Monitoring Training and Performance in Athletes

The use of athlete and team training and performance monitoring systems has grown due to technology advances. Practitioners who work with athletes from high school to elite levels in a range of sports use these systems to observe athlete data, including exercise intensity, athletic fitness, and body responses. Monitoring Training and Performance in Athletes is a compilation of evidence-based guidelines and best practices of athlete monitoring for practitioners, who are increasingly being asked to implement monitoring systems and to collect, analyze, and interpret data that ultimately result in training adjustments to optimize performance. Author Mike McGuigan, an award-winning sport scientist, blends research-based concepts with practical application strategies of monitoring training and performance in athletes. The content highlights what can be monitored, such as body stress, biochemical markers, and hormonal response; discusses reliability of modern methods, such as wearable technology and questionnaires; and helps readers understand how to interpret data to modify training programs in real time. Readers will find guidelines, approaches, and solutions for challenges in athlete monitoring for individual and team sports as well as suggestions for integrating monitoring with coaching. Numerous sidebars in the text provide real-world examples and application of the content to assist readers in understanding concepts and the cutting-edge, evidence-based research on athlete monitoring. Additionally, the full-color illustrations and photographs provide a visual interpretation of the information presented. With broad international appeal, this text outlines the most pertinent evidence-based research concepts and studies on athlete monitoring. Strength and conditioning, athletic training, and personal training professionals who work with athletes and monitor training programs will find Monitoring Training and Performance in Athletes an invaluable guide in managing monitoring systems and making adjustments in training programs based on the data to help athletes and teams achieve peak performance.