HSC PDHPE Core 2

FACTORS AFFECTING PERFORMANCE

CQ1: How does training affect performance?
energy systems
anaerobic
Alactacid (ATP/PC)
Process

Source
fuel

Lactic acid

An explosive movement Anaerobic glycolysis

causes the ATP to split, degradation of glucose
providing
energy
for without using oxygen
muscular contraction
of Creatine phosphate

Carbohydrate

Aerobic
Aerobic metabolism
breakdown of fuel in the
presence of oxygen to
produce ATP
Carbohydrate,
protein

fat

and

ATP
production

Rapidly, but for a limited Quickly, but requires large Slowly,

but
uses
time
amount of glucose
glycogen more efficiently

Duration
and
intensity

ATP supplies exhausted after

2 seconds of high intensity
(95-100% max effort), CP
supplies exhausted after a
further 10-15 seconds

Cause
fatigue

of Limited ATP and CP supplies

Duration is dependant on
the intensity. 30 seconds to
3 minutes at high intensity
(70-95% max effort)
Accumulation of lactic acid Depletion of glycogen,
(pyruvic acid that has not and reliance on fat which
received sufficient oxygen) requires more oxygen

Byproducts

No fatiguing by-products, Lactic acid

but heat is produced during
muscular contraction

Carbon
water

dioxide

and

Recovery

ATP and CP supplies fully 30 minutes to an hour

restored within 2 minutes

Dependant on duration of
used, but can be up to 48
hours

Examples
of use

100m sprint, shot put, discus, 400m and 800m run, 100m triathlon, 1500m swim,
high jump
and 200m swim
marathon

 principles of training
-

progressive overload gains in fitness will be made when the training

load is greater than normal and gradually increased as improvements
occur.

specificity greatest gains will be made when the activity in the

training program resembles the movements, energy systems used and
skills in the game or activity being trained for.

reversibility a decrease or ceasing of training will cause a decrease

in fitness.

variety frequent change in activities will cause interest and challenge

for athletes.

training thresholds Aerobic threshold is about 70% MHR, anaerobic

threshold is about 8-85% MHR; working between these (in the aerobic
training zone) will result in performance gains.

warm-up/cool down essential for body preparation and prevention

of injury.

types of training
-

aerobic uses aerobic system as main source of energy; training

types include: continuous, fartlek, interval, circuit, and aerobics.

strength fundamental to improvements in most sports. Strength

(resistance) programs divided into three categories: isotonic
(contraction and lengthening of muscle fibres), isometric (force is
applied, but muscle length does not change), and isokinetic (elaborate
machines used to ensure that resistance applied in is uniform through
the full range of movement).

flexibility (static, ballistic, PNF) muscles require not just strength

but also length; this can be enhanced by a flexibility program. A
flexibility program: helps prevent injury, improves muscular
coordination, relaxes muscles, decreases soreness and tightness
following exercise, and increases range of movement. Flexibility is
affected by age, sex, temperature, exercise, and specificity. Static
slowly stretched to a position then held, ballistic repeated movements
such as swinging and bouncing, and PNF proprioceptive
neuromuscular facilitation static, isometric, static.

How does the body respond to aerobic training?

the basis of aerobic training
-

pre-screening assessment of the health status of the individual

before they undertake an aerobic training program.

application of FITT principle Frequency how often, adequate to

needs, Intensity how hard (HR), Time how long (min. 20 minutes),
Type what kind of work.

CQ2: How can Psychology affect performance?

immediate physiological response to training
-

heart rate HR with training resting heart rate will decrease and heart
rate will level off during protracted exercise (steady state).

ventilation rate depth and rate of breathing breaths per minute;

increases in response to physical activity.

stroke volume SV amount of blood ejected from left ventricle in a

contraction; increases with training.

cardiac output CO=HRxSV increases with training, in the same way

as stroke volume.

lactate levels amount of lactic acid accumulating during anaerobic

activity; increase during intense training.

physiological adaptations in response to aerobic training

-

resting heart rate decreases

stroke volume and cardiac output SV increases, CO remains

relatively unchanged

oxygen uptake increased

lung capacity little change (if any)

haemoglobin level increases

blood pressure decreases

CQ2: How can psychology affect performance?

motivation
-

positive performance is driven by previous reinforcing behaviours

and negative inspired to perform from a fear of consequences of
performing poorly.

intrinsic internal motivation and extrinsic external motivation,

internal state is modified by external sources.

reinforcement: social from other people, arises from social contact

and develops in an atmosphere of interaction, teamwork and
cooperation, material tangible items such as trophies and medals
and internal often called covert or disguised, can result from any
situation, e.g. player feeling proud of achievement is motivated to
achieve again.

anxiety

trait and state anxiety trait anxiety is a general level of stress

(evident in how we respond to daily situations), while state anxiety is
more specific (heightened presence of distress in response to a
particular situation).

sources of stress in a practice and competitive situation: personal

pressure, competition pressure, social pressure and physical pressure.

optimum arousal inverted U hypothesis.

 managing anxiety
-

concentration/attentional skills (focusing) ability to link movement

and awareness; can focus on doing, rather than thinking about doing.
Athlete will focus on the process rather than the result, and reorient
attention skills to manage anxiety.

mental rehearsal mentally picturing a performance/skill before

execution. Helps to elevate arousal, provides a clear picture and
narrows the athletes thoughts.

visualisation incorporates skills of mental rehearsal, but the focus is

on a specific aspect of the performance/skill.

relaxation series of techniques that help the athlete to control

arousal; techniques include: progressive muscular relaxation, mental
relaxation, self-hypnosis, mental rehearsal, meditation, and centred
breathing.

goal-setting setting targets we aspire to achieve; can be short-term,

long-term, behavioural, or performance goals.

CQ3: How can nutrition affect performance?

Balanced diet balanced intake of nutrients for growth, repair, maintenance
and function of tissues, as well as balance in terms of energy requirements
(fuel demand = fuel intake).
-

is it adequate for performance needs? must be tailored to individual

athletes needs no single eating plan can meet the nutritional needs
of every athlete.

Supplementation
-

Vitamins inorganic compounds essential to maintaining bodily

functions, supplementation may be required but only for special needs
such as ill health.

Minerals inorganic substances found in the body that are necessary

for adequate functioning. Supplementation may be used when
deficiencies occur (e.g. iron or calcium deficiency).

Carbohydrate loading technique of loading muscles with glycogen

(in preparation for and endurance activity). Training is tapered and
complex carbohydrate consumption is increased in the days leading up
to competition; in doing this the athlete will have greater stores of
glycogen ready for use.

Hydration
-

Principles of body temperature regulation thermoregulation:

process where core body temp is kept within one degree of 37. Heat is
gained through metabolism and exercise, while heat is lost through
radiation, convection, conduction, and evaporation. Vasoconstriction
(blood vessels smaller to reduce heat loss), vasodilation (blood vessels
bigger to promote heat loss), hypothermia (loss exceeds gain and temp
<37), and hyperthermia (heat exceeds loss and temp >37).

Guidelines for fluid replacement

Before

During

increased fluid intake 24 hours prior to

performance

500mL water two hours prior

200-300mL 15 minutes prior

small, frequent drinks to replace water

lost through sweating

200-300mL
suggested

every

15

minutes

is

After

approx 200-300mL water should be

consumed for ever 15-20 minutes of
exercise

CQ4: How does the acquisition of skill affect performance?

The learning process
-

a cyclic process (perceiving input (cues) deciding processing

acting output feedback)

Perceiving

Deciding

Acting

Feedback

Perceiving:
Input - perception comes in the form of cues
Learner watches coach or video
Develops idea of what needs to be done
Deciding:
Course of action
Processing how to convert cues into an appropriate physical
response
Acting:
The neuromuscular system guides person into making decision output
Person executes conceptualised plan in form of motor movement
Feedback:
Needed to improve skill
Can be internal or external
Process continues until skill is perfect
characteristics of the learner: personality individuals characteristic way
of behaving, traits such as motivation and curiosity will generally help the
learn skills faster and more effectively, heredity certain characteristics
inherited from parents, may be predisposed to specific skills. Hereditary
factors include: relative % of fast and slow twitch fibres, somatotype, gender,
height, and conceptual ability, confidence belief in own ability; critical to
improvements in skill acquisition, prior experience learning process will be
made easier if there are similar movement patterns to those already learnt,

ability way in which an individual is able to learn, process and implement

new skills.

the learning environment

-

physical environment surrounding conditions in which a skill is

being performed; it is ideal if the environment is safe and comfortable.

nature of skill (open occur in a dynamic environment, closed

occur in a stable and predictable environment, gross use of large
muscle groups, fine require only small muscle groups; finesse and
limited movement, discrete have distinct beginning and end , serial
involve a sequence of smaller movements assembled to make a total
skill, continuous have no distinct beginning or end, self-paced
speed and timing determined by performer, externally-paced
external source controls the timing of execution)

practice method (massed continuous practice, rest intervals are

shorter than practice intervals, distributed broken practice session,
intervals of rest or alternate activities are longer than practice intervals,
whole skill is practiced in its entirety, part skill is broken into
smaller components, each discrete sub-skill is practiced separately)

feedback (internal received during execution through the bodys

proprioceptive mechanisms, external from sources outside the body,
concurrent received as the skill is being performed, delayed
received after execution, knowledge of results information about
the outcome of a movement, knowledge of performance
information about the pattern of movement during skill execution.

stages of skill acquisition

focus on:

cognitive

associative

autonomous

basic/understanding
stage

intermediate/practice
stage

advanced stage; skills

performed
instinctively

what

how

other tasks

errors:

frequent, large

error detection:

often
unable
recognise error

needs to:

see,
feel
experience
movement
exploratory stage

demonstrations
are:

best
means
communication
identify subroutines

learning
speed slow and inefficient
and movement
efficiency:
improvement:

some (not so large)

to able to recognise error

and practice
the

few
able to detect and
correct errors as they
occur
adapt the movement
to pressure situations

kinaesthetic
movements rehearsed
development improved under
varying
through practice
conditions
of important

emphasis on temporal
patterning;
knows
subroutines and can
assemble them into the
skill

only
essential
to
refine
particular
movements
temporal
and
sequential patterning
of subroutines is
automatic

moderate
and speed and efficiency
reasonable efficient
relate to specific
requirements
of
situation

support from teaching practice of set patterns

aids
to
enhance of
movements
in
visualisation; focus is controlled situations
conceptualisation

manipulation of the
environment (ensures
the skill can be
reproduced
under
varying conditions)

rates of skill acquisition

-

learning curves and plateaus learning curves illustrate the

relationship between practice (x-axis) and performance (y-axis).
Curves include: linear curve (performance improves as practice
increases), negatively accelerated curve (practice was highly
successful in early stages, but then tapered off), positively accelerated
curve (small gains from early practice sessions, but significant
improvement in later stages), and S-shaped curve (combination of
negatively and positively accelerated curves rapid learning mixed
with gradual progress). A learning plateau is a leveling off of the
learning curve, indicating that little learning is taking place.

implications of rate of learning the rate at which individuals acquire

a skill will vary according to internal and external factors, and the

degree to which these influence the rate of learning will be affected by

the time given to learning and practice. Factors include: nature of task,
characteristics of learner, quality of instructions, practice opportunities,
merit of feedback, and motivation.
skilled performers versus unskilled performers skilled performers, in
comparison to unskilled performers, will better demonstrate:
-

kinaesthetic sense awareness of muscular effort during movement;

skilled performers will feel the movement, as they have developed
muscle memory.

anticipation and timing skilled performers can better predict what

may happen in specific situations, and respond accordingly.

mental approach performers state of mind should be conducive to

peak performance; skilled performers have the ability to focus, and
display mental toughness.

consistency capacity to perform at a high standard regularly; skilled

performers are able to perform movements repeatedly.

objective measurement of skill subjective: judgment based on feelings,

impressions or opinions; objective: independent of the observer.
-

skill-related tests designed to measure how well and individual can

perform a specific motor skill.

validity and reliability of tests validity refers to the honesty of the

test the degree to which it measures what it is supposed to measure.
Reliability is the degree of consistency of the test ability to measure
the same attributes of the same individual/group under the same
conditions.

judging the quality of performance

-

characteristics of skilled performance controlled movement, fluent

and consistent movement, aesthetically pleasing movements, and
consistent achievement of a favourable outcome.

outcomes of skilled performance include financial remuneration,

increased self-confidence/esteem, increased motivation, desire to
improve skills, improved ability to analyse and evaluate performances,
ability to transfer proficiency to similar tasks, and ability to critically
evaluate performance.

personal versus prescribed judging criteria personal criteria is the

preconceived ideas or expectations brought to judge a performance,
while prescribed criteria are established by sports organisations or
bodies, and form the basis of assessment for competitions.