Evidence-informed training plans

Introduction Since the 1990s, evidence-based medicine has established itself as the preferred method for the rational selection of medical treatments. Similarly, the results of exercise science interventions can potentially be used to guide training prescription. However, unlike many medical treatments, a training plan is generally a complex mix of many interventions (e. g. several exercises with different volumes and intensities) and the overall intervention changes over time, e. g. due to periodization or tapering. It is therefore practically impossible to write completely evidence-based training plans. We therefore propose a systematic method to create evidence-informed training plans in which only some key decisions are made in an evidence-based way. Method The method of evidence-informed training planning is a proposal to partially integrate evidence-based practice into training prescription. We propose to create a training plan in six steps: 1) Define training plan goal(s); 2) Derive more detailed performance-limiting factors according to point 1; 3) Select training and other interventions suitable to modify the goals and factors in 1 and 2; 4) Select tests and training documentation to measure/validate the variables in 1 and 2; 5) Develop a macro-cycle training plan (rough planning of the most important variables) and 6) Expand on 5 to create detailed micro-cycle and daily plans. In particular, the interventions in 3 can be selected on an evidence-based basis. We propose to formulate evidence-based recommendations as follows: a) clear instruction detailing what training method or other intervention is to be used to achieve specific goals under 1 and 2; b) justification of the instruction based on current scientific evidence; c) evaluation of the quality of the evidence (e. g. from expert opinion to meta-analysis). Discussion Training design is often subjective, and when scientific evidence is used, it is usually unsystematic. Our proposed method of evidence-informed training is an attempt to the improve upon the principles of evidence-based practice specific to exercise prescription so that some, but not all, of the decisions made when designing a training plan rely on empirical evidence.     «

Introduction Since the 1990s, evidence-based medicine has established itself as the preferred method for the rational selection of medical treatments. Similarly, the results of exercise science interventions can potentially be used to guide training prescription. However, unlike many medical treatments, a training plan is generally a complex mix of many interventions (e. g. several exercises with different volumes and intensities) and the overall intervention changes over time, e. g. due to per...     »