Applied Sports Physiology
12 total study hours
Study format: four 3-hour modules with practical activities and a final applied assessment.
Description
Understand how the body supplies energy, responds to exercise, and adapts to training. Connect exercise intensity, fatigue, and recovery with practical sports-performance examples.
Audience
Coaches, athletes, exercise professionals, and sports science students.
Applied outcome
Interpret a sample athlete profile and explain the physiological rationale for training intensity and recovery.
Module 1: Energy systems and exercise demands
3 hours
Compare aerobic and anaerobic energy supply, identify the demands of endurance and intermittent sports, and match training examples to their main physiological demands.
Module activity: Classify three sample training sessions and explain which energy systems contribute and why.
Module 2: Cardiorespiratory responses and exercise intensity
3 hours
Explore heart-rate and oxygen-uptake responses, intensity domains, perceived effort, and the limits of common intensity estimates.
Module activity: Interpret a sample exercise-test profile and create an intensity guide with its assumptions and limitations.
Module 3: Adaptation, fatigue, and individual differences
3 hours
Connect progressive training with aerobic and muscular adaptation. Examine fatigue, environmental context, and why athletes respond differently to similar sessions.
Module activity: Compare two athlete profiles and explain plausible differences in response without making a medical diagnosis.
Module 4: Applied physiology case and final assessment
3 hours
Integrate energy demands, intensity, adaptation, and recovery in a practical athlete case. Review the quality of the evidence supporting each conclusion.
Module activity: Submit an athlete-profile interpretation and a short rationale for intensity and recovery choices.