for the demands of the game? The answer is likely longer than your pre-season and John will show you how to problem solve this.
  
• Off-season: How to modify your periodization based on the balance of your players readiness and fitness which results from the length of your off-season.
  

Class 6: Training cycles and physical characteristics

• Ability to outpace & outlast the competition
• Ability to press the pace
• Recoverability & repeatability
  
• Maximal speed abilities
  
• Repeated speed abilities
  

• How to determine your team's optimal training cycle length: Do you plan with a 3-week, 4-week or 6-week primary training cycle?
• Are you accounting for your team’s developmental stage & physical objectives relative to the year/season?
  
• Do you know how to modify your team’s cycle length? John will show you how to optimize the cycle length based on your specific season and the challenging windows of high match congestion.
  

Class 7: Planning your peak training day and the 6 types of training sessions you need.

• The games determine when your peak training day is and your target training load.
• The training cycle determines the type of training (game size).
• 6 types of training sessions you need as a coach
  
• How long does it take for your players to recover and adapt after games and each type of training session?
  
• Understanding the link between adaptation time, your players readiness and the training load.
  
• BONUS: PDF download of Age-specific adaptation times for each type of training session.
  

Class 8: Planning your training loads in detail

• How long it takes for your players to adapt determines their readiness to train. Your training loads should be planned based on your players' readiness.
  
• Age-specific periodization: John shows age-specific examples of weekly periodization based on the developmental stage of your team and their adaptation time.
• 6 types of training sessions you need as a coach
  
• How long does it take for your players to recover and adapt after games and each type of training session?
  
• Understanding the link between adaptation time, your players readiness and the training load.
  
• BONUS: PDF download of Age-specific Readiness & Training Load targets for all training sessions.
  

Class 9: Challenges of travel, time changes, climate & altitude

• How do we address the most common challenges? John will show you how to adapt training to manage the demands placed on your players.
  
• These challenges are negative stressors that drive changes in your players readiness. You need to shift your periodization to account for these changes.
• Travel: Plan for nutrition, hydration and movement during travel. Minimize disruption in sleep.
  
• Time zone changes: How to make logical shifts in your training times in advance.
  
• Climate: Adjustments you can make for heat, humidity, and altitude changes.
  
• BONUS: PDF download of the Fit For 90 Recovery Point System
  

Class 10: Tournaments and congested match schedules

• How to taper into high demand tournament weekends to ensure game readiness.
  
• Re-develop the players following the tournament. The added stress of multiple games drives changes in your player’s readiness. You need to adjust your periodization to re-build based on the cumulative stress.
• John will show you how long it takes for your players to recover and adapt following several tournament scenarios and how to adjust your periodization the following week.
  
• If you are not making adjustments to your periodization following the tournament you're increasing the risk of injury for your players.