This document discusses the principles of periodization in training. It begins with an overview and background on periodization, noting that it aims to make training more measurable and planned. Key aspects discussed include supercompensation, where overload is followed by recovery and supercompensation. Periodization models from Matveyev and others are examined. Matveyev's approach bases periodization on supercompensation and organizes training into microcycles, mesocycles, and macrocycles within preparation, competition, and transition periods. The document provides guidance on applying periodization through constructing annual plans, periods and phases, mesocycles, and microcycles with examples for college football.

1. Periodization of Training

2. Overview
• Background for periodization
• Where periodization has been
• How to apply periodization
• Science and periodization
• Where periodization seems to be going

3. Background for Periodization
• What is it?
• What’s it for?
• What isn’t it for?
• Pro’s and con’s

4. What is Periodization?
• Freeman (1994): “…an attempt to make
training more objectively measurable and
thus more accurately planned.”
• Broad strokes of modern training theory
were developed in the 1930’s and 1940’s
(Pedemonte, 1986).

5. Why Periodize Training?
• Objectives of periodization (Dick, F.,
1975):
– Achieve optimal performance
– Prepare for a climax to the competitive season
– Prepare for the main competition

6. Objectives of Training (Bompa,
Popov)
• Attain and augment multilateral physical
development
• Secure and improve specific physical development
• Feature and perfect technique of the sport
• Improve and perfect strategy
• Cultivate volitional qualities
• Ensure and secure optimal preparation

7. Objectives of Training, cont.
• Constant increase in training burden
• Fortify each athlete’s state of health
• Prevent injuries
• Enrich each athlete’s theoretical knowledge
regarding the physiological and psychological
basis of training, planning, nutrition, and
regeneration

8. Supercompensation
• A.k.a. One-Factor Training Theory
• Workout Depletion Restoration
• Supercompensation
• Have seen this with glycogen stores
following exercise

9. Supercompensation

10. Supercompensation; Putting it
into practice
• First, intervals are too
short
• Second, intervals are
optimal
• Third, intervals are too
long

11. Supercompensation, putting it
into practice, cont.

12. Supercompensation
• This idea is why most workout programs
are done in steps (usually 2-4 steps up
followed by 1 rest step).

13. What’s Periodization For?
• It’s a way to organize training over months
and years that is meant to optimize
performance while preventing injures,
overtraining, etc.
• It is a procedure that is leading to
something.
• It is a procedure that allows one to check
and see if the training plan was effective.

14. What Isn’t Periodization For?
• It doesn’t work well as a 4-8 week training
plan.
• Poor tool for most personal training
situations.

15. Pro’s and Con’s
• Pro’s:
– Allows one to plan for constant improvement
– Allows one to plan for an athlete to be at their best
when it matters
– Prevents injuries
• Con’s:
– Very time-consuming
– The plans are great until they meet the athlete
– Easy to fall into the cookie-cutter mentality
– Plan is not a substitute for training

16. Periodization: Where it’s been
• Matveyev
• Bompa
• Harre, Kurz, Nadori, and others
• Stone

17. Matveyev
• Fundamentals of Sports Training. 1981.
• Observed training of Soviet Olympic
athletes for 1952 & 1956 Olympics and
formalized the training process.

18. Types of Exercise
• Competitive: Exercises containing integral
actions; competitive actions proper and the
training forms of the competition exercises
• Special Preparation: Exercises that include
elements or qualities of the competition exercises
• General Preparation: Exercises that develop all
physical qualities, develops the foundation for
future training.

19. Basis of Matveyev’s Approach
• Training theories based upon the idea of
supercompensation (discussed earlier)

20. Organization of Training
• Microcycles: training sessions that make up
a complete, recurrent fragment
• Mesocycles: aggregate of several
microcycles of one type
• Macrocycles: includes 3 periods:
– Preparation
– Competition
– Transitional

21. Types of Microcycles
• Ordinary Training
• Shock Training
• Introductory Training (aka pre-comp)
• Competitive (competition and lead-up)
• Rehabilitative

22. Microcycle Volume and Load
• Volume and Load Guidelines:
– Microcycles usually characterized by constant
intenstiy
– Inverse relationship between volume and load

23. Sample Ordinary Microcycle,
80% intensity
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
M T W R F
Intensity

24. Mesocycles
• Allow one to realize the sum effect of
microcycles.
• Most common microcycle organization:
– Ordinary - Ordinary - Shock - Rehab

25. Types of Mesocycles
• Involving: 1st phase of preparation period
– 2 to 3 ordinary microcycles + a rehab
microcycle
– low intensity and high volume
– biggest share of general prep exercises

26. Involving Mesocycle
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Ord1 Ord2 Ord3 Rehb4
Intensity
Volume

27. Types of Mesocycles, Cont.
• Base: main type seen in prep period
– Variants:
• Ordinary - Ordinary - Shock - Rehab
• Shock - Ordinary - Shock - Rehab
• Stabilizing: Ordinary - Ordinary (2 micro’s)

28. Base Mesocycle
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
Mi1(O) Mi2(O) Mi3(S) Mi4(R)
Intensity
Volume

29. Types of Mesocycles, Cont.
• Control-Prep: transition between
preparation and competition phases
• Higher intensity, more special prep
exercises, low volume
– Ordinary (Shock) - Ordinary - Competitive -
Competitive

30. Control-Prep (higher intensity)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Mi1(S) Mi2(O) Mi3(C) Mi4(C)
Intensity
Volume

31. Types of Mesocycles, Cont.
• Other types:
– Pre-Comp Mesocycle
– Competitive
– Rehab

32. Macrocycles
• Generally include three periods and are
designed around a peak.
• Some years have a single peak, some two
(double periodization), some more.
• Organized into periods:
– Prepatory
– Competitive
– Transitional

33. Periods
• Prepatory: Developing all the qualities
needed for success. The bulk of the training
year.
• Competition: Preparing for competition and
competing, the peak.
• Transition: Rest and recovery after comp.

34. Macrocycles
• Are generally put together so that intensity
is increasing over time while volume
decreases.
• Competition period sees the greatest
intensity and lowest volume.

35. Macrocycles, Single Peak,
Lengths of Periods
• Prep period: 5-7 months
• Comp period: 4-5 months
• Transition: 3-6 weeks
• Plan competitions around training!

36. Prepatory Period
• 5-7 months
• Variants (types of mesocycles):
– Involving - Base - Base (with precomp)
– Involving - Base (GPP) - Base (SPP) -
PreComp

37. 6 Month Prepatory Period
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Meso1 Meso2 Meso3 Meso4 Meso5 Meso6
Intensity
Volume

38. Prep Period, More Detailed
6 Month Prep Period
0
20
40
60
80
100
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23
Week
Intensity

39. Competitive Period
• 4-5 months
• Variants:
– Comp - Comp - Rehab/Train - Comp

40. Sample Comp Period
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Meso1 Meso2 Meso3 Meso4
Intensity

41. Marcocycles, Multiple Peak,
Lengths of Periods
• Prep Period: 3-4 months
• Comp Period: 1.5-2 months
• Trans: 3-4 weeks

42. Prepatory Period
• 3-4 months per macrocycle
• Variants:
– Involving - Base - PreComp
– Base(GPP) - Base (SPP) - PreComp

43. Competitive Period
• 1.5-2 months per macrocycle
• Comp - Train - Train - Comp

44. Matveyev’s model; volume and
load

45. Annual Plan, Sample (from Nadori)

46. Matveyev, Conclusion
• Where everything came from
• Book is a general physical education textbook
• Little advice on how to apply the concepts
• Arbitrary rules and principles
• May or may not apply to us
• Little scientific basis
• More shortcomings later!

47. Applying Periodization

48. Steps for Applying Periodization
• Constructing an annual plan
• Constructing periods and phases
• Constructing mesocycles
• Constructing microcycles
• Examples of applying periodization

49. Constructing the Annual Plan
• When are the competitions?
– Will there be more than one peak?
• Will there be more than one macrocycle?
– How long will the competitive season be?
• How long will post-competition be?
• Remainder of time is prep

50. Examples
• College Football
• College Track & Field

51. When are the Competitions?
• College Football:
– Games on Saturdays (mostly)
– September - November
– 12 weeks of games
– One peak per year (Sep-Nov)

52. Football: Dividing the Year
• One peak, monocycle
• 12 weeks of games
• Add 4 weeks to comp
period for August
practice
• Comp period: 16
weeks
• Transition period: 5
weeks after last game
(through 1st week of
Jan)
• Prep period: 2nd week
of Jan - August (~29
weeks)

53. Football: Monocycle
Period: Prepatory Period Competitive Period Tran
s
Phase: General Prep Special Prep Pre
Com
p
Comp Tran
s
Month J
a
n
Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

54. Periods and Phases
• Once the timeline for the periods and
phases have been laid out, make some
general decisions about what training
qualities will be emphasized in each.

55. Periods and Phases: Football
Prep Comp Transition
General Prep Special Prep Pre Comp Comp Transition
Hypertrophy High High/Med Low Low Low
Strength Medium High Medium/LowHigh/MediumLow
Power Low Medium Medium High Low
Speed Low Medium High Medium Low
Agility Low Medium Medium High Low

56. Periods & Phases
• Qualities with a “high” emphasis will see
the most training sessions, or the most
intense training, etc.
• Once you’ve determine the content, draw
up very rough guides about the types of
exercises, # of sessions/week, volume, and
intensity for each period and phase - keep it
general though!

57. Periods & Phases, cont.
Prep Comp Trans
GenPrep SpecPrep PreComp Comp Trans
Hypertrophy 4-5x/week
Multi-joint &
isolation free
weights
3 sets x 8-15 reps
60-80% 1-RM
3-4x/week
Multi-joint free
weights
3-5 sets x 8-15
reps
60-80% 1-RM
1-2x/week
Multi-joint free
weights
3 sets x 12-15 reps
60-70% 1-RM
1-2x/week
Multi-joint free
weights
3 sets x 12-15 reps
60-70% 1-RM
1-2x/week
Isolation
3sets
12-20
reps
50-70%
Strength 2-3x/week
Multi-joint free
weights
3-5 sets x 6-10
reps
70-85% 1-RM
3-4x/week
Multi-joint free
weights
3-5 sets x 4-8 reps
75-90% 1-RM
1-3x/week
Multi-joint free
weights
3 sets x 2-8 reps
75-95% 1-RM
2-4x/week
Multi-joint free
weights
3-5 sets x 1-6 reps
80-100% 1-RM
Power 1-2x/week
Olympic lifts
3 sets x 3-4 reps
60-75% 1-RM
2-3x/week
Olympic lifts
3 sets x 2-4 reps
60-80% 1-RM
2-3x/week
Olympic lifts
3 sets x 2-4 reps
60-80% 1-RM
3-4x/week
Olympic lifts
3-5 sets x 2-4 reps
70-90% 1-RM
Other
sports 2-
3x/week
Speed 1-2x/week
Falling starts
Technique
3-5x10-60 yards
2-3x/week
Standing &
Position Starts
Technique
Acceleration
Conditioning
2x3-5x10-60 yards
3-5x/week
Starts
Technique
Acceleration
Max. Velocity
Conditioning
2-3x/week
Starts
Technique
Acceleration
Max. Velocity
Conditioning
Other
sports 2-
3x/week
Agility 1-2x/week
Technique
2-3x/week
Technique
Combination
2-3x/week
Technique
Combination
Reactive
3-4x/week
Combination
Reactive
Other
sports 2-
3x/week

58. More Detailed Planning
• Once this has been
done, determine how
many 2-6 week
mesocycles will be in
each phase.
• Plan the first
mesocycle in detail
and the phase in
principle.
• As you progress 1/2
way through the first
mesocycle, plan the
second in detail, etc.
• As you progress 1/2
way through the
phase, plan the next
phase in principle.

59. Example, Football
• General Prep: 16 weeks (4 mesocycles)
• Special Prep: 12 weeks (3 mesocycles)
• Pre-Comp: 4 weeks (1 mesocycle)
• Comp: 12 weeks (3 mesocycles)
• Transition: 4 weeks (1 mesocycle)

60. General Prep, Planning in
Principle
• Mesocycle 1: Get back in shape, welcome back to
training; lower volume (4x/week) and
intensity(~65%), lots of exercise variety
• Mesocycle 2: Higher volume (8-15 reps/set), more
weight training sessions (5x/week)
• Mesocycle 3: Maintain volume, increase intensity
(~70%)
• Mesocycle 4: Maintain volume, increase intensity
(~75-80%), cycle in special prep exercises

61. Mesocycle I: Peaks
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Micro1 Micro2 Micro3 Micro4
Hypertrophy
Strength
Power

62. Microcycle I: Peaks
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
M T W R F Sa Su
Hypertrophy
Strength
Power
Speed
Agility

63. Microcycle I: Workouts
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
Focus Lower Body Upper Body Speed/Agility Lower Body Upper Body
Weights Power Clean, h,
AK; 3x4x60%
Leg Press, 3x8
Lunges, 3x8
Leg Extensions,
3x10
Leg Curls, 3x10
Calf Raises, 3x10
Core
Push Jerk,
3x4x65%
Bench Press,
3x8x75%
Dips, 3xMax
Bent Over Rows,
3x8
Pushdowns, 3x10
Curls, 3x10
Back Squats,
3x8x75%
Step Ups, 3x8
RDL’s, 3x8
Leg Curls, 3x8
Calf Raises, 3x8
Core
Incline Press,
3x8x65%
SS: Dips & Push-
Ups
Pull-Ups / Pull-
Downs, 3x8
3-in-1 Shoulders,
3x10
Curls, 3x10
Speed N/a N/a Ankling, 2x10
yards
Butt Kicks, 3x10
yards
High Knee, 3x10
yards
Falling Starts,
3x20 yards
N/a N/a
Agility N/a N/a Shuffling, 3x10
yards
Backpedaling,
3x20 yards
Cutting, 3x10+10
yards
Zig Zags, 3x10
yards
N/a N/a

64. And So Forth!