How is training planned across a year so a performer peaks for competition?
Periodisation and planning of training: macrocycles, mesocycles and microcycles, tapering and peaking, double periodisation, the structure and purpose of warm-up and cool-down, and overtraining.
A focused answer to Eduqas A-Level PE on periodisation: dividing the year into macro, meso and microcycles, the preparation, competition and transition phases, tapering and peaking for a major event, double periodisation, the purpose of warm-up and cool-down, and the symptoms of overtraining.
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What this dot point is asking
Eduqas wants you to explain how training is planned across a year using macro, meso and microcycles, describe tapering and peaking and double periodisation, explain the structure and purpose of a warm-up and cool-down, and recognise overtraining.
The cycles of periodisation
Phases of the year
A typical macrocycle has three phases. The preparation phase (pre-season) builds the foundation: general conditioning first (aerobic base, strength), then sport-specific work. The competition phase maintains fitness and sharpens skill and tactics, with reduced volume so the athlete is fresh to compete. The transition phase (off-season) is active recovery to allow physical and mental restoration before the next macrocycle, avoiding complete detraining (reversibility).
Tapering, peaking and double periodisation
Warm-up and cool-down
A warm-up has three parts: a pulse-raiser (light aerobic work raising heart rate and muscle temperature), mobility and stretching (joints through their range), and skill rehearsal (sport-specific drills). It raises muscle temperature (so enzyme activity and nerve conduction speed up), increases oxygen delivery and reduces injury risk and blood viscosity. A cool-down keeps the muscle pump working with light aerobic activity and stretching, maintaining venous return and cardiac output to prevent pooling and dizziness, and speeding the removal of lactate, which reduces delayed-onset muscle soreness.
Overtraining
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of WJEC Eduqas exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
Eduqas 20194 marksDefine periodisation and explain, using the cycles, how a sprinter would structure the year to peak for a national championship.Show worked answer →
A Component 1 planning question. One mark for the definition, three for the cycles applied to a sprinter.
Periodisation is the division of the training year into manageable phases or cycles to allow progressive overload, recovery and a peak in performance at the right time. The sprinter's year is one macrocycle (the whole season aimed at the championship), divided into mesocycles of several weeks each with a specific aim (for example a strength block, then a power block, then a speed block), each made of microcycles (the day-to-day and week-to-week sessions, including recovery). As the championship nears, the sprinter tapers (reduces volume while keeping intensity) so fatigue clears and they peak on the day.
A common dropped mark is muddling the three cycles; macro is the longest (the whole plan), meso a block of weeks, micro a week or session.
Eduqas 20216 marksExplain the purpose and structure of a thorough warm-up and cool-down for a games player, and state two physiological reasons each one improves preparation or recovery.Show worked answer →
A Component 1 applied question. Markers reward structure plus physiological reasons for both.
Award marks for: a warm-up has three parts, a pulse-raiser (light aerobic work to raise heart rate and muscle temperature), mobility and stretching (taking joints through their range), and skill rehearsal (sport-specific drills). Physiologically it raises muscle temperature so enzyme activity and the speed of nerve conduction increase, dilates blood vessels and increases oxygen delivery, reduces blood viscosity and lowers injury risk by increasing the extensibility of muscles and tendons. A cool-down keeps the muscle pump working with light aerobic activity and stretching; physiologically it maintains venous return and cardiac output to prevent blood pooling and dizziness, and speeds the removal of lactate and the return of the body to resting state, reducing delayed-onset muscle soreness.
A top answer gives a clear three-part warm-up and links each part to a physiological reason, not just "to avoid injury".
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Sources & how we know this
- Eduqas A Level Physical Education Specification — Eduqas (2016)