Energy systems
A touch football player accelerates rapidly for 5 seconds to beat a defender before stopping.
Which energy system would be the dominant source of energy during this effort?
ATP-PC
A touch football player needs to quickly accelerate away from a defender.
Which fitness component is most directly related to how quickly they can move?
Speed
A coach wants training to closely replicate the physical demands of touch football.
Which training principle should guide the program?
Specificity
A player completes 30 seconds of shuttle running followed by 30 seconds of recovery, repeated 10 times.
Which training method is being used?
Interval training
A touch football player becomes tired during a long training session.
Which energy system is most important for supplying energy during prolonged exercise?
Aerobic system
A player makes several high-intensity efforts lasting around 30–60 seconds, with only short recovery periods between efforts.
Which energy system is likely to make a major contribution during these repeated efforts, and why?
Anaerobic glycolysis, because the efforts are high intensity and last longer than the ATP-PC system can predominantly supply energy.
A player changes direction rapidly after a defender moves across their running path.
Which fitness component is most important, and what does it allow the player to do?
Agility – it allows the player to change direction or body position quickly and effectively.
A player completes two training sessions per week but their coach changes this to four sessions per week.
Which part of FITT has been changed?
Frequency
A player runs continuously for 25 minutes at a relatively consistent intensity.
Which training method is being used, and which energy system would be strongly targeted?
Continuous training; aerobic system.
A player needs to improve their ability to change direction quickly when attacking space.
Name the most relevant fitness component and one suitable type of training activity.
Agility; shuttle runs, change-of-direction drills or agility circuits.
A touch football player remains active for an entire game, repeatedly jogging, changing direction and recovering between high-intensity efforts.
Why is the aerobic energy system important even though many individual efforts are high intensity?
It provides energy for prolonged activity and helps the player recover between high-intensity efforts.
A player can perform repeated passes accurately throughout a game, even when tired.
Which TWO fitness components could contribute to this performance?
Muscular endurance and coordination.
A player has been completing 6 × 20 m sprints for several weeks. Their coach changes the program to 8 × 20 m sprints.
Which training principle is being applied, and why?
Progression – the training demand has been increased to provide a new stimulus for adaptation.
A player completes 10 different exercises at separate stations, moving from one exercise to the next.
Which training method is this, and what is one advantage of using it?
Circuit training. It allows multiple fitness components or exercises to be trained in one session and can keep players active with minimal downtime.
A coach changes a player's training from:
4 × 20-second efforts 70% HRmax → 4 × 30-second efforts 85% HRmax.
Which training principles and FITT principle is being demonstrated?
Progression, overload, Intensity.
Two players make the following efforts:
Explain why different energy systems would be dominant for each player.
Player A primarily uses the ATP-PC system because the effort is very short and explosive. Player B relies more heavily on anaerobic glycolysis because the effort lasts longer at high intensity.
A touch football player is able to produce a large amount of force very quickly when accelerating from a stationary position.
Which fitness component does this describe? Explain the difference between this component and muscular strength.
Power. Power is the ability to produce force quickly, whereas muscular strength is the ability to produce maximum force.
A player stops training for six weeks after the touch football season finishes and notices their fitness has decreased.
Which training principle explains this? What does it tell coaches about maintaining fitness?
Reversibility. Fitness adaptations can decrease when training is reduced or stopped, so some ongoing training is needed to maintain fitness.
A player completes a 20-minute run but regularly changes pace: easy running, moderate running and short periods of fast running.
Identify the training method and explain how it differs from continuous training at a steady intensity.
Fartlek training. It involves planned or unplanned changes in pace/intensity during continuous exercise, whereas steady continuous training generally maintains a relatively consistent intensity.
A touch football player needs to improve their ability to maintain a high work rate throughout a game.
Compare continuous training and interval training and explain which would be more suitable for developing repeated high-intensity efforts.
Interval training would be more suitable because it allows repeated high-intensity efforts separated by planned recovery and more closely mimics a touch football game. Continuous training is more suited to developing aerobic endurance through sustained activity.
A touch football player repeatedly sprints for 8 seconds, walks for 20 seconds, then sprints again for 8 seconds. After several repetitions, their ability to maintain sprint intensity decreases.
Explain how at least TWO energy systems contribute across this activity and why recovery is important.
The ATP-PC system provides much of the energy for each short sprint. The aerobic system contributes increasingly during recovery and helps restore energy supplies. Anaerobic glycolysis can also contribute as repeated high-intensity efforts continue. Recovery allows the player to partially restore energy stores and prepare for the next effort.
A coach identifies the following weakness in a touch football player:
"The player performs well during the first few minutes but struggles to maintain their work rate and recover between repeated high-intensity efforts."
Which fitness component should be prioritised, and why?
Aerobic endurance. It helps the player sustain activity for longer and recover more effectively between repeated efforts.
A coach designs a program that initially includes 3 sessions per week at moderate intensity. Over six weeks, the player progresses to 4 sessions per week at a higher intensity with longer work periods.
Identify TWO elements of FITT that have changed and explain how these changes demonstrate progressive overload.
Frequency and intensity have increased, while time/work duration has also increased. These changes progressively increase the training demands placed on the body.
A coach wants to improve a touch football player's ability to repeatedly perform high-intensity efforts while maintaining quality movement.
The session consists of:
10 seconds maximal effort → 30 seconds recovery → repeated 8 times.
Identify the training method, calculate the work-to-rest ratio, and explain why this method is appropriate for the goal.
Interval training. The work-to-rest ratio is 1:3. It is appropriate because it allows the player to repeatedly perform high-intensity efforts while receiving planned recovery between efforts.
A touch football coach identifies the following problem:
"The player is very fast over the first few metres but their performance drops significantly after repeated attacking and defensive efforts."
The coach wants to design a training program to address this weakness.
Identify:
Explain how each choice could help improve the player's performance.
Explanation: The player needs to maintain performance and recover between repeated efforts. Interval training can replicate repeated high-intensity efforts with controlled recovery. Specificity ensures the training resembles the demands of touch football, while progressive overload allows the training demands to gradually increase.